10 Biggest Series With No Major Release In A Decade

Every generation has its heavy-hitting titles, classic hits that people cherish long after their release. But, unfortunately, sometimes these important franchises fall by the wayside. This can happen for a number of reasons, though sometimes it seems impossible to understand. There is one thing we can be absolutely certain about, though: it stinks.

Most of the games listed here are still considered to be all-time classic franchises. Yet, they have all spent at least ten years without a new release. Be warned, this is the type of list that can make you feel old. And sad.

10 Lufia

If you weren’t around for the 16-bit era of games, you are probably scratching your head right now. However, Lufia was a beloved RPG franchise on the Super Nintendo. It may not have been Final Fantasy tier, but it was certainly up there with other notable franchises like the Breath of Fire series.

Unfortunately, the last title we saw from this franchise was a pretty good action-RPG remake of the second game on the DS well over a decade ago. Since then, the series has seemingly fallen into obscurity. This is a shame, as it had always produced quality entries.

9 Ogre Battle

The Ogre Battle series was surprisingly prolific: appearing on the Super Nintendo, Neo Geo Pocket, Playstation, Gameboy Advance, Nintendo 64, and Playstation Portable. Better yet, these games were consistently very good. However, after the release of Ogre Battle 64, the last new game in the franchise, the only new release was the (admittedly excellent) remaster of Tactics Ogre.

The ownership of the series has long since been acquired by Square-Enix. All that is left is for fans to wait. Hopefully, Square hasn’t completely forgotten about this series. Matsuno's classic franchise still has so many great games left in it. It would be a crying shame if it wasn’t able to have at least one last ride in the sun.

8 Wave Race

This is a series that wowed people on the Nintendo 64. The water physics are still, to this day, genuinely impressive. The Wave Race series always provided a racing experience that was completely unlike any other.

The Nintendo 64 title was followed by Blue Storm on the Gamecube and, once again, we got a taste of that unique Wave Race-style of gameplay. Unfortunately, that was the last we saw of the franchise. Which was well over two decades ago. It really feels like Nintendo is sleeping on a fantastic racing game, here. Hopefully, Wave Race isn't permanently dead in the water.

7 Punch-Out

It has been a tough decade for boxing titles.Outside of a few excellent VR games, there has not been a high-profile boxing title in quite some time. Unfortunately, this extends to the absolutely classic arcade take on the genre: Punch-Out.

Given that this is one of Nintendo's oldest prestige series, it is a real punch to the gut that we haven't seen a new release in the franchise since the last Punch-Out title was released on the Wii. That was thirteen years ago. Well over a decade. Bring Little Mac back, Nintendo. He has another round in him.

6 Jak And Daxter

Amazingly, despite being the premier platformer series on the PS2 for the majority of that console’s life cycle, Jak And Daxter has been dormant for 13 years now. The best we have gotten is a collection of remasters. Which isn’t nothing, but it certainly isn’t a new game.

On some level, it is almost reassuring that Jak And Daxter never suffered a dramatic decline. The series never endured the hardships that other major platformers have suffered. Still, it feels like the series has more gas in the tank. It is time this platformer jumped back into our lives.

5 Earthbound

Nintendo’s extraordinarily unique RPG series has absolutely left its mark on modern gaming culture. The biggest indie games in recent years, Undertale, was notably heavily influenced by this mythical series. Yet, gamers have spent the last decade begging Nintendo to just translate Mother 3 (the third game in the Earthbound series). A game that released on the Gameboy Advance in 2006. Fans dare not even dream of asking for a new title in the series.

While the Earthbound series may not move the needle when it comes to pure sales, it is still a prestigious series that is incredibly influential. It is, then, a tremendous shame that the series has been absent for so long now. With the inclusion of Earthbound characters in Smash Bros, there has never been a better time for the series to try to make a big return.

4 Suikoden

With the severe diminishment of Konami's will to make games, there have been a number of tragic casualties. However, at least many of their notable franchises have received phone games, which is something. The same cannot be said for Suikoden, Konami's premier RPG franchise. The Suikoden series has not seen a release in well over a decade. And even that title was a Japanese exclusive PSP game.

It hurts to know that we will likely never see the conclusion of the epic, interconnected story of the Suikoden series. Thankfully, all is not lost, at least the original creators are making a spiritual successor. Hopefully, Eiyuden Chronicles will be able to fill the Suikoden-sized hole in our hearts.

3 Fight Night

The last time we saw a Fight Night game was with the release of the beloved Fight Night Champion in 2011. Since then, there have been murmurings of a new title. But so far it has all been talk. And as we all know, talk is cheap.

It is time for this competitor to enter the ring once again. Hopefully, the excellent career mode from Champion will return with it. With any luck we will be slugging it out in the squared circle in the near future. Hopefully, we won't have to wait another decade…

2 F-Zero

It is maddening, but despite the desperate cries of fans, F-Zero has not had a new release in 18 years. That's too long. That's way too long! Few series have the frenetic, chaotic, adrenaline-pumping speed of an F-Zero game. F-Zero GX on the GameCube may still be the best arcade racing title ever made.

Nintendo is not unknown for sitting on killer franchises, but it hurts extra bad with F-Zero, which has been attached to multiple rumors of a new game over the years. It is time, Nintendo. The younger generation is going to start thinking that Captain Falcon is a fighting game character.

1 SSX

It is hard to believe, but one of the most beloved franchises from the Playstation 2 era hasn't seen action in a decade now. The last time we saw an SSX game, the series was being rebooted. While SSX for the 360 and PS3 scored relatively well, it was considered to be a less vibrant version of the franchise that everyone loves.

However, it is still fair to say that there has never been a bad SSX game. Surely that has to be worth something, right? It feels like SSX is ripe for a return tour. Extreme sports games are in serious decline. It is time for this classic franchise to show the world how it is done.

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