The video game industry has a bit of a sequel problem, but somehow, truly amazing franchises were forgotten about. Perhaps its a strategic “absence makes the heart grow fonder” mentality, or maybe a series started to get stale, but some popular games seem to be left dormant for years. The one thing we will say, however, is that nothing lasts forever in the video game industry, so nothing is ever really gone forever.
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Despite this, we still get excited when an old franchise gets revived. There’s something special when a game series comes back, and we want to celebrate that today. So, with that in mind, 10 gaming franchise comebacks we never saw coming.
10Sin & Punishment: Star Successor
Sin & Punishmentwas a pretty fun rail shooter on the Nintendo 64 but with other iconic titles likeStar Fox 64,Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, andSuper Mario 64, it got overshadowed. So, no one really expected a franchise comeback on the Wii. Yet, somehow it worked better on Nintendo’s motion-controlled console.
Developed by treasure,Sin & Punishment: Star Successorpicks up where the previous game left off, putting players in the shoes of the son of the protagonist in the original game or his mysterious friend. Taking inspiration fromSpace Harrier, the game is played from a third-person perspective, jumping between more open areas and 2D levels, all on-rail. It was surprisingly fun to play too, as the Wii’s motion controls lend itself perfectly to this style of game.
9Pac-Man Championship Edition
There was a point in time when Pac-Man was the face of gaming. The yellow ball’s simple gameplay of eating up dots and running away from ghosts was the biggest thing in arcades.Pac-Manmade its way over to consoles on the Atari 2600 and eventually NES, but when developers tried to expand the character into other types of games it never really worked.
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In 2007, Namco Bandai brought Toru Iwatani on — the man behind the originalPac-ManandPole Position— for one last hurrah with the yellow hero. The title harkened back to the franchise’s roots, putting Pac-Man back in a maze while ghosts chase him, but with a more modern twist that focuses on faster-paced gameplay and high scores.
8Donkey Kong Country Returns
Donkey KongCountrywas one of the best franchises on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Developed by Rare, the 2D platformer was equal parts beautiful and fun. Yet, by the time the Nintendo 64 released, developers focused on more 3D oriented games. That’s whenDonkey Kong Countrydied — or so we thought.
Without Rare, Nintendo turned to Retro Studios, who previously knocked it out of the park with theMetroid Primeseries — and it turned into one of the most iconic games on the Wii. With some insane difficulty, and brilliant level design,Donkey Kong Countrytropical freeze is a fantastic throwback to hard, but rewarding platformers. Since its release, Rare worked on a sequel for the Wii U, and with such insane popularity, we shouldn’t be surprised to see another on the Switch sometime soon.
Red Dead Revolverreleased in 2004 on the PlayStation 2 and original Xbox but originally, it was meant to be a spiritual successor to Capcom’sGun.Smoke. But when Rockstar Games' parent company Take-Two Interactive purchased Angel Studios, the developers working on the game, things kind of changed. The result was a solid story-driven action-adventure game with a really good story, but ultimately it was forgettable.
In 2010, however, Rockstar tried again with the franchise and gave usRed Dead Redemption. Putting players in the shoes of a hired gun whose taken on contracts for a the government following the kidnapping of his family, in the hopes of overthrowing said baddies, we were given a fantastic story with a massive world — essentially reviving the franchise.
6Tomb Raider
Tomb Raiderwas always a solid action-adventure franchise, but after so many years of the same thing, players were left wanting something more. They were given just that in 2013 with Crystal Dynamics’Tomb Raider. Serving as a reboot of the entire franchise, players were introduced to a more grounded, but equally as capable Lara Croft who is just beginning her career of raiding tombs. Trapped on a hostile island with only her wits and ability, she must try to escape while a terrifying cult is hot on her tail.
The gameplay, focusing more on survival, feels more grounded and realistic.It feels inspired by theUncharted series, and was easily the best in the franchise at the time. For the first time in a long time, the franchise felt new and fresh, making it the perfect direction for the series.
5Wolfenstein: The New Order
Muse Software’sWolfensteinwas revolutionary for its time, but despite several tries to keep the ball rolling, the franchise was never able to reach the heights of the original title. That is until iD software releasedWolfenstein: The New Order. Putting players in the shoes of the iconic B.J Blazkowicz in the middle of the Second World War, this game harkens back to an era of fast-paced shooting with challenging difficulty.
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No one saw this game coming, and it spawned an entirely new franchise ofWolfensteingames, allowing a whole new generation to fall in love with the series.
4Fire Emblem: Awakening
Fire Emblem,and the 3DS, were in a bad place before the release ofAwakening. With poor sales in the west, there was a good chance we wouldn’t see another entry in the series. Yet, in 2012 or 2013 — depending on which region you live in — that all changed.
Developers Intelligent Systems created a game that’s both deep and accessible while also staying true to the core fanbase. With a focus on relationship building, players will feel a bigger attachment to the characters than ever before — and this translates into combat as characters who trust each other perform better on the battlefield. This game is brilliant, and in many ways, it savedFire Emblem.
3StarCraft II: Wings Of Liberty
StarCraftwas one of the great RTS titles when it released in 1998. Much likeWarCraft,the game focused on resource gathering, army and defense building, the game became a hit, spawning a devout online community that was equal parts passionate and competitive. Despite this, however, it was over a decade before we got a sequel.
It’s understandable to think that, after so much time, there wouldn’t be another game in the series. Yet, in 2010, that’s exactly what we got. With an all-new campaign, revamped gameplay, and an intense online community, this franchise’s comeback was everything fans could have asked for.
2Doom (2016)
WhenDoom 3released in 2004, it changed a lot. Moving away from fast-paced action to slower horror, the game was fun, but not true to the franchise. So, the franchise sat for 12 years, until iD Software brought it back. Focusing on hyper-speed shooting, the game feels like more of a throwback but with modern visuals.
Putting players in the boots of an unnamed soldier in a colony on Mars, players must shoot their way through an invasion from Hell — literally. With insanely fun combat and a solo campaign that feels perfect, thisDoomremake shot some much-needed adrenaline back into the series, bringing it back in the best way imaginable.
1Shenmue III
As of this writing,Shenmue IIIhasn’t released, but with a launch date of June 29, 2025, it’s not far off. Yet, even as we approach that day, it still feels surreal that we’re getting it at all. The franchise started on the Sega Dreamcast and was intended to have multiple sequels, but that never happened. In fact, the adventure that sees a young martial artist search for his father’s killer and their motivation ended on a cliff hanger. The last game in the franchise released in 2001, meaning it’s been almost 20 years since we’ve stepped foot back into this universe, but with a little help from the fanbase, series creator Yu Suzuki managed to see his vision through.
We can’t comment on the quality of this game just yet, but the fact it’s happening at all is amazing in and of itself, making it one of the greatest franchise comebacks ever.
