A game series that was down but made a comeback?

What's a game series that had some not so good games but then made a great comeback?

For me it has to be the Mortal Kombat series the 3D trilogy was pretty blah not horrible but not as great as it should of been. But when MK9 came out in 2011 it went back to it's roots in 2-D and the fighting was fun, fast and satisfying along with all the classic stages and characters it was a true return to form. Also it has a fantastic story mode along with new X-ray moves and so much better fatalities than the 3-D era.

I thought Blacklist (mostly) was a return to form after Conviction which, I honestly don't even consider a Splinter Cell Game.

Not perfect, single player meh at times. The intricate light/sound system is still dumbed down, he's now "Mass Effect man" and moves round like he just snorted 2 pounds of crack cocaine and get typical Ubisoft unlock garbo.

But alot of the side missions on their own are really, really good. Argubly some of the best in the series as far as map design goes.

Blacklist is great I liked Conviction but I agree that it didn't feel like a true SC game.

Bare Knuckle/ Streets of Rage was down and knocked out 'officially' for twenty eight years.

I enjoy the third entry that practically killed the franchise so long ago in cave-man times. Despite its short comings mechanically BK3 is excellent, much like BK2 very forward thinking in its genre. Presentation however for the third game was really rough for Genesis standards; namely in comparison to the second game. Not sure if this was down to creative changes in the staff, time and budget, or just what's possible to stuff into a old plastic cartridge. Then add many in the world only had access to a restricted/ censored version of BK3.

The fourth game in 2020 by Lizardcube & Guard Crush exceeded my expectations for a franchise I enjoy a lot. The DLC expansion as well is amazing.

Good shouts. Blacklist is very underrated, people act like it's Conviction part 2.

Too early to say a proper comeback but I was pleased with Metroid: Dread. Could have been better but also better than I expected if that makes sense.