Which game of this generation was a complete disappointment to you and which one was a delightful surprise?
- Thread starter dharmapolice
- Start date
Disappointment: Persona 5 - Lots of excitement leading up to the release of this one, as I was a pretty big fan of 3 and 4 (still am). However, 5 really didn't deliver in terms of story, or a meaningful evolution of the gameplay. A lot of things just felt the same as before, only less fun, and... longer.
Surprise: Wolfenstein: The New Order - I was never a fan of the old games, either in terms of gameplay or tone, but what this revival of the series brought us was thoughtful characters, and a careful pace of action, stealth, exploration, and story. I would have never expected it in a Wolfenstein game, but given the pedigree of the people behind it, I shouldn't have been surprised. Too bad they dropped the ball on the sequel...
Surprise: Wolfenstein: The New Order - I was never a fan of the old games, either in terms of gameplay or tone, but what this revival of the series brought us was thoughtful characters, and a careful pace of action, stealth, exploration, and story. I would have never expected it in a Wolfenstein game, but given the pedigree of the people behind it, I shouldn't have been surprised. Too bad they dropped the ball on the sequel...
Disappointment: Breath of the Wild. Felt like a demo game for Havok engine on PS2
Surprise: Persona 5. First home console persona I play and I loved it a lot.
Surprise: Persona 5. First home console persona I play and I loved it a lot.
Disappointment: Destiny.
I was fully on board the hype train, I was expecting a rip-roaring space adventure as I delve into humanity's lost territories in search of cool loot.
I felt it was a dull collection of skinner box systems cobbled together with virtually no content.
Pleasant Surprise...... probably Nioh, yeah it's bloated but the combat and it's own spin on the Souls genre had me hooked and super hyped for the release after playing the Beta.
I was fully on board the hype train, I was expecting a rip-roaring space adventure as I delve into humanity's lost territories in search of cool loot.
I felt it was a dull collection of skinner box systems cobbled together with virtually no content.
Pleasant Surprise...... probably Nioh, yeah it's bloated but the combat and it's own spin on the Souls genre had me hooked and super hyped for the release after playing the Beta.
Disappointment: Mirror's Edge Catalyst followed by Uncharted 4. Love the original ME and ME:C was just so underwhelming in almost every way, the first and only game this gen which I simply deleted and stopped playing a few hours in. U4 was just boring I guess, the same old formulae with almost nothing new.
Surprise: Overwatch - Since CS 1.6 I never though I'd enjoy another shooter this much.
EDIT: Another surprise, Doom (2016) loved every minute of it and had no idea it would be this good.
Surprise: Overwatch - Since CS 1.6 I never though I'd enjoy another shooter this much.
EDIT: Another surprise, Doom (2016) loved every minute of it and had no idea it would be this good.
Last edited:
I played plenty of stuff I expected little from and they still failed to meet my expectations, like Uncharted 4 or Horizon but I don't really consider those disappointments since I wasn't excited for them in the first place. I usually try to keep my hype levels low so I can't think of many games that genuinely let me down, but if there's a game that qualifies it'd be Red Dead Redemption 2. I had throughly enjoyed the original and pretty much every Rockstar sandbox game before (hell, even GTA4), but RDR2 just feels like it was designed from the ground up to be as boring to play as possible. Tried to get into it three times, just couldn't. The witch from Path of Exile described this game best: "Too. Much. Clutter." She could've been talking about something else but eh.
As for surprise, probably Dead Cells. Like I said before I have pretty firm rules on what I do and don't enjoy in a game and usually the words procedurally generated trigger my gag reflex. I do like a good sidescroller though, so after mulling over it for about a century I picked it up for cheap. What do you know, turns out it has just the right amount of manual design to make it feel like something actually made by people. Couldn't git gud enough to beat it with three boss cells enabled, but I loved every minute of the ride there.
As for surprise, probably Dead Cells. Like I said before I have pretty firm rules on what I do and don't enjoy in a game and usually the words procedurally generated trigger my gag reflex. I do like a good sidescroller though, so after mulling over it for about a century I picked it up for cheap. What do you know, turns out it has just the right amount of manual design to make it feel like something actually made by people. Couldn't git gud enough to beat it with three boss cells enabled, but I loved every minute of the ride there.
