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1[[quoteright:300:[[VideoGame/DeusExHumanRevolution https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/finalfantasyxxvii-deus-ex_9455.jpg]]]]
2[[caption-width-right:300:This poster is seen in 2027. That means there's three years left and [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI eleven more games to go]]. Hurry up, Creator/SquareEnix!]]
3%% Remember the fencepost problem when updating this caption! The amount of years left should be 2028 − current year, not 2027 − current year.
4
5->'''Lister:''' Oh, the new ''Franchise/FridayThe13th'' movie -- "Friday the 13th part one thousand six hundred and forty nine".\
6'''Rimmer:''' Look, ''Film/{{Casablanca}}''. They've re-made ''Casablanca''.\
7'''Lister:''' Philistines! I mean, ''Casablanca''? The one starring Myra Dinglebat and Peter Beardsley was definitive.\
8'''Holly:''' I saw that one. Knockout. "Of all the space bars on all the worlds, you had to re-materialize in mine."
9-->-- ''Series/RedDwarf'', "[[Recap/RedDwarfSeasonIIBetterThanLife Better Than Life]]"
10
11A work set in the future will often take elements of the present day and refer to them as a way to show that it is our future and not a fictional place. One form this can take is for there to be a reference to a contemporary {{Long Runner|s}}, and show that it is still going strong.
12
13The chosen long runner is usually one that is well known for having several NumberedSequels, which means all you need do is bump the number up by a few dozen.
14
15Usually a throwaway gag, or [[EasterEgg incidental background detail]] for the eagle eyed.
16
17But as nothing dates quite as fast as science fiction, the reference might pass a later audience by altogether.
18
19This trope was popularised in TheEighties, and the two most common film franchises joked about in the earliest examples were ''Franchise/{{Rocky}}'' and ''Film/{{Jaws}}'', the former because it had already produced an unusually large number of NumberedSequels, and the latter because it was often regarded as a CashCowFranchise remaking the same film over and over again, so conceivably they could carry on doing it forever. Nowadays, the most frequent targets seem to be the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse and ''Franchise/StarWars''.
20
21Distinct from OddlyNamedSequel2ElectricBoogaloo, which is where the ''work itself'' has a title which plays with the NumberedSequels trope. Compare SequelSnark.
22----
23!!Examples:
24
25[[foldercontrol]]
26
27[[folder:Advertising]]
28* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C89jht89ln8 This]] early Platform/PlayStation2 commercial predicts that the [=PlayStation=] 9 will be coming in 2078.
29[[/folder]]
30
31[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
32* The 35th anniversary chapter of ''Manga/{{Kochikame}}'' had Ryotsu time travel 35 years into the future. One panel has future video game cases which include ''VideoGame/DragonQuest XXII'', ''Franchise/FinalFantasy LI'', ''[[Franchise/ResidentEvil Biohazard]] 17'', and ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}} Rainbow''.
33* ''Manga/SandLand'' had Rao offer Belz a [[Platform/PlayStation PlayStation 6]] and ''[[Franchise/DragonQuest Dragon Quest XIII]]''[[note]]The most recent of either at the time were the Platform/PlayStation2 and ''VideoGame/DragonQuestVII''[[/note]] in exchange for helping him find the Phantom Lake.
34[[/folder]]
35
36[[folder:Comedy]]
37* A ''Series/StudioC'' skit deals with Disney executives in the year 2132 celebrating the successful release of their 10,000th ''Franchise/StarWars'' film: ''Don Solo: The epic story of Han's seventh cousin twice removed''. It further suggests that every individual stormtrooper had had a movie made about him even though [[LampshadeHanging every stormtroopers backstory is just like every other]], yet they somehow missed a left foot in the corner of a frame, so "we must create a SAGA around him, beginning with episode 4, then 5, then 2, then 9, then 6, then 1, 8, 3, and finally 7".
38[[/folder]]
39
40[[folder:Comic Books]]
41* ''ComicBook/AntMan'': The InfoDump at the beginning of ''ComicBook/AntMan2022'' #4 mentions a "''ComicBook/TheMightyThor''" issue #4774, published roughly in the 25th century.
42* ''ComicBook/DCOneMillion'': The miniseries is set in the 853rd Century, on the date that ''ComicBook/ActionComics'' #1000000 (their oldest property) would be published. Despite being the source of the title of the series, this fact never comes up in the story line. What makes this case unique is that it actually is sold to the public '''in real life.'''
43* ''ComicBook/JudgeDredd'': In one story, Dredd visits the long-since abandoned New York Times Square. A movie theatre advertises ''Franchise/{{Rocky}} 37'' and ''Film/MadMax 25''.
44[[/folder]]
45
46[[folder:Fan Works]]
47* At one point in ''Fanfic/TheMysteriousCaseOfNeelixsLungs'', some of ''Voyager'''s crew are said to be playing ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty 104'' on the holodeck.
