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[Gamingbolt] Why Are GAMERS ADDICTED To Sequels And Remakes?

RedC

RedC

Member

The biggest reason we'll continue to see sequels, remakes, reboots, remasters, and whatnot is because of those who buy them: Gamers. Time is limited, and the sheer number of choices in the triple-A, indie and free-to-play spaces is immense.
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Why not spend it on something familiar that's also fun? It's not the most unreasonable expectation, but the knock-on effect could result in huge shifts down the line. Would games like Keeper receive any attention if Double Fine weren't part of Microsoft, or if it weren't on Game Pass? Would developers even still be around if they weren't acquired in the first place?
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What happens when their titles fail to perform well? Whatever the case may be, the fixation isn't going to end anytime soon, especially if it pays dividends. The only thing we can hope for is that innovation eventually breaks through, regardless of audience, brand name and studio size, as we've seen so many times this year.
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Why Remakes and Sequels Dominate Modern Gaming

Core idea of the video

The modern game industry is increasingly focused on:
  • remakes
  • remasters
  • sequels
  • reboots
rather than brand-new IP.

This shift is largely driven by financial risk, development costs, and player behavior.

Remakes Are Not a New Concept

Remakes have existed almost as long as video games themselves.

Examples from earlier eras:
  • Space Invaders arcade → console versions
  • Super Mario All-Stars
    • NES Mario games remade with SNES visuals
  • Resident Evil (2002 remake)
However, these were less common industry-wide.

The Modern Remake Explosion

The current remake boom is widely credited to the success of:
  • Resident Evil 2 (2019)
Why it mattered:
  • critically acclaimed
  • massive sales
  • modernized gameplay
  • attracted new audiences to the franchise.
Its success showed publishers that remakes can be blockbuster hits.

Examples of Recent Remakes (2025 era)

Major remakes mentioned:
  • Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
  • Dragon Quest I & II HD‑2D Remake
  • Trails in the Sky First Chapter Remake
  • Silent Hill 2 Remake
Remasters also continue to appear frequently.

Examples:
  • Suikoden I & II HD Remaster
  • Tomb Raider IV–VI Remastered

Sequels Also Dominate the Industry

Many of the most anticipated games are sequels.

Examples listed:
  • Grand Theft Auto VI
  • Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
  • Hades II
  • Monster Hunter Wilds
  • Kingdom Come Deliverance II
  • Battlefield 6
  • Doom: The Dark Ages
Even niche titles are sequels:
  • Citizen Sleeper 2
  • Wizard of Legend 2

The AAA Industry Is Risk-Averse

AAA publishers rarely gamble on brand-new IP.

Reasons include:

1. Rising development costs

Modern AAA games can cost:
  • $150M–$300M+
Publishers want safer investments.

2. Brand recognition

Established franchises come with:
  • built-in audiences
  • marketing advantages
  • predictable sales.

3. Growth expectations

Publishers don't just want profit.

They want continued growth.

If a franchise can't deliver massive returns, it may be shelved.

Examples of franchises currently inactive:
  • Dead Space
  • Titanfall
  • Dragon Age

Remakes Can Revive Dormant IP

A successful remake can lead to:
  • renewed interest in an old series
  • potential new sequels.
Example model:

Resident Evil
  • remake success revived the franchise.

Why Gamers Also Reinforce This Trend

Consumers play a role.

Reasons players buy remakes and sequels:

Familiarity

Players know what they're getting.

Limited time

Gamers have huge libraries to choose from.

So they prefer trusted experiences.

The Visibility Problem for New IP

New games struggle to break through.

Examples of new IP mentioned:
  • Clair Obscur
  • ARC Raiders
  • Dispatch
But many acclaimed games sell poorly.

Example given:
  • The Drifter
    • only 13,617 units sold in its first week.

Platform Support Matters

Some new ideas survive thanks to:
  • publisher backing
  • subscription platforms.
Example:

Microsoft supporting experimental titles through:
  • Xbox Game Pass.
Without that support, many studios might not survive financially.

Sequels Can Still Innovate

The video notes that sequels are not automatically stagnant.

Examples of sequels pushing boundaries:

Hades II

  • expanded combat systems.

Ghost of Yotei

  • evolving open-world mechanics.

Death Stranding 2

  • expanding its gameplay concepts.

