Series' Attempts to "Save Face" that Backfired?

[Mido]

Franchises go through the ebb and flow of highs, lows, and plateaus. Some recent threads around these parts have done well to highlight many an example of franchises that have gone through these motions. Some have fallen into a rut, some maintain solid consistency, and some have also escaped the rut. Yet, sometimes, in the face of such a rut, a series can prove unlucky; whichever attempts it takes to save face ultimately creating a greater rift among fans of the specific medium. So, I ask you all the following question (with a bonus one to boot):

1. Which series have you seen attempt a "saving face with the fans" maneuver that ultimately either did not work out or cause further concerns for the series? Why did it backfire?

2. If a franchise makes a perceived blunder, is it always necessary to shift gears, or can committing to a specific, dedicated direction be the more optimal pathway?

 

[Spirit]

Bomberman Zero is the first thing that comes to mind for me.

For some reason someone somewhere decided to make Bomberman all grim-dark and somehow that someone got others to agree that it was a good idea.

Bomberman didn't need this. His games may not sell huge numbers but he has always been recognisable and popular, his game's still always sold enough units to keep him going, so the reason why Bomberman Zero exists at all is just a mystery.

It obviously didn't work and it freaked out a lot of fans at the time.

 

[mαrkαsscoρ]

I gotta say it, the sonic series, it just zig zags in quality so much for people that I'm sure you can make an argument for this for many of its installments and eras

but lets go for the more recent game, sonic forces; prior to 2017, the series was in another rut, ho hum, what spurred people's initial excitement for forces was "from the team that brought colors and generations", two fairly great sonic games in recent memory [the last good sonic games to many], and of course sonic mania came out and people went nuts over that, so then sonic forces come out to....critical indifference?

it wasn't terrible but it really under-delivered, despite how much it seemed it had going for it, and now it once again has an uncertain future ahead as people have gotten tired of the boost formula and sonic team really just has no clue on what to do w/ the characters or story