Franchise of the generation.

Benza · Last edited by Benza on Thu Nov 17, 2011 9:07 am, edited 1 time in total

So we're heading into the arse end of the current gen consoles.
There's been a lot of talk about the death of originality and everything being mindless sequels. But looking back on the current gen of game consoles has seen the birth of some fucking amazing franchises. I mean we've got Uncharted, Gears, Assassins Creed, Modern Warfare, Resistance, Saints Row, Infamous, Battlefield: Bad Company, Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Dark/Demon souls (Does that series have a convenient name yet?) Batman: Arkham, Bioshock etc.

Fuck I don't think I've actually enjoyed any generation of games as much as I have this one.

So what one new franchise from this gen of games has defined the generation for you?

For me, it's gotta be Assassins Creed.

The first AC game is the first game I played on the current gen of consoles that felt 'next gen' in so much as it didn't feel like I was just playing a really pretty Gamecube game. The stuff that you could do in the game was simply not possible on the previous consoles (The free running, crowd game play etc) and it didn't just use the tech as gimmicks but as essential game play mechanics. And yeah it had it's problems, the first AC game is far from perfect. But it's also proved to be a franchise that isn't content to rest on it's laurels as every iteration so far has added significant game play improvements that haven't so much changed the game completely but perfected the ideas and promise that the first one had in 2, and then went above and beyond that in Brotherhood.

It's also always been content to do it's own thing. You could never really accuse AC of being a wannabe of any other game (Hell I think it basically invented social stealth as a gameplay?) Add to that what for my money is one of the most compelling stories in any game I can think of (Desmonds, Altair/Ezio's exploits are always secondary to me) and consistent yearly releases (Shit we're going to have 5 main AC games out before the current gen of consoles ends) and it's become a tentpole at the end of my year for at least one consistently awesome game.

So yeah, what's your fave franchise of the generation.
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Jarrod · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:07 pm�� Post subject:

Assassin's Creed is a poop series with a bad story, so I fart in it's general direction /buys Revelations anyway.

Uncharted is good. Does what it does better than anything else. Naughty Dog has something there, so yay. I'm not all knob slobbery over them because lol movie games that play themselves, but Uncharted doesn't really try to do anything different and the tech is lovely.

Mass Effect would probably be my pick. I love the games, even though they're each a side of the same coin, loving some parts and loathing others. BioWare's universe, hacked together from other universes, is as rich and interesting enough to put it above others I think. Without the Mass Effect universe my interest in the games would be significant less than it is. Assuming they dont go and ruin everything with Mass Effect 3 then yeah, that would probably be my favourite new series.

If Portal counts then that too. Actually, No More Heroes as well.
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DancesInUnderwear · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:08 pm�� Post subject:

Does Mario Galaxy count as a franchise? If so, that. Both titles are spectacular.

If not, then for me, its Rock Band. Brilliant fun for me and my friends, and the only real misstep is the Green Day edition, and even that isn't necessarily bad, its just is kind of a 'meh' band to go with.

Its also done by far the best job of any of the franchise this gen (or arguably any gen) of being a coherent platform (Beatles aside) which I think falls into its favour. The best games aren't made redundant by their sequels, and though the old games themselves have been made largely useless, I can still play songs from the earliest Rock Band, which I think is hugely important when considering a 'franchise' as a whole.

And like I said, its mad fun.
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Benza · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:15 pm�� Post subject:

PixieGirl · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:17 pm�� Post subject:

I'd definitely go for Assassins Creed for the reasons you mentioned Benza. The first game was flawed in so many ways but paved the way for one of my favourite games ever, Assassins Creed II, and Brotherhood was very solid too.

The gameplay is unique and fun, lengthy and immersive, it takes us to areas we rarely see in games which are beautifully designed and rendered and explores the history around those areas (yes its not accurate because its changed for the sake of the game, but its obvious which bits have been changed and I actually learned real-life things from the AC games which is more than I can say for 99% of games i've played), in fact after exploring the cities in ACII it actually made me plan an Italy tour for real, but I only went to Venice in the end.

