We look back to recall some of the franchises seen on past generations of Microsoft consoles to bounce back on Xbox Series X.
The end of this generation is a few months away, and with it, the beginning of a new one, and new illusions … or not so much, and it is that today it is time to talk about the past. A brand, be it Sony, Nintendo or Microsoft, and a console, are marked by their catalog, and more specifically, by their exclusives, of which we will talk today about the North American company. It is known to all that Microsoft will base its strategy for the Xbox Series X on its major franchises (namely: Halo, Gears, Forza) and its increasingly better Xbox Game Pass, one of today's stellar subscription services, But you should not settle and not rule out rescuing any franchise that has been falling by the wayside. Because there are more than meets the eye.
For whatever reason, the IPs mentioned in this article have been forgotten, although not by their thousands, millions of fans. We are talking about licenses held by Microsoft or its proprietary studios, of which there are many, as we know, of recent acquisition, such as Ninja Theory, Obisidan Entertainment or Double Fine, but we also want to remember those that are expected the best, and we mean, of course, Rare. Below we mention those ten franchises with great potential that have been skipped this generation, that of Xbox One, and that we would like to see back on the new console, Xbox Series X.
fable
It is a pity to see that one of the sagas that helped to raise the Xbox brand to the elite is almost totally out of action. It was only two years after the original Xbox appeared, in 2004, when Lionhead invited us to visit Albion in Fable, an unforgettable open-world adventure in which there were main and secondary missions, as in any other worth its salt, but where decisions mattered, and in what way. Thus, in order to fulfill some of them, we were asked to act in one way or another, and sometimes the line that separated the morally correct decision from the wrong one was very fine, having its pertinent consequences. It can be said that, generally, what were decisions that benefited the protagonist usually brought bad consequences for the inhabitants of Albión, and vice versa. This formula would be repeated in its two subsequent installments, of the same quality, although sometimes drowned out by the hype that its creator, Peter Molyneux, used to create around him.
Where are you now? As of the original trilogy, the various installments of Fable are counted by stumbles, some of them fatal that even led to the closure of Lionhead, but it must be clarified that all of them are basically spin offs: Fable: The Journey for Kinect, Fable Legends , a cooperative game that was later canceled and that would lead to the closure of the studio, Fable Fortune, a card game with very little travel and success that in fact has already closed its servers … But Xbox fans, obviously, do not forget Fable, and for a while now the rumors of a return from the hand of Playground Games, creators of the latest and excellent Forza Horizon, are insistent. There is no doubt that with the progress in open world games seen in recent years, Fable would be a franchise more than benefited by them.
Project Gotham Racing
After launching the Metropolis Street Racer for Dreamcast, someone at Microsoft thought that Bizarre Creations had enough talent to create a new IP that would be a benchmark in the genre of arcade driving on Xbox. That someone, in effect, was right. From its first delivery in 2001 to Project Gotham Racing 4 (2007), already on Xbox 360, the British studio was a guarantee of quality for the brand, offering not only speed, but a high graphic standard in any of the two generations, also doing of an almost improper demand of the arcades its identity sign. But if we talk about personality, we have to do it with the Kudos system, precisely based on that requirement, and that it was nothing but a style meter that showed that Project Gotham Racing not only rewarded victory, but how it was achieved. This system, after all, is still a predecessor to similar ones that have been followed by some more recent great arcades such as DriveClub and, of course, Forza Horizon.
Unfortunately, the chances of seeing a fifth installment, reboot, or something like that from Project Gotham Racing again are slim. The first reason is that Bizarre Creations was acquired by Activision in 2007, launching in 2010 what was considered PGR's spiritual successor, Blur. The great publisher would not take long to close the study, specifically it was in January 2011, and with it came the end of the IP, which should be remembered, belongs today to Microsoft. Of course, Americans are not poorly equipped with quality speed arcades, since with Forza Horizon 3 and Forza Horizon 4 we have the absolute elite of this generation, to which we must add others such as Grid, Wreckfest, The Crew 2 … The biggest obstacle to the return of Project Gotham Racing is that, when Microsoft considers that possibility, they may conclude that it is not very necessary.
Perfect Dark
After dazzling half the world with Goldeneye 007 on Nintendo 64, Rare repeated the same on the same platform 3 years later with Perfect Dark, so technically leading that it required the addition of the Expansion Pack on the Nintendo console. Rare's game put us in the shoes of Joanna Dark, an agent of the Carrington Institution, and who must unravel the mysteries of what appears to be a conspiracy with aliens involved. He did it in one of those games in the form of a first person shooter but with much more to offer in the background since firstly, Joanna's abilities gave multiple possibilities, and that is that today it seems normal, but it was not that in an FPS the protagonist was able to dodge on both sides, duck, crawl, etc. although curiously he could not jump. That's not to say there was no action, and Joanna could make use of an extraordinarily extensive arsenal, ranging from assault rifles or snipers to shotguns or rocket launchers.
