Editorials
The Top 10 Most Disappointing Games of 2017
2017 saw the release of many great games. The Nintendo Switch absolutely killed it with Super Mario Odyssey, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and ARMS; fantastic indie games such as Cuphead, Night in the Woods, and Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice outshined many AAA games, and Capcom breathed new life into the survival horror genre with Resident Evil VII. However, not everything was sunshine and rainbows this year, as gamers saw more than their fair share of disappointing games. What’s a disappointing game? Any game that fails to deliver on expectations and promises in spectacular fashion and is not as good as it could have/should have been. Therefore, a game doesn’t have to be bad to be disappointing. So, here’s my list of the most disappointing games of 2017. As with my previous list, I will only include new games, so don’t expect me to mention the Super Nintendo Classic just because it doesn’t come with an emulation of Chrono Trigger.
10. Lawbreakers
From a technical standpoint, Cliff Bleszinski’s Lawbreakers is a decent game. A little rough around the edges, but nothing’s wrong with the game a few patches can’t fix. Lawbreakers looks gorgeous; the gameplay is fast and frantic; the classes are all unique, and the game’s gravity mechanic is well-implemented. Most importantly, Lawbreakers has a personality and does not aim for the “grey-brown military shooter” aesthetic other FPS games adopt, so why is it disappointing? One word: playerbase. Right now, the number of gamers who actively play Lawbreakers is in the low double-digits. Even Battleborn retains more gamers than Lawbreakers, and that game is the textbook definition of a disappointment.
9. NieR: Automata
By all accounts, NieR: Automata is a fantastic game. It’s not PlatinumGames’ best, but it’s certainly up there alongside Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance and Transformers: Devastation. The action is pure hack and slash bliss; the music is a thing of beauty, and the story, well, it’s what we’ve come to expect from Yoko Taro: as gripping, emotional, and philosophical as it is weird and zany. NieR: Automata is a must-buy for all gamers, but sadly, its PC version suffers. NieR: Automata‘s PC port is not as bad as the PC version of Batman: Arkham Knight (at release, anyway), but it’s still a mess. Even worse, Square Enix hasn’t tried to patch NieR: Automata; you have to download a fan-made patch/mod to get the game running at a respectable framerate/resolution. While I cannot recommend NieR: Automata enough, buy it on the PlayStation 4, because the PC version is just a huge disappointment and will remain so possibly forever.
8. Yooka-Laylee
The devs at Playtonic promised Yooka-Laylee would be as much of a throwback to classic 90s collectathon platformers as it would be an evolution of the genre, and they almost succeeded. Yooka-Laylee has all the charm of 90s collectathons and plays just like them, but the genre has seen several improvements since the 90s, improvements that were absent in Yooka-Laylee at launch. Granted, Playtonic patched these issues quickly, but the game still isn’t as good as it could be. It’s still a good game, but not the great game everyone expected, let alone as great as A Hat in Time. Plus there’s the backlash Playtonic faced when it removed JonTron’s voice lines from Yooka-Laylee, but that’s less of a matter of game-related disappointment and more a matter of studio-related hypocrisy.
7. Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite
Marvel vs. Capcom is one of Capcom’s most popular franchises, thanks to a gigantic selection of popular (and obscure) Marvel and Capcom characters and almost perfect combat. However, Capcom completely dropped the ball with Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite. Not only is the roster tiny compared to other games, but the game lacks many fan-favorite characters from the previous game, such as Deadpool and Amaterasu, as well as franchise staples, including Wolverine and Felicia. Furthermore, the iconic 3v3 fighter system is replaced with a less impressive 2v2 (plus one Infinity Stone) system. And, the game’s just downright ugly. Many of these problems can be attributed to the game’s budget, which was less than half the budget for Street Fighter V‘s DLC. Still, on its own, Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite is a decent fighting game, but that’s a backhanded complement given the stellar quality of the previous entries. We can only hope Capcom fixes its mistakes in the inevitable Ultra Super Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite Deluxe Edition.
6. Sonic Forces
Sonic Forces should have been a great game. Sonic Team has demonstrated it’s capable of making standout titles with Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations, but almost everything about Sonic Forces is a letdown. The story is bland, and the game is poorly designed. YouTubers have demonstrated numerous levels can be completed by holding down one button, which is just an abject failure in terms of level design. Even the much-touted ability to create your own original character (do not steal) is a disappointment, since the game is too short for gamers to get much use out of these characters. The only worthwhile aspect of the character creator system is to either turn OCs into horrific, thousand-yard stare, meme-worthy abominations or to dress them in equally-meme-worthy impractical outfits. Sonic Forces is one of the few cases where being a disappointing game is just as damning as being a bad game, even if though it is not the worst Sonic game ever created.
