The world is a cruel, cruel place. Franchises we’d love to see gain a new title have been shut down left and right, with studios citing budget cuts and lack of interest. It’s enough to make a grown woman cry :sniff: Though some of the games here have gotten either remakes or remasters, nothing beats a fresh plot while retaining the elements we know and love! With that said, here’s a list of 10 games we feel deserve sequels:
1. L.A. Noire
Released 7 years ago as a joint labour of love by Team Bondi and Rockstar, L.A. Noire puts you in the shoes of 1940s LAPD gumshoe Cole Phelps as he rises through the ranks and investigates the City of Angels’ seedy underbelly of crime. The technology used was so advanced at the time (motion capture for every individual point of visible facial emotion!), it was even featured by the Tribeca Film Festival. Rockstar has confirmed that they have plans for L.A. Noire II in motion, but don’t want to rush it.
2. Pokemon Snap
Possibly one of the best-selling Pokemon games of all time, it’s a sad fact of history that Pokemon Snap never got the continuation it deserved. Published in 1999, this is one of the first games in the franchise that didn’t exclusively focus on catching Pokemons and pitting them against each other (the American Humane Association approves). Wouldn’t it be super-cool if they brought back Snap, amalgamating features from Pokemon Go?
3. The Saboteur
This open-world sandbox is set in Nazi-occupied France, with a unique twist: the game’s palette starts out greyscale, but noticeably turns colourful as you rid an area of Nazi treachery. With so much GTA-style fun to be had, perhaps The Saboteur II: In Soviet Russia, Car Bombs You is in order? *snrk*
4. Eternal Darkness
Perfect for all you Resident Evil-heads, this horror adventure game was developed by Silicone Knights and released in 2002, winning multiple awards and accolades from the industry. However loyal the fanbase, though, there have been no plans by Nintendo or Silicone Knights to release a sequel (or at the very least, a remastered version of the game) on the Switch.
5. Enslaved: Odyssey to the West
Adapted from the classic 16th-century novel Journey to the West, this collaboration between Ninja Theory and Bandai Namco is set amidst a post-bellum world with the combat robot:human ratio being that of New Zealand’s sheep:human ratio today, you are tasked with missions aimed at keeping the human race from dying out. The game ends with a sort of cliffhanger, however considering the original novels had sequels written to it, there’s bound to be a second Enslaved game.
6. Okami
Declared by IGN to be 2006’s Game of the Year, Okami’s trippy tour through Japanese legends and mythology has seen it remastered in 2012 for the PlayStation 3, but so far, there has been no news as to the franchise’s continuation.
7. Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy
Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy is a third-person shooter from Midway Games with supernatural themes, with the plot heavily relying on the protagonist’s psychic powers and their effects. Player-world interaction opportunities are unbounded, making this one of those rare games that truly let the player do whatever they want. Sadly, as Midway has since shuttered, it’s unlikely we’ll see a second Psi-Ops, barring someone pulling a Square Enix on the franchise.
8. Perfect Dark
18 years ago, Rare Studios released Perfect Dark for the Nintendo 64. Joanna Dark (s/o to all my female protagonists) is vanquisher of the INVADERS FROM OUTER SPACE!!!!!!1 Even with all the positive plaudits for the Xbox 360 remaster that came out in 2010, Rare Studios still hasn’t come out and said, “Yo we gon make a Perfect Dark II”. STOP PULLING A VALVE, DAMMIT
9. Bulletstorm
As the grapevine has it, Epic Games’ tour de force Bulletstorm will NOT be getting a sequel soon, despite rumours to the contrary. The reason? The first game’s Full Clip Edition hasn’t been selling so well! Also, EA troubles. (Bastards!) Thus, fans can only hope that Bulletstorm II doesn’t end up languishing in development hell.
10. The Order: 1886
With a cliffhanger of an ending that’ll leave you not only biting your nails off, but your entire FSM-damned palms, Read at Down and SCE Santa Monica have really found a winning formula for getting people hyped for a second game. Come on, who doesn’t like to swashbuckle your way through downtown London while battling werewolves? I’m just imagining the second game now, a cross between the first’s plot intricacies and the Getaway: Black Monday’s map…mmm….[drooling intensifies]
