Building a beloved video game franchise is one of the hardest feats in entertainment, yet maintaining that magic and hype over decades can be even more difficult. In a thread on r/gaming, redditors weighed in with opinions on which major series are currently coasting on past glories or failing to reach their true ceiling. The community discussion highlights a growing gap between what these games are and what players believe they could become.
1. Pokémon
Despite being the highest-grossing media franchise in history, fans argue the mainline games often feel years behind current industry standards.
Comment in r/gamingThe worst thing about this franchise has to be its fan base defending it to the bitter end.
I feel like nowadays gamers are a lot more prone to being hyper critical of their favorite franchises when in reality a lot of it isn’t warranted. But my god Pokémon fans aren’t when they 1000% have every reason to.
I understand the concept of “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.” But it’s genuinely insane how much of a chokehold they have on their fan base. I’d honestly say it’s worse than Sports games.
Comment in r/gamingI love pokemon but I completely agree. They aren't coasting, they are declining. Scarlet and Violet was atrocious, and I'm reserving judgement on legends ZA until I've played more but I can say that it doesn't look like a AAA game.
It's baffling. Cus sure, they've got a dedicated fan base but eventually it will drift away, grow out of it, and they won't attract new players because the games are of such low quality.
2. Halo
Once the undisputed king of console shooters, this series is seen by many as a shadow of its former self. Longtime players miss the feature-complete launches and cohesive storytelling that defined the Halo era.
Comment in r/gaming343s tenure on Halo has consisted of them releasing 3 consecutive mainline games with less and less content/features each time. Every Bungie game had more and more features outside of ODST.
Comment in r/gamingCompletely agree, I was along for the ride during Halo’s glory years, right from the beginning, system link parties at my house before xbconnect enabled peer to peer system link over your internet connection pre Xbox live. Every game added something new and the story was great, who didn’t want to be the stoic hero in green armour? But the last couple of games took it in a direction I felt was lacking in a lot of ways, story, new enemies, gameplay, they lost that magic that made the original games amazing, those set battles wrapped up in story, the run and gun aspect, the personality of your foes replaced by robots. Infinite was a half hearted attempt to get back to halo classic gameplay, but it felt unfinished, lacking content, and what they did stuff it with seemed to be focused on online multiplayer. A sad end to one of the greatest game series ever made.
3. Star Wars
With an entire galaxy of lore to draw from, gamers feel the output of top-tier titles is surprisingly sparse. Discussions highlighted the baffling absence of new RPGs or diverse genres beyond the occasional action-adventure hit.
Comment in r/gamingI think Star Wars games have been okay but i still feel like so much more could be done with it
Comment in r/gamingRepublic commando never getting a sequel is crazy to me, easily one of the best star wars games ever. Id love to see a modern take on it with how much movement tech has advanced for fps games over the years. Imagine republic commando but with the smooth movement / gunplay of like destiny.
Comment in r/gamingSure, but you could do way more with Star Wars.
A Bethesda type RPG, more Battlefront games, a Helldivers type game set during the Clone Wars, RTS games, etc.
I'd say Star Wars can work better as a videogame than any other media, but Disney doesnt push for anything, they just put a huge price tag on the license that few can afford and wait for anyone to come to them.
4. StarCraft
Despite being an eSports titan, this sci-fi franchise has been dormant for nearly a decade. Users are baffled that such a rich universe isn't being expanded into other genres like shooters or action games.
Comment in r/gamingStarcraft.
It's been 9 years since the last DLC for Starcraft 2 and there's been absolutely nothing! What happened to one of the biggest IPs in gaming? Microsoft owns Blizzard now and the original devs have left the company so I know we shouldn't really expect anything, but like just make a spin-off game or film or TV adaptation with this great IP that's just sitting on a shelf collecting dust. What's the point in owning IP if you don't do anything with it!
Comment in r/gamingThe fact they kept Starcraft as an RTS only is the biggest failure.
Not even talking about Ghost, either. The Starcraft IP could be made into a bunch of different games. Helldivers 2 and Space Marine 2 show people are into them. Hell, they could get away with their own version of a Savage game, for example.
