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[Aeana]

I don't like Parasite Eve 2, and the first game is amazing.

 

[Sephzilla]

Devil May Cry to Devil May Cry 2.

Correct answer. It's legitimately surprising that the franchise survived that game considering how niche it is.

 

[Skii]

I'm gonna have to jump on the Dark Souls to Dark Souls 2 bandwagon.

This one stuck out to me the most because it happened so recently. I'm at the prime age to appreciate the games that I play and I've written numerous detailed essays on what went wrong. Even to this day, DS2 just feels weird coming off any of the Soulsbourne games. It just doesn't feel right at all.

 

[mugoldeneagle03]

If no one mentioned SOCOM and any of the bullshit they came up with past S3 I'll be disappointed.

Used to be a go to shooter for Sony and it is literally gone. Vanished. A true testament to not only a drop in quality but a masters class in how to destroy a dedicated fan base 101.

Now I'm in a bad mood.

 

[MagnesD3]

Halo 4 > Halo 5

Galaxy 2 > Super Mario 3d Land/World

Thousand Year Door > Super Paper Mario

Mgs4 > MgsV

Starfox 64 > Starfox Assault/Command/Zero

Banjo Tooie > Banjo Kazooie Nuts and Bolts

Bioshock > Bioshock 2/Infinite

Twilight Princess > Skyward Sword

Demons Souls > Dark Souls

Brawl > Smash 4

Deus Ex > Invisible Wars

Dead Space > Dead Space 2/3

are all good examples of sequels not living up to how awesome their predecessors were.


Mass Effect > Mass Effect 2 was pretty disappointing in many ways as well.

 

[User 479360]

Mafia II to Mafia III

 

[packy34]

In terms of writing, New Vegas ---> Fallout 4.

In terms of quest design, New Vegas ---> Fallout 4.

In terms of anything else, Deus Ex ---> Invisible War. Though the first two also apply to this.

Halo 5, Super Mario 3d Land/World, Super Paper Mario, MgsV, Starfox Assault, Banjo Kazooie Nuts and Bolts, Bioshock 2/Infinite, Skyward Sword, Dark Souls and Smash 4 are all good examples of sequels not living up to how awesome their predecessors were.

MGSV as a whole was much better than Peace Walker.

 

[LordKasual]

I would say that the biggest drop in quality between these two is the driving and animation physics. V's implementation of euphoria was heavily toned down from IV's, and driving was arcade-y compared to IV's cars which felt like they actually had weight and inertia.

I was expecting some kind of improvement on the Euphoria physics system...i was baffled when it was not only removed, but replaced with nothing.

 

[Waddle Dee]

Devil May Cry to Devil May Cry 2.

This is my answer as well. Devil May Cry was a huge innovator. Some aspects of it are a bit dated and a little too simple by today's action game standards but it's still a great game that influenced so many titles. Devil May Cry 2 is just straight-up atrocious. It's not the most "broken" game I've ever played but it's one of the least fun games I've ever played that I actually bothered finishing. I had more fun with Ride to Hell. No joke.

At least the series then came back in a huge way with DMC3 and 4. DmC was a mess but it can't even compare to how shit DMC2 was.

 

[Ostinatto]

Double Dragon
and
Double Dragon II

 

[friskykillface]

I remember playing devil may cry 2 first on the HD collection to see how bad it was and holy shit it was just awful

Can't imagine what it was like to wait for DMC2 after devil may cry 1

 

[Tonky]

I was expecting some kind of improvement on the Euphoria physics system...i was baffled when it was not only removed, but replaced with nothing.

Going from Max Payne 3 to GTA V was jarring. Best TPS physics in a game EVER (still the best), to something about as good as ragdoll. Really hoping RDR2 improves on this.

 

[MagnesD3]

In terms of writing, New Vegas ---> Fallout 4.

In terms of quest design, New Vegas ---> Fallout 4.

In terms of anything else, Deus Ex ---> Invisible War. Though the first two also apply to this.



MGSV as a whole was much better than Peace Walker.

I was thinking of the Mgs4 not the psp titles.

 

[KraytarJ]

Xenoblade Chronicles > Xenoblade Chronicles X
MGS3 > MGS4
Twilight Princess > Skyward Sword (if that counts)
Tales of Xillia > Tales of Xillia 2 (that's largely due to 2 being way too similar to 1)

 

[ScientificPizza]

Final Fantasy VII to Final Fantasy VIII

 

[CazTGG]

Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance -> Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn.

More names (I refuse to call them characters because that would imply they have a personality to boot), worse maps with an uneven difficulty curve and even more unevenly plotted tale makes for a truly abysmal follow-up to one of the series best entries.

Yoshi's Island -> Yoshi's Story

In terms of quality drops, this may not be "the worst", but it is easily the biggest drop in terms of aesthetics. All the childlike wonder and charm of the storybook visuals of Yoshi's Islandare lost in a lackluster attempt to ape Donkey Kong Country, all while missing the fun and challenging level design featured in Country.