Delightful Surprise: Breath of the Wild
- I was down on Zelda after Skyward Sword. Not a bad game, but I was starting to feel like maybe the series wasn't for me anymore. BotW really blew me away in way that I would have never expected of the franchise.
Complete Disappointment: FFXII Zodiac Age
- I completed about 15-20 hours of the game on a rental back when it released, and while I enjoyed it, I couldn't justify buying it or renting it again at the time. I was just starting Uni so could have been a timing issue.
Anyway, with Switch bringing me back into the JRPG space (everybody go play DQXIS!) I was super excited to dive into the remaster, but man did I bounce off hard. I made it further than my first go, but just about everything outside of the story/cutscenes was tedious.
I didn't enjoy navigating the world - I was probably spending more time running via minimap than actually looking where I was going, especially because of how much back-and-forth the game was asking of me. Combat basically played itself for the vast majority of the game, to the point where it reminded me more of a tower defense game than a JRPG. I know I could have done a lot more manually but given how much combat the game threw my way, it made more sense to setup gambits, turn the speed up, and let it handle things for me. The end result was just not fun?
- I was down on Zelda after Skyward Sword. Not a bad game, but I was starting to feel like maybe the series wasn't for me anymore. BotW really blew me away in way that I would have never expected of the franchise.
Complete Disappointment: FFXII Zodiac Age
- I completed about 15-20 hours of the game on a rental back when it released, and while I enjoyed it, I couldn't justify buying it or renting it again at the time. I was just starting Uni so could have been a timing issue.
Anyway, with Switch bringing me back into the JRPG space (everybody go play DQXIS!) I was super excited to dive into the remaster, but man did I bounce off hard. I made it further than my first go, but just about everything outside of the story/cutscenes was tedious.
I didn't enjoy navigating the world - I was probably spending more time running via minimap than actually looking where I was going, especially because of how much back-and-forth the game was asking of me. Combat basically played itself for the vast majority of the game, to the point where it reminded me more of a tower defense game than a JRPG. I know I could have done a lot more manually but given how much combat the game threw my way, it made more sense to setup gambits, turn the speed up, and let it handle things for me. The end result was just not fun?
Dissapointments: Persona 5 and Danganronpa V3 were so disappointing that they more or less ruined my ability to enjoy the previous games in their series. Three Houses was disappointing too but less so.
Surprises: Deltarune (I wasn't sure if Toby would have been able to capture lightning in a bottle twice but damn if he didn't do it) and Shadowbringers (I already liked FFXIV but ShB was on a different level).
Surprises: Deltarune (I wasn't sure if Toby would have been able to capture lightning in a bottle twice but damn if he didn't do it) and Shadowbringers (I already liked FFXIV but ShB was on a different level).
Disappointment: Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Dynasty Warriors 9, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, New Gundam Breaker, Anthem
Surprise: Doom so far, Ori and the Blind Forest, Breath of the Wild, Monster Hunter World,
Surprise: Doom so far, Ori and the Blind Forest, Breath of the Wild, Monster Hunter World,
Starwars Battlefront is the biggest letdown. It is a pretty game that sounds good, but has dogshit gameplay (which is designed to introduce random elements) and has SEVERE balance problems. It is just a really bad game. Tales of Berseria was another huge letdown. After having sworn the series off due to its tremendous decline in quality the endless praise Berseria was getting convinced me to jump back in (I am a fan of the older games in the franchise). I forced myself to complete the game and found it to be the worst entry in the entire franchise. Awful everything (outside of some of the skits, which were frequently fairly charming). The writing is especially bad.
As for pleasant surprises... I think Ring Fit Adventure is super interesting and doing some really cool stuff. I also think that Resident Evil 7 did the impossible in bringing the series back from a very bad place, reclaiming its lost roots, while also innovating and providing the most incredible VR experience on the console. On the topic of Resident Evil... the Resident Evil 2 Remake is jawdroppingly good. Oh, and dormant series like Wolfenstein, Doom, and Ace Combat all released fantastic new entries. So, those were all pretty pleasant surprises.
This has been a very good generation in my eyes (especially coming off of the last one).
