The Top Ten dormant frachises that deserve a next-gen reboot...

As much as people love seeing new IP in new generations, we seem to love seeing old favorites even more, especially if it's been awhile. We've seen that this generation, with series like XCom and Fallout come back in big ways. They are already bringing back Thief and just recently announced the return of Wolfenstein for next-gen systems. I'm psyched about new IP but I'd love to see some classic franchises return as well. Here are 10 I think deserve a new lease on life in the next generation:

10. Mutant League: I really wish the Mutant League franchise wasn't owned  by EA, because this would be a perfect way to make fun of the annual EA Madden juggernaut or just providing a fun solid alternative to the boring stale same football year after year. If EA were able to laugh at themselves this might have a chance but I seriously doubt it. That being said I would be pretty psyched to see a new update.

9. Killer Instinct: This generation saw a pretty good revival of the once nearly dead fighting genre with well-received new entries in both the Street Fighter and MK franchises (along with the surprisingly good recent release of Injustice) and Killer Instinct was a really fun over the top fighter that I'd love to see get another go.

8. Crimson Skies:  Flight combat games are pretty damn rare. Good console exclusive flight combat games are virtually non-existent. I'm not sure why it's so hard to nail down a successful formula, but Crimson Skies made it look easy, as it was some of the most fun I ever had on the original Xbox. Why it's never seen a follow-up is a mystery, and with Microsoft seriously lacking IP coming into next gen, I'm hopeful we'll see a next-gen version of this.

7. Zombies Ate My Neighbors: We are pretty oversaturated with zombies at this point. Movies, TV and videogames all seem to have a neverending horde of the things, and it's all extremely serious. Someone needs to have some more fun with the premise, which is where a ridiculous franchise like ZAMN would come in. I think a modern update with a good sense of humor that skews the whole zombie genre would be pretty awesome.

6. Myst: I am not actually a fan of Myst. That is to say I actively hate Myst because it's more an interactive virtual tour rather thane a real game. But it was a victim of the times. I think a modern update with tight graphics and a bigger emphasis on adventure while still keeping exploration an element would work incredibly well.

5. Earthworm Jim: I seriously just want Insomniac do an Earthworm Jim game. Their great sense of humor and awesome future weapons and gadgets would fit right in with the wacky franchise. Add the Pixar-esque style of the Ratchet & Clank games and you've got a winner.

4.Rogue Galaxy: My favorite PS2 rpg by a longshot. I just loved the world and the characters and it's one of the few PS2 games I've held onto. Level 5 is a great developer and I'd love to see them do an all new adventure with mostly the same cast.

3. Wing Commander: I'm kinda bummed that EA is going to be pretty much focused on Star Wars for the forseeable future, because that makes any chance of a Wing Commander revival pretty slim when they could just make a new Tie Fighter and it would probably sell better. And Bioware would be a great developer to make a long overdue follow-up.Keep the great space combat, add in ground combat, combine the moral choices that Bioware is known for with Wing Commander's history of mission results having lasting repercussions and you'd have one hell of a game.

2. Star Fox: This is beyond obviously overdue for a revival, but it still deserves mention. We've been without a proper Star Fox title since the N64 (the less said about the truly awful Star Fox Adventures the better). It's a revered franchise that has been chomping at the bit for a new entry. Getting Star Fox 64 on the 3DS was pretty cool, but with the Wii U really lacking in software their could not be a better time for a full blown console follow-up. Make it happen Nintendo.

1. Shining Force: Turn-based strategy rpgs have always been a pretty niche market but a few still manage to make it every generation, but they are a personal favorite of mine, and with Xcom really exploding last year and Fire Emblem having it's most successful entry yet I'm hopeful more studios will give the genre a chance. Shining Force is one of my favorite all time series, with II being a particular highlight I still play every now and again. We haven't seen a proper entry since the Saturn, but I would love even a next gen arcade/psn release or something like that.

Ok that's the list. Not much else to say except I'll probably have another post up on Wednesday.