48* ''ALIEN!!!'' mentions ''[[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Star Trek: The Next, Next, Next, Next, Next, Next, Next, Next, Next, Next, Next Generation]]''.
49* In ''Fanfic/ThroughATemple'', ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' is supposedly still going on in both the ''VideoGame/MassEffect'' and ''Franchise/StarTrek'' universes.
50[[/folder]]
51
52[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
53* ''Film/BackToTheFuturePartII'' had a holographic advertisement for ''JustForFun/Jaws19'', directed by Max Spielberg (Steven's son, who was four years old when [=BTTF2=] came out), with the tagline: "This time it's really, REALLY personal." All Marty has to say is, "The shark still looks fake." When the year the movie takes place in rolled around, Universal (maker of both ''BTTF'' and ''Jaws'') did a ''JustForFun/Jaws19'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pl092whRLlI trailer]]. The sequels start with SelfDeprecation ([[CashCowFranchise "Jaw$ 5: It's all business"]]), explore the various ways a FranchiseZombie rolls ([[RecycledWithAGimmick Space Shark, CyberShark]], [[GenerationXerox Brody's grandchildren]], [[AnachronicOrder prequel/sequel to the prequel]]), and even go for specific [[ShoutOut Shout-Outs]] ([[Film/RockyIV "Ivan Sharkovsky"]], [[Film/FridayThe13thPartVIIIJasonTakesManhattan Jaws in New York]], [[Film/FiftyShadesOfGrey Fifty Scales of Gray]]).
54* ''Film/{{Spaceballs}}'' features a reference to "''Franchise/{{Rocky}} Five... '''Thousand'''''". This is a subtle BrickJoke; earlier, several ''Rocky'' sequels are [[FunnyBackgroundEvent visible on the shelf]] at the start of the "[[DrosteImage You're looking at]] ''[[DrosteImage now]]''[[DrosteImage , sir]]" bit.
55* In ''Film/AirplaneIITheSequel'', as Music/SonnyBono buys the bomb in the spaceport gift shop, a poster for ''Franchise/{{Rocky}} XXXVIII'' is shown behind him, with an extremely old Rocky.
56* In ''Film/RealSteel'', there is a promo for the [[http://uk.gamespot.com/xbox360/hardware/xbox-360/images/6338377/1/?path=2011%2F277%2Fxbox720realsteel_97340_screen.jpg&caption=The%2BXbox%2B720%2Bad%2Bis%2Bvisible%2Bon%2Bthe%2Bright%2Bside%2Bof%2Bthis%2Bshot%2Bof%2Bthe%2Brobot%2Bboxing%2Barena.&blog=1&cvr=43E0 Xbox 720]], as it was probably supposed to be the next Xbox after the Platform/Xbox360, it ended up being an underestimate if anything: the movie is set in 2020 but the Platform/XboxOne came out in Fall 2013, with its successor the [[Platform/XboxSeriesXAndS Xbox Series X]] being announced in late 2019.
57* ''Film/RobotWars1993'' had a movie theater marquee showing ''Film/PuppetMaster 54''. Also counts as a ShoutOut, since David Allen did special effects work on both movie series.
58* In Creator/WoodyAllen's ''Film/{{Sleeper}}'', which takes place two centuries into the future, a UsefulNotes/McDonalds sign shows the number of hamburgers served as 1 followed by a hundred zeroes (a googol). In real life, the chain ended the count at 100 million in 1994, replacing it with "billions and billions served."
59* The Hong Kong parody film, ''Film/FutureCops'', opens in a BadFuture several decades after the film's release (1993), with a shot of a broken-down theater advertising ''Film/FightBackToSchool 90''.
60* ''Film/HarleyDavidsonAndTheMarlboroMan'' at one point shows a billboard in the background advertising ''[[Film/DieHard Die Hardest V]]'', which is a bit of an odd choice as the film came out in 1991 when there had been only two ''Die Hard'' films made so far, and it takes place in 1996 which is really overestimating the rate of churning out sequels. Good job at predicting it would turn into a long-running franchise, though!
61* Invoked in ''Film/Deadpool2'' when Cable admits he's from the future and Deadpool asks him which ''Film/{{Sharknado}}'' they're on.
62* ''Film/TwentyTwoJumpStreet'' ends by suggesting this is going to happen to ''[[SelfDeprecation itself]]'', depicting fake trailers and posters for over ''twenty'' sequels getting churned out using [[FranchiseZombie increasingly labored twists to keep the franchise relevant]], such as [[RecycledWithAGimmick the characters going to space]] or Creator/JonahHill getting [[TheOtherDarrin Other Darrined]] with Creator/SethRogen.
63[[/folder]]
64
65[[folder:Literature]]
66* ''Literature/TheCompanyNovels'' have an anglophilic character a few centuries in the future who's memorized the names of all three-hundred-and-some actors to play [[Series/DoctorWho the Doctor]].