 

[Stallion Dan]

SMB to SMB2

RE5 to RE6

Uncharted 3 to Uncharted 4

Twilight Princess to Skyward Sword

MGS3 to MGS4

 

[AHA-Lambda]

Devil May Cry to Devil May Cry 2.

.

 

[Celcius]

Little Big Planet to LBP2. I just didn't like the sequel. The first game is amazing though.

 

[AALLx]

Dark Souls 1 ~> Dark Souls 2

Final Fantasy VII ~> Final Fantasy VIII

Marvel vs. Capcom 2 ~> Marvel vs. Capcom 3

Lost Planet 2 ~> Lost Planet 3

Valkyria Chronicles 1 ~> Valkyria Chronicles 2

 

[Falchion]

Crackdown to Crackdown 2.

This is the only answer. I mean what the hell? They took out all the best aspects of the first (huge gangs that you could tackle in whatever order you want, transforming cars, etc) and replaced it with zombies and 'step on these buttons' missions.

 

[zoobzone]

Starcraft Brood Wars -> Starcraft II Legacy of the Void (SC2 and HotS wasn't good enough for Starcraft that the goodwill from Broodwars eventually died off for the series)
Diablo II -> Diablo III Reaper of Souls (Vanilla D3 was bad)

I feel like Blizzard game development has taken a drastic approach where they recognize there are significant issues with their games but they just won't bother fixing it until the next expansion and they would label the fix as one of the "features"

This also goes to all WoW expansion after Mists of Pandaria

 

[User 479360]

This is the only answer. I mean what the hell? They took out all the best aspects of the first (huge gangs that you could tackle in whatever order you want, transforming cars, etc) and replaced it with zombies and 'step on these buttons' missions.

Yeah, Crackdown 2 is a perfect answer here.

 

[xealo]

Dragon age origins to dragon age 2.

From such a great game to a rushed title literally put out in about ~1 year of dev time. I mean, games can be made well in 1 year, but grand rpgs need to bake a bit longer than that.

 

[anthraxus]

How about twice in the same series ?

2 to 3 and New Vegas to 4

(I don't even really consider the Beth ones Fallout games though, more like spin-offs)

Sticking with the theme...Morrowind to Oblivion also

 

[DonShula]

Madden 2005 (PS2/Xbox) -> Madden '06 (Xbox 360)

Madden 06 is the worst Madden game ever. MAdden 2005 is usually considered the best up until the latest renditions.

Glad I read before I posted. Read my mind.

Madden 2005 was the culmination of years of refinement - it was the GOTY edition of Madden to that point. 06 destroyed all of that, cut 80% of the features, and updated the graphics.

I could not believe what I'd purchased once I spent an hour with 06. It could have reasonably been considered a demo for a full game that never existed. 2005 had details down to franchise relocation and concession prices. 06 didn't even have a flipping franchise mode.

 

[StrategyFan]

i didn't actually play it, but from what i hear:

Master of Orion 2 --> Master of Orion 3

 

[Mzo]

Devil May Cry to Devil May Cry 2.

First thing that came to mind. Atrocious and embarrassing.

 

[Renekton]

Was Ultima 8 good?

Betrayal! Betrayed me!

 

[Mr.Galahad]

Devil May Cry to Devil May Cry 2.

The first time I rage from a game...

 

[xxx shiv xxx]

Biggest drop off in playtime I can remember from one to the next for me:

Halo 3 to Halo 4

GoW 3 to Judgement

 

[packy34]

I was thinking of the Mgs4 not the psp titles.

MGSV is also vastly superior to MGS4 on every level except for story, and even that's debatable.

 

[SUPERHYPERMEGA]

Final Fantasy IX (best mainline) to Final Fantasy X (worst mainline not counting II I guess)

I know it's not a popular opinion, but that's how I feel >.>

It's also my opinion. Gold to utter dog shit.

 

[Coriolanus]

Kingdom Under Fire: Heroes to Kingdom Under Fire: Circle of Doom

Disciples 2 to Disciples 3

gods, this. went from a wonderful, gorgeous, hard as balls HoMM clone to.... whatever the fuck disciples 3 was supposed to be

Driver to Driver 2. First one was one of my favorite PS1 games, second game just dropped the ball.

Nah, b. Driver 2 to Driver 3. 2 was bad, yes, but 3? dear gods.

Blood Omen 2 was not as good as Blood Omen.

biggest understatement in the thread.

 

[tiebreaker]

Harvest Moon: Back to Nature to Save the Homeland; I'm finished with the series after that pos.

 

[Sir Ilpalazzo]

First thing that came to mind. Atrocious and embarrassing.

It's still kind of mind-blowing that Capcom released Devil May Cry 2 in the state that they did.

 

[Son Of Sparda]

Devil May Cry ---> Devil May Cry 2

I mean with all of the other titles people are mentioning, there are at least some people out there who are fans or at very very least got a little tiny bit of enjoyment from playing them.

