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00:00You know, I've only got one brain cell, right?
00:02And it's working overtime on this baby.
00:04Welcome to Mojo Plays.
00:06And today, we're looking at video game franchises that have gone for far too long
00:11and need to be taken out to pasture.
00:13Will always find its way back to this place.
00:16It never left.
00:17But before we dive in, we publish new content all week long.
00:20So be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to get notified about our latest videos.
00:25Far Cry Series.
00:27Why are we even bothering with this? They're all jack-
00:29I'm anyways.
00:30Why am I all stuck on corpse duty?
00:33Ubisoft's open-world formula, re-skinned and repackaged across multiple games and franchises,
00:38has become a running joke.
00:40But Far Cry is the one that's perhaps the most tired.
00:44What used to be exciting has long since devolved into a predictable loop.
00:49Capture outposts, activate radio towers, shoot bad guys,
00:53get threatened by a charismatic villain who rarely lives up to their initial hype.
00:57Yada yada yada.
00:58All this inside a big map chock-full of icons for copy-paste chores
01:02that simply feel like a checklist for padding out the game time.
01:05The series peaked with Far Cry 3 in 2012,
01:09and each subsequent entry has felt more and more watered down,
01:12despite getting bigger and grander.
01:15How many more times can we do this before Ubisoft puts it to rest?
01:19They could be good workers.
01:22They could help rebuild paradise.
01:26But if you wanted them to live...
01:29Alone in the Dark series.
01:40Once a trailblazer in the survival horror genre,
01:44even inspiring the likes of Resident Evil,
01:46this franchise has spent decades failing to recapture its former glory.
01:51The first game will always deserve respect,
01:53and it got a few solid sequels as well.
01:56Everything else, though?
01:57Well, it's been a long, slow descent into death.
02:02It's gotten more reboots than you would think.
02:04The 2008 version was wildly uneven.
02:082015's Illumination leaned more into action
02:10and was completely devoid of anything interesting.
02:13Then came 2024's reboot,
02:16which, while not terrible,
02:17didn't really do anything to stand out from the pack,
02:20and was apparently a poor enough seller
02:22to get its developer shut down.
02:24There doesn't seem to be much interest in the IP anymore,
02:27and it's time it was put out of its misery.
02:30We can't hear you knocking anymore.
02:32None of us can.
02:34Five Nights at Freddy's series.
02:41With psychological tension,
02:43well-timed jump scares,
02:45creepy animatronics,
02:46and some help from the biggest streamers,
02:49Five Nights at Freddy's became a huge hit,
02:51and most were happy to see it continue.
02:54But now,
02:55it has mutated into an unstoppable content monster.
03:00Core games,
03:01spinoffs,
03:02books,
03:02a movie franchise,
03:03and a mountain of merchandise
03:05have pushed a simple premise
03:06past its breaking point.
03:08It doesn't help that the lore has become so convoluted
03:11that even dedicated fans struggle to keep up,
03:14nor that the core mechanics
03:15haven't really evolved,
03:17more like multiplied,
03:19without doing much of interest.
03:20While it has undeniably grown bigger,
03:23Five Nights at Freddy's has gone on
03:24long past the creative well ran dry.
03:27I found you!
03:30Destiny series.
03:32We have no signal on either vanguard leader.
03:35The Guardian's comm line is open,
03:37but non-responsive.
03:38Mara, we're here.
03:40Following an incredible run
03:41as the original developers of Halo,
03:44Bungie's ambitious online shooter Destiny,
03:47and its sequel,
03:48have had many highs and lows.
03:49But these days,
03:51it's become more frustrating than fun.
03:53The gunplay and core gameplay loop
03:55has remained pretty solid over the years,
03:58but everything else is exhausting.
04:00The live service content model
04:02has led to a perpetual schedule of constant grind.
04:06And since expansions and seasons
04:08constantly change things up,
04:09it offers little lasting reward.
04:11Also, not every expansion story
04:14is created equal,
04:15and certain content became locked
04:17as more and more expansions were released,
04:19which was pretty annoying
04:21considering you'd lose access
04:22to something you paid for.
04:24A chore for both newcomers
04:25and seasoned players to keep up with,
04:27it's something we're ready to see
04:29come to an end.
04:38Need for Speed series.
04:49Just like how Alone in the Dark
04:51defined survival horror,
04:53Need for Speed once defined
04:54the thrill of racing.
04:56Clearly, it's time as a leader has passed.
04:59As it has had to deal with more contenders,
05:01the series has faced major identity issues.
05:04It seems like each game is a desperate attempt
05:06to try and reinvent the wheel.
05:08Gritty street fantasy,
05:09cinematic storylines,
05:11open world,
05:12a change in physics
05:13from realistic to arcadey,
05:15we've seen it all.
05:16And each time this has happened,
05:18especially over the last decade,
05:20the game consistently landed
05:22in the lukewarm field of mediocrity.
05:24The devs clearly don't know
05:26what they want this franchise to be.