67* From the ''Literature/Level4'' series: In ''2049'', set in that year, the protagonists see an ad for ''Franchise/StarWars'' -- the fourth trilogy. The book came out in 1999 when the prequel trilogy had just started, and this reference was meant to be seen as absurd. Nowadays, of course, it actually seems like a conservative guesstimate.
68* ''Franchise/DoctorWhoExpandedUniverse'':
69** The spin-off novel ''[[Literature/BerniceSummerfield Professor Bernice Summerfield and the Glass Prison]]'', published a year before ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' concluded its seven-season run in 2003, established that the show would be in its 792nd season by the year 2600.
70** The 2003 novel ''[[Recap/EighthDoctorAdventuresTheLastResort The Last Resort]]'', following the release of the fifth numbered ''Star Wars'' film, has the Eighth Doctor's companion Fitz watching "all nine" ''Star Wars'' films in the 2040s. Then in the 2007 novel ''[[Recap/NewSeriesAdventuresForeverAutumn Forever Autumn]]'', strongly hints that Creator/GeorgeLucas, who was apparently influenced telepathically by Jar Jar Binks, oversaw the completion of all of them, commenting that he was "way off the mark" by [[Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker Episode IX]]; at that point in real life Lucas had pretty much ruled out doing a third trilogy, then he sold the franchise to Disney. Ultimately, the saga of nine films was concluded in 2019, with a few other films set in the ''Star Wars'' universe too.
71** The 2005 novel ''The Gallifrey Chronicles'' mentions the Doctor's TARDIS containing "all 10" ''[[Literature/HarryPotter Harry Potter]]'' novels.
72** The 2007 novel ''[[Recap/NewSeriesAdventuresPeacemaker Peacemaker]]'' has the Tenth Doctor offer to show Martha Jones ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean VI''. The novel was published following the release of the third film.
73* "Ridiculous" isn't quite the word here given the low number and the actual franchise's reach, but one story of the Literature/StarfleetCorpsOfEngineers mentions an old (mid-21st century) film: ''Franchise/{{Rocky}} VIII: The Clone Factor!''
74** Another ''Franchise/StarTrek'' ExpandedUniverse novel had Worf watching ''Franchise/{{Rambo}} 4'' about fifteen years before the movie actually came out. Despite this, Worf's description of the overall story (The villains are obvious, the hero never speaks, everybody dies) is fairly accurate. In the same book, another film, titled ''Missing Link III'', is also mentioned. So far there is only one of them.
75* In ''[[Literature/ArkRoyal The Nelson Touch]]'' Kurt complains about his mistress making him sit through all the remakes of "Kung Fu Panda".
76** Later in the series, "''Star Wars XXII''" is mentioned, along with a hugely popular remake of ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' that replaced the Ewoks with scantily clad humanoids.
77* The novelisation of ''Film/RoboCop1987'' had a news report that Creator/SylvesterStallone had died at the age of 98 after making ''Rambo 38: Old Blood''.
78* In Creator/StevenBrust's ''Cowboy Feng's Space Bar and Grill'', the occupants of a time-hopping restaurant find themselves several centuries in the future, in the human colony-world city of New Quebec. One of the local TV series is called "''Star Trek: 3100''", indicating that the ''Star Trek'' franchise has continued popping out spin-offs and reboots.
79* ''Literature/LivInTheFuture'' has a movie theatre marquee visible in one of Liv's early Instagram posts that's advertising ''[[Franchise/StarWars Star Wars]] XXXIII''.
80* ''Literature/ReadyPlayerOne'' mostly averts this being set in virtual recreations of media from the 1980s but it's mentioned that more ''Franchise/IndianaJones'' movies have been made and apparently weren't very good.
81* ''Literature/ReadyPlayerTwo'' refers to Creator/RobertDowneyJr as the first actor to play ''Film/IronMan'' implying more movies or TV shows and there's said to be several movies and TV shows set on [[Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium Middle-Earth]].
82* A ''National Geographic Kids'' article from the TurnOfTheMillennium speculating about future inventions started off with a short story showing the reader as an adult in the 2030s. The reader’s children are said to be watching [[Literature/HarryPotter Harry Potter’s Children: Episode 6]] before school.
83[[/folder]]
84
85[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
86* ''Series/{{SCTV}}'' had ''Film/{{Jaws}} 23'', in which the town of Amity has actually become dependent on shark attacks to draw the tourist trade.
87* The ''Series/RedDwarf'' episode, ''[[Recap/RedDwarfSeasonIIBetterThanLife Better Than Life]]'' has a passing mention of ''Franchise/{{Friday The 13th}}: Part 1,649'' and a ''Film/{{Casablanca}}'' remake starring Peter Beardsley and Myra Dinglebat.
88* This was a common gag in the TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture show ''Series/AlienNation''.
89* An episode of ''Series/TwoAndAHalfMen'' had a ''Franchise/{{Saw}}'' sequel somewhere in the double digits range. In real life, the ''ninth'' entry in the series (''Film/{{Spiral|2021}}'') would only be released in 2021.
