Quite often sequels just rehash the original story, and in those circumstances they usually do a poor job. But that’s not always the case, sometimes the sequel is better than the original. Today we are going to take a look at some of those sequels that make the series even better.
Sure, the original Half Life was pretty damned amazing, I mean why wouldn’t it be, it was Valve’s first game and it helped to define the FPS genre. But with the advances in technology and without a need to introduce you to everything again Half Life 2 really gets you into the game. It’s the case of A New Hope versus Empire Strikes Back, both are amazing but Empire has so much more for you to enjoy.
Super Mario Bros. 3 took the basics of the series, which already included a good game in Super Mario Bros., and took it to another level. With the third (technically fourth) installment of the franchise they made the world even larger, and more fun. Nintendo really scored big with this sequel as it made the franchise, every Mario game after this uses this game as the bar to beat.
Don’t get me wrong, the original Assassin’s Creed has its merits, but when you compare it to its successor, Assassin’s Creed 2, it pales in comparison. When it comes to games with a narrative arc you’ll find that the sequel is allowed to do away with all of the annoying introductory bs and get right to the meat of things.
How exactly could you do anything better than the original Portal? The original blew everyone away, it took video games away from guns and violence, and took it in a smarter, more thoughtful, direction. One huge way you could improve that would be to add a cooperative element, which ultimately made the series even more enjoyable, if that was possible. Another huge reason the sequel was amazing was the fact that Valve didn’t fiddle around with the formula that made the original so memorable.
Borderlands wowed everyone when it was released, reasonably so as it gave the shooter genre a nice healthy dose of RPG. Borderlands 2 took all of that and instead of dwelling on the past it looked forward and gave you a very very charismatic antagonist that kept goading you on. You wanted to play the game, but a huge driving force to keep playing was the fact that you just wanted to shut Handsome Jack up. All in all, he could take his “butt stallion” and stick him … well you know where.
The original Halo came out in 2001, it amazed everyone because it was so good it gave the FPS genre some actual credibility. Then in 2004 Bungie gave us Halo 2 and subsequently made us forget about the original. The immensely popular sequel made multiplayer even better, they recognized the popularity of headshotting friends and focused on that. Ultimately this led to making Halo 2 the best selling game on the original Xbox.
Grand Theft Auto and Grand Theft Auto 2 were fun games, but they didn’t really have much to do besides be a horrible person. When Rockstar released Grand Theft Auto III in 2002 it breathed new life into the franchise, and the gaming world in general. GTA III really took the series in a whole new direction, an actually good one. Compared to its predecessors it’s a whole new animal, they went from top down 2D to 3D and had an immersive sand box for you to shoot up.
Demon’s Souls came out in 2009 and threw you right to the lions, there wasn’t much time for you to get into the game. Not that that’s a bad thing, but it limits its accessibility to the average gamer. When they released Dark Souls in 2011 they didn’t make it easier, they just made it so that you had some time to actually get the lay of the land before you met your first boss. Getting a chance to appreciate the time and effort that went into your surroundings makes Dark Souls a better, and in many many ways, a different game.