Hybrid New IP

Some "new IP" builds heavily on earlier design traditions.

Example:

Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet

A new franchise but inspired by:
  • Dark Souls
  • Bloodborne.
This shows how innovation often evolves from existing ideas.

The Industry Balance Problem

The concern raised:

The balance between:
  • safe sequels/remakes
  • bold new ideas
may be shifting too far toward safety.

This could make it harder for:
  • smaller developers
  • experimental games
  • new franchises.

The Likely Future

The video concludes that:

Remakes and sequels aren't going away anytime soon.

They remain profitable and relatively safe investments.

Final Hope

The industry will likely continue to produce remakes and sequels.

But the hope is that innovation will still break through occasionally — regardless of:
  • studio size
  • IP recognition
  • marketing budgets.
 
It's because it's safe to slap a known franchise name on a game.

I fell for it with silent hill f thinking it was a silent hill game. That game had nothing to do with the franchise. At least resident evil keep the general theme going.
 
Dust-by-Monday said:
It's because it's safe to slap a known franchise name on a game.

I fell for it with silent hill f thinking it was a silent hill game. That game had nothing to do with the franchise. At least resident evil keep the general theme going.
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LqGxk4H6iz48Hln2.jpeg
 
Because it gives you a baseline of what to expect and something new has not had a chance to reflect on its own design and make improvements in the same way.

I do buy indies that are experimental but AAA prices for new IPs are too much for what could be a mediocre or heavily flawed experience.
 
Because we like our favorite series?
I also play a fuckton of completely new indies and AA games. It isn't my fault that AAA companies are against new things mostly.
 
Call me crazy, but I don't think addicted is the right word.

People generally like things they're already familiar with.

Am I going to start experiencing withdrawal symptoms if they don't make Splinter Cell Remastered?

I dunno, maybe? 🤷‍♂️
 
Remakes are easy to explain. With more and more crap coming out from every kind of entertainment (not just games but movies and tv as well) gamers want a known quantity and a guaranteed win with their limited free time.

These days I'd much rather play a shiny new version of something I know I like rather than a brand new hot steamy turd.
 
NeverYouMind said:
AAA prices for new IPs are too much for what could be a mediocre or heavily flawed experience.
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You want AAA devs take risks but players themselves have to willing take risk as well.

I'm willing to support AAA or AA new IP, it could end up amazing or it could end up flawed but that's the risk I'm willing to take.
 
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It's not gamers. People in general tend to gravitate towards stuff that they are familiar with and they know they like
 
One reason is costs. It's generally cheaper to develop a remake of a beloved game than create a new one. And you have somewhat guaranteed sales, because you're dealing with an already-successful product, so it's less risky.
 
That right? We've barely had any real sequels the last 10 years besides some Sony slop
 

[Gamingbolt] Why Are GAMERS ADDICTED To Sequels And Remakes?

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT THIS!
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You'd have to have a sub-zero IQ to not know the answer to this.
God I hate clickbait.

Me: "I liked something and I want more of that something. Instead of something i might not like. What do you mean addicted? "

Real hard to figure out journos! Idiots.
 
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DarkShadowXI said:
Call me crazy, but I don't think addicted is the right word.

People generally like things they're already familiar with.

Am I going to start experiencing withdrawal symptoms if they don't make Splinter Cell Remastered?

I dunno, maybe? 🤷‍♂️
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Yeah, games addiction is real, but this one ain't it.

But who knows? Maybe some people do have symptoms if their favorite franchises don't get sequels.
 
Safe, fore sure. There's is a thing called dialectic, Marxian style. Addicted to nostalgia ? And what is this ? Just blind love for which is no more ? . A whole lot of us are looking for a time that is no more, like our elders did. There surely must be reasons for that. But can we be true about what are those ? The market is the market, yes and a fish always rots from the head down, that's a thing. Isn't it amusing how the kid always look at his father who's crying about this dying world of his, thinking what an ignorant asshole he is, just to to the same a few years later in front of his own offspring and so on ? Damn, those where some heavy Belgians that i just had.
 
A kind of learned mediocrity from both devs and players, undermining of art, creative bankruptcy and money above all strategy.
 
Because the subsection of gamers that do, remember a time when games had decent scripts, good pacing, very little padding, no political messaging, simpler gameplay that didn't require fourteen fingers and extra paddles for the basic moves, and didn't try to monopolize your free time for ten years straight.