90* ''Series/ClarissaExplainsItAll'' had Ferguson bragging about getting the highest score in ''Franchise/MegaMan 12'' in one episode. At the time, [[VideoGame/MegaManClassic the series]] was only up to its [[VideoGame/MegaMan4 fourth]] entry; [[VideoGame/MegaMan11 the eleventh]] was only released in 2018.
91* A ''Series/DeadRingers'' sketch of a {{deleted scene}} from ''Film/{{Terminator 2|JudgmentDay}}'' involves several Creator/{{Arnold Schwarzenegger}}s appearing from the future to tell Arnold to stop doing Franchise/{{Terminator}} sequels (and ''Film/KindergartenCop''). Before Sarah Connor kills Arnold to avoid these sequels they're up to ''Terminator 23'', then another Arnold appears and reveals there are no more ''Terminator'' sequels, but there is now a ''Kindergarten Cop 14''.
92* A sketch of ''The Impressionable Jon Culshaw'', broadcast in 2004, predicted that the Creator/{{ITV}} network on which it aired would have its ninth numbered channel broadcasting to the lunar and Martian colonies by 2050, at a time when it only had two numbered channels and a handful of unnumbered affiliates. Later that year, [=ITV3=] was launched, followed by [=ITV4=] the next year, which remains the highest numbered ITV channel to this day while a few unnumbered channels have come and gone over the years.
93* On one episode of ''Series/MadAboutYou'', Paul finds Creator/BruceWillis hiding out after escaping from the set of ''Film/DieHard 4: Die Already!'' And years later, we would end up having a ''[[Film/LiveFreeOrDieHard Die Hard 4]]''... well, sorta, 'cause that's not the title it used (its international title is ''Die Hard 4.0'', though).
94* At the beginning of the Series/DoctorWho 50th Anniversary simulcast, there was a short bit of the Eleventh Doctor showing up to introduce the show. He had just come from the show's ''100th'' Anniversary, which brought together "all 57 Doctors." That means they've either got fifty years to go through another 45 Doctors, or else that Doctors from ''even farther ahead'' in the series' future popped back for a visit.
95* Played with in the seventh season of ''Series/ParksAndRecreation'': because it is set [[NextSundayAD just two years]] after the time its made, the sequels mentioned are ridiculous, but not because of the high number. Instead, they're sequels to films no one wants even ''one'' sequel to (''Film/{{Hitch}} 2: Son of a Hitch'', starring Jaden Smith) or have other bizarre details (a reboot of ''Film/TheBourneSeries'' '''starring Creator/KevinJames''').
96* ''Series/MinorityReport2015'' had in its pilot an ad for the 75th season of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''. Both shows air on Creator/{{Fox}}.
97* ''Series/DarkMatter2015'' has a reference to a movie theater showing ''Star Wars XXXVIII''. It's stated to be a classic film that's been remastered for virtual reality. Given the use of the word "classic", the series may extend well beyond that.
98* In the second season of ''Series/TheGoodPlace'', when Michael and the four humans sneak into The Bad Place, the train station has a large poster advertising: "Pirates of the Caribbean 6: The Haunted Crow’s Nest or Whatever, Who Gives a Crap?" Then at the bottom it says, "Playing in every theatre, everywhere, forever." [[https://www.indiewire.com/2018/06/good-place-season-2-joke-pirates-of-the-caribbean-1201976826/ Series creator Mike Schur explained]] "the No. 1 reason I like it is that the implication is that that's where those movies are made, and then they’re exported up here. That's where they come from; they’re made in hell."
99* ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'': When Creator/SteveMartin and Creator/MartinShort co-hosted in December 2022, there was a sketch for the fictitious sequel ''Film/{{Father Of The Bride|1991}} Part 8'', [[ParodyAssistance with the pair reprising their roles of George Banks and Franck, respectively]].
100-->'''Annie (Creator/HeidiGardner):''' But, Daddy, I'm your little girl!
101-->'''George:''' You're 52!
102[[/folder]]
103
104[[folder:Music]]
105* Lil B, "Video Game Master" mentions ''[[VideoGame/{{Tekken}} Tekken 8]]'', which can't be too far off. (The arcade version of ''Tekken 7'' was released in March 2015, with the console port released in 2017. The actual ''VideoGame/Tekken8'' wouldn't be released until 2024.)
106* Music/WeirdAlYankovic named [[Music/WeirdAlYankovicIn3D his parody]] of "Eye of the Tiger" as "Theme from Franchise/{{Rocky}} XIII".
107** His song [[Music/DareToBeStupid "Yoda"]] (parody of "Lola" by Music/TheKinks), while not being specific, still plays off the 80s-era rumors that ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' would be the first of eight sequels:
108--->''I know that I'll\
109be coming back someday\
110I'll be playin' this part\
111'Til I'm old and grey\
112The long-term contract\
113I had to sign\
114Said I'll be making these movies\
115'Til the end of time....''
