While we are fortunate enough to still have open-world games like The Elder Scrolls or Grand Theft Auto in the active cycle of development, many memorable IPs were thrown away by different publishers around the world, mostly for unknown reasons, though we would love to get more iterations of them up until now.
It’s never easy to go over a list of games that we are almost sure we will never get a new installment of, but if you like to awaken some of those deep gaming nostalgic feelings hidden in your heart, here we have a list of games that we still love, even after decades!
Mercenaries
Electronic Arts has killed so many franchises in its lifetime, and honestly, if you aren’t gaming long enough, you may not even recognize Mercenaries. Developed by now-defunct Pandemic Studios, Mercenaries was an open-world experience with a special focus on destruction and explosive weapons. You can simply think of it as a Just Cause-style game but with a bit more military activities.
The series received two different iterations during its lifetime with the latest one released in 2008 for PlayStation 2 & 3 as well as Xbox 360 and PC. A third installment with a bigger multiplayer focus was also in development by Danger Close Games, but it was eventually canceled, which was an end to the series once and for all.
Midnight Club
Before Rockstar Games isolated itself between Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption franchises, it used to work on a broader set of games in multiple genres. Midnight Club was one of the major arcade racing brands back then, and probably the biggest competitor to Need For Speed at the time before Forza Horizon took the world by storm.
Midnight Club is always known for its open-world illegal racing and deep customization mechanics that were even surprising for Need For Speed fans at the time. Despite the series’ popularity, the game never received a new iteration since the 8th generation of consoles, and it doesn’t really seem to be a part of Rockstar’s long-term plan at the moment.
Infamous
The number of exclusive franchises that PlayStation has left behind since the early years of PlayStation 4 is rising gradually. Although both Killzone and Infamous served as big early launches for Sony’s last-gen console at the time, none of them received much love from the developers going forward.
While Guerrilla Games shifted its focus to the Horizon series, Sucker Punch introduced Ghost of Tsushima as a brand-new IP which could remain the studio’s main focus for the coming years. That being said, Infamous is still popular among the PlayStation community and the fans hope it doesn’t follow the destiny of Sly Cooper in the future.
Prototype
Similar to Electronic Arts, Activision has also butchered some beloved IPs on its way to fully invest in the Call of Duty franchise. Prototype was a pretty iconic IP at the time that almost introduced a brand-new superhero to the gaming industry without taking any inspiration from Marvel, DC, or other well-known comics.
Prototype and Infamous were indeed quite similar in the gameplay and world-building aspects, but unfortunately, they both shared the same destiny as both of them have been archived for a long time. A third version of Prototype was in development back in 2012, but the project was eventually canceled and its developer, Radical Entertainment became a helping hand for other major teams.
The Godfather
Electronic Arts’ take on an open-world game based on organized crime was a licensed adaptation of The Godfather movie series, and to be honest, the first game did set a solid foundation for a new franchise that could be continued for years. However, EA Redwood destroyed this foundation with its own hands.
The second iteration, The Godfather 2, was released in 2009, and it was nothing like the original game. Story-wise, the sequel was far behind the standards that the original game set. Also, the game followed quite a repetitive gameplay loop without any significant innovations. Such a poor sequel to a promising new franchise left no choice for Electronic Arts other than leaving the series to rot.
Sleeping Dogs
It’s every gamer’s dream to get a sequel to Sleeping Dogs someday in the future. Although the original developer of the game is now a defunct studio and the IP is owned by Square Enix, Sleeping Dogs still has a special place in our hearts.
The game was a take on organized crime families in Eastern Asia with the player taking the role of an undercover agent who infiltrates a major crime family. It was a joy to roam around the streets of Hong Kong in Sleeping Dogs, with a combat system that combined the beauties of Asian martial arts with the smoothness of a solid third-person shooter.
The Saboteur
It’s Electronic Arts’ fault, again! The Saboteur was the last and probably the best title developed by Pandemic Studios. The game was a fictional depiction of the World War 2 era where the Nazi army rules over France and you start the game as a member of a resistance group in Paris.
The game had a lot in common with franchises like Mafia, and it truly featured an exciting story with a massive potential for multiple sequels, but none other than death was The Saboteur’s fate in this industry. Not only the game didn’t receive a second iteration, but also Pandemic Studios was defunct in the same year.
Driver
Before Grand Theft Auto became the new ruler of open-world games in the PlayStation 2 era, Driver was the one and only king of open-world games with a driving focus back when the original PlayStation was the trending gaming console of the world.
Both Driver and Driver 2 were proud developments by Ubisoft Reflections at the time, and they did receive much love from the community, but with the new consoles arriving, Driver was heavily overshadowed by Grand Theft Auto. Although Ubisoft released a racing-focused version of the game back in 2011, Driver San Francisco, it seems like the series no longer seems interesting to the French publisher.
Bully
Rockstar’s exceptional take on the school life of teenagers is still a masterpiece without a single competitor. Bully was a creative take on an open-world game where you don’t touch a single gun and still have a lot of fun. The story, the setting, the gameplay loops and mechanics… there is really nothing to complain about when we remember this game.
Despite all the rumors that we have heard about a sequel to Bully, it seems like the game is still nowhere other than the studio’s archives, especially with the Grand Theft Auto 6’s leaked videos that almost confirmed Rockstar Games has dedicated itself to yet another GTA game.
LA Noire
Of course, it’s Rockstar again! Honestly, no one really figured out what led Rockstar Games to ditch its marvelous new IP developed by Team Bondi back then. Although the studio was defunct after this game, LA Noire had enough potential to receive more sequels.
Similar to Bully, LA Noire was also a creative take on an open-world game where you play the role of a good guy rather than being the one who makes trouble all the time. This detective simulation achieved some incredible technical heights at the time, but unfortunately, it’s now a part of this doomed list.