5. Middle Earth: Shadow of War
I found Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor to be a disappointing game. Sure, it was fun at first, but then I started to see the cracks in the touted Nemesis System, and the game just floundered from there; the quick time event at the end of the game (don’t you dare call it a boss fight) didn’t help matters. In many ways, Shadow of War is an improvement over Shadow of Mordor and not just because the graphics are prettier. But, for all of Shadow of War‘s improvements, the devs put one foot in the grave as soon as they announced the loot boxes. Why bother actually playing the game and looking for a strong Uruk captain to “recruit” when you can just pay money for the chance at obtaining one? Then players discovered that the true ending of the game is hidden behind a wall that forces gamers to either grind for strong captains or pay exorbitant amounts of money for loot boxes. And that’s what’s so disappointing about Middle Earth: Shadow of War: it’s a freemium mobile game wearing the skin of a AAA $60 game that doesn’t need microtransactions or loot boxes. Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor was just fine without these microtransactions, and Shadow of War should be as well.
4. Destiny 2
Ah, Destiny 2. You were supposed to be an improvement over the original Destiny. And, credit where credit is due, the developers at Bungie managed to give the game an actual story, the characters personalities, and PC gamers the port they wanted. But, that’s where all the positives end, because when you get right down to it, Destiny 2 is just a rehash of Destiny. The story is laughable, and the game was clearly cut up into tiny chunks so Activision could sell overpriced season passes. And, don’t even get me started on the unnecessary loot boxes that house one-use consumable shaders — or when players were temporarily locked out of in-game activities they could play at launch because Activision wanted to force them to buy expansions to unlock the activities. As with many entries in this list, Destiny 2, on its own, is an ok game, but all the empty promises and baffling design choices that stink of corporate greed turn Destiny 2 into one great, big, steaming pile of disappointment.
3. Call of Duty: WWII
Even when Call of Duty changes, the game basically stays the same. Admittedly, it’s nice to see the franchise return to its World War II roots and bring back a non-regenerating health system, but that doesn’t save the game from being the same old, drab, grey-brown shooter it’s been for the past decade. Even worse, Activision pushes microtransactions hard in the game by essentially forcing gamers to watch other players open loot boxes and obtain rifle butts of +1 mundaneness and historically inaccurate black female Nazi soldier skins. Even the previously-enjoyable zombie mode just feels as if it’s going through the motions, and not even the voice talents of Ving Rhames, Elodie Yung, Katheryn Winnick, and David Tennant can save it.
2. Mass Effect: Andromeda
Nothing makes a game more disappointing than hype, and few companies hype up their games quite like EA. Mass Effect is a compelling space opera RPG, and gamers were really looking forward to this years’ Mass Effect: Andromeda. The game was hyped up to spectacular levels, but when it released, the game turned out to be a buggy, glitchy mess that paled in comparison to the original Mass Effect trilogy. The game received numerous patches that fixed a wide variety issues, from broken quests to ugly shaders and animations, but the damage had already been done. EA shut down the game’s development studio, BioWare Montreal, cancelled all future patches and DLC, and stated it would not make any new Mass Effect games in the near future. While Mass Effect: Andromeda‘s current version is a far cry from its horrific release, it plays more like a game made by a newly-formed indie studio whose talent can’t match its ambition, not the next entry in an epic, long-running, critically acclaimed, AAA sci-fi RPG franchise.
1. Star Wars Battlefront II
Star Wars Battlefront II was supposed to be EA’s apology for the lackluster Star Wars Battlefront, but instead the game turned into credibility suicide. The single player campaign is paltry at best (and it isn’t even original; it’s a rehash of the plot of the Star Wars: Shattered Empire miniseries comic), but the multiplayer, to use the British colloquialism, is absolute pants, because it is completely ruined by the microtransactions and loot boxes. To unlock different characters, classes, and vehicles, specifically the popular and iconic ones everyone wants to play, gamers need to either grind out impossibly long gameplay sessions or outright buy them with real cash. Also, each character, class, and vehicle can be upgraded with star cards that are only obtainable in loot boxes, and the rarer cards that only appear in the more expensive boxes are downright broken. The backlash against these scummy microtransactions was so great that EA’s stock dropped and the Disney Company told EA to get rid of them. Star Wars Battlefront II was a bad game before it was ruined by microtransactions, which is why it is the most disappointing game of 2017.
After many years of fans begging Square Enix to remaster Final Fantasy VII, they finally listened and did just that. There were numerous excuses as to why the game’s re-release had lagged behind the re-releases of both VII and IX, with the most common excuse being that the game’s original code was lost years ago. However, the company made it happen and the game is finally available for modern audiences to play on modern hardware today. We’re going to give you 5 reasons why you should do just that.