116** And then, nearly twenty years later, Disney bought the ''Star Wars'' franchise and started production on a new series of films, which indeed take place after the original trilogy and features the original cast as supporting characters.
117* Barry Mitchell did a novelty song entitled "Stallone Again, Naturally" which specifically called out ''Superman XI'' and ''Rocky XLVII''.
118* Music/{{Busted}} did this to themselves in the song "Year 3000".
119-->''I took a trip to the year 3000\
120This song had gone multi-platinum\
121Everybody bought our seventh album\
122It had outsold Music/MichaelJackson''
123[[/folder]]
124
125[[folder:Print Media]]
126* Even [[TextbookHumor economics textbooks]] are getting in on the act, with [[http://40.media.tumblr.com/534fa99ca69619f757126be619e2e8de/tumblr_msqimpY2JB1rkcwouo1_400.jpg this illustration]] showing audiences lined up for ''Franchise/{{Shrek}} 12''.
127[[/folder]]
128
129[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
130* An early ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}'' supplement with mock advertisements in its margins included one for "Ramboid X__", an apparent continuation of the ''Franchise/{{Rambo}}'' franchise in which he's long since become a BrainInAJar controlling a war machine.
131[[/folder]]
132
133[[folder:Video Games]]
134* ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaV3KillingHarmony'' has a [[BreakingTheFourthWall rather meta example]] when [[spoiler:in the final trial, Tsumugi reveals that Danganronpa V3 was the ''fifty-third'' season of the Danganronpa series, mentioning other humorous titles such as ''Final Danganronpa 5: Monokuma Returns'' and ''Anniversary Danganronpa 10: Birth of Despair''.]]
135* ''VideoGame/DeusEx'': In Versalife, you can find an email from [[CreatorCameo Austin Grossman]] to Creator/WilliamGibson bragging he finally beat ''VideoGame/NetHack'' v54.3.1 with v54.3.3 coming out next week.
136* ''VideoGame/DeusExHumanRevolution'', set in 2027, has a poster for a ''Franchise/FinalFantasy XXVII'', a nod to Eidos' then-recent acquisition by Creator/SquareEnix. Though the game was set 16 years in the future and released the same year at ''Final Fantasy XIV'', so the number wasn't really "impossible" back then, just ''a lot faster'' than they'd been coming out. [[labelnote:Note]]At the time in 2011 they averaged 3 games per console generation (said generations last approximately 5-6 years). However, massive delays, cost overruns, scope creep, and eventual project cancellations related to ''FFXV'' (which released in late 2016) slowed development of ''Final Fantasy'' mainline games to a crawl, and it would take another seven years until 2023 for ''FFXVI'' to release. At this rate, we would be very lucky to get a hypothetical ''FFXVII'' by 2027, a full ten games fewer than what ''Human Revolution'' over-confidently predicted[[/labelnote]]
137* A PDA message in ''VideoGame/Doom3'' says "The new {{VideoGame/Quake}}[=-43=] game blows my mind."
138* In the English-translated ''VideoGame/EarthBoundBeginnings'', the line "Have you played ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIV''? I'm still having trouble with ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIII''" was changed to reference ''Super Mario Bros. 7'' and ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3''. By the time this translation [[LateExportForYou actually released]], there had been many more than seven ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' games, but they'd {{stopped numbering sequels}} by this point.
139* ''VideoGame/{{Dreamkiller}}'' has a stage where you're sent to the distant future and fighting monsters in an abandoned movie theater. One of the posters seen is that of ''Franchise/{{Saw}} '''29'''''.
140* One of the datapoints in ''VideoGame/HorizonZeroDawn'' reveals that there were a total of sixteen installments in a series of [[TorturePorn graphic European horror films]] called ''Making a Millipede'', a thinly-veiled allusion to ''Film/TheHumanCentipede''. The datapoint's author, the highbrow academic Samina Ebadji, expresses a measure of shock that they made so many of those films, [[spoiler:and bluntly tells Travis Tate, the MisfitLabRat programmer who tried and failed to submit them for inclusion in the APOLLO archive alongside hundreds of other "[[ItsNotPornItsArt acknowledged classics of extreme exploitation cinema]]," that one silver lining of [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the looming apocalypse]] is that future generations of humanity will never have to suffer through them]].
141* ''VideoGame/TheLastOfUs'': You can find a newspaper ad for ''VideoGame/{{Uncharted}} 13''... with Music/JustinBieber as Drake.
142* ''VideoGame/MegaManLegends2'' has the "Game Cartridge" item. According to the item description, it's "Franchise/ResidentEvil 43."
143* ''VideoGame/PinkPantherPassportToPeril'' has an in-flight movie in all of the private jets, which is "[[Film/SisterAct Sister Act 16]]." In [[VideoGame/PinkPantherHokusPokusPink the sequel]], you find a VHS tape of the film in a Siberian village, which is needed for one of the game's puzzles.