05:28Instead of going in every direction,
05:30maybe it's time to slow down.
05:32Ah!
05:33They seem to get on your nerves!
05:35Just Dance Series.
05:37There's a stranger in my bed.
05:39There's a pounding in my head.
05:41Glitter all over the room.
05:43Pink flamingos in the pool.
05:45One of the biggest problems with a franchise
05:47that sees yearly releases
05:48is stagnation.
05:50There are few IPs where that's more true
05:52than with Just Dance.
05:53While any individual entry is arguably fun on its own,
05:58the absurd oversaturation of releases
06:00and disinterest in doing anything new
06:03has definitely hurt it overall.
06:05Each game is basically an excuse
06:07to show off what big names and music
06:09Ubisoft was able to score a deal with.
06:11While the track lists are updated,
06:13almost nothing else is,
06:14from its core mechanics,
06:15to its modes,
06:16to its visual style.
06:18Unsurprisingly,
06:19it's one of the more disappointing announcements
06:21each time it pops up in a Nintendo Direct.
06:23Only shooting stars break the mold.
06:31Madden NFL Series
06:40Speaking of yearly releases
06:42that offer little to no changes,
06:44Madden is probably one of the more common
06:46first thoughts when it comes to franchises
06:48that need to die.
06:49A lot of that comes down to the publisher.
06:51Since EA holds the exclusive license
06:54for one of the most popular sports in America,
06:56leading to extraordinarily high sales,
06:59there's never been incentive
07:00to change the formula too much.
07:02So you pay full price every year
07:05for almost the same game.
07:06And that experience is always mediocre.
07:10Depending on the entry,
07:11fans have also had to deal with
07:12some annoying bugs,
07:14some questionable microtransactions,
07:16and modes that would disappear
07:17in certain entries,
07:19only to reappear later.
07:20But since there's nowhere else to go,
07:23this is what players are stuck with.
07:25Postal Series
07:34Games can rely on shock value
07:37and still be fun,
07:38but if that's all your series has going for it,
07:41that gets pretty old.
07:43Postal has focused on brutal violence
07:45and lowbrow humor
07:47since the 1997 original,
07:49which followed a man convinced
07:50everyone around him
07:51was infected by a hyper-aggressive toxin.
07:54And beyond switching perspectives,
07:57it hasn't really evolved much since.
07:59It merely exists on its ability to be edgy,
08:03quality of everything else be damned.
08:05Particularly with 3 and 4,
08:07they're some of the buggiest games around.
08:09With poor technical performance
08:11and dated, distasteful jokes,
08:13everything about it just feels like
08:15it should have stopped long ago.
08:17Yet, it's still kicking.
08:19Ooh, that looks satisfying.
08:22Call of Duty Series
08:30Sadly, what was once
08:31one of the most innovative FPS franchises around
08:34has become another case
08:35of extreme fatigue from yearly releases.
08:39Call of Duty has done little
08:40to innovate in-gameplay,
08:42and so to wow us,
08:44it has ballooned itself
08:45in an attempt to be grand
08:47while actually feeling hollow.
08:49Seemingly in an attempt
08:50to compete with Fortnite,
08:52and at the loss of its own personality,
08:54we've gotten crossovers
08:55that clashed with the series' previous tone,
08:58like Nicki Minaj
08:59and Jay and Silent Bob.
09:01Campaigns have taken
09:02a nosedive in quality in recent years.
09:05Modern Warfare 3's
09:06insultingly short playtime
09:07was a common criticism,
09:09but was outdone by Black Ops 7's bugs
09:12and absurd plot,
09:14including a sequence
09:15where you fight a giant Michael Rooker
09:17that became the internet's punching bag.
09:19It's too bad the games keep selling well,
09:21because it would be best
09:23if COD took some time off.
09:25Uh,
09:27I might have an answer.
09:29Bubsy series.
09:37How is this stupid bobcat still alive?
09:41We've all probably asked ourselves
09:42that at some point over the years
09:44as Bubsy has continued to get games.
09:47What began as a bland 2D platformer
09:50that was a lame attempt
09:51to copy Mario and Sonic
09:53has grown into a mascot
09:54for poor quality.
09:55The franchise's death
09:57should have come a long time ago,
09:59with a disastrous jump to 3D
10:01on the original PlayStation.
10:03But then,
10:04Bubsy clawed his way out of the grave
10:06with a 2D revival in 2017.
10:08And you know what?
10:10That game was bad too,
10:12as was its follow-up in 2019.
10:14Yet,
10:15a new entry,
10:16Bubsy 4D,
10:17is set to release in 2026.
10:19Despite positive early previews
10:22signaling Bubsy might actually
10:23get his first good game,
10:25it's sad that this obnoxious furball
10:27has gotten so many chances,
10:29while actually good platformer IPs
10:31have stayed dormant.
10:33What video game franchise
10:35are you ready to see retire?
10:37Share your thoughts in the comments,
10:39and we'll see you next time.
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