Personally there are a few games which left me very dissappointed, after hyping myself up for years in certain cases.
Divinity Original Sin: turns out I prefer more streamlined, less packed games (love Pillars of Eternity) and that coop play in a CRPG stresses me out.
Wasteland 2: I actually managed to finish this one but secretly I admit I was hoping for a better Fallout which I didn’t really get. New Vegas did the cowboy theme much better.
INSIDE: while the design was cool, it was just a ton of boring, easy puzzles in comparison to LIMBO, its predecessor.
I don’t really understand the premise. The point of being patient imo is to avoid the hype.
So I’ll just answer the question if disappointment in games generally:
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. It knew it was different, but it still didn’t feel like Zelda to me, so it didn’t scratch that itch I had. I’m enjoying Skyward Sword much more than BotW, the first dungeon just feels like I’m back in Ocarina of Time, the forest feels like Minish Cap somehow, and the premise reminds me of the original The Legend of Zelda (get the sword and go off on an adventure without knowing where you’re headed). BotW is my least favorite Zelda game, mostly because of disappointment. When I heard Tears of the Kingdom was much the same, I didn’t bother getting it. Maybe I’ll get it eventually, but I have no desire to play it.
Borderlands. I had avoided the game so successfully that I knew nothing about it other than that it was a shooter RPG, but I knew it was popular among friends. I missed the window when it came out, so I figured I’d give it a shot. After about 15 minutes, I realized it was just a looter shooter and noped right out. For some reason, I absolutely hate the genre and was disappointed that’s what my friends were so hyped for.
Lords of the Realm III. I loved Lords of the Realm 2 as a kid and played the original at a friend’s house and enjoyed that too. So when Lords of the Realm III came out, I naturally wanted it. However, they threw out pretty much everything I liked about the previous games (strategy around county/resource management) and doubled down on everything I didn’t like as much (sieges) and it just felt like a worse version of the Total War games. Because of this game, one of my life’s goals is to remake Lords of the Realm by preserving the good parts of each game in the series, essentially to make the Lords 3 game I wanted.
So these days, I watch gameplay footage before diving in to a game, because that would’ve avoided my problems with each of the above. There isn’t really a game I’m waiting for, I just have a big wishlist of games that looked interesting at one point that I’ll review when I’m looking for a new game to play.
I thought the same about BotW. Between the lack of story by default (you have to search it out through specific pictures that you damn well be able to know the landscape and match it up) and the sparse music and themes of previous Zelda games. It felt like the SMB2 of Zelda games, you could have titled it something else with a different protagonist and it would have been its own game.
What’s an example of an excellent game?
Here are a few that really surprised me with how good they were (tried to grab different genres from my recently played list):
- Yakuza 0 - imo, the mix of serious story and silly side content worked fantastically
- Ys 1 - one of my favorites of all time; the combat system really made the game feel urgent and it flowed really well; Ys Origin is close and more modern
- Black Mesa - good enough graphics, great pacing (except Interloper, that dragged), high quality gameplay; I didn’t expect much from a fan-made recreation
- The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past - dungeons were a ton of fun, and side content was enjoyable as well; I originally played on GBA, and replayed on SNES emulator
- INSIDE - clever puzzles, but the real kicker imo was the feeling at the end
- Slay the Spire - one of the few “rogue likes” that I actually ended up playing through; I finished a run with each main character at least once, and I enjoyed it thoroughly
- GTA IV - my favorite GTA, from the compelling story, interesting MC, and relatively realistic feel of driving, it narrowly beats GTA SA for me; V was a disappointment (hated the story and the characters), III is just too dated (though i enjoyed it at the time), and Vice City didn’t feel good to play imo
And some that are probably less well known:
- Recettear - interesting mix of dungeon diving and store management
- Stacking - you play as Russian stacking dolls, and the game doesn’t overstay its welcome
- Abzû - super relaxing, and the story was surprisingly emotionally impactful
An eclectic mix, and some I haven’t heard of. Thanks for the in-depth response.
Yeah, no problem! I hope you find something you enjoy. :)
Cyberpunk 2077 CD project red was the golden boy after Witcher 3 and the dlcs. They could do no wrong. Of course their next game was gonna be critically acclaimed GOAT right? Nope. Dumpster fire. Couldn’t play it for more than 30mins without it crashing. Unimmersive and confusing. That’s when I learned corporate greed has no limits
Honestly the worst about CP2077 wasn’t even the bugs. I also pre ordered it and while the performance was kinda shit and there was a bug or two, it was still playable. Yes we shouldn’t let it slip but unfortunately it’s also kind of the standard these days.
However the game was shallow af and not at all matching what we had been told for years. The whole, create your own story from scratch? Yea you choose some background option, have a 1 min cutscene and then that’s basically it. We had been told that would be hours of gameplay depending on the option and it was a short cutscene.