It would take no less than five years to see a second iteration, and in 2005 Perfect Dark Zero was released, also three years after Microsoft acquired its developer, Rare. This one, even without reaching the category of classic of the genre like its predecessor, also garnered very good reviews, although unfortunately it was not enough for the franchise to have some continuity in time. In fact, that would be the last game. Since then, Microsoft has kept Rare in a hiatus that made many players suspicious, although the studio was able to finally create an ambitious project and achieved moderate success such as Sea of Thieves. The demand for work that comes with a game like this, which requires frequent maintenance and updates, does not lead to optimism that Rare can return to Perfect Dark, but now the license is from Microsoft, and with more studios owned as The Initiative, Compulsion Games or Undead Labs, the room for maneuver is greater.
Banjo Kazooie
The second half of the 90s was exceptionally prolific in 3D platform titles, devoting a genre to which the great Super Mario 64 gave the starting gun. Again Rare, who had already proven his worth in 2D with the Donkey trilogy Kong Country, wanted to demonstrate that the jump did not come to them great, and indeed, they did it. In 1998 and again on Nintendo 64, Banjo Kazooie delighted fans of jumps, incidentally presenting two new mascots that join a pleiad of likeable and charismatic characters that were symbol of the decade, although like most, the Luck would be elusive in times to come. Banjo Tooie maintained the quality standards of its predecessor, although later it would take 8 years to see them again, and also with a more than notable game: Banjo Kazooie: Potholes and Cachivaches. But after him, as we know, both they and the games starring pets fell hopelessly several steps in popularity.
But Microsoft, in one way or another, does not forget this endearing couple made up of a bear and a bird. The Rare Replay compilation, with no less than 30 studio games, including both the original installment and Potholes and Cachivaches, in addition to having arrived in the form of playable characters in Super Smash Bros Ultimate, in a collaboration between Microsoft and Nintendo highly demanded by the gaming community. However, its current situation is very similar to that of Perfect Dark, and that is that as we have already seen, Rare is in other duties, which is not an obstacle for another study to be in charge of carrying it out. Probably the ideal for it would be Playtonic, creators of Yooka-Laylee and that houses several former Rare, but at the moment, it is an independent study, although as we have seen in recent months, that is not an obstacle for Microsoft.
Jade Empire
Just in this 2020 marks the 15th anniversary of the release of Jade Empire, not one of the best RPGs of the original Xbox, but also of all those created by Bioware, which are many and very good. It is also special because of its great personality, since there are not many precisely the role-playing games set in China and with great weight in the martial arts, without a doubt its great attractiveness and greater virtue to make it recognizable, having various styles of combat: weapons , support, transformation, magic … being able to combine them throughout the many hours that the title lasts, something that is also recommended as it greatly facilitates the most demanding fights. To accentuate this strategic touch, we also have companions with different abilities, although it is only possible to fight alongside one of them at the same time. And as is usual in Bioware titles, it should be borne in mind that despite its ARPG character, it is not exempt from a large amount of text and information, also having a really rich and extensive lore. It is possible to enjoy it today, since it is backward compatible on Xbox One, also improved for Xbox One X.
Regarding the possibilities of seeing it back, they seem very complicated, especially to make it exclusive to the Xbox brand, with Bioware already in the hands of Electronic Arts for already 13 years. However, the Canadian giant renewed the Jade Empire brand about a year ago, although it is not a movement that serves us to harbor high hopes, since the end of a license is common and does not always lead to reality in tangible form of video game. Even Mike Laidlaw, already a former studio, acknowledged a few years ago that Jade Empire 2 was a project in development, or at least an idea, but ended up discarding in favor of another great Bioware game such as Dragon Age.
Lost Odyssey
Microsoft is ostensibly improving in terms of giving fans of the Japanese role more quantity and variety to glove over, but on Xbox 360 it had nothing to envy any other platform. We could have chosen Blue Dragon, but we opted for Lost Odyssey since it is considered by many the best JRPG of the last generation, before a Nova Crystallis trilogy of Final Fantasy that was not 100% convinced. Both titles came from the hand of Mistwalker, a study formed by none other than Hironobu Sakaguchi, a legend of the genre who has participated in a long string of classic games such as Final Fantasy VII, Kingdom Hearts, Chrono Trigger or Vagrant Story, and which recently has ventured into the mobile market with Terra Battle and its sequel, finally canceled. In addition, Lost Odyssey featured the music of a composer no less famous than Nobuo Uematsu, who is responsible for the soundtrack of many Final Fantasy installments. A melancholic story and an original turn-based combat system and quick time events did the rest for one of the most memorable games on Xbox 360.
The Lost Odyssey license belongs to Microsoft, in fact, it renewed the brand just two years ago, as well as other aspects related to it, such as the typography or music associated with the game. As we said previously, these types of actions are very frequent and do not mean absolutely nothing, or at least do not guarantee it, but it does serve to show that at least the North American company itself has not forgotten this IP. What is certain, or almost, is that if he returns on some occasion it will not be with the same team, since the Mistwalker studio is immersed in the console version of Terra Battle, in addition to a completely new title and still to be announced .
