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List of video games notable for negative reception

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Certain games have received negative publicity for various reasons, including poor gameplay, exceptionally poor graphics or music, a clichéd or stereotypical premise and storyline, a poor user interface, or an excessive number of bugs that hamper enjoyment or playability. More generally, and despite the natural differences in players' tastes and tolerances, a game attracting the negative reception is usually found to lack fun factor for most players.

Some games, in spite of technical excellence, still receive negative attention due to the hype and audience attention on the product prior to release.

Concept and criticism usually apply only to games commercially released and marketed by major distributors and targeted at well-known gaming systems such as personal computers, consoles and arcade machines, while shareware, freeware, public domain and amateur games are usually not exposed to much criticism.

A

Aquaman: Battle for Atlantis

(2003, GameCube/Xbox) This game inspired the Golden Mullet Awards on G4's X-Play (an award it gives out for the worst games to come out that year, the name deriving from the title character), and X-Play also named it the worst GameCube game ever.[1]

Action 52

(1991/1993, NES/Sega Genesis) This game featured 52 mini-games included in one cartridge, and was put on sale for $200, being hyped as "less than $4 a game". However, many critics criticised the compilation for all of the games being poor, especially in the NES version. This game was ranked #5 in Gamespy's 'Top 10 Shameful Games' list[2].

B

Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing

(2003, PC) This game has a truck-racing premise. Some of the many reasons for why this game is considered "massively flawed" include nonexistent collision detection, trucks that accelerate infinitely in reverse to the limits of processing (yet stopping instantly when the key is released), players being able to go up hills at a 90° degree angle, a computer controlled player that does not move at all, and a complete lack of a boundary preventing the truck from leaving the map. GameSpot gave the game a 1.0 out of 10.0, the lowest score ever given by the review site, and described it as "one of the most atrocious games ever published."[3] X-Play, a game reviewing TV show on G4TV, said "hands-down, this is the worst video game ever to be released" and refused to give it a rating because the TV program's rating scale does not have a zero.[4] This infamy has spawned dedicated fans on several gaming forums. It has a 4% rating on Game Rankings, and an average score of 8 out of a possible 100 at Metacritic, making it the worst-reviewed game ever on these sites.

Bubsy 3D

(1996, PlayStation) Bubsy 3D was panned by critics and fans alike due to its confusing control schemes and poor camera angles.[citation needed] It was featured on Seanbaby's EGM Crapstravaganza: The 20 Worst Games of All Time list.[5]

C

Cassette 50

(1983, Cascade Games Ltd) A compilation of games described as being "so bad it caused physical discomfort"[6], "beyond awful"[7] and "a piece of crap collection"[8]. It inspired an annual 'crap game' competition[9] and a site reviewing bad games[10].

Count Duckula 2

A platform game follow-up to the 1989 release Count Duckula in No Sax Please - We're Egyptian. Both are tie-in licenses of the Cosgrove Hall Count Duckula cartoon series. The player advances Duckula from screen to screen shooting soft toys with a ketchup gun. Critically, the game consistently achieved some of the lowest review scores of the 8-bit era and is considered one of the worst games published for these platforms. Sinclair User[11] reviewed the game, awarding it 64%, concluding: "If you like silent, slow, basic, dated, unresponsive, annoying games, get it!". The Your Sinclair[12] review was more scathing, awarding 9%: "The whole thing seems to play quite happily by itself, with the player being a sort of novelty bonus." The Amstrad version fared no better, with Amstrad Action awarding the game a mere 3%. In the final issue of Your Sinclair[13], Count Duckula 2 was voted the Number One Worst Speccy Game Of All Time by the magazine's readers.