As for pleasant surprises... I think Ring Fit Adventure is super interesting and doing some really cool stuff. I also think that Resident Evil 7 did the impossible in bringing the series back from a very bad place, reclaiming its lost roots, while also innovating and providing the most incredible VR experience on the console. On the topic of Resident Evil... the Resident Evil 2 Remake is jawdroppingly good. Oh, and dormant series like Wolfenstein, Doom, and Ace Combat all released fantastic new entries. So, those were all pretty pleasant surprises.
This has been a very good generation in my eyes (especially coming off of the last one).
Disappointment: Persona 5. Loved my first Persona (4), and all signs (reviews, friends' recommendations and chat here) indicated that it should be similar feelings for the next game. Outside of style though -- which it has for days, in fairness -- I either felt nothing towards it or actively disliked it.
Delightful surprise: Life Is Strange. When I saw some pre-release screenshots I was intrigued. I was not expecting it to be one of my favourite games of all time. Delightful surprise is a bit of an understatement at this point.
Delightful surprise: Life Is Strange. When I saw some pre-release screenshots I was intrigued. I was not expecting it to be one of my favourite games of all time. Delightful surprise is a bit of an understatement at this point.
Persona 5 was the biggest disappointment to me. I still don't get why so many can love a 100+ hour RPG with shit writing. MGSV was more disappointing but I don't think a lot of people consider it game of thr generation material.
My biggest surprise was Bloodborne. After failing to get into Dark Souls 1 and 2, it felt like Bloodborne was made for me because it gave me exactly what I wanted with faster and more reactionary combat and a much more interesting setting even before it went full Lovecraft.
My biggest surprise was Bloodborne. After failing to get into Dark Souls 1 and 2, it felt like Bloodborne was made for me because it gave me exactly what I wanted with faster and more reactionary combat and a much more interesting setting even before it went full Lovecraft.
Probably the only game that really stands out would be Hollow Knight. It kind of flew under my radar for the first two months of release, but then ended up being tied for my game of 2017.
As for "shit-bomb"; I wouldn't go as far as to call it that, but I was extremely excited for BOTW, but then as it drew closer to release, and more footage and features were doled out, I quickly knew that it was not for me. A neighbor of mine initially said that he thought it looked stupid, and that he had no interest in it (he was then just finishing Skyward Sword), but then did a 180 and ended up buying a Switch just for it. I saw enough of it to be thankful that I dodged a bullet.
There are plenty of other games that I was really looking forward to that did not come close to my expectations (which were not astronomically high to begin with), but I can't really think of any "shit-bombs" that I've played. I generally tend to avoid the games I already know aren't for me. If all you were wanting were games that were disappointing though, for me that would likely be at least half of the games I did end up playing this gen, if not more. And I've actually played less games overall this gen compared to the last, and not solely because of how long last gen was either. Sick of the focus on "open-world" this gen has been, when most of the time it doesn't actually improve the game, but makes the experience much worse overall.
Hah. That was one of my 2017 games of the year.
I upgrade to a Pro just for that game (but I didn't really pay a huge difference since I sold my mostly unused PS4), and yeah, it was a major disappointment for me. It looked like it was going to be fun, but aside from being introduced to a new Zoid, learning how to most easily dispatch them, and the great use of HDR, it grew stale really fast. I just did not care in the slightest for any of the characters, thought the facial animations were too rubbery, and none of the "side quests" were above Ubisoft tier. It was extremely hard for me to finish. Mainly because I was just so bored with it around the halfway mark. Similar problem with Spider-Man.
Last edited:
Surprise: Hollow Knight/Y&L and the Impossible Lair
Disappointment: The Division 2 - it looked to me like it was going to really improve on the first one. Loved the setting as well. My friend and I attacked it for about a month then realized we had nothing substantial left to do. Left a sour taste in my mouth.
Honorable mention for greatest disappointment: the amount of ERA users putting BotW as their disappointment. ;_;
Disappointment: The Division 2 - it looked to me like it was going to really improve on the first one. Loved the setting as well. My friend and I attacked it for about a month then realized we had nothing substantial left to do. Left a sour taste in my mouth.