Brütal Legend
With the acquisition of Double Fine, Microsoft has also obtained a good handful of IPs, such as Psychonauts, Broken Age or the one in question, Brütal Legend, probably one of the best games developed by Tim Schaffer's studio. Launched in 2009, in the role of Eddie Riggs we lived a great fantasy adventure full of good humor and characters played by rock legends such as Ozzy Osbourne or the late Lemmy Kilmister, soloist and leader of Motorhead, who was joined by actor Jack Black in the leading role -Santiago Segura was in charge of doubling it into Spanish. But its virtues do not end there, and it is that Brütal Legend was also able to combine genres as disparate as action and strategy, and do it in a more than effective way, giving rise to a global game, hilarious. All these playable aspects were not really excellent but as a set they worked more than well, and the result is one of the most original games of the last generation.
We shouldn't rule out the adventures of Eddie Riggs in any way at all. Last year, without going any further, Microsoft registered the Brütal Legend and Broken Age brands, which shows that they are the most interesting IPs for the company, among which it owns Double Fine. Matt Booty himself, head of Xbox Game Studios, already assured during 2019 that they could bring back some of those sagas, specifically mentioning both, although always after the release of Psychonauts 2, scheduled for this year 2020, and probably in the form of a remaster and not of new delivery. However, in any case, it would be a great joy for fans of quality adventures.
Conker
Again Rare, and it is that Banko Kazooie was not the only game with which they delighted in the genre of 3D platforms. After two installments for Game Boy Advance and Nintendo 64 -Pocket Tales and Bad Fur Day, respectively-, Live & Reloaded was its debut on a Microsoft console, launching it on Xbox in 2005. It should be differentiated from the other Rare platform IP, since that the adventures of this squirrel had an absurd humor and thug totally unpublished in a pet video game and that is exactly what made it special, and probably what the public longs for so much. This launch for Xbox was nothing more than a remake of the Nintendo 64 game, with improvements in the control and the camera, authentic pending subjects of the original, and obviously with its sense of humor intact, but also with an additional surprise: a hilarious multiplayer mode that probably today would still have a place with certain touches. It is also included in the Rare Replay collection.
If it is difficult to see Banjo and Kazooie back, let alone Conker … Furthermore, if we abide by statements by Tom Seavor, a member of Rare at the time when both games were developed and the original creator of Conker, it is more Easy to see both IPs back on Nintendo and Kyoto to do something with them before Microsoft decides to do so. Seavor is based on the reception of Banjo Kazooie in Super Smash Bros Ultimate, really enthusiastic on the part of the fans of Nintendo to think this way, and goes so far as to say that in fact "it is inevitable". Also, Rare is already working on another game apart from Sea of Thieves, Everwild, in which several members of the development of… Conker are involved.
Kameo: Elements of Power
Rare again? Yes, that's how prolific this study was for Xbox, and now it's time to talk about this title, which was a launch game on Xbox 360, which they have sometimes talked about in the studio as a mistake, insofar as it was a game starring a fairy for an audience that was passionate about shooters. Be that as it may, the case is that Kameo: Elements of Power liked it, and a lot, due to the peculiarity of its protagonist, who gave the videogame its name: the ability to become three creatures with different abilities, all of them really peculiar: a plant carnivorous boxer, an armadillo and a yeti, who will be joined by seven others as this curious adventure of action, platforms, puzzles … and creature enhancement unfolds.
Curiously, and as we learned from the documentaries included in the Rare Replay compilation -where the video game is also located-, a Kameo 2 came into development, with a much darker tone and a radical makeover for both its protagonist. as for the enemies. Finally, and unfortunately, this project was canceled, and perhaps with it any hope of ever seeing a new installment of one of the most different games ever developed by Rare. With this, it is possible that in the future and already mentioned Everwild we will see something of what made the studio great more than a decade ago, but we have talked about three IPs that, unfortunately, it is very difficult for us to see again on some occasion .
Enslaved: Odyssey to the West
The curriculum of Ninja Theory, now owned by Microsoft, mainly has two titles of those considered cult, that is: played by few people, but very loved. We are talking about Heavenly Sword and Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, being the first of them impossible to see on an Xbox console as it is an IP owned by Sony, since it was also a launch game for PlayStation 3. Enslaved for its part was a game with a very good reception for those who enjoyed it, living the adventure of Trip and Monkey -interpreted by Andy Serkis (Gollum) -, who was controlled by the player and who was capable of carrying out a multitude of actions, among which is also the fight, and which could be improved thanks to some spheres scattered around the stage. However, it was its artistic section and its history that ended up seducing the public.
The critical and public reception of Bleeding Edge, the multiplayer recently developed by Ninja Theory and featured in the Xbox Game Pass catalog, has made it clear that what the British studio is really good at is telling stories, single-player games. . It has been evident with the aforementioned games and with Hellblade: Senua´s Sacrifice whose sequel will be exclusive to Microsoft, and in which they are already working to launch on Xbox Series X. Why not think about a return to Enslaved? The potential of this license along with hardware without the limitations of the Xbox 360 makes one think of a great result and an adventure that should be mentioned when talking about the best exclusives on a platform.
