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Big game franchises that won “differences” spin-offs –

In the gaming world, it’s common for established franchises to experiment with new genres and experiences, totally different from their original essences. It’s like spin-offs, something already known in the world of TV series.

We have several examples of this: a shooting game in which the characters were transformed into Funko Pops dolls, an adventure game that won a card game, an RPG that became a racing game, and much more. In this list, we remember the most curious: some worked; others, not so much.

11. Pokemon

The iconic pocket monster franchise is now in its eighth generation of RPG games, but has been criticized for maintaining a certain sameness, without concrete innovations, in the main series. However, The Pokémon Company has already released several ambitious spin-offs that have completely changed the franchise’s gameplay.

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Perhaps the most striking and thunderous is Pokemon GO, released in 2016 for Android and iOS. The free game uses GPS and augmented reality technologies to encourage players to catch Pokémon while walking down the street.

We have other important examples, such as Pokemon Snap, in which the player photographs the characters. The first game appeared on the Nintendo 64 in 1999, and received a sequel in 2020, New Pokémon Snap.

We can also quote PokéPark Wii: Pikachu’s Adventure, 2009, and PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond, 2012, who take Pikachu to an amusement park; and Pokken Tournament, 2015, what a mix Pokemon and tekken in a fighting game.

And of course, it is worth highlighting the most recent bet of the franchise: Pokémon UNITE, which takes the pocket monsters into the world of MOBAs. The game is free and available for Nintendo Switch and mobile.

10. Halo

Xbox’s darling first-person shooter (FPS) series also gained different spin-offs. The first was Halo Wars, real-time strategy (RTS) and with an isometric view camera — that is, seen from above — launched for Xbox 360 in 2009. In 2017, an improved version of the game, called, was released. Halo Wars: Definitive Edition, and also a sequel, Halo Wars 2.

Others that followed the isometric camera were Halo: Spartan Assault, from 2013, and Halo: Spartan Strike, from 2015.

9. Gears of War

Another Xbox exclusive franchise, Gears of War is based on third person shooting. The story follows humans fighting for survival against alien races.

But these humans have already turned into Funko Pop dolls! in Gears Pop!, released for PC, Android and iOS in 2019. The game, produced by Mediatonic, the same studio as Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout, is real-time strategy, similar to Royal Clash, for example. However, the game “flopped” and had its servers shut down in 2021.

Gears Tactics, released for PC and Xbox One in 2020, was another experimental game that moved the series into the turn-based strategy genre with the isometric camera. The story takes place 12 years before the first Gears, serving as a prequel to the game’s universe.

8. Kingdom Hearts

The Square Enix franchise, which mixes the worlds of Disney, was born as an action-adventure RPG. The first game was released in 2002 for PS2, with mechanics and visuals perpetuated to this day.

The second game in the series, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, released in 2004, was quite different: the Game Boy Advance title had 2D graphics and a card combat system, which was poorly received by critics and fans at the time. Years later, it was re-released for PS2 with 3D graphics — more like the first game — but still with the card system.

However, perhaps the most different of all is Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory, a rhythm game released in 2020 that recalls landmark events across the franchise. To the sound of the iconic soundtrack, the player must press the indicated buttons at the right times, which will generate attack commands from the characters on the screen.

7. Assassin’s Creed

the main saga of Assassin’s Creed It has radically changed genres over the years, but Ubisoft has bet on surprising styles in its mobile and tablet spin-offs. Examples are Assassin’s Creed II: Multiplayer, 2010, and Assassin’s Creed: Multiplayer Rearmed, 2011, in which four players face off in the middle of the city.

Also for mobiles and tablets, Assassin’s Creed: Recollection, from 2011, is a card strategy game. The player needed to assemble his board with characters, places and actions and battle with figures from the universe of the franchise.

The franchise also won a 2.5D game trilogy (camera on the side, but with depth) called Assassin’s Creed Chronicles. Released between 2015 and 2016, the titles are inspired by the metroidvania genre, forcing the player to solve puzzles and use layers of scenarios to move without being seen. Each game takes place in a different country: China, India and Russia.

6. The Witcher

The game series mainly uses the action-adventure RPG genre to tell the stories of Geralt de Rívia. But the wizard has already ventured into other styles, such as fighting, in The Witcher: Versus, 2008: an online game for browser and iOS focused on beatings and beatings. The title did not work out very well and was discontinued in 2012.

