5 Games That Fans Keep Alive Without Sequels

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It’s common for successful video games to get sequels. Developers invest a lot of effort creating a new game world and characters, so it makes sense to build on something players already enjoy rather than starting from scratch. Plus, a sequel can often be even better, as developers can use feedback from the first game to create a more polished experience that truly satisfies fans.

It’s disappointing when a game builds a large and dedicated fanbase, leading players to expect more installments, but the developer decides not to create a sequel. While uncommon, several games demonstrate that developers sometimes choose to end a promising series prematurely. Here are five games that were abandoned despite strong community support.

5) The Simpsons: Hit & Run

Radical Entertainmentā€™s 2003 game, The Simpsons: Hit & Run, isnā€™t only the best Simpsons game ever created, itā€™s also a standout open-world adventure game similar to Grand Theft Auto from that era. It built upon the racing mechanics of The Simpsons: Road Rage and transformed them into a sprawling open world with plenty to explore and do.

The game creates an incredibly detailed and accurate version of Springfield, making it the ideal way to experience the world of The Simpsons. Before South Park: The Stick of Truth let players experience a new season of that show, Hit & Run achieved something very similar.

A follow-up game to Hit & Run was never made when its publisher, Vivendi, chose not to extend the license for The Simpsons. This is surprising considering Hit & Run sold over 8 million copies. Luckily, the gameā€™s source code was leaked in 2021, allowing fans to continue enjoying it.

4) Sleeping Dogs

Staying within the open-world action genre similar to Grand Theft Auto, Sleeping Dogs improves on the formula with enjoyable combat and a character progression system that allows you to customize the main character, Wei Shen.

The fighting in Sleeping Dogs is a standout feature. Playing as an undercover cop in Hong Kong who’s also a martial arts expert, you control Shen, a character with a powerful range of attacks using his fists, feet, and gun. Each hit feels strong and impactful, making Shen a formidable fighter that many players will compare to Batman in Batman: Arkham Asylum.

Despite being well-received by players, the game Sleeping Dogs didn’t sell as many copies as Square Enix had hoped. Plans for both a sequel and a separate game were started, but ultimately canceled. However, there’s good news: a movie based on the game has a finished script as of 2025, meaning it could be released soon.

3) Bully

Before Rockstar became synonymous with sprawling crime sagas, they created one more open-world game in a similar style: Bully. This title took the open-world action of Grand Theft Auto and reimagined it within the setting of an elite boarding school. Placing players as a troublemaking student sparked controversy before release, but ultimately led to strong sales after launch.

Rockstar’s Bully remains a standout title. It cleverly combines a unique story with engaging minigame-style classes and creative hand-to-hand fighting. Many fans have long hoped for a sequel, as Bully felt like it had a lot more story to tell, though a new main character might be needed for a follow-up.

The original Bully was a critical and commercial success, and fans have wanted a sequel for years. Rockstar actually started working on Bully 2 around 2010, but it was never released ā€“ all we got was a remastered version. While thereā€™s hope we might see a sequel after Grand Theft Auto 6 comes out, Rockstarā€™s development process is currently very slow, so Bully 2 may unfortunately remain unreleased.

2) Bloodborne

Bloodborne was a huge hit for FromSoftware. Building on the fantasy world of the Dark Souls games, it transported players to a haunting universe inspired by the stories of H.P. Lovecraft. Unlike previous titles, Bloodborne emphasized fast-paced, aggressive combat, making it one of FromSoftwareā€™s most action-packed games.

Fans loved Bloodborne, with over 7 million copies sold, and its popularity led to spin-offs like a board game and comic books. However, despite its success, there still hasn’t been a remake or a follow-up game announced.

It’s understandable why FromSoftware hasn’t revisited older games. Everything they’ve released since Bloodborne in 2015 has been successful, with Elden Ring being a particularly big hit, and Sekiro and Armored Core 6 also performing very well. They have plenty of other projects underway that donā€™t rely on a partnership with Sony. While a sequel to Bloodborne isnā€™t impossible, fans will probably have to wait a long time for it.

1) Toontown Online

This section covers MMOs that were once popular but are no longer officially supported, yet continue to exist thanks to dedicated fans. A great example is Toontown Online, but City of Heroes and Star Wars Galaxies also fit this description.

Toontown was a unique online game created by Disney. It was popular with families and MMO players, offering a colorful and cheerful world with simple, safe gameplay, which was especially important when the internet was still new.

Toontown was online for ten years, but its dedicated fans werenā€™t ready to say goodbye when it closed. They immediately started building their own version of the game, called Toontown Rewritten, which officially launched in 2017. As of 2024, over 2 million people have registered to play! The community also continues to meet in person each year for ToonFest, showing how much they love and want to keep the game alive.

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2025-11-27 22:12