Introduction

A few weeks ago we did a feature on first persons shooters of the past that we would like to see continued in sequels. It turned out to be a popular article and so we decided to expand our horizons a bit for a follow up and look at other games that we think deserve a sequel, even if its not likely that they will ever be released. However, you never know in this industry (hey, we never thought we would see Team Fortress 2, did we?) so maybe this list will inspire others to finally get the ball rolling on these projects.

As we did in our previous article, our criteria for being included in this list is a simple one. The game or games must have been good ones (not necessarily ones that got high sales) and that have not had a sequel released in the last few years nor ones that have been announced as coming out (once again, Duke Nukem Forever isn’t allowed since it’s technically been in development since 1998). So let’s take a look at other games that we think need could benefit from new entries.

Starcraft: I remember being at the Blizzard press conference at E3 way back in 1997 and seeing the opening cut scene for this game and thinking, “Wow, is the game going to be as good as this?”. Well, actually, yes..yes it was. In fact some people consider this title to be the best RTS game ever made. Released in 1998 (with an expansion, Brood War, released late that year), the game has sold millions of copies around the world and is still a popular game today.

So why is it so good? Partly it was because of how Blizzard made each of the three sides in the game (Terran, Protoss and Zerrg) so different from each other. The strong single player campaign was another reason. However the big hook on Starcraft is its strong multiplayer battles. Indeed, the Korean game market jumped on Starcraft and made it a national phenomenon with pro players getting tons of money just by playing.

Odds For Revival: Very likely. Hey, this is Blizzard we are talking about. They are not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Yes, they tried to release that console shooter Starcraft: Ghost but apparently they were not happy with it and put that project on “indefinite hold”. That doesn’t mean Blizzard won’t ever make a sequel to the RTS game. In fact we are pretty much betting the house, camper, and the condo on the beach that in the next couple of years we will finally get that press release we have been waiting for all this time with the headline, “Blizzard Announces Starcraft II.” Yep, that will be a good day indeed for RTS players in general.

Command and Conquer: Red Alert: While fans of the original sci-fi RTS game will finally get a third title in the series sometime next year, the truth is that the C&C game we really want is, for want of a better term, the wacky cousin in the series. Not the super serious original game or C&C: Generals, but the campy alternate timeline setting of Command and Conquer: Red Alert, which was first released back in 1996 (a sequel was released in 2000). Hey when you have Albert Einstein traveling back in time, a Soviet Union at war with the US and psi-powered troops, you know you have something pretty cool.

While both games in the Red Alert series were in 2D, we can’t wait to see a Red Alert III take advantage of a full 3D engine, along with other wacky alternate timeline settings and maybe some of that live action cut scene footage that made Red Alert 1 and II so memorable. Add in some imaginative units and you have a huge seller.


Odds for Revival: Likely. In fact just after current C&C developers Electronic Arts LA finished the first Lord of the Rings: Battle For Middle Earth game, a slightly unofficial announcement was made that a new Red Alert title was to be the next game that the team would develop. As it turned out, that actually didn’t happen and the EALA team moved on and worked on the Battle For Middle Earth sequel and later C&C 3. However, EA is never one to ignore a franchise that has done so well in the past and we think a new C&C: Red Alert game could be a part of their plans in the future, especially if C&C 3 is well received.