It's hard to say with accuracy.
In terms of the biggest names falling the furthest, there are a few series that comes to mind.
Tomb Raider. Lara Croft used to be the poster girl for Video Games. Now she's a punch line. The newest title has a chance to change that, however I'll wait for the reviews.
Sonic The Hedgehog. This guy used to go toe to toe with Mario. MARIO. SEGA used to have it's own consoles, and actually had Nintendo on the ropes at one point. Now we have Sonic on every console imaginable, and his games hit the discount bins a week after launch. He's fallen so very, very, very, very far.
Command & Conquer. Command & Conquer 4 - 'nough said.
Tony Hawk. Pro Skater and it's sequel are undeniable classics. Pro Skater paved the way for an entirely new sub-genre of video games, and was in part responsible for the mild resurgence of the skating sub-culture. Few games can claim that. The last entry failed to sell 4,000 copies. The Hawk landed. Hard.
Unreal. The first is an all time classic. Tournament is an all time classic, and still played to this day. Unreal 2 disappointed. 2k3 disappointed. 2k4 delivered what 2k3 should have. Tournament 3 killed the series.
Final Fantasy. VII is often cited as one of the greatest games ever made. For each title higher you climb, the less fans there are to defend it. XIII isn't just a bad Final Fantasy title, it's a bad game - and is often used as the primary example when talking about the lack of interactivity in AAA games. Final Fantasy used to be the go-to RPG. Now it's a joke. And a bad one, at that.
World of Warcraft. It started with a bang, and rose to the be the most successful video game ever made. It's now an online joke, and it's entire player base shunned. It's the game that turned PC's most beloved developer into one of the industry's most hated companies. It might make a lot of money, but it's fallen far.
id series Quake, Doom, Wolfenstein. id's catalogue reads as a list of classic FPS. Hell, they perfected the style that every FPS developer has used since. The most recent entries in all of their series have left fans divided. RAGE looks set to bring id back in a big way.
Crysis. It went from being THE go to PC Game to being a console port in a single entry. Crysis is still loved. Warhead is still loved. Crysis Wars is still loved. Crysis 2 is shunned.
Grand Theft Auto. 1 and 2 were decent enough. III is an all time classic. Vice City is terrific. San Andreas is one of the greatest games ever made. IV is over-hyped and under performing. Relationship simulator + gun battles - humour - fun = disappointed fans.
Supreme Commander. The first is one of the greatest RTS Games ever made. It's stand alone expansion pack fixed a lot of what was wrong with the first. It's sequel destroyed the series, alienated fans and left it's developer with dwindling funding.
Guitar Hero. It used to be THE name in party gaming. Now it conquers images of 17 releases in 5 years.
James Bond. Goldeneye 007. Those words alone sends shivers up many a gamer's spine. It has failed to reach those lofty heights ever since, and now resides as one of the many train wrecks owned by Activision Blizzard.
Rainbow 6. THE strategy FPS. Now, it's a smoking crater where entertainment used to live.
Resident Evil. 4 is often called the greatest game ever made. 5 destroyed the series, alienated long standing fans and removed what little traces of the original remained. The 3DS versions look to bring Resident Evil back from the brink.
Call of Duty. Oh my. The most successful game series of all time. 4 is a masterpiece. The most memorable moment? The one without words, gunfire and a single drop of blood. A mushroom clowd grows in the distance. Children's voices echo around you. Fade to black. For each additional entry, the series has spat, pissed, shit and thrown up on fans and has become the standard industry business model: Do Not Innovate. Make less content. Charge more. Rape your customers. Call of Duty went from being the second coming of the FPS to being the most hated name in all of gaming.
