10 Video Game Reboots That Buried Franchises ENTIRELY
Remember when every franchise tried to go dark and gritty?
Video game reboots are made to try and breathe new life into established franchises. Throughout the years, we've seen great examples such as Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and God of War (2018) who have succeeded in revitalizing their respective series and gaining new fans in the process.
But not all of these are built the same and sometimes, there are reboots that completely miss the mark. This can stem from numerous reasons such as departing too much from what made the games beloved in the first place or, in most cases, because the game suffers from technical issues. Regardless, these titles end up doing more harm to their franchise rather than good.
As we take a look across multiple video game generations, let us see which among these video game reboots were total duds that buried their series. These will range from complete revivals to soft reboots that attempted to bring their franchise into a new direction and failed horribly.
10. Alone in the Dark (2008)
The survival horror genre has spawned numerous video games such as Resident Evil and Silent Hill yet one series that has been forgotten over time is Alone in the Dark. Despite predating most of its peers, until recently the franchise remained largely dormant for years which can be attributed to its 2008 reboot.
On the surface, Alone in the Dark seems like a true next-gen experience for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 era. The graphics are well done, with the fire effects being some of the best during its time while the art style is effectively spooky.
However, the reboot suffers from trying to implement ambitious yet unrefined ideas that bring the experience down. The inventory system, a staple in the survival horror genre, allows the player to access the protagonist's jacket in real-time which adds a layer of realism but at the cost of feeling tedious. Melee combat using the analogue stick was novel at the time but does not work properly as it should due to it feeling sluggish.
Finally, the car physics are a nightmare as the vehicles have no weight to them and make exploration feel like a chore.
Alone in the Dark (2008) was clearly made with passion by the developers who wanted to try new things. But due to its execution, it failed to be the series comeback it sought to be.