144* ''VideoGame/SpaceQuestIVRogerWilcoAndTheTimeRippers'', with its TimeTravel theme, labelled its various time periods using ''sequel numbers''. The post-apocalyptic future into which Roger was initially thrown is identified as ''Space Quest XII''; the galactic mall in the ''Space Quest X'' period also tosses a reference to ''VideoGame/KingsQuest XXXXVIII: The Quest For More Disk Space'' (back in the days before CD-ROM drives), which clocks in at a whole [[TechnologyMarchesOn 12 gigabytes]][[note]]To put that in context, [=SQ4=] came out at a time when hard drives, if you splurged and got the biggest one available, ''might'' have a full gigabyte of space, and you would be hard-pressed to use all of it[[/note]]! It's also stated to be by ''Roberta Williams III''. The Xenon Supercomputer has ''King's Quest XLIII'' installed, taking up approximately 842 Petabytes.
145* ''VideoGame/SpaceQuestVIRogerWilcoInTheSpinalFrontier'' had a throwaway gag where Roger looks at a broken down (and abandoned) movie theater. The narration explains it's a bummer as he really wanted to watch ''Film/TangoAndCash 27''. You can tell that narrator Creator/GaryOwens was {{Corpsing}} as he read that line.
146* Implied in ''VideoGame/StarcraftII'' with an ad for [[Music/Level80EliteTaurenChieftain "Level 800 Elite Tauren Chieftain"]][[note]] If you're playing at home, the band's level almost always matches the current maximum level in VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft[[/note]].
147* In ''VideoGame/RiseOfTheDragon'' the main character's girlfriend mentions that while he missed their date she watched ''Franchise/{{Rambo}} 12'' on the TV while waiting for him.
148* In Neil Manke's ''VideoGame/HalfLife'' mod ''U.S.S. Darkstar'', one of the cabins on the eponymous research vessel contains a copy of ''VideoGame/{{Quake}} XXVI'', with the earlier games' conceit of adding pointed elements to the logo design with each number extended into a key-like shape.
149* The [[AllThereInTheManual manual story]] for ''Zona 0'' has Topo Soft sponsoring the titular game in the late 30th century, flush with profits from its hit games ''Mad Mix XVIII'' and ''Viaje al centro de Saturno''.
150* Thanks to an AscendedMeme, ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' has a movie about [[CowboyCop Blasto]] [[OneRiotOneRanger the]] [[StarfishAliens Hanar]] [[JudgeJuryAndExecutioner Spectre]] advertised on Illium. Come ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'', six months in-universe, and there's been ''five more films'', with number 6 advertised as a radio drama. Furthermore, in the Citadel DLC, you get the opportunity to act alongside [[FishOutOfTemporalWater Javik]] in Blasto 7: Blasto Goes To War, with talks about Blasto 8: Blasto Cures The Genophage immediately after filming for number 7 has concluded. Though given the [[BadBadActing acting]], and the fact that it's mainly made by [[WeAreAsMayflies salarians]], it says a lot.
151* The VideoGame/GundamVsSeries has an easy-to-miss example: The first few games were based off of a single ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' series and had a relevant "(faction) vs. (faction)" title, like ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundam Federation vs. Zeon]]'' and ''[[Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam A.E.U.G. vs. Titans]]''. The {{Crossover}} game ''Gundam vs. Gundam''[='s=] ExcusePlot says that by 2032, there will be a Vs. game for '''every single Gundam series'''[[note]]or at least the ones that existed as of ''[=GvsG=]''[='s=] release[[/note]], with their titles flashing by quickly in the opening video, such as ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamCharsCounterattack Londo Bell vs. Neo Zeon]]'' and ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing OZ vs. White Fang]]''. By the time of ''Gundam VS Gundam NEXT Plus'', The intro actually names all the games which will assuredly never be made, including ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundam0080WarInThePocket Federation vs. Zeon II]]'', ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamThe08thMSTeam Federation vs. Zeon III]]'', ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundam0083StardustMemory Federation vs. Delaz Fleet]]'', ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamZZ AEUG vs. Neo-Zeon]]'', the aforementioned ''Londo Bell vs. Neo-Zeon'', ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamF91 Federation vs. Crossbone Vanguard]]'', ''[[Anime/MobileSuitVictoryGundam League Militaire vs. Zanscare]]'', ''[[Anime/MobileFighterGGundam Shuffle Alliance vs. Devil Gundam Corps]]'', the aforementioned ''OZ vs. White Fang'', ''[[Anime/AfterWarGundamX Space Revolutionary Army vs. New United Nations Earth]]'', and ''[[Anime/TurnAGundam Militia vs. Dianna Counter]]''.
