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Forums - Gaming - What is considered "milking" a franchise?

 

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Well, I don't think "milking" has to be a pejorative, unless of course it's used to mean exploitative.

If a formula or model works, and people love it, why not "milk" it?

Some of the best video game series of all time have recycled a basic formula again and again: Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Street Fighter, Castlevania, Halo, Call of Duty, Final Fantasy, God of War, etc. Honestly, I'm glad the development teams stay true to each series' formula, because it produces great games.

I would add also that revolutionary, mold-breaking games are few and far between, and are very much the exception to the rule. For every Resident Evil 4 and Grand Theft Auto III there are dozens of games that rely on (and profit from) established norms.



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Michael-5 said:

Oh gosh Lasagna? really? With Obesity rates so high, I think people really need to cut down on their cheese intake. However I am glad hot dogs lost.

oh wait......

I agree with you, not on number of games, but when new iterations bring very little to the franchise.

To me a game is milked when new iterations add very little to the game and when a franchise doesn't see a natural conclusion.

So a game like Assassin's Creed is milked because the trilogy was suppose to end in 2012, with the Mayan Calendar predicting the end of the world, but we saw two interlude games, and now there is an Assassin's Creed IV coming out. However, in comparision Mass Effect isn;t milked because Sheppards story does conclude with Mass Effect 3, and the next Mass Effect is not Mass Effect 4 (Bioware has been very clear on this).

As for Mario.....I wouldn't say it's milked, but the brand is abused. New Mario games do expand upon old iterations, Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2 are largely considered the best platformers for the 7th generation, and I think Mario Platformers are typically the top of the ball. It's just the Mario Spinoffs come out as either excellent or crap, and that's where the brand gets abused. So while Mario Kart is a great game, and adds to Nintendo's Portfollio, I feel games like Mario Sports Mix are a cash grab. However I will admit that the "New" Super Mario Bros games, an excellent idea at first, are starting to feel milked.

I don't think Halo is milked so much as the brand is abused (ODST & Wars) because mainline Halo games only release once every 2-3 years, and usually add to the franchise (Halo 4 I feel is the exception). GT and GTA I agree are also not milked, and as for Call of Duty, I dunno. I wouldn't say it's milked, it's just become an annual game like FIFA or Madden, the plots in each game generally do close well, and feel satisfying.

To me, the only franchises which are truely milked are Assassin's Creed, BioShock, Dead Space, Army of Two, Tom Clancy Games, and soon Forza might join the list (Forza 4 didn't add anything to the franchise).


So wait, assassins creed is milked because they made 3 games, 2 interlude games and now a fourth, but mario isn't milked despite various 'genres' of mario games, with as much difference in them as the assassins creed games, have in most areas, a lot more than 4 (or 6), itterations?, eg, Mario Kart 7, super mario series being in excess of 10?, sure you may argue "but theyre quality games", but fans of AC would argue the same about AC, so really, saying mario games (as a franchise, and as a character) isn't milked just doesn't make any sense, they are very much milked.

The mere fact Nintendo relies on the character and series so much for it's popularity is clear and solid proof of it being milked, yes he's more or less nintendos mascot, but look towards the future, if things don't change from the past 30 years, in 30 years time you'll be looking at games like 'Even newer super duper mario bro's 8, WiiThem' or something.

The mere thought of a nintendo console releasing and not relying on mario to sell the brand just doesn't seem possible, so in that respect, unless Nintendo manage to introduce a new game series that's so popular that people accept it fully, Nintendo consoles will forever be tied down to Mario titles (even if theyre good games, it's going to get old sooner or later, and already has for many)



Three words.

Nintendo and Square Enix.



If people are still buying, one would be stupid not to milk.



Street Fighter 2 - The World Warrior
Street Fighter 2 - Champion edition
Street Fighter 2 Turbo - Hyper Fighting
Super Street Fighter 2 - The New Challengers
Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo - Grand Master Challenge
Hyper Street Fighter 2

Street Fighter Alpha
Street Fighter Alpha 2
Street Fighter Alpha 3

Street Fighter 3
Street Fighter 3........
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everything that sell is milked.... Mario included... cod assassinscreed just dance...

If they can bring money in they will do it until they can...

The only difference is I can get enough of Mario and I will buy everything they milk out of it.



Switch!!!

Halo, Need For Speed, Pokemon, Gears of war, Assassin' Creed, CoD, Mario




I still don't think that story-driven games like Final Fantasy XIII or Assassin's Creed were really milked. There was put much production value in the story and the characters.

AC1: Altair - Crusaders theme - great Story and dialogues
AC2: Ezio- Renaissance theme - great Story and dialogues - great representation of Firenze and Venezia
AC Brotherhood - Still Renaissance and focus on the Borghia - great representation of Rome
AC Revelation - Ezio and Altair - Constantinople and Byzantine theme
AC 3 - again good Characterization and dialogues - US History theme

So although they put out a game every year I found them all entertaining and they felt different enough for me. But I am playing the games with a focus on the story.

The handheld games however, they can be seen as milking. Bloodlines and Liberation did lack the polish and production values that the console games had. They were not bad, but the console games were simply better.


Final Fantasy is the same thing. There is put a huge effort in the story of each game. Final Fantasy is "the" measure for story-driven RPGs and in my opinion they follow a very serious approach with the franchise. Square is not simply copying the core mechanics of Final Fantasy and reuse them. Man, part of the critics come from taking away elements of former games like the summons (Ifrit, Shiva, Bahamut,...), trying to make a battle system without MP, etc.

For me, the best example of milking are gaming trends like online multiplayer. Even games like Uncharted, God of War or Tomb Raider have added multiplayer modes... and for me they all feel like playing the same game over and over again. Resistance, GTA, Red Dead Redemption, Assassin's Creed... Sometimes these modes were even made by a different studio.

Or DLCs... Most DLC have only little production value and were not really a good experience for me. They feel tacked on, or worse, removed from the game just to be able to charge extra.

Bethesda feels like Milking. Releasing a game in an almost broken status just to keep the desired release date... and then be patched weeks later. That is especially nice for people with no internet connection.



I don't think quantity matters as much as time spacing and quality...
for instance, Final Fantasy has TONS of games, that I wouldn't consider milking. The main series is spaced out by years at a time, and the side games are usually good too, and each individual side series is well spaced (crystal chronicles, tactics, etc.)

mario on the other hand is milked, not to say they aren't quality games, they are just all the same! and seriously, NSMB2's main selling point was coins, like whoo-fucking-hoo, more coins! they don't add anything to the gameplay...

and on a final note, Call of Duty, Asses Creed, Madden, NCAA, and/or any regular EA sports game is milking, they extract 60 bucks out of brain washed sheep every single year, with only slight progression each time.... I want them to stop for a second and make an AMAZING Madden NFL game without re-using anything from previous games!



Pokeslob said:
I don't think quantity matters as much as time spacing and quality...
for instance, Final Fantasy has TONS of games, that I wouldn't consider milking. The main series is spaced out by years at a time, and the side games are usually good too, and each individual side series is well spaced (crystal chronicles, tactics, etc.)

mario on the other hand is milked, not to say they aren't quality games, they are just all the same! and seriously, NSMB2's main selling point was coins, like whoo-fucking-hoo, more coins! they don't add anything to the gameplay...

and on a final note, Call of Duty, Asses Creed, Madden, NCAA, and/or any regular EA sports game is milking, they extract 60 bucks out of brain washed sheep every single year, with only slight progression each time.... I want them to stop for a second and make an AMAZING Madden NFL game without re-using anything from previous games!

Would you consider Uncharted to be milked?



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