In that time, good games were made by people who had a lot of ideas and instead of cramming them all into a single game, saved some for a couple of sequels where they'd also iron out the kinks and improve the graphics and gameplay. All within a year or two, not a whole generation or two later.
 
They're more popular now because more people are looking to the past.
Over 40% games played are retro ( 10 years or older) and that's not remakes either.
New IP's account for 14%.
publishers are seeing that gamers are playing their old releases and not buying the new ones, so what's the most logical thing to do? after their new IP has failed they look to Remakes, Sequels or Remasters
Remakes and Remasters are more safer because the ground work is done, a sequel can be risky if your Dev team aren't up to the task (and we've seen what happens when they're not)
Capcom with RE is different, although it's is demand for them they are also remaking to both learn and cause correct and make money, even though people still love their games they know they weren't up to the standard of their past hits so they looked back and the fruits of their labour is Requiem.
Some other Devs are doing the same while others are just jumping on the bandwagon.
It's not there aren't good new IP, there is just not as many, there's loads of new games but very few with the pedigree of older IP's and even with the same old successful IP a sequel isn't always safe, not many Devs can match what came before, especially when the teams aren't the same people as before.
 
Games like Resident Evil Code veronica definitely needs a remake.
the game is "good" but with a terrible flaw, that backtracking and item management is abysmal at best.
A remake could overhaul this glaring issue and vastly improve the gaming experience.

Remasters are great because they can potential improve on the original.
I consider Mario RPG on switch a remake, but some would say it's a remaster.

Either way, it's HUGELY superior to the original in every way.
And that is what I love about remasters.
 
Because modern games are filled with woke shit (veil guard, avowed, etc) or gaas.

I'd gladly buy AAA games if they are single player and in the same vein as older titles and do (dragons dogma 2, kingdom come2, re9, calisto, nioh, elden ring). And many strategy and indie games, but even some of them are bait and switch (civ7 looking at you).

Remakes we at least know what to expect. Although the games I want remakes for never get released and never get their OG games ported either. So many games from the ps1, ps3and early pc are never done. (would love remakes and or ports of all megaman legends, parasite eve, brave fencer, bushido blade, legends of legia, wing commander, clive bakers undying, rune, black and white, Sim city 4, Descent trilogy, command and conquer, splinter cell 1-4, thief 1-3, freelancer, might and magic series, wizardry 7 and 8, dark messiah, arx fatalis, ultima underworld, ultima 4-7, populous, half life 1 and 2, Resistance, infamous, killzone trilogy, no one loves forever, fear 1-2, dead space 2)

Hell I don't need a remake just port the old games to the switch and ps5. Include a toggle for modern controls and visuals and I will be happy (similar to tomb raider games and Diablo 2 resurrected).
 
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Knightime_X said:
Games like Resident Evil Code veronica definitely needs a remake.
the game is "good" but with a terrible flaw, that backtracking and item management is abysmal at best.
A remake could overhaul this glaring issue and vastly improve the gaming experience.

Remasters are great because they can potential improve on the original.
I consider Mario RPG on switch a remake, but some would say it's a remaster.

Either way, it's HUGELY superior to the original in every way.
And that is what I love about remasters.
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True. Majority of remakes are vastly superior to the originals, and I don't care what the nostalgia-goggled-purist-addicts say.
 
Sequels and remakes have always been part of gaming. It only seems to become a problem when Sony is the one making them.
 
deeptech said:
A kind of learned mediocrity from both devs and players, undermining of art, creative bankruptcy and money above all strategy.
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Well Microsoft released more original IP's than pretty much anyone else this gen and I would rather have remakes over 90% of thier garbage.
 
It's tempting to attribute something like this to a failing of the games industry, but I think the likely explanation is far more simple and human: there's comfort in familiarity. This goes for both the people who make games and the people who play them.
 
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Knight of the Round said:
Because 99.9% of new IPs (especially in the West) suck donkey dick.
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This. It's hard to be excited from new IP from AAA because it's all so lame and compromised now by modern audiences crap. Even Capcom kinda sucks at new IP, Pragmata's character designs are super lame compared to og RE and DMC.
 