First time available on modern hardware
As we’ve already said, this is the first time that the game is available on modern hardware. While the game originally launched for PS1 back in 1999, it later got a PC port in 2000. That means that is has been a whopping 19 years since a new version of the game has been available for purchase, and that wait was a brutal one. However, it is finally over and you can now play this classic game on PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch along with PC. If the lack of modern hardware support was stopping you from checking out, that excuse just got thrown out the window.
The visuals look better than ever
Thankfully, Square Enix did not just slap this port together quickly and throw it out there to shut everyone up. They did a terrific job of putting on a shiny new coat of paint for the game, with the character models in particular looking much better. While things like environment textures didn’t get quite the same amount of attention, this is nevertheless the best that the game has ever looked. It also helps that the game is simply beautiful from a design standpoint, with the game’s world being gorgeous to behold even though we’re dealing with the hardware limitations of 1999.
Quality of life improvements
While those who played the game 20 years ago will still be getting what is essentially the same experience, Square Enix did add some quality of life improvements to put it more in line with current JRPGs. These changes include the likes of increasing battle speed by 3 times, shutting off random encounters completely and even a cheat to give you max HP and limit breaks. While these may seem minor, these will go a long way to ease some of the tedium that many feel after some particularly long gaming sessions. Max HP and Limit Breaks will also make the incredibly tough Ultima and Omega Weapon boss fights a lot easier to deal with.
Triple Triad
The Final Fantasy series is known for having its fair share of enticing side quests and mini games, but there isn’t a single one that is as addicting as Triple Triad. The game is essentially a card game that is played on a 3×3 grid, and each card has a certain number on the top, bottom, left and right sides. You need to place your cards in a manner that the numbers on your cards are higher than your opponents, and seeing as your card can be attacked from four different sides this can be tricky. You’re able to challenge many different characters to a match throughout the course of the entire game, and doing so comes with plenty of nice rewards that will make your quest easier.
The game is awesome
While our previous points focused on specific elements of the game, this one is a simple fact that has been true since 1999: the game is awesome. Unfortunately, releasing immediately after Final Fantasy VII (a watershed moment for gaming) put it under a very cruel microscope, with many knee jerk reactions simply saying it “isn’t as good as VII.” However, in the years that have passed people have revisited the game, and the consensus has definitely changed. This adventure that Square created is unlike any other in the series, being host to an ambitious and bizarre plot filled with some of the best characters the series has ever seen. If you’ve played the game before then this is the perfect time to experience this masterpiece all over again, and if you haven’t then what are you waiting for?
2019 has been yet another good year for gaming so far, with several games releasing that will be big contenders for game of the year once the curtain closes. However, despite the year already being more than halfway over, there are still some huge titles on the horizon that are sure to make their own dents on the coming best-of lists. This article will list the 10 biggest games that are still coming in 2019.
Control
A new game from Remedy Entertainment is always highly-anticipated, and Control is no different. The game is an action-adventure game in the same style as Alan Wake or Quantum Break, but with a supernatural twist. Players will control Jesse Faden, who possesses a variety of supernatural abilities like telekinesis, levitation and more. She will be using her abilities in order to defeat an enemy known only as the Hiss, which has corrupted reality. Control launches for PS4, Xbox One and PC on August 27th.
Borderlands 3
It has been many years since the last game in the Borderlands series released, but the hiatus is finally coming to an end very soon. Those who have played previous games in the series will feel right at home with this game, as it’s once again a loot-driven FPS. The game will offer more zany characters and a charming and insane world to explore, all while dealing with new antagonists Troy and Tyreen Calypso along with their Children of the Vault cult. Borderlands 3 launches for PS4, Xbox One and PC on September 13th, with a Google Stadia port release date being TBA.
Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint
Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon series is returning soon with Breakpoint, which will serve as a continuation of previous game Wildlands. The game is set in an open world environment called Aurora, which is a fictional island in the Pacific Ocean. Players will control Lieutenant Colonel Anthony “Nomad” Perryman, who is a special forces operative that was sent to the island to investigate a series of disturbances in the area. Breakpoint launches for PS4, Xbox One and PC on October 4th, with a Google Stadia port coming in November.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
Each new installment in the Call of Duty series is always huge, but Modern Warfare’s release marks a first for the long-running franchise. It will be the first game in the series that is reimagining of a previous game in the series, taking 2004’s original game and updating its mechanics and themes to match today’s world. The game will still have some of the beats that the first game had, but will also incorporate lots of surprises to make it a fresh experience. Modern Warfare launches for PS4, Xbox One and PC on October 25th.