Custer's Revenge

(1982, Atari 2600) A highly controversial game consisting of moving a naked and heavily pixelated General Custer across the screen to rape a Native American girl (tied to a post) while dodging arrows. It is considered by some to have one of the worst premises ever in a game, and was ranked #1 on Gamespy's "Ten Most Shameful Games of All Time"[14], and #3 on PC World's list of "The 10 Worst Games of All Time". On "Top Ten Best And Worst Videogames," it was rated #3 Worst. One of the guests on the show, Game Head's 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.[15]

D

Deadly Towers

(1987, NES) Deadly Towers is an action-adventure game where the protagonist ventures through a maze-like castle. The game was ranked #1 on Seanbaby's list of the 20 worst games for the NES.[16]

Drake of the 99 Dragons

(2003, Xbox, PC) More commonly known as simply Drake, this is an action game with a comic book style to it. It was universally panned by critics, and GameSpot described it as "one of the most atrociously unplayable games to come along in quite some time." The controls in particular have come under criticism for "not working".[17] X-Play named Drake of the 99 Dragons the worst Xbox game ever, and have even gone so far as to state it had surpassed Aquaman as the game that it compares all bad games to.

Don't Buy This

(1985, ZX Spectrum) This is a compilation comprising, as the publisher Firebird claims in the cassette inlay, "five of the most uninspired games ever to disgrace the 48k Spectrum." Your Spectrum (8/1985) review (two 1/5 verdicts and a 2/5, and three out of three "misses") says "Take a good look at the words printed on the outside of the package before you buy ... the title of the package really does say it all." CRASH review gave it less than 20% on all categories (Use of computer, graphics, playability and getting started) except for addictive qualities (76%) and value for money (700%; the game retailed for £2.50) giving it a total value of 39.333333%.[18]

E

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

(1982, Atari 2600), A game based on the film E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial, was released for the Atari 2600 in 1982. In a time when the market was being flooded with dozens upon dozens of lackluster games, this game is cited as being a major cause of the Video Game Crash of 1983. Atari, expecting that the E.T. franchise and Christmas season would boost sales, produced millions of copies of the game, which turned out to be a disaster. It had poor controls and gameplay, a fact owed to its hasty development in just five weeks in an attempt to meet the anticipated Christmas rush. Sales were dismal and most copies went unsold -- "nearly all of them came back". The company then secretly crushed and buried the remainder of the cartridges in a landfill site near Alamogordo, New Mexico[19]. The E.T. fiasco cost Atari millions of dollars and contributed to the subsequent collapse of the company.[20][21] This game topped the PC World list of the 10 worst games of all time.

F

FBI Hostage Rescue

(2004, PC) The player takes on the role of an FBI agent sent in to enemy territory to rescue hostages. This game is notorious for artificial intelligence so bad that, in the words of Gamespot, "We have failed to get past the very first mission of the game, despite numerous attempts.".[22]


H

Hour of Victory

(2007, Xbox 360) It received both Reader's Choice and Editor's Choice for Flat-Out Worst Game on Gamespot's 2007 Game Awards [23] and is currently the second lowest ranked Xbox 360 game on Gamerankings (with only Bomberman Act: Zero lower than it), with a ranking of 36.9%. [24]

I

Inuyasha: Secret of the Divine Jewel

(2007, Nintendo DS) was given a 4 out of 10 from IGN and a 3.9 out of 10 from Gamespot. It was also put #1 worst on Game Informer's Top 10 worst Role-playing games ever, as well as #1 on Nintendo Power's Top 10 Best and Worst Games not released in Japan.

K

Kabuki Warriors

(2001, Xbox) This is a launch title for the Xbox that was a critical and commercial flop. GameSpot described it as "one of the worst games to be released this year or any year, on the Xbox or any other platform", and it is the only game ever to receive a 1 / 10 score from Edge.[25] Game Informer gave the game a 0.5 out of 10, one of the lowest scores ever given by the magazine.[26]

N

Ninjabread Man

(2007, Wii) The game holds an average score of 17% on Gamerankings [[5]], making it currently the lowest ranked Wii game of all time. It has been criticized for its sloppery controls, being extremely short, and a ripoff of games such as Ninja Gaiden.