Honorable mention for greatest disappointment: the amount of ERA users putting BotW as their disappointment. ;_;
Disappointments:
Halo 5: Guardians
Final Fantasy XV
Star Wars Battlefront
Watch_Dogs
Destiny
Pleasant Surprises:
Overwatch
Undertale
Rocket League
Doom
Until Dawn
Halo 5: Guardians
Final Fantasy XV
Star Wars Battlefront
Watch_Dogs
Destiny
Pleasant Surprises:
Overwatch
Undertale
Rocket League
Doom
Until Dawn
Disappointment - Fallout 4. I got my money's worth to be sure but I didn't finish it. Just didn't care at all. The whole story just was not interesting to me. Didn't like the voiced protag with the enforced background. Settlement building - no thanks. Nor the dialogue system really. It played well and that is enough for lots of people but if I don't care then I just can't. Did play it a fair amount and didn't super-duper hate it but just didn't care so I stopped. The Railroad and the Institute and the other ones are sitting there waiting for me to make a decision.
Surprise - Horizon Zero Dawn. Played some Killzone, never being a huge shooter fan they never grabbed me but Horizon - female-led, stealth, bow and arrow, sci-fi mechanical dinosaurs, interesting lore and backstory = loved it. DLC came out too late for me though as I never got back into it after I had platinumed it. Should I ever replay though I have the DLC waiting.
Surprise - Horizon Zero Dawn. Played some Killzone, never being a huge shooter fan they never grabbed me but Horizon - female-led, stealth, bow and arrow, sci-fi mechanical dinosaurs, interesting lore and backstory = loved it. DLC came out too late for me though as I never got back into it after I had platinumed it. Should I ever replay though I have the DLC waiting.
Nier Automata was probably the biggest surprise. I just bought it because it had good buzz but it really stayed with me.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is a game I wish I could erase from existence and get all my time back. I thought XCX was a great game too. There's so much I hate about XC2 I can't even articulate it all.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is a game I wish I could erase from existence and get all my time back. I thought XCX was a great game too. There's so much I hate about XC2 I can't even articulate it all.
Disappointment: Breath of the Wild/The Witcher 3/NieR Automata
Surprise: Code Vein/Digimon Cyber Sleuth/The Last Guardian
Surprise: Code Vein/Digimon Cyber Sleuth/The Last Guardian
It's a tie between Halo 5 and MGS5. Actually nvm I at least finished Halo 5. I'm a huge metal gear solid fan (clearly), but it's the only mainline title I haven't beat let alone beat multiple times. I really need to beat that damn game lol.
Seconding this. GoW got really high review scores and I found it to be quite mediocre however Spiderman got scores in the mid 80s and as we all know if something isn't getting 90s across the board the vocal gaming community flips out and thinks its shit however I found Spiderman to be 10x the game that GoW is with so much more to do in a much bigger world and was just way more enjoyable overall.
Disappointment: Sekiro. Hear me out! It is absolutely an excellent game. Bloodborne is my GOAT, and I love Dark Souls, so my hype for Sekiro was through the roof. Then it arrived, and... I found it OK? Again it's an excellent game, and I see why people love it, but it's just not my jam...
Surprise: Mario + Rabbids. I did not expect that game to be so charming and fun. It blew me away and is a top 5 Switch game for me.
Surprise: Mario + Rabbids. I did not expect that game to be so charming and fun. It blew me away and is a top 5 Switch game for me.
Disappointing: Anthem. Was hoping for a loot game with a story and characters in par with the Mass Efect trilogy. Sigh.
Surprise: God of War. I was lukewarm at best on the prior games and this is my game of the generation so far. Horizon is a close second as I didn't think Guerilla could pull off that kind of game and it's second in my GotG list behind GoW.
Surprise: God of War. I was lukewarm at best on the prior games and this is my game of the generation so far. Horizon is a close second as I didn't think Guerilla could pull off that kind of game and it's second in my GotG list behind GoW.
Disappointed: COD Ghosts. I like COD. I liked all CODs before and after Ghosts. Ghosts was not for me. So much camping in corners and short TTK.
Surprise? Not sure, I mean, I didn't see some games coming, like Rocket League, but a surprise as opposite of disappointment? I guess I don't have one.