In 2014, The Witcher Adventure Game was released as the digital version of a board game. The game is available for iOS and PC, via GOG and Steam.

Trying to surf the wave of hits like League of Legends, the franchise ventured into the MOBAs with The Witcher: Battle Arena, 2015, released for Android and iOS. Unfortunately, the game failed and had its servers shut down after about a year.

Speaking of good things, perhaps the most successful venture is Gwent: The Witcher Card Game, 2018, available for free for PC, iOS and Android. The spin-off is a card game derived from the Gwent minigame, present in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

Gwent it worked so well that it even gave rise to another spin-off: Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales, from 2018. The title started out as a single-player expansion, but soon became an independent game. The story follows Meve, a human queen of Lyria and Rívia, who must make tough choices and lead her army against an invasion of the Nilfgaardian Empire. The game mixes RPG elements with Gwent’s card systems.

5. Final Fantasy

Another RPG franchise that shot to different sides, Final Fantasy it has action games, MMORPG, racing, battle royale, first person shooter, rhythm and more.

The most recent is Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier, battle royale that arrived for Android and iOS in 2021. In the game, up to 75 players battle until only one person or a group remains, as in Fortnite or Free Fire. It is possible to choose one of the four available classes, which significantly alter the gameplay, and also use a variety of weapons, potions and spells.

It is also worth noting in the diary Chocobo GP, racing game with classic creatures, characters and spells from Final Fantasy, which will be released in 2022 for Nintendo Switch. However, don’t expect the presence of iconic characters like Cloud, Aerith or Squall, for example (at least for now).

4. Castlevania

The action and adventure series Castlevania won some games that completely deviated from the traditional style of the series. An example is Castlevania: The Arcade, released for arcades in 2008, first person shooter.

Already Castlevania Judgment, from 2008, was the first fighting game in the franchise, and the first in the series released for the Nintendo Wii. Although it doesn’t look like a Castlevania Traditionally, the title contains 13 playable characters from that universe, each with their own detailed storyline.

3. Resident Evil

resident Evil has several spin-offs that complement the main story of the saga, but some of them only serve as multiplayer add-ons. One of them is Resident Evil: Resistance, an asymmetrical 4v1 horror game — similar to dead by daylight, for example — which came with the remake of Resident Evil 3 in 2020. In the game, a group of human survivors must escape while a villain tries to stop them, using traps, cameras, monsters and more.

As early as 2022, it should be released Resident Evil Re:Verse, a complement to Resident Evil Village which, unfortunately, was delayed in release. The game will be based on six-person knockout battles, mixing famous heroes and villains from across the franchise.

2. Metroid

In 2002, the franchise metroid won a game trilogy separate from the main series: Metroid Prime. The games still track bounty hunter Samus Aran, but assume the camera with first-person view instead of traditional side-scrolling (when the camera is on the side, and we see the player move left and right).

The Prime series has also gained its own spin-offs, such as Metroid Prime Pinball, from 2005, which incorporates the story and the characteristic look of the series in pinball.

please note that Metroid Prime 4 was announced during E3 2017 and, since then, there is no information about the game’s development status.

1. The Legend of Zelda

In 2014, it arrived in stores Hyrule Warriors, one of the most successful games from the failed Wii U. The game is a crossover of Zelda with another series: Dynasty Warrio, a very popular hack’n’slash in Japan that ended up creating its own subgenre, the musou — the name is inspired by the Japanese title of the game, Shin Sangoku Musou.

The game was produced by Koei Tecmo, the developer of Dynasty Warriors, in partnership with Nintendo. Generalize the smack with characters from Zelda, with combos and special moves, is a lot of fun; conquering parts of the map, controlled by captains, heightens the challenge. All this brought a freshness to the series, centered on action RPGs.

At the end of 2020, the sequel was released Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. The game takes place before the events of Breath of the Wild, bringing details about the great war against Ganon.

Zelda also ventured into rhythm games in 2019 with Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer Featuring The Legend of Zelda (what a giant name!). The game is another crossover, this time borrowing the characters and world from Zelda for procedural roguelike Crypt of the NecroDancer.

We’ve reached the end of our list. Do you remember any other franchise that experimented with new air? Share with us through social media!

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