List of video games notable for negative reception

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Some video games have become well-known for negative reception for various reasons, such as criticism about its gameplay, graphics, sound, or other elements. Some of these games have also been additionally labeled by gaming publications as "the worst game ever made". The following is a list of video games which have had a history of negative reception from video gaming publications and by players (in factors such as sales and community reaction).

Contents 1 1980s 1.1 1982 1.1.1 E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial 1.1.2 Pac-Man (Atari 2600) 1.1.3 Custer's Revenge 2 1990s 2.1 1991 2.1.1 Action 52 2.2 1993 2.2.1 Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon 2.3 1994 2.3.1 Shaq Fu 2.4 1995 2.4.1 Waterworld 2.4.2 White Men Can't Jump 2.5 1996 2.5.1 Catfight 2.6 1999 2.6.1 Superman 64 3 2000s 3.1 2001 3.1.1 Kabuki Warriors 3.2 2003 3.2.1 Aquaman: Battle for Atlantis 3.2.2 Charlie's Angels 3.2.3 Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing 3.3 2005 3.3.1 Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie 3.4 2006 3.4.1 Bomberman: Act Zero 3.4.2 Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) 3.5 2007 3.5.1 Game Party 4 See also 5 References 6 External links

[edit] 1980s

[edit] 1982

[edit] E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

(Atari 2600)

• Listed as the worst game of all time by PC World,^[1] Electronic Gaming Monthly,^[2] and Michael Dolan, editor of FHM magazine.^[3] Some considered it so bad that the title screen was the only good part of the entire game.^[4]
• Many copies of the game were returned to stores, which led to Atari dumping truckloads of E.T. cartridges into a landfill in New Mexico after they failed to sell.^[5][6]
• The game is commonly cited as one of the main causes of the video game crash of 1983, as Atari had hoped that brand loyalty would keep consumers buying their games regardless of quality.^[6]
• Ranked as the second worst movie game on the "Top Ten Worst Movie Games" (losing only to Charlie's Angels) by GameTrailers.^[7]
• It was ranked #2 Worst on GameTrailers' "Top Ten Best and Worst Games of All Time" losing only to Superman 64.^[8]

[edit] Pac-Man (Atari 2600)

(Atari 2600)

• Based on an unfinished prototype in an attempt to release by the holiday season of 1981.^[9]
• Contained many differences from the arcade version due to the limitations of the console, such as "flickering" ghosts and lower-quality sound effects.^[9]
• 12 million copies were produced, even though only 10 million Atari 2600 consoles had been sold.^[10]
• Along with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, it has been cited as a significant factor in the cause of the 1983 video game industry crash.^[11]

[edit] Custer's Revenge

(Atari 2600)

• Features a simulation of an apparent rape of a Native American woman,^[12] and has been called one of the most violent games of all time.^[13]
• Listed as the most shameful game of all time by GameSpy,^[12] as the third-worst game of all time by PC World,^[1] and GameTrailers^[8] and as the ninth-worst game by Seanbaby in Electronic Gaming Monthly.^[14]
• It was declared #3 Worst on Gametrailers' "Top Ten Best and Worst Games of All Time." On it, GameTrailer editor Geoff Keighley said, "It pissed me off as a gamer to see a game like that because... those kinds of games give the industry a bad reputation."^[8]

[edit] 1990s

[edit] 1991

[edit] Action 52

(Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Genesis)

• There were grandiose plans for a line of merchandise including action figures, t-shirts, a comic book series and even a television cartoon based on the Cheetahmen, but these were eventually scrapped due to bad word-of-mouth, as well as scathing reviews, citing the numerous technical issues of the game.^[15][16]

[edit] 1993

[edit] Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon

(CD-i)

• Named the #6 worst game of all time by Seanbaby^[17] and the #5 by GameTrailers.^[8]
• The cut scenes were called "infamous" and "cheesy" by IGN.^[18]

[edit] 1994

[edit] Shaq Fu

(Super Nintendo, Genesis/Mega Drive, Amiga)^[19] (1995; Game Boy, Sega Game Gear)

• Was rated as the worst fighting game of all time by ScrewAttack.^[20]
• It is ranked #4 Worst on "Top Ten Best and Worst Games of All Time."^[8]
• Shaqfu.com is dedicated to collecting every copy of Shaq Fu by buying the game from anyone who owns it and destroying it.

[edit] 1995

[edit] Waterworld

(Virtual Boy)

• Waterworld is widely regarded as the worst Virtual Boy game out of the 22 games released in its short life. It is the lowest reviewed game at Planet Virtual Boy^[21] and has the lowest reader review average at sites such as GameFAQs.^[22]
• Steven L. Kent, author of The Ultimate History of Video Games and The Making of Doom 3, selected it as one of his choices for five worst video games of all time.^[23]

[edit] White Men Can't Jump

(Atari Jaguar)

• It as been hailed as one of the worst Jaguar games by some critics due to poor graphics and bad camera aim, among other factors .^[24][25]

[edit] 1996

[edit] Catfight

(PC)

• GameSpot called Catfight "without a doubt, the worst computer game ever released."^[26]
• The Daily Pennsylvanian called Catfight the "number one sexist game ever created".^[27]
• According to GameRankings, the game has the average rating of only 8.67%.^[28]

[edit] 1999

[edit] Superman 64

(Nintendo 64)^[29]

