10 Franchises That Should Go on Hiatus

GR's DeShaun Zollicoffer writes:

"You can have too much of a good thing. In the video game industry most publishers don’t know when to put a profitable franchise on hold, instead they milk it until it becomes irrelevant or broken. Here are ten gaming franchises that should go on hiatus for a few years."

[DrFUD]

I agree with all of them except Call of Duty.

At this point I view COD as a sport and every year's release is a new season.

And going back to play past titles online is like playing in different leagues where there are slight differences but the game is still the same - you can play basketball in Europe and it's still the same game as playing in the NBA.

[ATi_Elite]

BF had been on hiatus for 7 years until this October. I'm not waiting another 7 years for it again. I expect a huge expansion pack next October! and another one October after next!

all other titles just wait the normal 2 or 2 and a half years between games. I'm sure Mass Effect will go on break for a while to cook up something big for the NextGen.

Except Call of Duty cause it is what it is... a yearly event like Madden.

[Aloren]

2002 Battlefield 1942
2003 Battlefield 1942: The Road to Rome
2003 Battlefield 1942: Secret Weapons of WWII
2004 Battlefield Vietnam
2005 Battlefield 2
2005 Battlefield 2: Special Forces
2005 Battlefield 2: Modern Combat
2006 Battlefield 2: Euro Forces
2006 Battlefield 2: Armored Fury
2006 Battlefield 2142
2007 Battlefield 2142: Northern Strike
2008 Battlefield: Bad Company
2009 Battlefield Heroes
2009 Battlefield 1943
2010 Battlefield: Bad Company 2
2010 Battlefield: Bad Company 2: Vietnam
2010 Battlefield Online
2011 Battlefield Play4Free
2011 Battlefield 3

[AngryTypingGuy]

Especially if the game is story driven, it's important to give them a rest. Assassin's Creed is already suffering from overexposure. Although in an industry that's expensive to make your product, as well as risky...you can't blame the game companies for wanting to milk their cash cows. But then again, at what price? Overexposure could prove to be more costly in the end.

[gaffyh]

I actually agree with all of them, Naughty Dog needs to do a new IP for PS4 now, and maybe a HD Jak & Daxter for next year because apparently Sony are targeting a younger audience next year.

[crxss]

no, just no. what a terrible article...

the author's assuming we're like him and play every single one of these franchises. i doubt there are many people who've played EVERY single one of these so why should their favorite games be put on hiatus? plain stupid. plus, games like Halo, Uncharted, Mass Effect, Gears, God of War, and Fable (6/10) don't even come out with a game every year.

smh DeeZee, for everyone's sake just stop submitting/writing these.

[Skip_Bayless]

If any of these games were able to make a leap in graphics then I would take it, but due to system limitations we're getting games that look and play the same.

[malol]

@Aloren
yah why did you list all the damn DLC and half of those is free too
i can do the same for COD and since each one has like 3 or 4 DLC
its going to be a massive list

[darthv72]

"We get it—Xbox fans love first person shooters! But after the release of Halo 4 Microsoft needs to come up with another one.

Yeah its called Halo 5 and 6. It has already been stated this is a new trilogy. The 3rd game of the previous trilogy was in 07 so how long of a hiatus do they want? This one comes out in 2012.

Maybe the author doesnt get the idea of milking. Mario would be a perfect example of milking because not only is there the main mario game series but all sorts of spin-offs. Ranging from sports to RPG to pinball to fighters.

And this guy is worried about Halo 4????

Gears will take a break until the next gen engine is ready to rev up the action. Wow this guy didnt pull any punches. God of war too...sheesh.

The uncharted series is so good you dont want it to end but then you dont want it to end up like the tomb raider series.

[ATi_Elite]

I got 23 disagrees......
but most post go on to say the same thing i said. that the majority of the titles don't come out every year (I said 2 or 2 1/2 year in between titles).

if you want these titles to go away for awhile well your full of Shite cause they are good games and i want good games NOW!

the money these titles have made can easily pay for a new team to make a new I.P. while another team cranks out the bread winner.

Call of Duty.....lets face it like many others ALSO have said....it's a yearly thing like Madden and 15+ million gamers love it every year.

Devs/Pubs are not gonna just stop making these hot titles until gamers stop buying them. That's like Ford not making trucks anymore or Honda stop selling the Accord.

As long as gamers are buying these titles in the multiple millions they will continue to sell. Look at Halo for example: Bungie wanted to do something else but 5 million plus every release....No way you can stop. So 343i will be cranking out Halo until Xbox fans stop buying them.

you guys should be thankful and happy to get your favorite title every year or every 2.5 years cause:

12 years since Diablo 2
5 years since HL2 ep2
12 years between Starcraft 1 and 2
3 years Since STALKER COP
5 years since Guild Wars 1
9 years since Planetside 1

So stop Crying!!