Comment in r/gamingCame here to say this. Such massive wasted potential in the Starcraft IP. Could have been a myriad of games in all genres since the universe is fairly fleshed out. There are planets, characters, races, lore surrounding them all...
5. Assassin’s Creed
The shift from stealth-focused city traversal to massive open-world RPGs has alienated some core fans. Many redditors feel the series has bloated to the point of losing its original identity.
Comment in r/gamingAssassin's Creed. Sure they used to live up to their potential, but they've fallen off like a leap of faith into a haystack.
Comment in r/gamingI greatly enjoyed Origins, missed Odyssey, and played Valhalla. It has some cool stuff, but just like Black Flag, it didn't feel like an actual Assassin's Creed game even though it was set in the universe. Valhalla was the one that felt truly bloated, though I'd say that was mostly being bored with the map. Egypt was a lot more enjoyable to explore.
But yeah, if someone is looking for old school Assassins Creed, AC Unity was the last good title (I'm not sure about Mirage). I just replayed the Ezio games and Unity, and I forgot just got great Unity was. Looks great, still plays great, and has some fun characters. Also the crowd density is still insane compared to any other open world games.
I also started replaying Syndicate, and.... oof. I completely forgot how cartoonishly goofy the combat was. I stopped pretty early on lol
Comment in r/gamingAssassin’s Creed incredible world design and lore, but it’s stuck in repetitive open world formulas. With fresh gameplay ideas and tighter storytelling, it could easily be top-tier.
6. Dragon Age
It has been a decade since the last mainline entry, leaving fans anxious about the series' direction. The conversation inevitably turned to publisher interference and whether the narrative depth of the first game can ever be replicated.
Comment in r/gamingDragon age and it's not even close, 4 games and all of them are vastly different.
CAN WE HAVE JUST ONE THAT IS LIKE THE OG ALREADY, LIKE HELLO?
Comment in r/gamingShame they never made one after inquisition. Was super excited to see what the dreadwolf was up to, surely they wouldnt make a crap sequel that just dumpsters all of the story set up in inquisition.
Comment in r/gaminginquisition is a fine game. Just not a good dragon age game. Dragon age origins modernized a bunch of system from old RPG, then threw it all away to have action combat.
People who like chill rpg with lots of strategy don't really get anything, it's all action game at this point. There is literaly no new game in the style of dragon age origins, except maybe for the pathfinder games, but they aren't anywhere near as good as dragon age origins was.
it's the same argument with zelda. Breath of the wild is fantastic. an amazing game. But a terrible zelda, and has basicely nothing to do with zelda. But now? it's the new flagship, we'll likely not get a whole lot of traditional zelda because of it.
7. Kingdom Hearts
This crossover series is criticized for spreading its crucial lore across too many platforms and spinoffs. Fans love the gameplay loop but find the increasingly convoluted story hard to follow.
Comment in r/gamingKingdom Hearts imo. As convoluted as it is, the franchise is already mainstreamed enough to garner more potential. Its mobile games like KH Unchained X and the now discontinued KH Missing Link would have been great on console/pc
If only Square Enix knew how to handle it instead of recycling/milking FF7 again. Now we have to wait another 14 years.
Comment in r/gamingI felt like I was playing an ad for Disney World while playing Kingdom Hearts 3.
The special moves are CONSTANT, sometimes they even stack on top of each other. And they are all rides from Disney world, like not even kingdom hearts themed lol. The log flume, carousel, viking ship and buzz lightyear blaster thing were pretty obvious.
Comment in r/gamingKingdom hearts had the great formula of getting to mess around and explore some of your favorite IPs yet i feel like they failed to capture that magic the same way as the original.
The frustration shared by these gamers isn't necessarily a sign of dislike but rather a reflection of the high standards they hold for the worlds they love. Whether it's the technical limitations of a handheld titan or the tonal shifts of a gritty urban sandbox, the consensus remains that there is always room to grow. Which series would you revive or reboot first?
Looking for more gaming opinions? Read the full thread in r/gaming, and find more conversations like this in r/games, r/patientgamers, and r/pcgaming.
This story highlights the perspectives of Reddit users, not Reddit, Inc. Some posts or comments may be lightly edited for clarity. Questions or concerns? Contact us at upvoted@reddit.com.