5 Gaming Franchises That Need to Return

In the gaming world (and also in the movie world), remakes, reboots, and sequels happen all the time. Old, dormant IPs often get a second or even a third chance. And it seems that franchises once thought dead are brought back to life fairly consistently. However, that’s not the case for every IP. Some gaming franchises don’t seem to get the same opportunities that others do.

So, in this era of reviving old franchises, here are 5 Gaming IPs that need to get the same treatment.

5 Gaming Franchises That Need to Make a Comeback

1. Twisted Metal
2. Rayman
3. Banjo-Kazooie
4. Darkstalkers
5. F-Zero

1. Twisted Metal

Even though this franchise is flourishing as a TV show on the streaming service Peacock, Twisted Metal hasn’t had a new installment in its franchise since 2012 which still seems like a huge surprise to me. I would’ve put Twisted Metal as a PlayStation staple in the same realm as God of War, Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, etc.

And what makes this sting even more is that there is no real competitor to Twisted Metal that you can turn to instead. The vehicular combat genre isn’t exactly flourishing, so if you wanted to play games similar to Twisted Metal, there’s nowhere to turn.

P.S. While we’re on the subject of PlayStation games, it would be great to see another installment in the Infamous or even the Sly Cooper franchise.

2. Rayman

Oh Rayman fans, how I weep for you. Although Rayman the character pops up in other games such as the Rabbids series and the Mario + Rabbids series, it’s been quite a while since he’s had his own game. And no, I’m not including the mobile games that he’s had. The last installment in the Rayman series was Rayman Legends back in 2013.

It’s been a whole 11 years since we’ve jumped into the world of Rayman, and to put it very bluntly, the future of Rayman does not look good at all. Ubisoft does not seem interested in reviving the franchise at all, and Creative Director Davide Soliani, who worked at Ubisoft for 25 years and who was a huge advocate for Rayman, announced that he was leaving the company earlier this year.

It’s never say never, but I would definitely not hold my breath waiting for a new Rayman game.

3. Banjo-Kazooie

From one dormant platformer franchise to the next, Banjo-Kazooie is in a similar boat as Rayman. This gaming franchise made its debut on the Nintendo 64, and it seemed like it had great potential. And a lot of that potential was realized; I’m not going to sit here and act as if Banjo-Kazooie is a failure. But it’s been a long time since we’ve had a new game in the franchise.

We’ve had re-releases, so you can play Banjo-Kazooie on the Nintendo Switch if you have Nintendo Switch Online + the Expansion Pack or you can play the game and its two sequels on Xbox. You can also play as Banjo & Kazooie in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

While these experiences are cool, it doesn’t make up for the fact that it’s been 16 years since its last installment. And Rare, the developer behind the franchise, seems to be extremely occupied with the mega-successful game Sea of Thieves. So, who knows when they’ll have time to work on another Banjo-Kazooie.

4. Darkstalkers

Out of all the games on this list, I think Darkstalkers has the biggest chance of making a comeback. Although Rayman and Banjo-Kazooie make appearances here and there, they feel as if they’ve been left behind by Ubisoft and Rare respectively. The same can’t be said for Darkstalkers.

The franchise has had numerous compilations with the most recent one being the Capcom Fighting Collection, where 5 of the Darkstalkers games were included. Plus, multiple Darkstalkers characters have been a part of the Marvel vs. Capcom series.

It’s clear that the franchise is still deep in the heart of Capcom, and although I can’t say that I expect a game anytime soon, I will be very surprised if we don’t see a new installment sometime in the future.

5. F-Zero

If we’re talking about dormant franchises, there’s probably none more well-known than Nintendo’s F-Zero; it’s basically become the poster boy for franchises that deserve to come back. Captain Falcon, its main character, is more well-known for being a playable character in the Super Smash Bros. series than he is for starring in the F-Zero series.

The last F-Zero game to come out was actually F-Zero 99 just last year; it’s a battle royale game for the Nintendo Switch. However, it’s been 20 whole years since we’ve had a true F-Zero game.

Maybe Nintendo thinks that because Mario Kart is wildly successful that it doesn’t make sense to work on F-Zero as well; that maybe there’s no room for two racing game franchises. I hope that’s not the case because that just sounds ridiculous.

I could see a future where we get another Banjo-Kazooie game or another Darkstalkers game, but for some reason, I seriously can’t imagine a timeline where we get another F-Zero game. I hope I’m wrong.

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