Let's face it: no matter how great a video game series is, there's usually going to be a dark stain amongst its otherwise glistening record. I mean, even Mario has appeared in a typing tutor and a Dance Dance Revolution game. Luckily though, most of these franchises move past these bad projects to continue producing the sorts of games we love. But then there are the others; the video game franchises that jumped the shark somewhere down the line and haven't yet redeemed themselves. These games probably just need to quit before they do any more damage to their own reputation.

Here are five such tales of great gaming triumph followed by crashing disappointment. And because I kept drawing the same analogy to all these games, I'm also going to add how these all remind me in some way of Lindsay Lohan.

5. Tomb Raider

Image Via VGCats

For a time, Lara Croft was considered the virtual queen of gaming, and not just because she had almost no competition at the time. Tomb Raider was among the first games to feature fully 3D graphics -- that didn't make your eyes start bleeding -- and essentially ushered in the entire third-person shooter genre. It probably didn't hurt that the game featured some very detailed environments and Lara doing somersaults while shooting at dinosaurs -- at the time, this was freakin' amazing. Critics praised it, gamers bought it, and Lara herself became a cyber celebrity of sorts. To top it off, the game essentially saved Eidos from extinction, since the company had been floundering in previous years.

How They Totally Effed It Up:

Unfortunately, it seems Eidos bought into a lot of their own hype. While the rest of the gaming industry found ways to improve upon 3D exploration, Eidos chose to remake the same game over and over again; complete with clunky controls, frustrating puzzles, and glitchy graphics. In more recent years, Lara Croft has been passed around by several developers, and the best they've come up with has been a remake of the first game. Unfortunately, no matter how hard they try to update the Tomb Raider series, the games always seem to feel a step behind similar-styled games. It's a sad state when a franchise that was hailed for it's innovation is now being criticised for it's lack thereof.

Oddly enough, while the Tomb Raider games have fallen off quite a bit in popularity, Lara Croft herself has remained quite popular. This just goes to show you should never underestimate the power of skin-tight outfits and a movies starring Angelina Jolie.

How This Reminds Me of Lindsay Lohan:

At this point, Lara Croft has been passed around by developers just like...those topless photos of Lindsay Lohan. Seriously, those were everywhere for awhile.

4. Bloodrayne

The original Bloodrayne made its mark on the gaming world by simply mixing together two recurring themes in video games: vampires and Nazis. Hackneyed, yes, but it worked out surprisingly well. You played an acrobatic half-vampire, named Rayne, with two swords strapped to her wrists and several special powers. She could jump a about two stories in the air, slow down time, and even slice up foes into tiny bite-sized chunks. On top of that she could even pick up World War II-era weapons from fallen enemies and, say, jump on top of a squad of Nazis in slow-motion while spraying bullets down on them. But the best move up Rayne's sleeve was probably her ability to hop onto most enemies and drink their blood to regain health. And really, what's better than dicing up hordes of terrified Nazis in a video game?

How They Totally Effed It Up:

When you've got two elements that work so well together, the best way to ruin the sequel is to take one of those elements away. For Bloodrayne 2, the developers decided to fast-forward the calendar to modern times, getting rid of the whole Nazi angle and dropping Rayne in the middle of a bustling city to battle some new secret vampire society. The game might have been salvageable even then, but the developers decided to redesign all the vampires in the same style you might find in the liner notes of an emo band's CD. Legions of hapless Nazi soldiers and supernatural baddies were traded in for guys wearing S&M gear and girls decked out like 19th century prostitutes. The whole game was basically transformed from a gritty supernatural war setting to a Hot Topic kid's wet dream. Throw in some repetitive combat, and you've got a sequel that repels both hardcore fans and newcomers alike.

How This Reminds Me of Lindsay Lohan:

Ms. Lohan also relies on two *ahem* "elements" that work very well together. And when they start to go away, so does her appeal.

3. Star Fox

Star Fox was one of the few games on the Super Nintendo to feature full 3D graphics, but that's not what made it great. The game featured some intense shooting action, challenging levels, and even a branching story path that took you through different levels depending on your actions. For Star Fox 64, the game was given a fresh coat of paint and some new gameplay elements, but still retained the feel of the original. Back in the mid-90's if you owned a Nintendo 64, this game was a must-have.

How They Totally Effed It Up:

Proving once again that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it," Nintendo decided to revamp a franchise built on flying fighter jets in space...by pulling you out of those aircrafts entirely. First came Starfox Adventures, which was basically a rip-off of Zelda with the Star Fox characters shoe-horned in. After much criticism for departing from the traditional gameplay of the series, Nintendo then released Star Fox Assault, which promised to return to the series' airborne roots. They delivered on that promise, but then threw in some aggravating on-foot missions that felt like they were ripped from a half-rate third-person shooter. The latest game has been Star Fox Command for the DS, which has kept the characters firmly in their Arwings, but added some turn-based strategy elements and put you in smaller arena battles.