152* Mocked to hell and back in ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysWorld'', by the creator of the games himself no less; one of the minigames introduced in Update 2 is ''FNAF 57: Freddy in Space'' (itself based off an April Fool's joke on Scott's webpage), a side-scrolling shooter when the antagonist is Scott Cawthon[[spoiler:'s head]] himself, listing off a number of ridiculous sequels and spin-offs (including ''FNAF 61: Freddy vs Bonnie'', said to be the start of the Freddy Cinematic Universe). Considering FNAF has done spectacularly well for an indie franchise made by one guy, [[note]]nearly 20 games (counting spin-offs), [[Film/FiveNightsAtFreddys2023 a film]], [[Literature/FiveNightsAtFreddysTheSilverEyes a trilogy of novels]] and [[Literature/FiveNightsAtFreddysFazbearFrights two children's anthologies]], and a '''lot''' of merchandise and fan games; ''Freddy in Space'' itself got two sequels of its own[[/note]] it is almost certainly SelfDeprecation.
153* ''Trade Wars 2002'' featured, among its ASCII movie experience, "Debbie Does Rigel".
154[[/folder]]
155
156[[folder:Web Animation]]
157* ''WebAnimation/DeclineOfVideoGaming'' did this with about everything. Though a real ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry4'' has come out since the first video was made (along with a [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry5 fifth]] ''DMC'' about 11 years after that), the same fortunately does not apply to ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid 7: [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty Sons of]] [[ParodyNames Daughters of Mothers of Best Friends]] [[OverlyLongGag of Cousins of Dogs of Fathers]] [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty of Liberty]]'' or a ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' title with an endless jumble of Roman numerals.
158* In the ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner'' e-mail "videography", there is a VHS tape labeled ''Film/ProblemChild'' 1-8.
159* [[WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation Yahtzee]] invokes it in his ''VideoGame/{{Peggle}}'' review:
160-->'''Yahtzee:''' "Once your budget hits seven digits you're supposed to make Gun Battle Slap Fight Thirty-Seven for the Platform/PlayStation Twelve...!"
161* The WebAnimation/{{spacemen}} watched ''Film/WeekendAtBernies 27'' in the pod, while ''Film/JamesBond'' has been on the decline since Movie 200, and still hasn't cast an alien in the lead role.
162* ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'' Season 11 has an offhand reference to the [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall eleventh]] remake of the ''Superman'' movies: ''Superman Origins 3: Revelations''. All we know about it is that Donut isn't a fan, Doc thinks it's "awesome," and it involves the Phantom Zone somehow.
163[[/folder]]
164
165[[folder:Webcomics]]
166* ''Webcomic/{{SSDD}}'':
167** A character [[http://www.poisonedminds.com/d/20110516.html mentions watching]] ''Film/TheFastAndTheFurious 527''.
168** Another character [[http://www.poisonedminds.com/d/20130415.html mentions]] an old classic shooter ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare 72: Oh No! More Russians!''
169* A comic of ''Webcomic/TwentyFirstCenturyFox'' mentions ''Star Wars Episode 11'', which was apparently a remake of the Holiday Special. And possibly worth unleashing a nigh-unkillable computer virus to erase.
170* A FlashForward strip in ''Webcomic/ArthurKingOfTimeAndSpace'' has Contemporary Mordred [[http://www.arthurkingoftimeandspace.com/1126.htm showing Arthur]] stills from ''Franchise/StarTrek XXIX''.
171* In ''Webcomic/{{Freefall}}'', [[http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff3000/fc02972.htm a conversation]] about the depiction of non-human intelligences in human fiction includes references to ''Terminator 57'' and ''Alien 79''.
172* This ''WebComic/{{XKCD}}'' [[https://xkcd.com/1751/ strip]] mentions ''[[Film/Titanic1997 Titanic]] XCVIII'' (apparently "the series gets good when they start hitting the reef created by all the previous wrecks"), along with ''Time Jam: A Connecticut Huskie on King Arthur's Court'' ("Really underrated ''Film/SpaceJam'' sequel").
173[[/folder]]
174
175[[folder:Web Original]]
176* Website/TVTropes has a page for ''JustForFun/Jaws19'', released on [[Franchise/BackToTheFuture October 21, 2015]] and directed by Max Spielberg, son of Creator/StevenSpielberg.
177* One ''Blog/WhatIf'' entry ([[http://what-if.xkcd.com/65 this one]]) considered the prospect of twenty-six ''WesternAnimation/TheLandBeforeTime'' sequels.
178* The ''VideoGame/ProgressQuest'' forums mention a ''Progress Quest'' Silver Edition, Gold Edition, Platinum Edition, Diamond-encrusted Edition, and 3D Edition.