The Outer Worlds
Obsidian Entertainment’s The Outer Worlds is one that will be very highly-anticipated for fans of Fallout: New Vegas, as this game serves as a sort of spiritual successor to that game. It will be an open world RPG that allows you to explore many unique areas crawling with plenty of deadly foes. Players will also be able to encounter and recruit NPCs as companions that have their own personal missions and stories to take part in. The Outer Worlds launches for PS4, Xbox One and PC on October 25th, with a Switch port also being in the works.
Luigi’s Mansion 3
It seemed very unlikely that Luigi’s Mansion would become a recurring franchise for Nintendo following the original GameCube game, but here we are. Luigi’s Mansion 3 is coming to Switch, which also means it will be the first home console release since the original game back in 2003. This time the game is set in a haunted hotel rather than a mansion, and Luigi has some new tricks up his sleeves to take down all those ghosts. Luigi’s Mansion 3 will launch exclusively for Nintendo Switch on October 31st.
Death Stranding
If you’re looking for the most ambitious (and weirdest) game still coming in 2019, then look no further. Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding has perplexed gamers ever since its announcement, and each new trailer that releases just brings more and more questions to the table. It is Kojima’s first game since breaking up with Konami after the release of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phanton Pain (and the cancellation of Silent Hills), and it looks like Kojima has taken the newfound complete creative control to deliver something truly original. Death Stranding launches exclusively for PS4 on November 8th.
Pokemon Sword & Shield
At this point we all know what to expect from a new Pokemon game, and Sword and Shield seems poised to deliver even more cute creatures for players to capture and battle very soon. What sets Sword and Shield apart from its predecessors is that it will be the first home console release for the series, which is saying something considering the series has been around for over 20 years. Pokemon Sword & Shield launches exclusively for Switch on November 15th.
Shenmue III
If you’re a fan of Shenmue then nothing needs to be said for the inclusion of the upcoming third game on this list. Fans of the series have been waiting nearly two decades for a follow-up to the second game, and in just a couple of months that will finally be delivered to them. Brought to life thanks to an extremely successful Kickstarter campaign, the game continues the adventure of protagonist Ryo Hazuki as he hunts down his father’s killer. Shenmue III will launch for PS4 and PC on November 19th.
DOOM Eternal
id Software’s DOOM 2016 was one of the best FPS games to come along in years, so it’s a no-brainer that the follow-up would be on this list. Eternal is set to offer yet another intense FPS campaign for players to plunge into, while also offering a multiplayer component that greatly improves upon the last game’s underwhelming multiplayer mode. There will also be twice as many demon types than there was in the last game, meaning that the chaos level just got that much higher. DOOM Eternal launches for PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Google Stadia and PC on November 22nd.
Microsoft’s Xbox E3 2019 Press Conference has officially come to an end, and with it came plenty of big announcements to get excited about. Some new games were announced, whereas previously-announced games got new footage and/or release dates. In this article we’ve narrowed it all down to the 5 most exciting announcements.
New Xbox “Project Scarlett” Coming Holiday 2020
We’ve known for a while now that a new Xbox was in the works, but now we know when to expect it. Microsoft’s fourth console (which hopefully has a better official name than Xbox One did) will be a big step up from the previous console. Things like much faster load times, an AMD Processor that is four times more powerful than the Xbox One X, 8K Resolution and 120 FPS were all mentioned. A price and exact release date weren’t mentioned. It will also be launching with…
Halo Infinite Coming Holiday 2020, Launching On Both Xbox One and Project Scarlett
The wait for the next Halo game has been longer than ever before for series fans, and the announcement at E3 revealed that the wait will continue. Halo Infinite will not be launching until Holiday 2020, meaning it will have been 5 years since the previous game released with Halo 5. It will also be launching on Xbox One and Project Scarlett, meaning the new console will have a big launch title for fans to get pumped about.
Cyberpunk 2077 Coming April 2020, Stars Keanu Reeves
It’s hard to pick a game that people have been more excited about than Cyberpunk 2077, and after Microsoft’s press conference we’re even more excited. Not only is it coming in April of next year, but Keanu Reeves himself will be playing a “key” role in the game. Everything shown from the game has looked great so far, so hopefully it all pans out and we have another classic from CD Projekt RED come April 2020.
FromSoftware and George R.R. Martin Collaboration Elden Ring Announced
This one was actually leaked prior to the presentation, but Dark Souls developer FromSoftware and Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin are collaborating on a new game. The game is called Elden Ring, and it will be a departure from the developer’s most recent games as it will be open world. Very little information on the game is known at this point, as it is still in the early stages of development.
Phantasy Star Online 2 Is Coming West
It took a very long time, but the popular MMORPG is finally coming west. The game is coming to Xbox One in a free-to-play form in Spring 2020, so the wait won’t be that much longer. “There will be no limitations on game experiences,”says Sega, because they want to “provide all players with a fair and exciting experience.”
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