None of these games have been terrible, but they haven't lived up to their predecessors either. The basic problem is that Star Fox didn't need a revamp; it was perfect the way it was. At least save the remodeling for when the series' popularity has dropped off a bit. Fans are still hoping for a new Star Fox game on the Wii, but I'm personally worried it'll end up being called "Star Fox Party" and involve a bunch of mini-games with Fox and his pals.

How This Reminds Me of Lindsay Lohan:

Lohan began her career as a promising young star in films like the Parent Trap. She eventually matured (read: grew up hot) and began playing several roles as a down-to-earth teen girl in movies like Mean Girls. Then she started revamping her image and trying to take on darker roles, like I Know Who Killed Me, where she played a stripper who's tortured by a psychopath. The term, "it it ain't broke, don't fix it," still seems to apply here.

2. Sonic the Hedgehog

Any list about disappointing games would not be complete without Sega's blue hedgehog. In the Genesis days, Sonic was neck and neck with Mario as the leading poster boy for video games. At the time, the speed he traveled and the graphics in his games were astounding. Those initial titles still sell pretty well today through re-releases on Xbox Live and the Wii's Virtual Console, and they continue to top numerous "Best Games Ever" lists. He's even one of the few characters that made the leap to 3D very well, in one of the first games for the Dreamcast, Sonic Adventure. The future certainly looked bright for one speedy blue hedgehog.

How They Totally Effed it Up:

How could you possibly mess up one of the most beloved game franchises of all time? Well, for starters, you could add a whole cast of characters that no one cared about, try and flesh out a complex story about a group of animals that battle robots, and give everyone involved some of the most annoying voices and dialogue in all of gaming. Look, people still like Mario today, because Nintendo keeps it simple. There's Mario and a bunch of levels standing between him and a kidnapped princess. That is all you need. You don't need to tack on some convoluted explanation about why he needs to go to each individual level or some gimmicky characters that do nothing but take time away from playing as the star hedgehog; and you really, REALLY don't need further explanations about those extra characters' motivations. And that was all before the implied bestiality in the next-gen Sonic the Hedgehog (I really wish I were kidding about that).

The only thing keeping the Sonic franchise alive today are fans who continue to hope that some developer out there will actually put some effort into making a good Sonic game. Unfortunately, the same people in charge of making these games realize that fans will buy anything with Sonic's mug slapped on it, so why bother? It probably speaks volumes about how that's been going when the best game to feature Sonic recently was Smash Bros. Brawl, where he was paired up with a cast of Nintendo characters.

How This Reminds Me of Lindsay Lohan:

You want to talk complex stories involving annoying characters? Just read some of the gossip rags featuring Lohan from the past few years. Actually, on second thought, I wouldn't recommend that at all.

1. Mega Man

For almost a decade, it seemed like the Blue Bomber could do no wrong. Somehow the concept of blasting through vibrant levels and stealing bad guys' powers just never got old. Mega Man's NES games were among the best in the system's lifespan, and it didn't stop there. Eventually he transferred over to the Mega Man X series on the Super Nintendo and continued this traditional blast-and-steal premise with even crazier power ups, levels, and bosses. His games are also credited with containing some of the catchiest video game tunes of all time (which sound even better when composed by a rock band)

How They Totally Effed It Up:

Obviously riding a high off the success of the Mega Man series, Capcom decided to experiment on the little guy like a mad scientist with a cart full of fresh cadavers and new electrodes. First, they tried to transfer him to 3D with disasterous results (Ever heard of Mega Man 64? Yeah I didn't think so). Then they decided to take him back to 2D and give him an intricate plot and the voice of a ten-year old on helium. When the Gameboy Advance hit the market, they basically slapped the Mega Man brand on a colorful RPG series called "Network Transmission" and said it was an alternate timeline in the Mega Man universe. They eventually tried another Mega Man X game with enhanced graphics, but still kept some fully 3D segments that frustrated players. The latest game released with the "Mega Man" name on it featured card battles.

To summarize, Capcom took the simple formula of fighting robots to steal their powers and kept adding details until it became an unrecognizable monster. The only recent return to form has been Mega Man 9, a game that was specifically modeled after the old NES titles. This is also the only Mega Man game that has been praised by critics and fans alike in years. Are you listening, Capcom!?

How This Reminds Me of Lindsay Lohan:

Lindsay Lohan has been in and out of rehab and is currently in a lesbian relationship. I think it's safe to say she's no stranger to experimentation.