But I haven't seen anyone and I mean ANYONE who is a fan of or enjoyed playing Devil May Cry 2. The game truly was that bad.

 

[jay]

Is it too late to point out that Alundra is a Landstalker clone?

 

[BigWeather]

Saints Row 2 was one of my favorite open world games ever. So many awesome details, things to discover, loved the plot. SR3, while fun, was not as fun and felt so lifeless.

Still, for me, I'd go with Ultima VII: Serpent Isle to Ultima VIII. Man. It's like they completely missed the point of Ultima. Even IX was good in comparison.

 

[Nero397]

Dead Space 2 to Dead Space 3. Dead Space 2 was easily one of my favorite games from the last gen. Dead Space 3 was really forgettable, dragged on for way too fucking long, and didn't do anything interesting with its story. It really jumped the shark by the end of the game too.

 

[CouchMaster]

Ninja Gaiden Black --> Ninja Gaiden 2 --> Ninja Gaiden 3

 

[davidwhangchoi]

I mean if you compare anything with bottom of the barrel crap like DMC2, there's no contest obviously.

But I dunno, a lot of people, myself included, didn't like Dark Souls 2 at all. As someone who doesn't care about PVP and build variety (I care about the latter but not that much), I thought it was a decent to bad game, and coming from what I consider the game of the last generation, the claim makes sense.

Also I know I'm a minority but I thought Hotline Miami 2 was fantastic, it's just designed very differently so it disappointed most fans. Hell, coming back to 1 makes it extremely easy, almost boring.



Hmmm...

This is by far the worst opinion in this entire thread. You tried to hide it too but I see everything.

sorry, i stand by this. those who were waiting for Gamecube knew the Metroid tech demo looked amazing. yet all the drama of Gunpei Yokoi passing away suddenly and the game was given to a 3rd party (Retro Studios) which had much internal development drama before finally coming out, i was very disappointed with the turnout.

it is a nice game in itself and has aged well since... and now has cult retrospective fans ala Firefly (TV series).

but sorry, i was disappointed at the time and still hold to
Super Metroid --> Metroid Prime

if it weren't for SOTN, real Metroid gameplay wouldn't be alive today.

i'm still waiting for a true 3rd person 3D successor of metroid in the make of mario64, it would've happened if Gunpei was still around and would've never been handed to a 3rd party.

I actually agree with this one more than anything else in this topic. It's not Monkey Ball 2 -> Banana Blitz levels but it's sort of up there for me.

Crucify me, GAF.

=) made me smile.

 

[11037]

Jak and Daxter -> Jak 2

Melee -> Brawl

 

[tiggerkiddo]

It might have looked prettier but Kingdom Hearts 2 was such a downgrade from the first one, there was less exploration, the story got even more stupid, the Disney villains were downgrade while the boring Organization 13 was pushed to the forefront, the battle system got worse...have yet to bring myself to replay it and I doubt I will.

 

[hayejin]

Ninja Gaiden 2 to Ninja Gaiden 3.

Even the Razors Edge couldn't save the turd that was NG3.

 

[DustyVonEric]

Bad Sequel Tier:

FFXII > FFXIII
DMC1 > DMC2
Tomb Raider 1 > TR2
Twisted Metal 2 > TM3
PS3 Warhawk > Starhawk
Star fox 64 > Every Star fox variation afterward


Disappointment Tier:

Dark Souls 1 > Dark Souls 2
Marvel Ultimate Alliance 1 > MUA2
Mortal Kombat 2 > MK3

 

[AJ_Wings]

New Vegas to 4. This was already brought up multiple times since release and this thread. The funny thing is that I dont even have to turn it into a Bethesda vs Obsidian pissing contest to express disappointment in the game. It even feels phoned in especially compared to Skyrim and 3 and those games were hardly perfect themselves and contain many flaws. Id replay those over 4 any day.

Resistance 1 to 2. How you took a completely average shooter and turned into an utter clusterfuck is beyond me.

 

[pizzacat]

DMC2 to DMC3

 

[TheSpaceBetween]

sorry, i stand by this. those who were waiting for Gamecube knew the Metroid tech demo looked amazing. yet all the drama of Gunpei Yokoi passing away suddenly and the game was given to a 3rd party (Retro Studios) which had much internal development drama before finally coming out, i was very disappointed with the turnout.

it is a nice game in itself and has aged well since... and now has cult retrospective fans ala Firefly (TV series).

but sorry, i was disappointed at the time and still hold to
Super Metroid --> Metroid Prime

if it weren't for SOTN, real Metroid gameplay wouldn't be alive today.

i'm still waiting for a true 3rd person 3D successor of metroid in the make of mario64, it would've happened if Gunpei was still around and would've never been handed to a 3rd party.


=) made me smile.

You do realize that Yokoi had very little to do with the actual development of Super Metroid?

 

[Langdon Alger]

Mass Effect 1 to Mass Effect 2

Agreed.