If people didn ' t want sequels they wouldn ' t buy them . I like how you quoted me , and then completely missed the point of the exact part you quoted . I ' m not saying people despise sequels , but liking something enough to buy it doesn ' t mean it ' s what you ' d like most . Edit Despite being annoyed by that weird misinterpretation , you made a fleshed out argument , and it wouldn ' t be fair for me to leave it as a sassy tantrum , so here you go my central point is just that sales numbers aren ' t really indicative of what the consumers want . That ' s just some weak invisible handjust world thinking . Marketing has a massive impact on sales , moreso than probably anything else , and a sequel to a successful game has an extraordinary advantage on that front . The last Halo game I played was Halo 3 not sure how many there have been since then , maybe not even that many who knows . However , I know that a sequel will maintain a certain style , tone , and type of gameplay , as well as the set up for the story and setting at least the gist . That ' s more than I ' d probably learn from any advertisement , and I know it by default . As long as I hear that a Halo game is coming out , I already know more than any marketing team could hope to keep my attention for about a new IP . Add to that that sequels will have as much , if not more , of a marketing budget to work with , and it ' s almost impossible not to make some decent cash . That ' s a big part of why sequels and spinoffs are consistent and safe for publishers . There ' s a nearinfinite list of games that I may enjoy , but will never even hear about , let alone know as much about as the sequel to a mainstream sequel even one I ' ve seen 0 advertising for . To say oh but Halo sequels were more successful than most new IPs and assume that ' s enough evidence that sequels are where consumer desire is is to willfully ignore a metric shitload of other very important context that goes into sales figures . Edit 2 Assuming this wiki can be trusted , Halo sales have been down since Halo 3 . Only 4 and Reach passed Halo 2 ' s numbers , and not by a whole lot . For whatever that ' s worth .