The whole city was supposed to feel completely alive and you were told that you would be able to do whatever you wanted. That wasn’t close to true either. Plenty of stuff like that.
Luckily I had bought it on GOG to support CDPR because I had loved the Witcher games. Was able to refund it entirely and never locked back. Not even looking to play it anytime soon and maybe ever.
I only played the beginning of the street kid and was so disappointed when the cutscene kicked in. Like that was it? 3 separate pathes that connect to themselves after what? Like 30 minutes? Was totally borked on Linux in the beginning anyways. I am waiting for the new patch. Hopefully this one is gonna be good
God I hope I don’t add starfield to this list!
It’s a modern bethesda title. Not to be pessimistic, but you should probably lower expectations for it. It has a high chance to be 1. Buggy. 2. Shallow and derivative in both mechanics and story. 3. Full of DLC and shady monetary models. Bethesda succumbed to corporate greed and formulaic design principles a long time ago.
See, that’s the part that baffles me about Starfield. I’m hyped as fuck for it, since a bethesda space game is exactly what I want (and let’s be honest, aside from the horse armor back in oblivion, their DLCs have been pretty solid with some misses)… but whenever I read people hype about it, it seems like they are expectont a completely different game, made by IDK, rockstar or something.
I don’t know, if I’m honest, if there is one AAA developer out there that makes games that will keep me engaged for at least a couple of hundred hours, it’s probably Bethesda. I think Starfield will be the same. Will there be bugs: yes. Will it be a variation on a well-known theme? Most definitely. Will it be less good than the hype: very likely. Will it be totally worth it nonetheless: probably yes.
To me it was immersive af, except the Johnny Silverhand levels, even though I played on a weaker rig that I have currently and the framerate wasn’t great. What I did was focus on the story and largely ditch the open world aspect, since I hadn’t been fond of this type of games for some time anyway. I played it almost a year ago and don’t remember it notoriously crashing, or at all tbh, but maybe I was just lucky.
I’m very curious about Phantom Liberty, although being a patient gamer, I’ll probably wait a bit before buying it to see if it’s any good.
I was hoping Cyberpunk 2077 would be an answer closer to Deus Ex than what we got with Deus Ex: Human Revolution. But the skill tree and upgrades weren’t doing it for me. Not to mention the game running like shit and being rushed out the door.
Still salty that we lost out on the conclusion of the DeusEx trilogy because Eidos Montreal ended up doing the Avengers game that no one even remembers or talks about now.
The original Fable. I wasn’t yet aware of Moleyneux’s reputation as a liar and bought into all the neat shit that was supposed to be in the game. Like at one point he said you could cut a tree and then adventure for years in game and the scar would still be there. Outrageous to think now, but he also said there would be a dragon fight and even back then this wasn’t difficult to make happen, yet it didn’t even have a dragon.
Also Oblivion. I had found Morrowind and fell in love, went back and got Arena and Daggerfall and loved those, too. They talked about all kinds of things it would have and showed graphics that looked top tier in magazines during development. It came out and didn’t look as good, was majorly dumbed down compared to Morrowind, and had even more technical issues. It was disappointing, but it still turned out to be a fun game regardless.
I was getting pretty sick of the chicken chaser bs until I was doing battle with town guards for shits and giggles. I parried an attack and the game loaded a different zone and auto-saved over my file. There was no way to go back because manual saving and loading were not a feature of the game. It completely ruined the whole thing and I never returned.
I liked Oblivion but I loved Morrowind. The ui and controls were substandard but the atmosphere and pacing of that game were amazing. Oblivion was Bethesda’s turn to mainstream and love for money.
RDR2, I eventually caved and bought it after months of friends telling me how good it is. But the movement and control scheme are just so bad it instantly ruined the game for me. Even qwop has better controls.
YES!
I’ve been a PC gamer for 25 years, and RDR2 is by far thebmost annoying control setup. Everything feels laggy due to the emphasis on fluid and realistic animations.
Plus it suffers feom the same issue as GTA5: “Press Key to progress story”. They both seem more like open world tech demos to me.
Good graphics, though. But graphics don’t matter if the gameplay is good.
Same here! It seems like a great game otherwise, but I just couldn’t get immersed in it because of the controls. Didn’t feel like I was playing as Arthur so much as watching him and hoping he’d do what I want.
That tops my list. I started out maybe 4 or 5 times and then decided I had better things to do with my time. Like housework or getting a root canal.
I think this was why I started playing it for a while but just dropped off and never went back. I was always fighting the controls.
If the controls are even remotely close to the first game (or GTA:IV) I totally understand what you mean.
I’m going to call it now and say Starfield…
Yep…
That demo thing they did a while back looked pretty lack-luster.
“make any ship you can imagine” while they cycle through like 5 premades, 2 of which have the exact same cockpit…
Stiff character models again, too. The lead animator must be the bosses nephew or something.