[Aloren]

@malol because ATI_Elite said BF had been on a hiatus for 7 years, which is obviously not the case. Even leaving out DLCs, there's been 5 standalone BF games just on 360 in the last 6 years.

IMO, that doesn't qualify as a hiatus.

[Persistantthug]

For the puerile I suppose.

[MaxXAttaxX]

Not literally a sport.
But COD is like sports games. Released year after year with minor improvements.
Yes, it's at that level now.

[kneon]

Actually COD is one of the ones I agree with. They need to stop with the yearly releases, as should AC.

A release schedule of a new game every 2-3 years is fine, no need for longer gaps. But few games can sustain yearly releases for long without going downhill.

[brettyd]

i actually look at COD the same way haha, its like a sport.

[showtimefolks]

Uncharted 3 should be the last uncharted game on ps3. ND are extremely talented let them do a JAK or a new ip for ps3. Than bring out uncharted 4 within 18months of launch of ps4.

Gears series needs a breather also

AC UBI is a one game pony at this point, but in 2012 they have few good tit les so we will see but after this next AC game in fall 2012, UBI needs to make it go away and really work on AC 3 for 2-3 years. But knowing them expect one every year till it stops selling

Resistance series should get some rest and launch with ps4 done by a different studio

Killzone 4 needs to come within 18 months of ps4 launch so show what the tech can deliver

Those are the only 5 from top of my head

I am a huge Sony fan so if I like to see some of these very talented studios do something dregs every game is up to 3. Even ratchet and clank had 3 games on ps3.

Fable also comes to mind but the next one look very casual with kinect so not really caring

COD and battlefield along with medal of honor will come out every year done by a different studio like sports games.

One year is COD MW and BF
Next it's COD and MOH

[BinaryMind]

Why would anyone want the guys at 343 to make an original ip? We don't even know if they can make a good game yet (a remastering of Halo: CE is hardly any indication). Bungie actually left Microsoft for the sole reason of creating something new.

[e-p-ayeaH]

Tenchu as been going on a hiatus i want it back.

[ATi_Elite]

you know with all the FPS crap coming out it just boggles the mind that a great Tenchu game hasn't been made along with a Shinobi game.

Good to see Ninja Gaiden coming.

I do know for a while Activision held the Tenchu license but they sold it to "From Software" who made a couple of titles but Tenchu needs a big time studio to do it right.

the tech and fanbase is there. I just hope someone gives us more quality Stealth ninja games or just Ninja Games period.

[Pikajew]

"After Mass Effect 3 Bioshock should take a break from the series."

I didn't know Bioshock made made Mass Effect

[Saladfax]

A common mistake. It's published by Rockband North.

[orange-skittle]

I think he meant BioWare. Doesnt this idiot know that Mass Effect 3 is the end of the trilogy. They are already working on another IP. Try reading gaming news from now on

[SephirothX21]

Lol. Funniest comment I've seen on this site. You've made my day.

[dragonyght]

it think he mean bioware

[cervantes99]

Publishers will only put a series to rest when they are no longer profitable. If gamers want a series put on hiatus then they will quit buying it.

So basically this author wants every major franchise from this generation put to bed. That sounds like a great idea for industry disaster. Just because I may be tired of game A or game B does not mean other are as well.

Sales determine when a game has overstayed its welcome.

[playboi28]

But with the current state of things, if nobody buys it, a new one will never be released. While it's true that several series have gotten reboots later, a large percentage of them have been shelved indefinitely because of poor sales.

Also, too many reviewers give games that belong to great IP's inflated scores. This does not help publishers know that their product is becoming over-saturated.

[Hazmat13]

why the hell is uncharted on the list? if you just re release the same shit i would understand for them to stop. (call of duty) but its new with uncharted different setting, people, mission and different feel. but dont go all halo or call of duty on our ass, ND.

[MsclMexican]

By hiatus he means that they should stop making uncharted for a while.... make something else... then come back to uncharted so we all OMGWTFBBQ.

Look at the Elder Scrolls.... 5 year hiatus and look what happened

Imagine when Half Life 3 comes out

0_0

[P_Bomb]

Doesn't always work that way though.

Bionic Commando, Duke Nukem, Wolfenstein, Final Fantasy, Medal of Honor, Dead to Rights, Golden Axe, Alone in the Dark...all returned this gen' from a hiatus to less than exemplary results.

[death2smoochie]

@h3llraiser

First off...this is N4G.COM...Saying ANYTHING that may seem Anti-PS3 will get you in.....
I said too much.....

[Muitnorts]

I agree with him. The Uncharted franchise is my favourite of the generation, but I want it to take a long break now.
ND can focus on something totally new and exciting then take us back to these character next gen and blow us away.
It's inevitable that if they stick with the 2 year cycle the law of diminishing returns will kick in.

