We had a ton of classic games this year. The Witcher 3, Metal Gear Solid V, Fallout 4. Most of them had something in common: they belonged to long-running games series. Even the surprise hit Rocket League is a sequel, despite the absence of a number in its title.
So what are the best new IPs we got this year? Or, better yet, what are the new IPs this year? I can only think of a few, only one of which is AAA (Splatoon). The others are indies like Ori and the Blind Forest and Axiom Verge. Should the lack of new IPs in the AAA space be worrying, especially with some of these old series coming to a close?
Bloodborne
Order 1886
I'm sure there are a plethora of non-AAA titles.
I would say the lack of new IPs is only slightly worrisome. That is to say, it's not fine and dandy but it's not doom and gloom either. I like new IPs, quite a lot but I also really enjoy Fallout 4 and I really enjoy Tomb Raider. When Uncharted 4 comes out I will really enjoy that as well.
"When you find yourself on the side of the majority it's time to pause and reflect" - Mark Twain
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I've never played any of them, but I thought Bloodborne was part of the Dark Souls universe. Is that wrong?
[Edited to fix a fix]
Bloodborne has no in-game connection to the Souls game but it was made by the same team
"When you find yourself on the side of the majority it's time to pause and reflect" - Mark Twain
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Sunset overdrive was 2014
Thanks. Fixed.
"When you find yourself on the side of the majority it's time to pause and reflect" - Mark Twain
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Evolve, February 10, 2015
Pillars of Eternity ? March 26, 2015 As a spiritual successor I'm not sure it would scrape by your requirements but it strikes me as a new IP.
Dying light, 27 January 2015
The ending isn't any more important than any of the moments leading to it.
I think this kind of thing is going to be unique to the AAA market, where indie games are all over the place. Big studios will rarely take risks with new IPs, sort of like the music industry.
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Hell, that's the entire entertainment industry these days. Most Broadway musicals are either reworked movies or a bunch of classic pop tunes forced into a narrative. Most books aren't published unless there is a trilogy already planned.
And it seems audiences are also risk averse. The few new AAA titles that people mentioned in this thread? Either undersold or were outright flops. There was also a report recently that showed the same with movies this year: Original movies did real poorly overall, while titles like Jurassic World and Furious 7 far surpassed expectations.
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Until Dawn
SOMA
Life is Strange
Splatoon
Rocket League
Madden NFL 16?
Wait, that might be a sequel.
Undertale
Satellite Reign
Legend of Legacy
Concrete Jungle
Lost Dimension
Planetary Annihilation
Hot Tin Roof
Massive Chalice
City Quest
Dyscourse
War for the Overworld
Son of Nor
Yup, and I honestly consider Nintendo to be less AAA than most studios. So even though they've been generating new IPs lately they seem to fly under a lot of radars it seems. Same with a lot of JRPG studios too.
(As someone who like indies, Nintendo, and JRPGs it's been a good year for new IP. And next year looks to be even better)
Dirty Bomb. Not AAA, and so fun it deserves to be. Ask Rabbit.
Grim Dawn was scheduled for this year, I'm unsure if 1.0 release will be 2015. The setting and theme of that game really make it. I've played in early access and it's well worth it.
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Side note: that's one reason Hamilton is one of the best musicals in recent memory.
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Blizzard's having a big year: Heroes of the Storm came out this year and can we count Overwatch yet?
Let's not forget that this E3 had more new IPs than we've seen in years. They may not be slated for this year but new IPs aren't dead yet. I don't remember the game names but there was the Ubisoft Knights one, the post apocalyptic robot dinosaurs, the Microsoft one that was in the desert, the EA game with Yarn and probably several others I've forgotten
"When you find yourself on the side of the majority it's time to pause and reflect" - Mark Twain
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Invisible, Inc was one of my favourite games this year. It's very indie though, I think you're right that big studios are less willing to take risks on new IPs.
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Besiege totally counts right? Tons of other indies set to release in the new year.
Sometimes I go out of my way to buy new IP games even if I'm not that interested just to support companies willing to take any kind of risk at all.
I really did enjoy The Order, though. I wish it had done well enough to warrant a sequel.
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Codename STEAM released this year as well.
So there's a few new IP's, I'd say, even outside of the indie market.
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Hmm let's see.
192.168.10.7 and 192.168.10.15 for me.
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To me the problem is less new IP and more less innovation in the AAA market. Sure, new IP usually means new mechanics, but Mad Max was a poor Arkham and AssCreed game.
At least, however, games are iterative, unlike movies in which there's little change or growth from sequel to sequel.
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