(don’t hurt me)
So far it’s been Baldurs Gate 3. I’ve found it clunky to play and it doesn’t run well on my machine despite far surpassing the recommended hardware.
I’m definitely going to do some trouble shooting and give it a much more in depth try, but it’s way easier to just play another game than figure out why this one is broken lol.
Spore. 'nuff said.
Yo, that’s my childhood you’re shitting on, and I won’t take it.
You’re right though.
Bro! We dont talk about spore…
I pre-ordered that game 😞
@verycoolusername Yes. I waited nine months for “Life!”. And it sucks. The levels are to long. The rules are incomprehensible. Other players are getting away with shit I can’t because of the rules. And don’t get me started on the NPC’s or the game mechanics.
Don’t recommend.I really hate the perma death too. Graphics are great tho.
@FollyDolly O, yeah. The graphics are great. Also audio, controls, haptic feedback etc. Fantastic first person experience! But it’s like that took up to much resources to develop. The rest of the game just feels hastily slapped together.
Also the tutorial sucks and is way too long. Plus all the challenges you have to complete to move forward even though it’s the tutorial stage. And the different classes are unbalanced. Why do some classes get so many rolls per turn?
Supreme Commander 2. Threw out all the things I respected from the first game and swapped in a bunch of trendy bullshit that I did not. A crushing disappointment.
Now that’s a name I haven’t heard in a while. What came of the series anyway?
It ended? Planetary Annihilation came out, but I didn’t care for it.
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Implying that metal gears story makes sense lol
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I had them same thing at the start however 2nd time was a complete change.
Played bit different though. Played on PC with a Trainer and made it entirely easy for myself. Strictly played for the story and the gorgeousness of the mountains, snow and the whole chaotic mess that unleashes eventually.
Really glad I did because it was a great experience and can’t wait for the sequel. Will do the same thing.
After all gaming should be for enjoyment!
Same experience! Dropped it the first time. Too slow paced. And I was trying to min-max, play on medium, read a bunch of walkthroughs and then gave up.
Decided to go all in during the Directors Cut. Turned it on easy so I was one hitting everythhing, ignored all the walkthroughs and just absorb myself into the world.
And it’s great! Who would have thought that in a game where you fight ghost babies, and bring supplies to random famous-y people, my favorite thing would be to build a interstate highway?
Easily 100+ hours and it’s a “I totally understand if you don’t like it” game.
Completely opposite reaction for me. One of the best games I’ve ever played.
All of his games have this convoluted story that is supposed to be wacky af. Could it be better, yes? But you can’t really say it wasn’t expected.
Also saying that Death Stranding is Prime simulator is reductive af. I’m not even in the camp that the game is amazing. Heck I don’t even know if it’s good. However I do know that it’s interesting af and I’ll definitely recommend it to people. It’s such a different “game” that more people should experience at least to see if it resonates with them.
I’m very happy that I played it.
Plus that sound track alone is worth it for some moments in the game. Literal chills.
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Torment: Tides of Numenera
But I think I’m mostly disappointed in myself for not sticking with it. I joined the kickstarter, followed all the updates and was genuinely excited to explore the world being described.
When it finally came out I only played it for a few hours before losing all interest in it. Too much text and everyone seemed to have their life story to tell. Which is odd, because usually I love text heavy games with tons of lore.
Every so often I tell myself to give it a second chance, but never seem to be able to muster the energy to follow through.Removed by mod
The irony of complaining about lack of fast travel on patient gamers is great.
RDR2 is pretty much my all time fave because of story/character but I never liked hunting and never felt the need to do any of the myriad achievements. I really enjoyed the slow pace of the game, so often the main story feels so urgent it is totally immersion breaking to do anything other than immediately pursue your next quest objective. By contrast RDR2 there were breaks in the story that felt natural to chill in camp or explore randomly or side quest or whatever.
Original deus ex. Yeah I’m sure the story is very good. But gameplay is just not enjoyable to me no matter how many times I try. Combat is annoying unless you put all skill points to X gun skill, then it is boring. In stealth I have no feel how visible I am and gep gun is annoying to use.
I have tried to enjoy it at least 5 times since I like the new ones but at this point I give up. And yeah I tried with mods and shit.
Cyberpunk 2077. I waited a year for the bugs to be sorted out, got it for half price, and it was just a very blah game. The Ascent is a way better game both in terms of being cyberpunk-y and also just being a fun game.
1nsane 2.
So many good memories of dragging my desktop PC, CRT monitor, desktop speakers, and LAN hub over to my friend’s house. Pizza, white castle, smoking schwag and playing hours of king of the hill. 1nsane was just the shit to get your friends worked up. Rune was cool, UT was most excellent, but 1nsane was something special.
For so many years we yearned for a next gen copy. Then we got 1nsane 2, and what. the. fuck.
