You're going to upset a lot of Bayonetta and DMC fans with this though I do agree GoW is loads more fun and the harder difficulties alleviate the complaints about it not being as challenging.

can you say a franchise IS better (in a current sense) when it hasn't had a release a decade?

As in public opinion. Zelda has been around longer. This has nothing to do with sales. Even if it did, Zelda would still be ahead of Uncharted if you combined all of Zelda's sales from the late 80's til now. I personally don't find Zelda all that appealing, but I have recognized it's popularity. It would be hard not to. I absolutely love Uncharted.

Yes, how long it was since the last game was released has nothing to do with the overall quality of the franchise.

lol GOW is the most shallow action game series ever made. Hit circle until a QTE pops up. GOW ripped off and made a dumb version of Castlevania Lament. DMC put action games on the map. GOW even ripped off Rygar. Kamiya owns the genre and Bayonetta series is truly deep combos and one of the deepest around. Kamiya has more game design understanding than any GOW game has in his left nut. People buy GOW because it's easy and shallow. GOW is an awful series with a terrible main character and lousy shallow game design. Ys VI has deeper action combat than GOW. I'm dead serious. If someone likes GOW over Bayonetta fine but look at actual game design and GOW is a scrapped together simpler version of other games before it.

 God of War ripped off DMC which at its height was popular for its day....not on God of Wars level of popularity. DMC put those games on the map but God of War took the crown. Rygar was a lesser kown game which also inspired it. Once God of War showed everyone how it was done it was quickly ripped off by Dantes Inferno and Star Wars the force unleashed. Can't say they never gave back while they took the crown. God of War has great action, its just focused on combining spells and action. It is also more of a platformer than DMC was. God of War took elements from many games and became great...similarly to Uncharted who owes its existence in part to many games (not just one). No matter how you feel...the sales don't lie and the more you raise the difficulty on God of War the the more brutal the game gets. I've never faced anything in DMC or Bayonetta harder than the trails of archimedes in God of war. I also believe God of War and Bayonetta have the best parry/reversal systems. God of Wars and Bayonettas witch time are the best in the business. Their parry system staggers impossible opponents and allows you to go in for the kill, while bayonetta slows down time. Personally I think it takes more skill to master God of Wars parry system. Bayonetta and DMC's edge revolve completely around combo stringing. I'll agree that god of war needs more moves , but if you've ever combo chained attacks and spells in tandem from multiple weapon types together I doubt you would've had such a problem with its "Shallow" combo system. Also the balance also comes from the fact of the level of storytelling Sony had vs their competition.

How is EA to "dare challenge them" when 2k had an exclusive contract for MLB games, barring them from doing so? And 2k/Sony both ripped off so much from MVP Baseball, I would never give either of them praise for their games without also giving EA some credit. But then I'd also remember how both franchises were so god awful laggy and glitchy online, neither deserve any praise. I guess the person who recommended sports, never played The Show on PS4? The online leagues are unplayable. LOL @ best sports developer.

I'm not saying or thinking Uncharted is more popular, but it's grown to be a large IP in a very short amount of time.

That's why I asked how do you gauge. I wouldn't thinking sales of every iteration combined as a relevant comparison, because that would mean that Pac-Man, Mega Man, Guitar Hero, and Brain Age were relevant IPs.

EA has had a lot of worthy competition. Their license with the NFL stopping 2k from making a football game is one of the biggest injustices in gaming. 2k might have failed in baseball, but they would've had a much larger following if they were allowed to continue in Football and EA knows it. Their money was well spent. As for Sony...if there are baseball fans around they know where to go....plain and simple. Discredit them all you want, but the Show is the only major baseball game in town and 2k bowed out of the race. I don't think EA wants a piece either. 

I think I can name 4 that are mo betta.

1. RPG - Todd Howard (Bethesda). With games like multiple Elder Scrolls and Fallout 3 under his belt, enough said.

2. A&A - Leslie Benzies (Rockstar). Resume includes GTA, Bully, Red Dead, etc.

3. Fighting - This genre has become a bit of a joke and there might be like... 3 or 4 people you can honestly choose from, but idk how anyone could not go with Masahiro Sakurai. He has done it longer and with better results than the guy who oversaw SFIV and its thousand rehashes.

4. Hack n slash - Cevat Yerni. He developed Ryse: Son of LOL just kidding. Give me Kamiya. I mean that resume is just rediculous. Balrog? No.