[KUV1977]

If you see Uncharted as a multiplayer game then maybe there is reason to complain but as far as a story based game goes i didn't complain that the third Indiana Jones still wielded a whip, was hunting lost treasures and was even played by Harrison Ford who looked the same freaking way he did in the first movie. So, as long as the story is good and the gameplay is fun i don't mind another part. Also i prefer, no i demand, that they keep it linear too. Just look at Arkham City. Sure everyone loves it but I personally think the city is just empty and heartless and the constant grappling and gliding between actual stuff is so annoying and boring that i sure as hell won't bother for platinum and i will buy a third part as a budget title. And i really loved the first game...

[DudeJets]

Wtf # BF? Thats the only one they have done this gen.
This article is actually pretty shocking
#facepalm

[Max Power]

Disagree for the hashtag.

[ShAkKa]

#facepalm is trending now on N4G.

[TheEatingVodka]

LOL.. So you want them to stop making pretty much every game that sells?
Not to mention that AC, Halo, Fable, Uncharted, GEOW and Battlefield are the best franchises this generation..

[aPerson]

Fable doesn't need to go on a hiatus - it just needs a good game!

[NeoTribe]

Agree with all but fable. That game needs to go die.

[Burning_Finger]

The author should stop writing in general. IMO, all first person shooting games should cease to exist for at least 1-2 years.

[PetitPiPi]

What about third person? lol

[acemonkey]

kinda agree with some Halo,Gears,AC( i really dislike them games for some reason) but Call of duty is a FPS that people love to hate thats why they want it gone,BF games they could take it away idc either way...Mass Effect never played them so i have no room to talk....N4S nope i love them Hot Pursuits are great....Fable yes them games for a RPG is way to easy seems like you cant die in them games.....God of War i love them games so nope...Uncharted i have to play the 3rd for a verdict but it was a 1st and 2sec was great game

[D3mons0ul]

Glad they didn't say FF. There is much work to be done there, no time for breaks.

[h311rais3r]

Sweet more disagrees! Lol u ps3 fanboys r worse than xbots...I stated something that has proof. And still. Flamed and disagreed with even though there is nothing to disagree with.

@trouble

If u knew anything about halo at all you would know iron sights are not needed due to the weapons electronics linking with the helmets o the soldiers. Nice try though. Besides how do iron sights make a good game? Oh and zooming on the FAL? Oops I forgot the DMR does not do that... By our logic cod is better than half life 2. Iron sights would not work in halo anyway. And what do u mean by new melee system? It's the same thin with new animations... I'm not praising halo just using it as adding content. Uncharted is good. But the sequel (3) didn't really do anything special...

[Virus201]

I agree with what you have been saying since your first comment on this article. However there is no way to tell ps3 fanboys that are living by a religion where they worship Uncharted that the game is flawed. I personally hate the controls in tight area (you become a wall magnet) but I don't talk about it on this site because everyone pretends that the game is perfect. I won the game from the subway promotion, beat it and haven't touched it since because it has no replay value unless you're a trophy whore. The game also has some issues when loading (I dont know if others have experienced this) where the game would just stay in the loading screen and I had to restart my ps3.

At the end of the day every game has flaws. However there are flaws in Uncharted 3 that are ignored by people on this site who claim that the game is perfect. Just go to the Naughty Dog Uncharted 3 forums and in some of the threads there are people talking about what is wrong with the game (hoping it will be fixes).

[smashcrashbash]

Just give it up for God sake. Many gamers ignore the flaws in their favorite games because they accept them. Many gamers pretend that their games are perfect no matter what anyone says.

I have said it over and over again that Gears 2 A.I. was crap.Enemies jumped from behind cover while I was shooting at them, allies ran out on the field while being shot at and got riddled with bullets and i had to run out there and help them. But no one cared.

Why do people feel that you must constantly moan and b***h about everything? Do you think that you are being helpful by nitpicking every detail? Just play the game for God sake and stop the whining. Why does everyone prod and poke and ND and Insomniac and not do it to people that deserve it like Bethesda and EA. they make broken games all the time and people still buy them like ice cream on a hot day.

[KUV1977]

I like Uncharted a lot but i actually think that the first part was overall the best. I think gameplay-wise every iteration has become better and i don't see a lot of problems with it. But story-wise they shoot more holes in the plot every new time around. The flaws were moderate in U2 but really substantial in U3, which is sad because i play it for the story. Still i think it's one of the best, most fun games of this year.

[JimboG]

Pretty ironic how was i was studying "Hiatus" for SAT, and BOOM! There it is. Go uncharted btw

[Venjense]

Pretty much every franchise that had 3 or more iteration this gen

....so pretty much every major franchise.