One thing I did not expect was the horror vibes of playing PUBG and Rainbow 6 Siege. Sure, better players play more aggressively, but for a noob it was a something I was definitely not expecting.
Surprise? Not sure, I mean, I didn't see some games coming, like Rocket League, but a surprise as opposite of disappointment? I guess I don't have one.
One thing I did not expect was the horror vibes of playing PUBG and Rainbow 6 Siege. Sure, better players play more aggressively, but for a noob it was a something I was definitely not expecting.
Disappointment(s):
- MGSV: I ended purchasing it some months ago even though i wasn't convinced because i was invested in the IP, but had to drop it like the pos that it is after beating the first chapter. Peace Walker was more fun to me.
- Gravity Rush 2: I cant believe they released this uneven mess after how well crafted the first game was on the Vita. The good news is that i wont be dissapointed again.
- Destiny 2: This was the tip of the iceberg that killed the saga for me and my clan. And even if Forsaken improved it, it was already too late. Burned beyond the point of no return.
- Uncharted 4: I struggled with it because of the stale formula, the slow pacing and those questionable encounters. I will probably not buy another uncharted because of it.
- SFV: I was expecting a game and got a 60€ Beta. Not buying another fighting game from Capcom ever again, had enough with SF4, MvsC3 and now this.
- Nier Automata: I was expecting something different to what i got, which was quite boring tbh. The music didnt disappoint but wasnt enough for me to keep playing past ending A.
Surprise(s):
- The Forest: Purchased by chance and a total blast to play with friends. Those caves were nerve-racking.
- Monster Hunter World: Outstanding game. I played A LOT, so much in fact that it affected my enjoyment of the expansion (i'm burned :S).
- Dark Souls 3: I cant believe how much i like this game: amazing gameplay, bosses and atmosphere. It is clearly my favorite of the "Souls" games.
- Bloodstained Ritual of the Night: It hooked me from beginning to end. Fantastic, even with flaws.
- MGSV: I ended purchasing it some months ago even though i wasn't convinced because i was invested in the IP, but had to drop it like the pos that it is after beating the first chapter. Peace Walker was more fun to me.
- Gravity Rush 2: I cant believe they released this uneven mess after how well crafted the first game was on the Vita. The good news is that i wont be dissapointed again.
- Destiny 2: This was the tip of the iceberg that killed the saga for me and my clan. And even if Forsaken improved it, it was already too late. Burned beyond the point of no return.
- Uncharted 4: I struggled with it because of the stale formula, the slow pacing and those questionable encounters. I will probably not buy another uncharted because of it.
- SFV: I was expecting a game and got a 60€ Beta. Not buying another fighting game from Capcom ever again, had enough with SF4, MvsC3 and now this.
- Nier Automata: I was expecting something different to what i got, which was quite boring tbh. The music didnt disappoint but wasnt enough for me to keep playing past ending A.
Surprise(s):
- The Forest: Purchased by chance and a total blast to play with friends. Those caves were nerve-racking.
- Monster Hunter World: Outstanding game. I played A LOT, so much in fact that it affected my enjoyment of the expansion (i'm burned :S).
- Dark Souls 3: I cant believe how much i like this game: amazing gameplay, bosses and atmosphere. It is clearly my favorite of the "Souls" games.
- Bloodstained Ritual of the Night: It hooked me from beginning to end. Fantastic, even with flaws.
Disappointment has to be FFXV..the build up and expectations were gigantic and the game landed with a thud and was almost instantly dismissed.
Surprise: Killer Instinct..a fighting game launching on a platform that stumbled out the gate made by a no-name developer turned out to be my game of the generation.
Surprise: Killer Instinct..a fighting game launching on a platform that stumbled out the gate made by a no-name developer turned out to be my game of the generation.
Disappointments
Zelda BotW - expected a master piece, got an... okay game. Not bad, but probably my least favorite 3d zelda. If it wasn't for how disappointed I felt, I'm not sure I'd remember that much from the game in general. Sandbox style games are really not my thing tho.
Control - all the pre release showings and reviews made me very hyped for this. I thought this was definitely going to be *my thing* going into it. By the end, I felt incredibly apathetic towards the story and characters and found aspects of the story telling really kind of pretentious. Game play was fun though.
