Video Game Series With Multiple Reboots

A reboot is a risky endeavour for any video game series, no matter how well-established. Ideally, you want the reboot to bring in a new audience without alienating the existing fanbase, and it doesn’t always end well. Devil May Cry was actually forced to backpedal on its reboot and return to the original continuity due to the ire it drew from fans.

As a result, most video game series have only one reboot, if at all, but some take things much further. Some series took a few tries to get it right, while others just became cautionary tales of publishers’ mismanagement. Here are the video best game series that mashed the reset button more than once.

10

Shinobi

Once a staple of arcades and sporting some of Sega’s most iconic characters, Shinobi has dwindled to obscurity over time. Despite maintaining a hardcore fanbase, the series struggled to find its footing once 3D video games became the norm.

A PS2 reboot in 2002 was successful enough for a sequel, especially because games didn’t require obscene budgets back then, before eight more years of radio silence. In 2011, this ninja emerged from the shadows for another unsuccessful 3DS reboot before slipping away into the night.

9

Sonic The Hedgehog

In the past 30 years, Sonic the Hedgehog has had more failures than successes, yet this blue ball of charisma always takes the standing eight count and comes back. You can thank his faithful fanbase for that, because his track record with reboots is a little less impressive.

In 2006, Sonic the Hedgehog was rebooted in what was meant to be a celebration of 15 years spent collecting rings. Instead, it was heavily panned for its bizarre plot and clunky gameplay. In 2014, Sonic Boom attempted another reinvention of the character, only to stumble again. That’s okay though: we got a really good TV show out of it.

8

Wolfenstein

The legacy of Wolfenstein 3D will always be tied to its status as having the prototypical first-person shooter. However, there were two entries in the series even before Wolfenstein 3D, dating back to Castle Wolfenstein in 1981. These days, few would call Wolfenstein 3D a reboot, but given its revamped and revolutionary gameplay in a time where story was secondary, it definitely qualifies.

In 2001, Return to Castle Wolfenstein came out and reinvented the series once more in a world where FPS controls had become standardized. 2014’s Wolfenstein: The New Order served as another reboot, with an increased focus on storyline.

7

Call Of Duty

Call of Duty’s chronology is more akin to a family tree than a straight line. It’s branched out into subseries handled by different developers, ensuring you have a new game every year. While this annual release trend has drawn a lot of criticism, Call of Duty has some stellar titles in its lineup and still serves as a mainstay of multiplayer.

After its 2003 debut, Call Of Duty sought to differentiate itself from other World War 2 shooters by shifting to a contemporary setting in 2007’s Modern Warfare. The game was a massive hit and set the template for all military shooters to come. While other subseries have continued in their original continuity, Modern Warfare was rebooted in 2019 because for Activision Blizzard, ‘it worked the first time’ is as good a reason as any.

6

Prince Of Persia

A series that’s consistently redefined genres and left fans wanting more, Prince of Persia started in 1989. Jordan Mechner’s brainchild made itself known to a wider audience with 2003’s Sands of Time, before being rebooted once again in 2008.

By the time 2024’s The Lost Crown came out, Ubisoft had become aware of the dangerous reputation series with multiple reboots can acquire. The publisher fervently insisted that it was not a reboot, but a new chapter. Reboot, reimagining, rebirth – just give it to us straight, folks.

5

Need For Speed

If you weren’t there, it would be hard to explain what Need For Speed used to be. During the halcyon days of the 2000s, no racing game was cooler. Ask someone who played 2005’s Most Wanted, they’ll tell you: the police chases, storyline and soundtrack are all iconic.

The series started off as a pretty straightforward arcade racer in 1994. The Fast and Furious influence started to show in 2003, with Need For Speed: Underground shifting to street racing instead of professional circuits. The series received another self-titled reboot in 2015, but by that time the glory days were in the rearview mirror.

4

Alone In The Dark

Perhaps the most regrettable example of intellectual property mismanagement ever, Alone In The Dark never managed to reclaim its throne after Resident Evil showed up. After a spectacular debut in 1992, the series tried to duplicate Resident Evil’s success. The result was 2001’s Alone In The Dark: The New Nightmare, an ambitious game stuck between hardware generations.

Things only got bleaker from then on, with 2008’s self-titled reboot being mocked just as much as the Uwe Boll film adaptation. The third time wasn’t the charm, as despite a rather kind review by TheGamer, the 2024 reboot was also a flop. This series is the loneliest and darkest it’s ever been now, and it might be time to cut and run.

Twisted Metal’s chaotic car carnival first came to PlayStation in 1995. After four entries and a solid reputation, the series reimagined itself for a new millennium in 2001 with Twisted Metal: Black. While the 2001 reboot was a massive success, the 2012 one was less so.

By then, Twisted Metal was no longer as revolutionary and exciting as it had once been. What should have been one of the PlayStation brand’s flagship series eventually ground to a complete halt.

2

Mortal Kombat

No fighting game series has a more flawless record at reinventing itself than Mortal Kombat. After becoming a massive hit in arcades in 1992, the series decided to start anew in 2011. Another reboot, titled Mortal Kombat 1, followed in 2023.

Mortal Kombat has always been dogged by controversy wherever it goes, being regularly banned in some regions for its extreme violence. That hasn’t stopped it from being the best-selling fighting game series of all time, just like its convoluted lore hasn’t stopped it from rebooting itself time and again.

1

Tomb Raider

What can Lara Croft do that Indiana Jones can’t? Revive interest in her series. While the wayward archaelogist has had her fair share of flops, Tomb Raider has always managed to come back strong. The first reboot came after the utterly terrible Angel of Darkness. Helmed by new developer Crystal Dynamics, Tomb Raider: Legend finally gave the series the gameplay overhaul it badly needed and was a damn fine game in the process.

In 2013, another reboot named after the first game washed ashore, and once again Tomb Raider was on everyone’s mind. This new continuity starred a younger, more inexperienced Lara. A successful trilogy later, she’s definitely just as hardy as her original namesake.