Wolfenstein is one video game series that has probably seen the most reboots over the years. Originally developed by Muse Software, the “Castle Wolfenstein” games were top-down 2D titles based on stealth rather than action. Then came ID Software who turned the title into a source of endless Nazi-hunting fun, this time from a first-person perspective – and introduced us to William “B. J.” Blazkowicz, one of the toughest American operatives ever.
His adventures then continued through “Spear of Destiny”, released in the same year, “Return to Castle Wolfenstein” nine years later, a “Wolfenstein RPG” for mobile phones in 2008, another reboot in 2009, simply called “Wolfenstein”, and the current reboot with 2014’s “Wolfenstein: The New Order“. Wolfenstein: The New Colossus is out now on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. As another alternative to that, you can sit back and kill time as you play online casino games at All Jackpots. Additionally, here’s a quick look at three other major game franchises that had many reboots over the years.
Doom
The original Doom, released in 1993, followed by a sequel in 1994, was one of the most successful first-person shooters ever. Its latest release came just five years ago, on the PlayStation 3, and it is still played in various formats on a great variety of devices. Another indicator of its popularity is that it was rebooted twice over the years. First, there was Doom 3 which, despite its title that would indicate a sequel, actually ignores everything in the previous games and reboots the Doom universe, and last year’s Doom, which came to be after a decade spent in development hell.
Tomb Raider
The adventures of Lara Croft, arguably the toughest and sexiest video game archaeologist ever, have been the basis of a long-running series with 12 entries released in 14 years. Then, after a three-year hiatus, the franchise got a reboot in 2013, breathing new life into the action-packed series. The second part of the reboot trilogy was released in 2015 for Xbox and in 2016 for the rest of the major platforms, and a third game is expected to be officially announced in the not too distant future.
Call of Duty
In the case of the “Call of Duty” franchise, I think it’s safer to speak of story arcs rather than sequels and reboots. The original story arc of the franchise focused on the second World War, with three titles in it, followed by modern-day conflicts in the “Modern Warfare” series (which may be considered the first reboot). Then, there is the “Black Ops” one, released alternatively with the Modern Warfare arc, followed by a quick stroll into the future with Advanced Warfare and Infinite Warfare.
The fourteenth title in the “Call of Duty” series we can, once again, call a “reboot”, as it returns to the series’ origins – World War II. The story of the game takes players into Europe between 1944 and 1945, as soldiers fight their way through France and Belgium into the heart of Nazi Germany. The “Zombies” storyline makes the game, even more, fun. In this multiplayer mode, players join Marie Fischer, a German engineer for the Office of Strategic Services whose brother, Klaus, is involved in a mysterious series of experiments focused on necromancy.
This concludes my list of 3 long-running franchises with recent reboots. Can you think of any others? Please feel free to let me know in the comments section below.