ToneyJ said:
This. It's hard to be excited from new IP from AAA because it's all so lame and compromised now by modern audiences crap. Even Capcom kinda sucks at new IP, Pragmata's character designs are super lame compared to og RE and DMC.
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I loved my time with Pragmata's demo and the bulky tank-like suit of the protagonist is ... interesting, to say the least.
 
Because players are nostalgic and we are hitting that time when the players that played PS/PS2 games while child have work, children and want to start remembering old times with their own children. It happens all the time, that's why Nintendo can continue selling rom at full price.
 
Because the mainstream is stale and stagnant so if they gonna shit out the slop that they always do, it may as well be the thing we know, like whatever the next ass creed game will be when its farted out.

Just look at all the other failed ubi slop, xdefiant, hyperscape, rollerball or whatever that game was called, the game where you actually were like balls duking it out, star wars outlaws which had potential but was farted out, avatar the same thing.

Id love new games but we dont get "new games"... just the same game but with a different name with some added activism on the side .
 
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One of the most heralded movies of all time, Ben-Hur, was a remake. It won 11 Oscars.

In 1959.

Whitney Houston's most famous song is a cover.

McDonald's keeps re-releasing the McRib.

Get over it.
 
Gamers are just buying things that appeal to them. It's the studios that push the remakes because we live in an industry that largely doesn't have space for failure or an appetite for small success.

Games are more expensive to make and everyone is risk adverse. This leads to an environment where people either take risks only in pursuit of huge payoffs (Chasing trends / GaaS / etc) or they only make safe bets (Remakes / Sequels / Known IP). Making smaller original games that are profitable but only provide a 125-150% return on investment is seen as a waste of time. Even worse is there is no space for AA project failures with some of these major publishers. AA projects aren't profitable enough and heaven forbid a AA project lose money. They simply will not subsidize AA failures as a cost of doing business to generate new IP and the occasional hit. It's much easier for them to look outside and just copy what a winner looks like...

The ironic thing is they end up burning way more money on AAA budget games chasing the success of others and failing. They end up creating shallow new imitation IP that no one really feels attachment to and live service style games that need to get shut down, rather than ending up being part of their content library / legacy. Say what you will about the profitability of titles like Gravity Rush or Wipeout but there is no denying they contributed to the PlayStation brand / legacy and a strong consumer sentiment toward Playstation. All of that has been forgotten / under valued and it's why I think there's so much complaining about PS5. It's not just a lack of games, the platform is soulless. Astrobot seems to be the one accidental survivor that got through Sony's massacre and even it has it's DNA in Japan Studio which Sony was more than happy to kill off.

All of this IP that they're remaking / sequeling came from a period of rapid development and small budgets. These iconic franchises and beloved characters started with 1-2 year dev cycles, and there was a lot of forgotten garbage IP along the way. They just don't don't develop like that anymore or produce AA on such a small scale that they aren't seeing the benefits of the occasional hit subsidizing the losers.
 
Because gaming is a massive industry now, millennials grew up with it, and we are now the biggest demographic in the world. Just like everything else nostalgia sells. Muscle cars were going for crazy money in the early 2000s here in the US, but they have plummeted in price because that generation is no longer there to support it. Plus it's probably cheaper with a better success rate.
 
Most new Western AAA IPs generally suck.

Hopefully it gets better. It probably won't any time soon with the current crop of talent in creative lead positions in Western AAA, but there is Non-western AAA, AA, and Indies.
 
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The root cause is that large companies regularly don't innovate anymore, so even if they make a new IP...it's usually just derivative of another game anyway, except it's not the game the existing audience around that dev wants from them, nor is it a new thing to grab the imagination either.

So many AAA devs this cycle have just been pushed to make live-service games, away from the genres they're good at, and then trend follow what some usually smaller creative dev made popular already to cash-in with some soulless offering.

If these studios can't produce a new game without copy/pasting someone else's ideas, then they might as well make sequels, remakes or remasters to formulas that at least worked.
 
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Because most of the new games (western games) sucks, so they need remasters/remake to fill the gap between the good ones.
 
ByWatterson said:
One of the most heralded movies of all time, Ben-Hur, was a remake. It won 11 Oscars.

In 1959.

Whitney Houston's most famous song is a cover.

McDonald's keeps re-releasing the McRib.

Get over it.
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They really need to remake Ben Hur I cant watch that old shit
 
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