I’m the sort of gamer that can develop a hatred for a game instantly once they start showing irritating traits, and it rarely takes long for bad aspects to grow and blossom into a title I truly detest. Whether they are on this list for making me feel disappointment, fury or a combination of the two, these games truly deserve their places here.
We’ve had my top ten games of the decade, so of course now it’s time to look at the games I have hated the most. Similarly to my best games list, regular readers will probably be able to predict the games I’m going to break the self-esteem of over my knee today, so let’s get right into it.
It’s safe to start with a game that I’m sure nobody liked. The trailers and promotional videos for Driveclub looked very promising, with their flashy next gen graphics, photo realistic cars and gorgeous weather effects. It was all for nought however, and the game was a hot mess right out of the gate.
All cars handled like they were driving on ice, the game penalised even the slightest bump with other cars or the environments; and it showed off the most offensive rubber-banding I’ve ever seen in a video game. You could be in last place, far behind the racer in second last position, and the game would allow them to remain in your view as you try to catch up, but you could seldom get passed them before they had a fresh burst of speed from nowhere, or veered sharply to stop you overtaking.
After missing a time I needed in a long and gruelling time trial by less than a tenth of a second, I consoled myself by smashing the game case and disc. Aren’t I hard?
A dismal experience and I hope it is the last we see of this franchise after this mediocre train-wreck. The hyped to hell weather effects and ‘improved’ graphics were all show and no pay-off, and the appearance and feel of this title isn’t entirely dissimilar to the original Just Cause that released in 2006, except the 14 year old game is better.
I refuse to believe that Avalanche Studios can look at Just Cause 4 and be proud of what they have made. Following two brilliant, though slightly flawed Just Cause games, this must be the straw that breaks the camel’s back and ensures this once great franchise remains dead and buried for the rest of time. Of all the games on this list this is the game that shocked me the most, as it failed to deliver on pretty much everything promised for it in promotional material, and is yet another name on the list of reasons why you shouldn’t put a scrap of faith into game trailers.
Bet you didn’t think I’d be giving this game a tough time again quite so soon did you? My worst game of 2019 for the mix of disbelief, frustration and fury it had me feeling during the majority of my time with it, I cannot get it through my head that the brilliant minds behind Titanfall 2 made this dreck.
I reviewed Fallen Order here so if you want to read my detailed list of grievances you need only click the link.
I am a big believer in standing by a score I give a game that I review, but looking back to a month ago when I wrote this review I am starting to think I was a bit too generous with my score.
The biggest gaming ‘oof’ moment of the last decade was realising that the sequel to my favourite game of 2014 had decided to add a cheeky little ‘pay to win’ scheme at the end of it. I didn’t get to the end mind you, as the drastically ramping up challenge with none of the satisfaction that Shadow of Mordor came loaded with eventually wore me down and made me bin off the game entirely (the game did live in my bin for a bit before I remembered how much money it cost).
If I wanted to be dramatic about this farce I’d call it a heartbreaking betrayal, but there’s no need for that if you recall the huge backlash fans and critics made about the microtransactions debacle. I hate this game and its developers for twisting the knife they’d already thrust into the gaming populace’s back with this horrid abomination masquerading as a sequel to one of the greatest games of the decade. The ‘pay to win’ aspect has since been removed, I am told, as there’s not a hope in hell I’ll give this game another chance, and it can spend the rest of time knowing it still only managed to receive second place on a list of worst games of the decade. The bastard.
The amount of hate this…thing… made me feel is impressive. Not only was its gameplay absolutely horrible and uninspired, it then makes you watch the longest cutscenes since Metal Gear Solid 4 to understand what is even going on with the basic plot. The only concession I can give this game is I bought it on release day without reading any reviews or watching any trailers or videos about it whatsoever before purchase. I spotted it on the new releases shelf of the game retailer I was in at the time, thought ‘that looks pretty interesting’ and purchased it on impulse for Xbox One.
That Xbox One lives with Will now, as I feel it has been tainted by the rancid atrocity that is Quantum Break. I reached the last boss fight against Petyr Baelish, or whatever he’s called here, and being constantly killed by unblockable attacks in what appears to be a highly scripted fight, my copy of which must have got lost in the mail, made my time attempting it bamboo under the fingernails painful.
I heard lots of good things about Remedy Entertainment’s next title, Control, that launched last year to rave reviews and general applause from the industry. Unfortunately Remedy’s reputation is so tarnished for me that I doubt I will ever play a game of theirs again, and the only ‘Break’ this game caused was breaking my interest in video games entirely, well, until a fortnight later when Ratchet and Clank launched.
Thank you for reading about the games I hated most in the last decade. I hope any games you enjoyed were spared the list, and do let me know your most hated of the last decade, or all time, in the comments or on Twitter @RespawningUK. I’ll be back next week and so I’ll speak to you then.