What do we look for in a sequel?

[VanityGirl]

So many games have been coming out with sequels, I thought this was appropriate.

What do we as gamers look for in a good sequel? Unfortunately, it's hard to answer this questions because we gamers have become picky and spoiled. What do I mean?

We complain if a sequel is too different from the original, yet get equally upset if the core gameplay/setting is the same.

Two games that have gotten a lot of flack for being too different and too samey are Gears of War 2 and Bioshock 2, respectively.

Gears 2 changed the whole feel of Gears1 and many vets of the first game held a lot of resentment against Epic for changing the core gameplay so much. In this case, the story was fine, but the difference in the feel of the game caused a few people to get very upset.

Bioshock 2 has the same basic gameplay and setting. This time, you play as a big daddy and of course the story is different.


My question is, what do we look for in a sequel?

 

[BlindMessiah94]

Candy?
I don't know actually. I would hope a game leaves me not knowing what to expect of the sequel, and then the sequel comes out and I am "Oh shit. Didn't expect that."
Too many sequels are just the same game, again, and again, and again, and again...

 

[kampori]

Mass Effect (2). This is the Avatar of videogames. This is a game which everyone on the genre (action RPGs) should look up to. It is, IMO, the perfect sequel. People complain that the story of ME2 is weak and simple.. but think about it. It's the 2nd in the trilogy. The middle story is ALWAYS the weakest, but by no means weak. By this point, we are so expectant of the orgasm we got at end of ME1.. that here comes ME2 and you feel disappointed, just cus youre spoiled with ME1.

Sorry... fanboy rant.

What I mean to say is- Mass Effect 2 brings out the PERFECT sequel blend. The story carries on nicely from ME1, and sets perfectly into ME3. The characters, stories and choices/decisions made in ME1 make a comeback into ME2. Your Shepard really feels like he's yours.

And that's what I want in a sequel. A game which feels just like the 1st, just.. better. and that is exactly what ME2 does.

Again.. FANBOY ALAERT. Sorry

 

[MiracleOfSound]

Development of story, resolution of flaws and refined mechanics.

 

[coldshrike]

I think the most important thing is to just make the games simmilar enough that they feel connnected, without just making it seem like the same game again. Like, say, Half-Life.

 

[Ckeesy]

What I mean to say is- Mass Effect 2 brings out the PERFECT sequel blend. The story carries on nicely from ME1, and sets perfectly into ME3. The characters, stories and choices/decisions made in ME1 make a comeback into ME2. Your Shepard really feels like he's yours.

And that's what I want in a sequel. A game which feels just like the 1st, just.. better. and that is exactly what ME2 does.

I also really like the sense of continuity you get with ME2, and I agree that the ability to carry on your own individual Shepard into the next game really helps give a sense of attachment, and I hope other developers will follow along this trend.

Generally when I play a sequel, what I'm looking for is to see if the story continues in a logical way from the first. Also, as mentioned in an earlier post, it needs to be familiar, yet still needs to bring something new to the table. I figure that the first game in a series is the Developer's chance to see what works and what doesn't work. Therefore, in a sequel, anything that doesn't work should be removed, while everything that does work should be enhanced and streamlined.

A perfect example of the above is Saints Row 2. The story continues on from the first game in a mostly-logical way, and even though you can't port your character directly, he's the same guy within the realm of the story, so there is still a bit of attachment to them. The developers recognized that people didn't like there being so many of the same time of side quest (activities), so they streamlined it so that there were only 2 iterations of a given activity (instead of 3). However, they added a butt-load more side-quests, allowing for more variety. They kept the wacky humor and Zaney missions, and they also added a number of new mechanics, such as the Human Shield system (which I loved), among others. In the end, they came up with a game that was far superior to the original, yet still retained the tone and charm of the first game. In other words, the perfect sequel.

That's just my opinion, anyways.

 

[ultrachicken]

I look for more of the same. It's not the job of a sequel to go out inventing new ideas, just giving me more of what I liked.
Needless to say, I'm going to love Bioshock 2.
Also, it's not a problem if a sequel is too different because if it had a different label no-one would complain: if it does its new thing well, what's the problem?

 

[Gauntes]

-story starts right after you finish the first game, not 30 years later
(though admittedly, if they had the story finished, they might as well as fit it in the first game)
-Closure to the story
-Balance fix if previous game had issues
-fairly similar gameplay elements to bring back the older fans while introducing new and interesting mechanics to keep them from being bored
-drastic change to the genre is probably not a good idea
-no more than 2 years between games

I might have more but at 1AM, that's all I can think of

 

[ace_of_something]

Whatever Megaman is doing. That seems to work. Every copy of the game series (and megaman X) sold a metric crotchton of copies and was hailed as great.

edit: a crotchton is not quite as much as a buttload.

 

[luvd1]

Originality for me. It's got to be different from the first game. I want to feel like I have a new game and fresh continuity of the story line, if it has a plot line. Mass effect 2 I liked a lot. Bioshock2, I have no interest in what so ever. It's just a add on to me. Same goes for fable 3. I like things to move on, not rehash of old ground. Examples? All halo games.... ALL OF THEM.

 

[Lord Nosferatu]

Miracles, basically. We want everything that was good in the first game, squared. That's what I want. What I usually expect, though, is a polished version of the previous installment with a few things removed and a slightly less interesting story. What I hope for is something that I would like to play again. And what I dread is a greed-driven less-than-sincere attempt at a revamping of the original, held together by half a story written by the developers' kids and released after the sole better tester said it's "not that bad".

 

[The_Blue_Rider]

Id have to say Assassins Creed 2 was a very good example of a good sequel, the story was fantastic, the setting and characters were great, and the gameplay was still great.

 

[Layz92]

I would say an evolution of the previous game's gameplay, similar mechanics but improved on so they are more streamlined and easier to use etc. That being said also adding some new stuff that will not change the base mechanics very much. An example of these is God of War 2. The combat and mechanics are still basicly the same but they changed out spells and added the golden fleece etc. Also as long as they don't take a wrong turn at story style junction the story can be different. It just requires a similar atmosphere and the characters all of a sudden can't become deep and meaningful when they used to be dicks or anything similar to that. Like if baird from gears of war suddenly became a philosophical guru it would just be stupid.

 

[no3]

Ok, did you saw Fallout 2?
- Bigger world, more everything, longer game,
- Some graphics changes
- Some bugs fixes
Why it wasn't just an expansion pack? Because it was separate game, with lots and lots of new things. Simple. While creators differ expansion packs from separate game not for things in game, but just for mechanics.

 

[Ultress]

They need a few things,
-An interesting story be it a continuous,a side story, or something completely different if it's an FF type sequel
-It should try and polish the things that the first games did right and remove what went wrong.
-Also it needs to add some new mechanics of its own to stay fresh.

Examples,WARNING OPINION !!!ersona 4,Kingdom Hearts 2, Assassin's Creed 2,Yoshi's Island, Portrait of Ruin.