Surprises
NieR Automata - I expected to enjoy Automata. I played and enjoyed the original well enough, though I wasnt quite as enamored with that one as many who've played it. Autonata got me hard though and I absolutely loved it.
Cross Code - Heard some relatively positive things about the game, but j didnt expect to fall so deeply in love with it. Cast and story has charm for days and the puzzles were very satisfying to go through. Couple that with it being one really meaty game and I shilled pretty hard for the game. In good news, my shilling paid off and I got a good amount of friends to give it a shot as well.
Wandersong - this is the single most wholesome game I can remember. It's such a good time and touched me in a way few games really do. Pretty great for a game I picked up on a whim because of game pass.
Zelda BotW - expected a master piece, got an... okay game. Not bad, but probably my least favorite 3d zelda. If it wasn't for how disappointed I felt, I'm not sure I'd remember that much from the game in general. Sandbox style games are really not my thing tho.
Control - all the pre release showings and reviews made me very hyped for this. I thought this was definitely going to be *my thing* going into it. By the end, I felt incredibly apathetic towards the story and characters and found aspects of the story telling really kind of pretentious. Game play was fun though.
Surprises
NieR Automata - I expected to enjoy Automata. I played and enjoyed the original well enough, though I wasnt quite as enamored with that one as many who've played it. Autonata got me hard though and I absolutely loved it.
Cross Code - Heard some relatively positive things about the game, but j didnt expect to fall so deeply in love with it. Cast and story has charm for days and the puzzles were very satisfying to go through. Couple that with it being one really meaty game and I shilled pretty hard for the game. In good news, my shilling paid off and I got a good amount of friends to give it a shot as well.
Wandersong - this is the single most wholesome game I can remember. It's such a good time and touched me in a way few games really do. Pretty great for a game I picked up on a whim because of game pass.
Disappointment:
-Persona 5 - in terms of themes and using game mechanics as a storytelling tool, I felt like this was a total letdown next to P4
-FFXV - Just a horribly mismanaged game. They handed the project to a guy that wanted so badly to make an open world game that he cut out the introduction, much of the second act, and nearly all of the final act. Why?
-Witcher 3 - After listening to everyone rave about how amazing this game is it was pretty disappointing to find out that it was just a half decent RPG kept afloat by clever open world quest design but inundated with some of the most sexist trash writing I've seen in the current generation of video games.
-Ni No Kuni II - this game was trash. I bought it at release for full price and genuinely felt robbed.
Delightful surprise:
-GoW 2018 - I just didnt think there was any way that they'd turn the foundation of the original trilogy's flaws into something of value, but somehow they succeeded with flying colors.
-Horizon Zero Dawn - was not expecting such a fantastic story
-UC4 - I didnt think they had new ground to cover but they pulled it off IMO
-Hollow Knight - wasnt expecting to find a contender for my favorite metroidvania ever
-Persona 5 - in terms of themes and using game mechanics as a storytelling tool, I felt like this was a total letdown next to P4
-FFXV - Just a horribly mismanaged game. They handed the project to a guy that wanted so badly to make an open world game that he cut out the introduction, much of the second act, and nearly all of the final act. Why?
-Witcher 3 - After listening to everyone rave about how amazing this game is it was pretty disappointing to find out that it was just a half decent RPG kept afloat by clever open world quest design but inundated with some of the most sexist trash writing I've seen in the current generation of video games.
-Ni No Kuni II - this game was trash. I bought it at release for full price and genuinely felt robbed.
Delightful surprise:
-GoW 2018 - I just didnt think there was any way that they'd turn the foundation of the original trilogy's flaws into something of value, but somehow they succeeded with flying colors.
-Horizon Zero Dawn - was not expecting such a fantastic story
-UC4 - I didnt think they had new ground to cover but they pulled it off IMO
-Hollow Knight - wasnt expecting to find a contender for my favorite metroidvania ever
Gravity Rush 2 is one of my biggest disappointments ever and the biggest of the generation. I bought the game day 1 expecting to love it, even though I never actually finished 1 since I got to a point where the story mission was more tedious than fun, and I expected 2 to fix my gripes with the first one not to make everything way worse.