The story might have holes and might not exactly be perfect (what game story is?) but I love the way they take real history and give a fictional backstory to it. It's gripping and I find it fascinating to find out what happens next.

Honorable mention to Mass Effect. Again, the first game was full of problems for me, I hated the gameplay with a passion, it turned out to be the typical RPG dull uninvolving gameplay feeling clunky and unimmersive. I loved everything else about it. Mass Effect 2, again turned out to be one of my favorite games ever because it actually made it fun to play as apposed to a chore, combined with taking all the things I actually liked about Mass Effect 1 and improving them, it turned out to be an amazing game. Mass Effect 3 looks to be following in 2's footsteps rather than going back to the style of 1 and that I am so grateful for.

kartanym · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:25 pm�� Post subject:

I'd be hard pressed to vote against Portal. It goes against a majority of the typical elements of modern gaming by providing a puzzle experience within an immersive, funny, at times touching world. The sequel not only expanded on one of the best characters to ever fight for AND against, but provided a co-op experience like no other. Not to mention the polished musical scores and its influence on modern culture (cake anyone?). There's a ton of other franchises that deserve recognition, but Portal stands above them all.

Jarrod · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:25 pm�� Post subject:

Well, if there's no rules and we're being flexible, then Mario Galaxy is my pick. Both games are mint, but Galaxy 2 is like the ultimate game of everything forever. It takes the original game's foundations, cranks them up to 11, and goes completely mental with original platforming concept and creative level design. It's utterly sublime from start to finish and in the top five games (as far as I'm concerned) that Nintendo has ever developed. I fucking love that game so much.

I'd also put the Excite duo up there as my favourite new franchises too, being Excite Truck and Excite Bots. With one game I'm a badass truck doing sweet drifts and smashing into trees to cheesy cock rock guitar rifts, and with the other I'm a robot lobster wearing a chef's hat making a sandwich while grinding a rail. Fuck yeah.
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Benza · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:28 pm�� Post subject:

@pixie
man you brought up the one thing I forgot to mention I fucking loved about assassins creed, it went somewhere new. There are so many awesome era's to draw inspiration for games from and yet we're stuck with game after game of sci-fi/fantasy/modern world settings. AC went away from that and gave us 1600 middle east, and the Renaissance italy. If there was one thing I wish other game studious would take away from AC it's the idea to draw from more then just world war 2/medieval europe for games based in real world historical places.
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Benza · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:31 pm�� Post subject:

Jarrod · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:33 pm�� Post subject:

Yeah, I will give the team props for that. I believe there was an interview some time ago where they said they wanted to keep future iterations in rarely used time periods and locations, and to totally avoid the settings everyone else uses.

I also don't think they 'invented' social stealth, but I'm not sure what you mean by that. If you mean blending in with NPCs to escape guards and stuff then Hitman did it much earlier, though a little differently.

Benza · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:42 pm�� Post subject:

grim-one · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:50 pm�� Post subject:

I'm going to put Demon's and Dark Souls up there, as much as I like Assassin's Creed and Portal (I never finished Mario Galaxy 2). It's not often I spend so much time on a single game.

Demon's Souls is definitely up there in my hours count alongside Starcraft II and Street Fighter IV's many iterations.

Uncharted is probably my only other suggestion. Nothing else really comes to mind that was new for this generation. Unless we can count the resurgence of small indie games? =)
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GooberMan · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:51 pm�� Post subject:

The number of hours I've put in to a franchise? Rock Band. Hands down. It's pretty hard to say I've enjoyed any other franchise more too.

STALKER debuted this gen. But I've still only played the first one. It really would have been a monster if it was released on-time and bug free. Instead, everyone latched on to Borderlands a couple of years later which pretty much replicated the game mechanics and design but made it a more stable and humorous experience. But for my money, Borderlands' humor wasn't greater than the entire STALKER experience once you got rid of the bugs. And I really must try STALKER Complete one day.