R

Revolution X

(1994, multiplatform) This game was, in its original form, a well-received bitmap-based arcade light gun shooting game similar to Beast Busters or Terminator 2: Judgment Day featuring the rock music band Aerosmith. The game was converted for a small number of systems without great success. Due to its paucity of enemies and animation and poorly-digitized, looping music, Electronic Gaming Monthly writer Seanbaby described the SNES port of this game as "worst second of your life repeated forever" and "biblically horrific".[27][citation needed] Screwattack ridiculed it via a VIDEOGAME VAULT.[28]

Rise of the Robots

(1994, multiplatform) This demonstrates one of the worst examples of over hyped marketing. Most of 1994 was filled with previews about the game. When it arrived, it showed that only one move (the flying kick) was needed to complete the game.[29]

S

Shaq Fu

(1994, SNES, Sega Genesis) Shaq Fu has been called the worst game of all time[30] due in large part to its less than imaginative background story, awkward and unrewarding gameplay, and suspicions that NBA player Shaquille O'Neal’s branding was attached to the game merely to rally up sales for a game that would otherwise be a financial failure. It was co-marketed with a rap CD and there exists a community tasked with purchasing and destroying all used copies available for sale.[31]

Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis

(2006, Game Boy Advance) Genesis was called "a crushing disappointment" by GameSpot, who gave it a 2.5 out of 10.[32]

Sonic the Hedgehog

(2006/2007, Xbox 360/Playstation 3) It received the "Most Disappointing" award at the Gametrailers 2006 Game Awards [33] and the Reader's Choice for "Worst Game Everyone Played" award at Gamespot's 2007 Game Awards [34]. Reasons include awkward controls, an abundance of glitches, very bad camera angles, long and overused load times, and poor voice acting.

Spawn: The Eternal

(1997, PlayStation) Spawn was described by IGN as "one of the worst games ever" and "a disappointing game that sullies the fine Spawn name."[35] It got a 1.8/10 rating from GameSpot [36]

Super Columbine Massacre RPG!

(2005, PC) This game received negative attention not just for the technical inferiority of the game itself[37], but due to the perception that the creator of the game was not treating the 1999 Columbine High School massacre with respect.[38] This game was #2 on PC World's list of the 10 worst games ever. This game is considered very controversial and is considered by many as an example of video games as art. SCMRPG was a finalist in the Slamdance video game competition, but was pulled by the organizers due to its controversial nature. In protest, most of the other entrants withdrew their games from the competition. With as many people lauding the game as there are those decrying it, reviews of Super Columbine Massacre are about as controversial as the game itself.

Superman 64

(1999, Nintendo 64). Considered one of the worst due to poor graphics, thinly detailed storyline and the gameplay itself, which disappointed many fans of Superman. Electronic Gaming Monthly writer Seanbaby wrote, "Superman looks a lot like a flying log in panties, and the entire world is covered in a dull green fog".[39]It also earned the number one spot in Nintendo Power's '5 Worst Games Ever' and Spike TV/GameTrailers's 'Top Ten Best and Worst Video Games of All Time' countdown as the #1 worst.[40] UK based magazine NGamer's award for the years most disappointing game is named the "Superman 64" award

V

V-Tech Rampage

(2007, PC) This game drew international outrage for its recreation of the Virginia Tech massacre weeks after the event. Rampage is one person's home-made Adobe Flash game, available online. The 21-year-old author created the game "because it's funny,"[41] and when it drew attention added a request of monetary donations to make him take the game down and apologize.[41] The game consists of three small action levels, plays the killer's favored song in the background and encourages the player for murder or chastises for failing or only wounding.