179[[/folder]]
180
181[[folder:Web Videos]]
182* ''WebVideo/TheAngryVideoGameNerd'':
183** Episode 96: The ''VideoGame/LesterTheUnlikely'' sequels ''Lester the Unlikely 2'' (Lester pulls down his pants, sucks his thumb and takes a shit), ''Lester the Unlikely 3'' (Cannot get past the title screen. Push start, and Lester falls down and farts), ''Lester the Unlikely 4'' on the SNES (doesn't work at all, causes the SNES to explode), ''Lester the Unlikely 5'' (Not a game. A bag of shit), and ''Lester the Unlikely'' on the Platform/PlayStation4 (Disc made of orangutang diarrhea).
184** Episode 139: "They're probably up to ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX Mega Man X 20]]''."
185[[/folder]]
186
187[[folder:Western Animation]]
188* On ''WesternAnimation/TheJetsons'' MadeForTVMovie ''Rockin' with Judy Jetson'', George watches a clip from ''Franchise/{{Rocky}} 912''.
189* ''WesternAnimation/OscarsOrchestra'': In the episode “1812”, Thadius plays a birthday game of charades with Eric, who is pretending to be Teddy. The answer ends up being Jaws 73.
190* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
191** "Itchy And Scratchy: The Movie" brought us ''Star Trek XII: So Very Tired'' a couple years before ''Film/StarTrekGenerations'' was released, which was the seventh in the franchise. But that movie featured the casts of both the original ''Series/{{Star Trek| The Original Series}}'' and ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', signaling that the franchise was moving in a radically different direction. The joke presumes that they were just going to continue releasing ''Star Trek'' sequels with the actors from the original 1966 series (it should be noted that they ''did'' revert to the original ''characters'' by [[Film/StarTrek2009 the 11th movie]], with [[Creator/LeonardNimoy one of the original actors]] in it ''and'' the [[Film/StarTrekIntoDarkness actual twelfth]].)
192** A ''Franchise/{{Rocky}}'' joke in "Lemon of Troy" (though another ''Rocky'' film would come true, but it would just be called ''Film/RockyBalboa'', and even if it did have a number next to it, it would be the sixth, not the seventh):
193--->'''Bart:''' ''Film/RockyV'' plus ''Film/RockyII'' equals... ''Rocky VII: Adrian's Revenge''!
194** Creator/DonHertzfeldt's [[CouchGag/TheSimpsons couch gag]] from "Clown in the Dumps" posits a radically-altered far-future "Sampsans", whose 164,775.7th "epasode" airs Septembar 36.4 in the year 10,535.
195** Also in "A Star Is Burns", when [[WesternAnimation/TheCritic Jay Sherman]] makes an appearance previewing aging Charles Bronson in ''Film/DeathWish IX''.
196--->'''Paul:''' [in a hospital bed] I wish I was dead. Oy!
197** In "This Little Wiggy", we see that the Wiggums were watching ''The Return Of Franchise/ThePinkPanther Returns''.
198** In "Homer To The Max", one of the shows seen in the mid-season line-up is ''Series/AllInTheFamily 1999''.
199--->'''Carroll O'Connor:''' (''as Archie Bunker'') Aww, jeez, they got me livin' with an African-American, a Semite-American, and a woman American there, and I'm glad, I loves youse all! I love everybody! (''breaking character'') I wish I'd saved my money from the first show.
200* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'': in ''Rocky VI'' (which came out before ''Film/RockyBalboa'' did) Rocky goes to Mars for a fight.
201-->'''Adrian:''' Rocky, please don't go to Mars and fight the Martian.\
202'''Rocky:''' I gotta do what I gotta do.\
203'''Adrian:''' But there's no oxygen on Mars.\
204'''Rocky:''' Yeah? That means there's no oxygen for him either. That Martian wants a fight, he'll get a fight.
205* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/GodzillaTheSeries'', the characters find themselves in the future, and come across a cinema that was showing ''Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}} 10''.
206* On ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitchTheSeries,'' Lilo ends up in the future [[MentalTimeTravel in her own adult body]] and is excited that she is finally old enough to go see a movie by herself. Sure enough, the theater's playing ''Wasp Mummies IX: Return of Another Final Chapter Part 2.''
207-->"I guess we missed a few sequels."
208* Inverted in ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'', when the [=PlanEx=] crew meet Music/BeastieBoys. The Boys' later albums are all separated by several years, but this takes it further.
209--> '''Fry''': I love you guys! Back in the 20th century, I had all five of your albums.\
210'''Ad-Rock''': That was a thousand years ago. [[SelfDeprecation Now we got seven.]]
211* A variant shows up in the ''WesternAnimation/MuppetBabies1984'' episode "It's Only Pretendo" -- The titles of all of Gonzo's video games are variations "''Son of Super Barrio Bros''", including "''Second Cousin of Super Barrio Bros''".
212* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'': When the [[ShowWithinAShow Dogcopter]] franchise was introduced in "Lion 2: The Movie", it was up to the third in the franchise. In the ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverseFuture'' episode "Growing Pains" (which takes place [[TimeSkip about two or three years later]]), Steven sees a preview for ''Dogcopter 6'' while watching TV.
213[[/folder]]
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