10 Video Games That Only Exist Because Of Nostalgia

In 2008, Fallout 3 was released an entire decade after the last instalment in the series, and was praised almost unanimously by critics. To date, the game is considered one of the finest games of the previous generation, and is often credited with saving the franchise from oblivion, as well as reimagining the core concept for an all new generation of players.

With that said, Fallout 3 was undoubtedly a departure for the series, and many of the game’s most prominent changes left longtime fans out in the cold. For one thing, the game was no longer turn-based, which upset a good many people. The game’s perspective was also shifted from top-down to a more conventional first-person viewpoint, creating a vastly dissimilar experience from Fallout and Fallout 2. While many people approved of these changes wholeheartedly, there were some who preferred the style of the originals.

In 2007, inXile Entertainment reacquired the rights to Wasteland from Konami, and set about developing a sequel to the 1988 original. Released in 2013, Wasteland 2 was heavily inspired by the likes of Fallout 1 & 2, and is consequently regarded as a spiritual successor. The game itself reintroduced turn-based combat, and emphasised strategy and difficulty over a more general accessibility. The result was a genuinely fantastic game, and a commercial success.

Wasteland 2 was a throwback that appealed directly to fans of the first two Fallout games. In fairness, the rights to the series were reacquired from Konami in 2007, prior to the release of Fallout 3, but while the game may not have intended to capitalise on fans’ nostalgia, it did so in tremendous fashion. Wasteland 2 was seen as a genuine revival by some, and a worthwhile alternative to the likes of Bethesda’s Fallout 3.