Hi everyone, it's been a while since the last time I posted on vgchartz forum.
But now I'm back with this threads in which I'll be looking at franchise that once hit Microsoft Xbox platforms, not necessarily exclusive or first party IP, but have since vanished from sight.
Specifically, I'll be looking for games that have sold well or were critically acclaimed which would be great to see them out of the abyss they're in.
I'll gather information around the franchise and developer as well as give my opinion on why Microsoft should be interested in doing efforts to revive those franchises.
I'll try to add a new game/franchise to that list once every week or 2.
Why I will not limit myself to Microsoft IP
Because despite Microsoft is not short on quality we are left hungry from low quantity. Many things could be looked into by Microsoft to solve this issue. Out of those, reviving, buying or conlude deal regarding old IP is one avenue Microsoft could try.
There's many benefits from doing so, but the main is probably that it brings a sense of nostalgia to gamers and fan which could help Microsoft having a better presence in the industry. Many time I've read 'If Microsoft brings back Banjo, I'll buy an XONE', and that's also true for third party IPs.
Let say Microsoft strike a deal with Crytek regarding TimeSplitters IP and bring a new entry to the Xbox One. Hell I'll buy another Xbox give it to my brother, buy 2 copies of the game and play Virus mode all days.
Jade Empire :
Released in 2005 this action rpg title was well received by the Xbox community. With a staggering 89 metacritics this game was one of a rare gem of its genre to ever have been released on the original Xbox. Following Xbox the game also released on Pc in 2007 through retail and Steam and later for the 360 has an Xbox original.
With a plot set in a world inspired by ancient china the player must strengthen his body, mind and spirit along his path to rescue Master Li. The player ability to choose between 6 (7 Special Edition) main character, both male or female was also greatly appreciated and added much to the replay value of the title.
Although The game was criticized for both its length and combat system, it was praised for it's story, graphics and the depth of its universe.
Current Status
Even if the game managed to sell enough copy to be profitable (.7M Xbox alone according to Vgchartz), Bioware never planed a second entry to the game.
However, comments from Bioware co-founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk made in 2011 gave the impression that it may not completely out of questions: "It's an IP, it's a setting that we were really passionate about, and we still are. Both Greg and I were big believers in the IP... We're just looking for the right way to deploy it."
Since this comment was made well after EA acquired the group, a sequel/remaster his still very plausible.
the underlying potential
The way I see it, there's 2 main possibilities to expand the franchise.
Since the title is a decade old, a remake first would be appreciated then followed by a sequel or even a prequel. after all, the story of Jade empire takes place a few years after some big events so it's easy to think a prequel could be made to further explore this time frame.
But there's also another possibility to further expand the franchise. The title given to the game, Jade Empire, was extremely well choose. Only by reading it you could have told that this game, both in art style, story, soundtrack and gameplay, was related to china in some way.
My opinion is that it could expand in a multiverse kind of. With a slightly different you could create a completely new story and fighting style related to another civilization of our history.
For instance :
Marble Empire: Could set you during Rome apogee.
Carnelian Empire: Could set you in a world inspired by Mesopotamia at the very beginning of civilization.
Gold Empire: Could be inspired by spanish conquest of inca/aztec.
etc.
What would you like from a new entry in this franchise?
Estimated cost and sale results:
please choose between following option and I'll update the post with average results in 2-3 days
Development Time : short(18 months to 2 years), medium (2 to 3 years), long (more than 3 years)
Cost of Development: low (less than 20M), average (20M to 30M). high (more than 30M)
Sales : Low (less than 1M), average (1M to 2M), high (more than 2M )
If I missed something on this game, let me know and I'll update later.
Next up(thanks for all the suggestion):
Which on do you want:
| Lost Odyssey | Brute Force | Blood Wake | Blue Dragon | Midtown Madness |
| RalliSport Challenge | Mech Assault | Perfect Dark | Viva Pinata | Steel Battalion |
| Fuzion Frenzy | Banjo Kazooie | Jet set radio | Kameo | Alan Wake |
| Fable | Conker | Crimson Skies | tao feng | Panzer Dragoon |
| Otogi | Infinite Discovery | Magna Carta | The Last Remnant | TimeSplitters |