AC definitely gets points for being the only franchise to consistently improve in leaps and bounds with each current title. And I'd seriously pay for Desmond's Creed and just have Altair/Ezio's stories as skippable cutscenes.

Portal is certainly the funniest new franchise. But I have enjoyed other games/franchises more than them.

Best new multiplayer franchise? How about some Left 4 Dead love? Truth be told though, I have put more hours in to CoD multiplayer (World at War, Black Ops - both of which I've found better than the Modern Warfare branch) than L4D.
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Jarrod · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 2:57 pm�� Post subject:

Oh shit I forgot about Stalker. Holy crap I was living in Balwyn then. Wow. Yeah, Stalker is definitely up there, even if it kinda dicked around with the two sequels.

And Goober, you haven't played Stalker until you've played Complete. It is Stalker.

God I hope Stalker 2 is good.
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Benza · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:01 pm�� Post subject:

OH MY FUCK I FORGOT BLAZBLUE!

Seriously
Fuck everything else.

Blazblue UP IN THIS BITCH!

Rocky start with the first one, amazing story mode, fucking unmatched gameplay, The only game it's second too is Guilty Gear. Hours put into it would rank above pretty much any other game I own.

Hell the story mode has some of the best character writing I've seen from a japanese game in a long time (Even if the overall story is... well a cluster fuck)

Fucking just.... so fucking good.... if only there was less Noel.

Fetidchimp · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:15 pm�� Post subject:

The skate franchise would be my favourite this gen, although they took a large backwards step with skate 3.

I also quite enjoyed just cause, if that counts and saints row.
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GooberMan · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:19 pm�� Post subject:

Also, Metro and Alan Wake can't really be called franchises yet because further games haven't been released for them (even if new entries are in development). But I'll be damned if they can't be considered great stand-alone games worthy of mentioning in this thread.

(Gawd, look at the games I've mentioned, I've picked up on all the dark and spooky ones. Hell, I'm surprised I haven't mentioned Condemned yet, but the second one wasn't really all that good until the end.)

EDIT: and yeah, I'm enjoying the Souls games far more than I should. Especially Dark Souls.
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Jarrod · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:22 pm�� Post subject:

Metro can hang out with Assassin's Creed in poop ville.
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Benza · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:28 pm�� Post subject:

I swear from the way you talk about it assassins creed kicked your dog or something Jarrod.
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Jarrod · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:29 pm�� Post subject:

Ezio stole my women. All of them.
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Michael Kontoudis · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:36 pm�� Post subject:

For my part, I don't think the Galaxy sub-series really counts as a new franchise (but boy, do I love those games - my Galaxy 2 review is testament to that).

For sheer impact, I think the franchises of the generation are ones people have already mentioned: Uncharted, Assassin's Creed, Mass Effect (even though I think Mass Effect is basically shoddy outside its amazing world-building efforts).

However, if you count 'Modern Warfare' as a franchise of its own, which I would, it is undoubtedly the biggest and most defining. Shame I find it only mildly entertaining and largely unworthy of its success, but anyhoo.

Mike\ · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:37 pm�� Post subject:

Jarrod · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:42 pm�� Post subject:

mrpookles · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 3:55 pm�� Post subject:

Mass Effect is my favourite. As Jarrod said, the lore, etc. just hits all the right notes.

I'd probably rate Assassin's Creed and the Elder Scrolls/Fallout set as the other major ones. Gears of War deserves a mention for keeping split-screen in vogue, too.

admeister · Posted: Mon Nov 14, 2011 4:00 pm�� Post subject:

For me, it's a four way tie between Uncharted, Mass Effect, Bioshock and Portal. Each one of them brought something to the table that I absolutely loved.

Uncharted - great tech, solid gameplay, great stories.

Mass Effect - interesting RPG universe, good third person shooter gameplay, strong story.

Bioshock - very solid FPS-RPG gameplay, intruiging world.

Portal - actually made puzzle games fun, for the first time in ages. Ingenious portal mechanics.
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