Video games are no longer a niche but a major entertainment industry on par with Hollywood. That means the money has to flow to finance the next best thing. What follows a successful game is usually a sequel, but that isn’t always the case. There are all kinds of reasons even the most successful games never get a sequel. The most popular games aren’t always in conventional formats, like RPGs or side-scrollers, which seem to prompt the idea of a sequel to continue the storyline. Other games never saw a sequel because of practical issues like copyright issues or bankrupt companies.
The history of gaming goes back about 50 years now, and we’ve got plenty of multi-game franchises that have proven sequels can be successful. These games, however, stand on their own despite their jaw-dropping commercial success. In a world where remakes, sequels, and reboots are so popular it does prompt a gamer to ask what happened.
10 Nintendogs
At 23.96 million copies sold, Nintendogs is one of the most successful Nintendo games in history, and when you look at the format it’s easy to see why there’s no sequel. As a sim game, a few tweaks and variations are enough to keep the game fresh without the trouble of designing a sequel. The game has different versions and features depending on the breeds that are featured, such as Toy Poodle and Golden Retriever, with one that also includes cats, but that’s not the same as a proper sequel.
9 Kinect Adventures!
Kinect Adventures! was reminiscent of the co-op and multi-player sports games that have been popular since the early days of gaming. With almost 22 million copies sold, this is one of the most popular games for the Xbox 360, even with mixed reviews from critics who both love and hate it. This was part of a bundle that was sold with five other games with similar outdoor adventure themes, which is part of the reason it enjoyed good sales. The game requires full-body motion to play, one of the first Xbox games to include this feature.
8 Tetris
It’s tough to say exactly how many copies of Tetris have sold because it’s so popular, the number might remain unknown forever. Tetris has been ported to virtually every video game platform in existence, and many other puzzle games have been created in its shadow. The famous game of falling blocks is often associated with the Gameboy, and 35 million copies were sold for that system alone, and estimates for worldwide copies in various formats hover around 500 million.
The basic premise of this simple game, along with the catchy tunes, is what makes it so popular and addictive. Fans have also created their own variations and customizations, but there’s yet to be a real sequel, and is a sequel even possible here?
7 Minecraft
The game was released in 2011 and had already sold 1 million copies by 2016. Today, it still tops the charts at 200 million copies, making it the best selling video game of all time and the most popular when it comes to active users. Minecraft is a great example of a game that doesn’t need a sequel. The open concept play that focuses on resource-gathering and building is a breath of fresh air for gamers tired of the boring grind or tense battlegrounds.
6 Goldeneye 007
This kicked off a first-person shooter trend that still continues to this day. Despite the fact that Goldeneye 007 left such an endearing legacy that included literally hundreds of spinoffs and inspired countless new games along with 8 million copies sold, the game itself never had a sequel, although Perfect Dark is often cited as an indirect descendant. The popular games of the present that utilize the battleground style take a lot from the design of Goldeneye 007 especially when it comes to multiplayer mode.
5 Tomodachi Life
Simulation games always have a broad following, and Tomodachi Life is no exception. The game itself was a sequel, but the first version was only available in Japan. The game sold 2 million copies in Europe in less than three years, just to give an idea of its worldwide success.
Some talk has been given to making a sequel of this game, and the reason why is an interesting one. The game lacks the ability to have same-sex relationships, even though it was released fairly recently in 2013, and fans hope that a sequel would be more inclusive.
4 Shadow of the Colossus
It saw a remake and a revamp, but not a sequel, which s surprising for an RPG game of this scope and success. The original game was released in 2005, a time when MMORPGs were just reaching wider audiences and the stand-alone fantasy games were waning in popularity, and even then it saw commercial success. The minimalist art style and integration of puzzles into the gameplay was unique and had a lasting influence on future games. Revamped versions with improved graphics were released in 2011 and 2018, and although they were well-received, they weren’t sequels.
3 Skyrim
Although Skyrim is the latest chapter in the Elder Scrolls franchise, it blew it’s predecessor’s away when it comes to players and sales. This is one of the best-selling games in history with more than 30 million copies sold. It’s true that the already excited fanbase has been teased with some scant footage from Bethesda that’s apparently from Elder Scrolls 6, but that was two years ago and there has been no other news since except that any actual game is years away. Until then, Skyrim is the last game in the series and has no sequel.
2 PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
The trend that FPS shooters started in the 1990s went to the next level with PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. This was when the transition to MMO really started to focus on the multiplayer FPS genre instead of the RPGs of ten years ago, and the battleground games of today dominate the scene in part thanks to this groundbreaking game.
More than 70 million copies of the game have currently sold with the mobile version boasting 600 million downloads. Even though other games like Fornite have occupied part of the market, the game’s popularity shows no signs of slowing down.
1 Duck Hunt
Simple and timeless, Duck Hunt is Nintendo’s second most popular game and stands as proof that perfection needs no sequel. This game isn’t going to win any awards or receive any critical acclaim anytime soon. Urban legends still circulate about how to kill the Dog when he laughs at you. Despite its cheap humor and even more basic gameplay, it’s a fan favorite that sold 28 million copies. There have been remakes, fan-made copies, and creative ports to other systems, but Dog and his snide giggle simply don’t require improvement.
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