• This game was largely criticized for having unnecessary repetitive, difficult and confusing objectives, unnecessarily short time limits that left no margin for error, poor graphics and poor controls.
• Listed as the worst game of all time by GameTrailers,^[8] the worst game on a Nintendo platform by Nintendo Power,^[30] and as the worst comic book video game adaptation in history by GameSpy and GameDaily.^[31][32]
• Critics were overwhelmingly negative in reviews, with Joe Fielder of GameSpot writing, "This is easily the worst game I've ever played,"^[33] and other sites such as IGN^[34] and Game Revolution panning the game for its atrocious set-up, gameplay, and graphics.^[35]

[edit] 2000s

[edit] 2001

[edit] Kabuki Warriors

(Xbox)

• Received the lowest review score (1/10) in the history of Edge.^[36]
• It averages 32/100 on Metacritic based on 15 reviews.^[37]
• It has an average score of 35% according to GameRankings.^[38]

[edit] 2003

[edit] Aquaman: Battle for Atlantis

(GameCube, Xbox)^[39]

• Named as one of the worst games of all time by X-Play, it was the inspiration for X-Play's annual award for the worst game of the year, "The Golden Mullet", a reference to the hairstyle Aquaman features in the game.^[40] Similarly, the 2003 Nintendo Power awards had a category that was made only to give credit to Aquaman and "his sweet mullet".
• The Xbox version averaged 26/100 while the GameCube version averaged 27/100 on Metacritic.^[41]

[edit] Charlie's Angels

(PlayStation 2, GameCube)

• The game has a rating of 23 on Metacritic.^[42]
• Game Informer said "This game is nothing short of an embarrassment."^[43]
• GameSpot called it a "horrific display of ineptitude."^[44]
• On GameRankings, Charlie's Angels received a 23%, with 24 reviews.^[45]
• The game was ranked #1 on GameTrailers' list of the Top 10 Worst Movie Games of all time.^[7]

[edit] Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing

(PC)^[46]

• Listed as one of the worst games ever made by reviews at GameSpot,^[47] Thunderbolt,^[48] and Netjak.^[49]
• Gamespot's review began with the statement that the game is "as bad as your mind allows you to comprehend."^[47] Alex Navarro's video review of the game has no narration whatsoever; it just shows in-game footage of the game, and Navarro staring in disbelief at the game, crying, and beating his head on the desk. It ends with him lying in the middle of the street.^[47] GameSpot also awarded it its 2004 Flat-Out Worst Game award, with its "trophy" being the infamous three-handled "YOU'RE WINNER ![sic]" trophy from the game.^[50] It remains on record as the lowest review ever recorded on GameSpot (bearing the lowest score possible: 1.0).
• Has an average rating of 8% on Metacritic^[51], and 4% on GameRankings.^[52]
• Big Rigs sold well despite (and possibly because of) negative reviews.^[50]

[edit] 2005

[edit] Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie

(Nintendo DS)

• Holds an aggregate score of 28/100 on Metacritic.^[53]
• GameSpot gave it a 2.1/10, calling it such a poor excuse of a first-person shooter that other developers should study it and use it as a guide when putting together similar style shooters in the future.^[53]
• IGN gave it a 3.0/10, explaining that the "gameplay stinks, the fighting stinks, the puzzles stink, the bugs problems stink. Enjoy!"^[54]
• PALGN gave it a 1/10, calling it borderline unplayable due to its horrid graphics.^[53]
• However, the console and PC versions went into receiving positive reviews, scoring as high as 8.2 on Gamespot.^[55]

[edit] 2006

[edit] Bomberman: Act Zero

(Xbox 360)

• The game received negative critique from many reviewers due to its contrasts from other Bomberman games, such as a more rustic cyberpunk theme over the colorful and cartoonish style of other Bomberman games.^[56].
• The game has a a Metacritic score of 34/100,^[57] and averages 33% out of 56 reviews on GameRankings.^[58]
• The game won the 2006 Flat-Out Worst Game by GameSpot^[59]

[edit] Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)

(Xbox 360), (PlayStation 3)

• GamesRadar called the story "ridiculously overwrought" and "conceptually challenged".^[60]
• GameTrailers concluded that the game is "flat-out unfinished, unfairly difficult, and most importantly, just isn't much fun."^[61][62]
• GameSpot called the game "a mess from top to bottom,"^[63][64] while IGN admitted that "it offers a few good ideas, and a handful of exciting moments, but none of this helps the game recover from a catastrophic loss in control."^[65]

[edit] 2007

[edit] Game Party

(Wii)

• Has a Metacritic score of 25 out of 100.^[66]
• Also giving this game a 1 out of 10, Eurogamer criticized the graphics and the fun factor of the game, saying "The Game Party experience is like going to a party where there's nothing to drink but Tesco Value brandy and there are only four other guests and they're all racist and then your ex turns up and gets off with a Danish supermodel."^[67]
• IGN said that this game started the "shovelware" of the Wii (they gave a 3.5 out of 10), criticizing the graphics and the games themselves.^[68]
• AceGamez also gave the game a 1 out of 10, criticizing the controls and saying that the game is trying to unsuccessfully simulate the fun of games like WarioWare: Smooth Moves.^[69]

[edit] See also

• List of best-selling video games
• List of commercial failures in video gaming
• List of films considered the worst

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• The all time worst games from MobyGames
• EGM's Crapstravaganza: The 20 Worst Video Games of All Time from Seanbaby.com
• Gamescrap a site based on bad video games.
• Top Ten Worst Video Games of All Time from GameTrailers
• So Bad It's Horrible: Video Game - Television Tropes & Idioms
  • Porting Disaster