Combat in the first one was a complete chore but at least the exploration was something to look forward to once the awful mandatory fights where over. In GR2 I never felt freedom, I always felt like the game punished me for not going where it wanted me to go. There's nothing to see outside the critical path and I kept getting thrown into the correct way for trying to find anything interesting in the world, but there was nothing. I just got completely bored and didn't had any curiosity to revisit such a terrible waste of potential. In theory you have so much freedom with your gravity powers but you are always anchored to do what the game wants you to do not what you want.
My biggest surprise was probably Furi. I read and heard a lot of good things about it, that it was a bullet hell mixed with metal gear rising, and it completely delivered that and more. The bosses are cool in appearance and philosophies, always making the fight more interesting with their banter towards the stranger. The story is simple but it doesn't needs to be anything more than an excuse to show you cool characters and keep you interested in why are you escaping the prison and why the jailers try so hard to keep you there. And the soundtrack, my god, it's amazing, even now, years after playing it, I still have the soundtrack on my phone to listen to those hype battle themes.
Combat in the first one was a complete chore but at least the exploration was something to look forward to once the awful mandatory fights where over. In GR2 I never felt freedom, I always felt like the game punished me for not going where it wanted me to go. There's nothing to see outside the critical path and I kept getting thrown into the correct way for trying to find anything interesting in the world, but there was nothing. I just got completely bored and didn't had any curiosity to revisit such a terrible waste of potential. In theory you have so much freedom with your gravity powers but you are always anchored to do what the game wants you to do not what you want.
My biggest surprise was probably Furi. I read and heard a lot of good things about it, that it was a bullet hell mixed with metal gear rising, and it completely delivered that and more. The bosses are cool in appearance and philosophies, always making the fight more interesting with their banter towards the stranger. The story is simple but it doesn't needs to be anything more than an excuse to show you cool characters and keep you interested in why are you escaping the prison and why the jailers try so hard to keep you there. And the soundtrack, my god, it's amazing, even now, years after playing it, I still have the soundtrack on my phone to listen to those hype battle themes.
The Bard's Tale IV was an utter disappointment. This had been my #1 most anticipated game since the Kickstarter began, and it turned out to be one of the worst RPGs I've played in recent memory. Not the worst, and certainly not the worst ever, but I didn't enjoy it at all, didn't come close to finishing it, and will probably never play it again.
The good news is that my $20 pledge also got me Wasteland 2 and the remastered Bard's Tale trilogy, so I still came out ahead.
A positive surprise? Gosh, there are actually a few of them, but I think I'll go with Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk. I was expecting a crunchy stats-obsessed dungeon crawler, and I definitely got that - but I was also expecting generic saccharine anime fluff for a story, and what I got was... something else entirely. Grim, disturbing, touching, and memorable, this game shattered my expectations in the best way.
The good news is that my $20 pledge also got me Wasteland 2 and the remastered Bard's Tale trilogy, so I still came out ahead.
A positive surprise? Gosh, there are actually a few of them, but I think I'll go with Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk. I was expecting a crunchy stats-obsessed dungeon crawler, and I definitely got that - but I was also expecting generic saccharine anime fluff for a story, and what I got was... something else entirely. Grim, disturbing, touching, and memorable, this game shattered my expectations in the best way.
I generally feel less disappointment these days because I'm really selective of the games that I buy and play. By that same note, I rarely come across surprises as well.
Maybe my biggest surprise was Xenoblade 2. I did not expect to love that game as much as I did. A fantastic battle system wrapped around a fantasy that harkens back to the golden era of the genre.
Maybe my biggest surprise was Xenoblade 2. I did not expect to love that game as much as I did. A fantastic battle system wrapped around a fantasy that harkens back to the golden era of the genre.
Disappointment - Metro Exodus. I loved the first two and this game seemed like it would be a no-brainer, but it was a huge swing and a miss.
Surprise - Forza Horizon 4! I've haven't cared about driving games since the days of Rad Racer. I downloaded Horizon on Gamepass for my son to try and ended up putting about 35 hours into it.
Surprise - Forza Horizon 4! I've haven't cared about driving games since the days of Rad Racer. I downloaded Horizon on Gamepass for my son to try and ended up putting about 35 hours into it.
