10 Retro Games Due For A New Installment
Video games are the one medium where sequels are more often than not, regarded as better than the originals. While it’s rare to see a film or book sequel become more acclaimed than its predecessor, game sequels have a distinct advantage. Because of their interactive nature, gaming follow-ups can address problems that held the original title back such as imprecise controls, lack of content, or camera problems.
However, for varying economic and trivial reasons, many games don’t get the sequel that they deserve while countless franchises are milked for everything they’re worth. The following titles have remained dormant for about two decades despite their massive potential for a follow-up.
10 Panzer Dragoon Has Remained Grounded
Regarded by many as a spiritual successor to Space Harrier, Panzer Dragoon presented players with a unique post-civilization fantasy setting with ruins and iconography serving as brief glimpses of the world that came before. Three entries were flight-based rail shooters akin to Star Fox.
By holding the fire button, players could lock on to multiple targets at once and release it to dispatch them all. Unlike Nintendo’s franchise, players had to be wary of threats that came from the sides as well as the front and back. Saga shifted the genre to a JRPG, boasting an ambitious story with full voiceovers while Final Fantasy VII had none.
9 Darkstalkers Is Seemingly Dead And Buried
Despite a fervent fanbase, Darkstalkers has yet to rise from its grave. Its elaborate animations, the bizarre cast of characters, and trademark Capcom polish gave the series a huge cult following. While it’s been nearly 24 years since the last installment, characters such as Morrigan have made appearances in other crossover titles.
Former Capcom producer Yoshinori Ono has repeatedly voiced his wishes to make a new entry in the horror-fighting franchise. In 2013, an HD compilation of Night Warriors and Darkstalkers 3 was released digitally. Despite securing a spot on the top 10 in PlayStation Network’s sales charts, Ressurection’s financial performance fell below Capcom’s expectations.
8 The Time Has Come For The Chrono Series To Return
Square’s Chrono series was birthed by Hironobu Sakaguchi of Final Fantasy fame and Dragon Quest‘s Yuji Hori’s desire to develop something a bit more off the beaten path. Trigger deviated from many JRPGs at the time by eschewing random battles and allowing party members to combine their abilities for a singular attack.
It was also praised for its diverse cast of characters designed by Akira Toriyama of Dragon Ball fame. Cross‘ tone was considerably more somber while party members went for more of a quantity over quality approach. In addition, the series saw a visual novel called Radical Dreamers for the Super Famicom.
7 Loom’s Cliffhanger Remains Unresolved
Mostly remembered as that game that was referenced in Monkey Island, Loom had a unique approach to the graphic adventure genre. The game had no inventory to speak of. Instead, players solved puzzles with the power of spells that they learned throughout the adventure.
In one of the first examples of LucasArts’ design principle, players could not die at any point, removing the need for endless save-scumming. Unfortunately, though the game ends on a massive cliffhanger, LucasArts never released a follow-up. Brian Moriarty claimed he had two sequels planned, but he was busy with other projects at the time and no one else at the company was interested.
6 MediEvil Has Yet To Fully Rise From Its Grave
MediEvil put players in control of Sir Daniel Fortesque, a knight who died ignominiously in battle and was falsely hailed as a hero. After his resurrection by an evil wizard, he’s called upon by the gargoyles to redeem himself and become the true hero of Gallowmere. Players who collected all the chalices in MediEvil 2 were given a cliffhanger ending that teased a sequel.
However, only a PSP remake and a PlayStation 4 remaster would surface. While some of the design choices and controls had aged like a zombie, the humor, atmosphere, and soundtrack demonstrated how Sir Dan had earned his status as one of the great gaming heroes.
5 Jet Set Radio’s Future Is Uncertain
Taking inspiration from the burgeoning punk skater scene and incorporating a unique modern cel-shaded art direction, Jet Set Radio was a massive departure from Team Andromeda’s Panzer Dragoon series. Where the pro-skater series tasked players with performing tricks to accumulate as many points as possible within a certain time limit, this Dreamcast title had players tagging specific hotspots while avoiding the oppressive cops that tried to stop them.
A sequel on the Xbox addressed most of the issues of the original and eschewed the time limit altogether for a more nonlinear approach.
4 Eternal Darkness Sanity’s Requiem Has Remained Lost To Time
Developed by Silicon Knights before the studio ruined the last of its goodwill, Eternal Darkness Sanity’s Requiem for the GameCube mixed its Lovecraftian eldritch horror with a creative fourth-wall-breaking gimmick. The game is infamous for its sanity meter which would deplete when players spotted a creature or failed to dispatch them.
Once the sanity meter is drained, the game would start playing tricks on players by presenting them with startling hallucinations or even telling them that their save file has been deleted. While many GameCube titles have been granted HD ports, Eternal Darkness has been largely lost to time.
3 Parappa The Rapper Was One Of The PlayStation’s Key Titles
The granddaddy of rhythm games, Parappa the Rapper for the PlayStation tasked players with solving everyday problems in the young pup’s life by rapping. Scenarios involved learning how to drive, baking a cake, and trying to cut through a line to use the restroom. The game’s success spawned a spinoff called Um Jammer Lammy and a follow-up on the PlayStation 2.
While the former was well-received for its additional modes and increased challenge, it was clear that the formula was starting to wear a bit thin with Parappa the Rapper 2. While the original’s been remastered for the PlayStation 4, a new game is sorely missing.
2 F-Zero Is Another Neglected Nintendo Franchise
Hailing from the Super Nintendo, F Zero was a futuristic racing game where players controlled hovercrafts in outlandish courses. F-Zero X for the Nintendo 64 wasn’t really regarded as a looker with its low poly models, but it ran at a consistent performance and boasted high octane racing action.
F-Zero GX for the GameCube was one of the first collaborations between Nintendo and Sega with Amusement Vision developing the title. It’s widely regarded as the entry on hardware that could do the series justice. Despite some GBA spinoffs, it’s been far too long since a proper console F-Zero title.
1 Mega Man Legends 3 Was Cancelled Following Inafune’s Departure
The Legends sub-series was a more narrative-heavy take on the Blue Bomber with quirky characters and a more intricate plot. After three titles on the original PlayStation, the series laid dormant for many years. Mega-Man Legends 2 ended with Volnutt trapped on another planet, setting up a sequel that was under development for the 3DS.
Unfortunately, the departure of Keji Inafune seemingly doomed both the title and the Prototype Version which was to serve as the game’s prologue. Capcom’s UK Twitter account did not help matters when they attributed the game’s cancellation to a lack of fan feedback.