Z

Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon, Link: The Faces of Evil, and Zelda's Adventure

(1993, 1994 CD-i) Though not considered to be true Zelda games, these are widely considered to be the worst Zelda games ever created. As part of the termination of a contract from Nintendo, Philips gained the license to produce three Zelda games (Link: The Faces of Evil, Zelda's Adventure and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon). All three received overwhelmingly negative feedback and are referred to in some circles as the "Unholy Triforce." They were notorious for bad gameplay, animation, scripting, and voice acting, but The Wand of Gamelon was roundly condemned by Zelda fans and is #6 on Seanbaby's 20 worst games list.[42]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Aquaman review". G4.
  2. ^ GameSpy:
  3. ^ Navarro, Alex (2004-01-24). "Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing review". GameSpot. Retrieved 2006-07-11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ G4 - X-Play - Features
  5. ^ Seanbaby.com - EGM's Crapstravaganza: The 20 Worst Games of All Time
  6. ^ http://www.rewindmag.co.uk/issue1/features/cassette50_1.php
  7. ^ PeeJays Remakes
  8. ^ The Independent Gaming Source
  9. ^ The CSS Crap Games Competition
  10. ^ Somewhere beyond Cassette 50
  11. ^ Sinclair User issue 128 at World Of Spectrum
  12. ^ Your Sinclair issue 84 at World of Spectrum
  13. ^ Your Sinclair, issue 93, September 1993
  14. ^ GameSpy.com - Top 10
  15. ^ Gametrailers.com - GT Countdown - Top Ten Best and Worst Games of All Time
  16. ^ "Seanbaby.com - The Worst Nintendo Game #1 - Deadly Towers". Seanbaby. 2003-11-26. Retrieved 2006-07-11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  17. ^ "Drake of the Nine Dragons review". GameSpot.
  18. ^ [1]
  19. ^ Urban Legends Reference Pages: Buried Atari Cartridges
  20. ^ "Worst Games Ever Part Two". Gamers Europe.
  21. ^ "The 10 Worst Games of All Time". PC World.
  22. ^ "FBI Hostage Rescue Review on GameSpot.com".
  23. ^ [2]
  24. ^ [3]
  25. ^ "Reviews Database". Edge Online. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  26. ^ "Kabuki Warriors review on GameInformer.com".
  27. ^ "#10: Revolution X (SNES)". EGM's Crapstravaganza: The 20 Worst Games of All Time. Seanbaby. Retrieved 2006-07-11.
  28. ^ Gametrailers.com - ScrewAttack - Video Game Vault: Revolution X
  29. ^ "Rise of the robots reviews (Amiga)". Amiga Rise of the Robots review from Amiga Power magazine. Amiga Magazine rack. Retrieved 2007-08-1. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  30. ^ Farrow, Jim (2003-08-04). "Shaq-Fu". Net Jak. Retrieved 2007-02-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  31. ^ "Website Dedicated to Destroying Available Cartridges". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |Publisher= ignored (|publisher= suggested) (help)
  32. ^ Frank Provo (2006-11-20). "Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis". GameSpot. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
  33. ^ Gametrailers.com - Game of the Year Awards 06 - Most Disappointing
  34. ^ GameSpot's Best of 2007: Worst Game Everyone Played Dubious Honors
  35. ^ Douglas, Adam (1997-12-09). "Spawn: The Eternal Review". IGN. Retrieved 2006-08-09. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  36. ^ "Spawn The Eternal Reviews". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |Publisher= ignored (|publisher= suggested) (help)
  37. ^ Edwards, James (2007-04-09). "SUPER COLUMBINE MASSACRE RPG! (no stars)". ActionButton.net. Retrieved 2007-04-12.
  38. ^ [4] The Washington Post "Shock, Anger Over Columbine Video Game"
  39. ^ "#7: Superman 64 (N64)". EGM's Crapstravaganza: The 20 Worst Games of All Time. Seanbaby. Retrieved 2006-07-11.
  40. ^ Gametrailers.com - GT Countdown - Top Ten Best and Worst Games of All Time
  41. ^ a b http://www.smh.com.au/news/games/outrage-over-virginia-tech-game/2007/05/16/1178995212668.html The Sydney Morning Herald
  42. ^ Seanbaby.com - EGM's Crapstravaganza: The 20 Worst Games of All Time
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