8 Video Game Franchises That Ruined Their Identity

What is Call of Duty in 2023? While it used to run annually with three developers each getting three years to make new entries into their own sub-franchises, now it's an all-hands-on-deck affair with every developer across Activision contributing to one release each year just to get it over the line.

Not only has that led to a strange release schedule, where Modern Warfare 2 is immediately followed a year later by Modern Warfare 3, but that many warring creative voices have naturally led to the series feeling disparate and lacking cohesion.

Take the beloved Zombies mode. Once a Treyarch speciality, the mode has since become a standard COD staple, with new versions of it being included in a bunch of sub-franchises, whether it makes sense or not. Gone is the overarching story and natural mechanical progression of its original inclusion in Treyarch games, and in its place is just "a Zombies mode" thrown in any new release lacking in content.

And then there's Warzone. What started off as a PUBG-killer has slowly morphed into Fortnite. While COD games have had wacky crossovers and out-there skins for years, the volume of this pop-culture crossover in what's otherwise a grounded Battle Royale experience has gotten outrageous.

Fans are just getting over the inclusion of The Boys skins and superpowers when they're about to be hit with the next season, which boasts skins for Snoop Dogg and Nicki Minaj.

Where these used to be fun one-off events, they're now the norm.