TheCowSaysMoo: what bothered me the most about the oc was the "four points" system: always four objectives in the chapters. sigh.
It's basically a template game design. If you think about it every BioWare game works like that. A hero with companions has to collect MacGuffins in order to get the girl and face the antagonist. (you can apply this template to NWN, KotOR, Mass Effect, DAO and so on).
it's no different from Terminator movies... Arnold arrives, Arnold gets clothes and guns, first car chase scene, first gun fight and so forth. I believe it does have its expiry date.
While 10 years ago the template might have served them well I personally believe it is a time to move on and do something new (something of the Witcher like quality).