10 Times Video Game Spiritual Successors Were Better Than Official Sequels

Blue Sky's Underworld series deserves far more credit than it ever received. Without this dungeon simulator, we may have never gotten Deus Ex or BioShock. It also laid the foundation for Blue Sky's later work, including System Shock and Command & Conquer.

Gaming designer Raphael Colantonio, was such a fan, he decided his company's first game would be a love letter to Underworld. In fact, Colantino strongly considered making Underworld III until he realised he would have more freedom if he developed a new property. 

Despite being a commercial failure, Arkane Studio's debut title was heavily praised, particularly for its sound design, compelling story, focus on atmosphere, intuitive spell system, and superb voice-acting. Most importantly, Arx Fatalis nailed the nostalgia, making fans pine for an Underworld sequel even more.

So, when OtherSide Entertainment announced another Underworld was in the works, it sounded like a dream come true.

However, saying Underworld Ascendent fell short of expectations doesn't do it justice. This broken sequel suffers from a widely unfair save system, atrocious enemy AI, and rampant bugs. Due to its unfinished state, some critics like Rock, Paper, Shotgun refused to review it. With a Metacritic score of 37%, it's no surprise the developers haven't made a single game since.

Arx Fatalis was far from perfect but it was leagues ahead of Underworld's official sequel.