Some game series reinvent themselves with a new continuity; others change their core design or revisit an earlier identity. These eight examples show why “reinvention” is not one single thing: it can mean a franchise reboot, a dramatic shift that keeps its history, a remake of one game, or a deliberate return to roots. The list is curated, not ranked.
What counts as a reinvention?
A franchise qualifies here when a major entry changes its play loop, perspective, structure, tone, audience, or production approach—or deliberately returns to an earlier identity after years of evolution. Those changes are not interchangeable. A reboot resets or substantially re-establishes a series; a remake rebuilds a particular game; a formula shift changes how a series plays; and a return-to-roots entry restores design priorities that had receded.
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The distinction matters: God of War (2018) changed direction while retaining continuity, Doom (2016) was explicitly described as a reboot, and Resident Evil 2 (2019) reimagined one game rather than rebooting the whole franchise.
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1. God of War: a new beginning without erasing the past
What changed
Santa Monica Studio described the 2018 game as a new beginning involving changes across the game. The shift was dramatic, but the studio said it did not want to simply reboot the franchise by retelling Kratos’s origin. The result keeps the protagonist and his history while taking the series in a different direction.
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- Kratos Starts Over- Living as a man, separated from the shadow of the gods, he seeks solitude in the unknown lands of Norse mythology. With a new purpose and accompanied by his son Atreus, Kratos must fight to survive among powerful forces that threaten the destruction of the new life he has created...
- A Whole New Beginning- His revenge against the Olympian gods is behind him and Kratos now lives as a man in the lands of the Norse gods and monsters. It will be in this raw and merciless world where he must fight to survive ... and where he must teach his son to do the same. This amazing re-enactment of God of War deconstructs the core elements that defined the series - satisfying combat, impressive scale, and compelling story - and combines them in a whole new way
- A Darker And More Elemental World- From marble art and the ornate columns of Olympus to the wild forests, mountains and caverns typical of pre-Iking Norse relief, the game presents a new and unique environment, with its own pantheon of creatures, monsters and gods . By placing more emphasis on exploring and discovering, the world will encourage players to delve into every corner of God of War's incredible but dangerous landscapes, which are undoubtedly the largest in the entire franchise
- Merciless Physical Combat- With a shoulder-height camera that brings the action closer to the player than ever before, the fights in God of War are very similar to the pantheon of Norse creatures that Kratos will have to face, as they are just as magnificent. , cruel and exhausting. A new primary weapon and unreleased skill set honor the typical God of War spirit
Why it counts
This is a continuity-preserving reinvention rather than a clean slate. It demonstrates that a franchise can change its approach without pretending its earlier entries never happened. Santa Monica Studio’s account of the new beginning explains the team’s intent.
2. Doom: a franchise reboot
What changed
Xbox Wire’s discussion with Bethesda and id Software explicitly identifies Doom (2016) as a reboot. That makes it a clear example of a series being re-established for a new entry rather than simply remaking one earlier game.
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- Characters you love - take on the persona of characters from the God of War series including Kratos, Atreus, Freya, and more.
- Defeat epic monsters - each Quest is made up of a mosaic of double-sided cards. Players must work together to deal damage to the Monster in different ways, depending on the Quest.
- Branching paths - players choose which quests they want to try as they continue along. Unfinished quests will hinder them as they go along.
Why it counts
Unlike a remake of a specific installment, this reboot applies to the franchise’s return. The available account supports calling it a reboot and discussing its modernization, but does not establish specific mechanical changes in enough detail to treat any one feature as the defining transformation. Xbox Wire’s Bethesda/id Software roundtable provides the reboot framing.
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How the series kept changing
Assassin’s Creed has experimented across multiple entries. Ubisoft’s retrospective traces the series from ideas connected to Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time toward a faster, edgier, more realistic direction. It describes the original game’s open world and parkour, then notes how Assassin’s Creed II emphasized fighting, navigation, and social stealth. Later entries continued to experiment; creative director Jean Guesdon said Origins needed a “big-league refresh.”
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Mirage’s return to stealth
Assassin’s Creed Mirage revisited stealth and parkour as stronger pillars. Creative director Stéphane Boudon and lead producer Fabian Salomon characterized it as an homage and used “remoot” to describe its position between remake and reboot. It is better understood as a return-to-roots reorientation than as a franchise-wide reset.
Ubisoft’s series retrospective and its Mirage interview document these different stages.
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4. Resident Evil: rebuilding one game, not rebooting the franchise
What changed
Resident Evil 2 (2019) is a substantial remake and reimagining of a particular installment. Its developers described an all-new version with deeper gameplay, rather than a texture-focused remaster.
What remained
The remake retained the game’s survival-horror identity. That makes it a useful contrast with a franchise reboot: the project rebuilt one game while preserving its core genre roots, not the continuity of the entire series by resetting it. PlayStation Blog’s developer feature discusses the remake’s aims.
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5. Tomb Raider: reinvention for a modern audience
What the source establishes
The GDC Vault session titled “The Reinvention of Tomb Raider” describes a project to reinvent the iconic franchise for a modern audience, including changes to the studio’s creative vision and production techniques.
Why it belongs here
This is a production-and-audience framing of reinvention, rather than a claim that one specific mechanic defines the change. The available session description is brief, so it supports the stated goal and changed creative approach, not a detailed account of particular narrative or gameplay shifts. The GDC Vault session listing provides that framing.
6. Final Fantasy VII: reinterpreting a landmark game
A project-level transformation
Square Enix’s account of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth discusses the game as part of a story-driven remake project, including changes in how the world and minigames are handled. This makes it an example of reinterpretation: the project revisits a particular installment and reshapes its presentation and content.
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This is not evidence that the whole Final Fantasy franchise was reinvented at that point. Its relevance is specifically the reinterpretation of Final Fantasy VII. Square Enix’s developer interview describes the remake project.
How these reinventions differ
| Franchise or game | Kind of change | Continuity or scope | Documented intent or emphasis |
|---|---|---|---|
| God of War (2018) | Major directional change | Retains Kratos and his history; not an origin retelling | New beginning, as described by Santa Monica Studio |
| Doom (2016) | Reboot | Franchise-level return | Modernization; the cited roundtable explicitly calls it a reboot |
| Assassin’s Creed, including Origins and Mirage | Iterative evolution and return-to-roots homage | Series evolution; Mirage is framed as a “remoot” between remake and reboot | Refresh the formula; strengthen stealth and parkour in Mirage |
| Resident Evil 2 (2019) | Substantial remake/reimagining | One game rebuilt; survival-horror roots retained | All-new version with deeper gameplay, according to the developers |
| Tomb Raider | Franchise reinvention | Project framed for a modern audience | Changes to creative vision and production techniques; detailed shifts are not established by the session description |
| Final Fantasy VII remake project | Reinterpretation of one installment | Project-specific, not a claim about the whole franchise | Reworked handling of the world and minigames |
Why the label matters
Calling every major change a “reboot” blurs meaningful differences. A remake can preserve a game’s identity while rebuilding its design; a reboot can re-establish a franchise; and a series can move in a new direction without discarding continuity. Other entries, like Mirage, deliberately look backward after years of evolution. The most useful question is not simply whether a game is new, but what it changes—and what it chooses to keep.
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