[sdplisken]

call o duty needs like a ten year break

[Mykky]

I actually agree with all of them. As much as I liked Uncharted 3 I didn't like it as much as Uncharted 2. Uncharted 3 is just as good but Uncharted 2 was such a surprise. I want them to wait for next generation, because I don't see how they could improve much more on it.

I hope some serious changes happens to AC 3! I am utterly bored of the same gameplay system in AC 2, Brotherhood and Revelations. It's not fun anymore.
I am hoping for a graphic update and some new gameplay mechanics in AC3. Hope they take their time and don't rush it to get it out next year.

[n4gisatroll]

Ya...I really hope they don't screw up AC3. It needs to be in a new time, and should have some graphical update, new gameplay, not just thongs rehashed from all the expansions of AC2.

[Yui_Suzumiya]

They need to stop making GTA games. Worst series ever made.

[Wintersun616]

WWE games need to take a break and be rebuilt from the ground up for next generation systems.

[DC1980]

I wish Yuke's would make another Wrestle Kingdom game instead, this time for the PS3 and the Vita. To me Japanese Puroresu (Japanese Pro Wrestling for you non rasslin fans out there) is far superior to anything that WWE or TNA delivers.

[Bleach]

Sony franchises should NEVER go on hiatus, they are the only source of quality in the industry.

[Bolts]

N4G would be so much better if fanboys would go on a hiatus.

[_Aarix_]

In the words of bender, hahaha,oh wait youre serious, let me laugh even harder HAHAHAHAH.

(I dont disagree they have quality but im laughing at his comment.)

[bobrea]

It's kind of disappointing to see people who have just accepted that CoD is a yearly installment to be shoved in our face every year. You should never become complacent with something you don't like. That being said, this article is stupid. Bloggers who think their word is gospel. I wouldn't be opposed to more of some of these franchises, but as someone else has stated, in story-driven games it can ruin the experience, but it all depends on how good the team making the games are.

[Pintheshadows]

I like new things so seeing most of these go on a break would be good. It might make room for the developers new ideas or just pave the way for games that were put on hold. For example, Uncharted on a break, we might see 8 days.

[Darrius Cole]

The only game that I do agree with is Call of Duty. Activision is better off with a Call of Duty every year. The industry is better off if Call of Duty is released every other year.

I talk to lots of young gamers who don't know anything about video games other than Call of Duty. They don't know any other game. What's worse is that they don't get to experience any other game because they spend their time playing Call of Duty, and every year there is a new Call of Duty.

If you are 15 or 16 in 2011, then you don't really remember the PS2 generation. You don't know Metal Gear Solid. You don't know how great Halo was when it released; you may not even know Halo 3 as it released in 2007 and you were 11. You don't really know any 3-D fighters. You know 1 Final Fantasy(FF13) and 1 Resident Evil(RE5).

I think the industry and young gamers especially would be better off if COD gave them time to discover other genres. If Call of Duty skipped a year, then some of these kids would have to get a different game for Christmas. Most of them would discover a new game or a new genre that they like.

[SuperStrokey1123]

I agree and disagree with all of them. First of all they should go on hiatus to the next gen and make a real large leap forward, but on the other hand most of these are good games and should stay.

[A LIVING LEGEND]

Venjense nailed it down imo.
3+ of any game series within 5 years is overkill.Creativity stagnates as the mind counts money.

[n4gisatroll]

Call me crazy, because I really do believe uncharted is the best new franchise this generation, but I think Sony should just let it sit around for a few years. The span between 1 and 2 was three years, and the span between 2 and 3 was just under two years by days. I love uncharted 3, but I think they should atleast take a longer time bringing out the next uncharted. They can start planning it, but, they should take a longer time. Now we have 2 uncharted games to play online with, and honestly I'm still on uncharted 2. I dunno, I would of added games like Mario and Zelda, but, then Nintendo won't put out anything exclusive. Which is a shame they won't create new ips.

[NeloAnjelo]

How about articles that should go on Hiatus... this one for instance.

[InTheLab]

Umm...what? Try

Dragon Ball Z
Naruto
Dynasty Warriors
Pokemon
Spider-Man
007
Mario
Sonic
Assassin's Creed
CoD
Battlefield and it's spinoffs.
Casual Dance games like Just Dance, Dance Central...

So basically, all of the annual cash cows.

You probably didn't even notice the Annual status of Spider-Man. It is Activision, after all.

[DC1980]

MLB 2K series, MLB The Show hits it out of the park.

[godofboobees]

Chrono trigger has been on hiatus. I need my fix!!!

[Grave]

Half-Life should be on that list...

I kid, I kid! :-)

[kramun]

Bloody hell, I actually agree with all of them, and his reasons.

That doesn't happen often on n4g.

[PS3Forevs]

That will never happen with call of duty.. and as for uncharted and assassins creed i agree. But this guy is an idiot, he says halo and gears.. OK???? they're released like once every 2 years at most