Top Ten: Forgotten Nintendo Franchises That Need Sequels

You don’t need an ocarina for this trip to the past!

By Robert Marrujo. Posted 10/15/2013 09:00 5 Comments     ShareThis

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1) EarthBound


Last Title: EarthBound (SNES, 1995)

Though years of petitioning recently yielded a re-release on Wii U’s Virtual Console, EarthBound can still firmly be considered the pinnacle of forgotten Nintendo franchises. While EarthBound can casually be categorized as an RPG, look deeper and you’ll find a game that turned the genre on its ear. Developed as a joint venture between Nintendo’s HAL Laboratory (with Satoru Iwata), Ape, and Shigesato Itoi, EarthBound refused to conform to traditional RPG conventions. Starring Smash Bros. mainstay Ness, EarthBound was about the young boy’s quest to stop the evil alien Giygas from destroying the Earth. Where the game differentiated itself from other RPGs was in its approach to common tropes and themes of the genre. Swords and lances were replaced with baseball bats and yo-yos, potions with cheeseburgers, and castles with suburbia. EarthBound‘s graphics and music have aged incredibly well, and its unique take on American culture is funny and thought provoking. With a colorful cast of characters and innumerable memorable moments, EarthBound embedded itself into the hearts and minds of Nintendo fans everywhere.

EarthBound is different from other games on this list in that it needs both a new sequel and to see its first and third installments come stateside. What many fans think of as a standalone title is actually the second of three games in Japan. Overseas, the EarthBound series is known as Mother, with its first game on NES and third game on Game Boy Advance. Part of bringing back EarthBound would require finally making all three games available to US players so that a proper foundation can be built upon. From there, Nintendo can begin thinking of ways to advance the series forward for a fourth title. While EarthBound was the work of a team, no one member was more influential to its development than Itoi. Unfortunately, the eclectic creator has stated it would be impossible to make another sequel. Still, with the intensely devout fan base behind EarthBound, Nintendo should find a way to make another game even without Itoi. EarthBound was more than just a flash in the pan, it was a landmark videogame that continues to remain relevant. This is one Nintendo franchise that deserves to never be forgotten. No one would object to a world with more scratch and sniff cards, either.


With that, another Top Ten has come to a close. Which franchise did we forget was forgotten? Should we all be hoping for the return of FlingSmash like you are? Let us know in the comments!

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5 Responses to “Top Ten: Forgotten Nintendo Franchises That Need Sequels”

  • 180 points
    Anthony Vigna says...

    I can’t agree with you more on Advance Wars and F-Zero. I distinctly remember Days of Ruin ending on a cliff hanger, and it’s been far too long since the last Advance Wars entry. I also can’t help but feel that F-Zero is perfectly suited for the 3DS, which is currently in dire need of good racing games.

    I’d also add Star Fox to this list. Not only has it been a very long time since the last Star Fox game (excluding the 3DS remake), but there has yet to be a game in the series that matches the quality of the Nintendo 64 entry. They didn’t just remake Star Fox 64 for no reason…right? :o

    • 1291 points
      Robert Marrujo says...

      I was within inches of sticking Star Fox in. It’s ironic you mentioned the 3DS remake, because it was the main reason I excluded it; I guess it gave me too much hope when I played it that something would be coming eventually. I actually grappled back and forth over it a lot. I put Excitebike on here despite it getting a 3D remake, too, but I kept it on because it felt like such a minimal tweak. IDK =/

  • 285 points
    Kyle England says...

    I’d love to see a return to the Custom Robo series sometime. I only ever played the GameCube game that came out in America, but it was still interesting. It was really a good concept that suffered from some subpar execution. Think about Custom Robo on Wii U: Hundreds (if not thousands) of robot parts could be made available. You could duke it out in online HD robo battles! And the customization could mean millions of different robots!

  • 745 points
    OG75 says...

    Great list Robert. Couldn’t agree more with your choices.

    Hard to believe it’s been almost 10 years since we’ve had a new entry in the F-Zero franchise.

    You touched on a franchise near and dear to my heart: Excitebike. Everything about the original brings on a wave of nostalgia. The original is still fun, but I couldn’t agree more with your ideas about updating World Rally for the Wii U.

    I love that you included Waverace. I would love me some HD wave physics.

    Makes me wish they’d also update 1080, in the original style, not the trick based Gamecube sequel. The gamecube game was one of those rare Nintendo games that actually copied what every one else was doing at the time (making racing games all about tricks! Thank you very little Tony Hawk.) In my opinion, this made 1080 Avalanche inferior to the N64 original.

    Lastly, how about Forgotten Nintendo “Services” that need sequels (or updating.) I’m talking about the virtual console. It is a disgrace. Only 21(?) Nintendo 64 games on the North American Wii version, and ZERO N64 games on the Wii U eShop?! The virtual console just doesn’t live up to its potential. To me, the virtual console is defined by what games it doesn’t have, not what it does have.

    The reason I’m mentioning the virtual console here? Because your list made me wish I could play Excitebike 64 again. In my opinion, this was an underrated, and probably underplayed game which was also released (much like the wiiware title) at the wrong time… a little late in the N64’s lifecycle after years of almost constant racing game releases.

    Again, great list!

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