A lot of big sequels to games I enjoyed last generation felt disappointing. Mass Effect Andromeda and Borderlands 3 are just a couple examples.
Doom 2016 is easily my surprise of the generation. NOBODY thought it would be good and it ended up being a shooter of the generation contender.
Doom 2016 is easily my surprise of the generation. NOBODY thought it would be good and it ended up being a shooter of the generation contender.
It is very easy to forget how pessimistic people were with Doom. If I remember correctly, it was also one of those games that had a review embargo that aligned with the release date of the game? Or maybe review copies weren't even sent out? All I know is that there were a lot of red flags and people were expecting the game to be pretty bad.
I don't think I've played a disappointing game this gen. I've been way more selective about my purchases. Maybe the mediocre Mass Effect?
Biggest surprise hit: Rainbow Six Siege.
Totally blown away by how great this game is. I didn't play the first year because I thought I wouldn't like it but it's easily My Game of the Generation.
Edit: Remembered I bought Anthem and Battlefield 1. Both huge disappointments.
Biggest surprise hit: Rainbow Six Siege.
Totally blown away by how great this game is. I didn't play the first year because I thought I wouldn't like it but it's easily My Game of the Generation.
Edit: Remembered I bought Anthem and Battlefield 1. Both huge disappointments.
I honestly know what I like and don't like so I'm not disappointed very often.
Take MGS5 for example - I loved it because after Peace Walker I assumed the worst storywise. I wasn't expecting anything satisfying. But the gameplay was great. That I expected from Kojima and I was satisfied with it.
Surprising though - Hollow Knight, Prey, Doom, Wolfenstein, Sonic Mania, Bloodstained and a bunch of others.
Take MGS5 for example - I loved it because after Peace Walker I assumed the worst storywise. I wasn't expecting anything satisfying. But the gameplay was great. That I expected from Kojima and I was satisfied with it.
Surprising though - Hollow Knight, Prey, Doom, Wolfenstein, Sonic Mania, Bloodstained and a bunch of others.
Delightful surprise:
Monster Hunter World.
From never playing a Monster Hunter game before to my current save file of over 1000 hours.
Bloodborne:
From never playing a Souls game before to actively chasing all everything that can be chased in this game. The only game where I played hours and hours and hours even after getting the platinum.
Complete disappointment:
Mass Effect Andromeda.
I am a HUGE fan of Mass Effect games. I still completed this game and I don't actually hate it or even dislike it, but coming from the high of the previous trilogy to this is a quite a bit of a shock.
Monster Hunter World.
From never playing a Monster Hunter game before to my current save file of over 1000 hours.
Bloodborne:
From never playing a Souls game before to actively chasing all everything that can be chased in this game. The only game where I played hours and hours and hours even after getting the platinum.
Complete disappointment:
Mass Effect Andromeda.
I am a HUGE fan of Mass Effect games. I still completed this game and I don't actually hate it or even dislike it, but coming from the high of the previous trilogy to this is a quite a bit of a shock.
The biggest surprise for me was the Nintendo Switch. I wasnt sold on it after its reveal trailer (i also didn't purchase a Wii U) but it won me over when Nintendo showcased its 1st year line up.
Suprises; Until dawn: Since the announcenment of the game for the ps3 i was waiting its release but after they shifted the development to ps4 i was expecting a mediocre game at best. In the end it becomed one of my favourite games this gen.
Persona 5: I knew that i was going to enjoy the game, but the improvements in the dungeons and the darker tone compared to Persona 4 made me love the game.
Disappointment; Uncharted 4: It might be a good game, but it's not the uncharted game i was waiting for. After playing it couple of hours dropped the game and never touched it again
Persona 5: I knew that i was going to enjoy the game, but the improvements in the dungeons and the darker tone compared to Persona 4 made me love the game.
Disappointment; Uncharted 4: It might be a good game, but it's not the uncharted game i was waiting for. After playing it couple of hours dropped the game and never touched it again
Biggest disappointment is Destiny. Easily. Its gotten so much better and its in a solid place. But its still a far cry from what the original conception of it was, and it saddens me that it will never be that game. Runner up would be KH3. I waited 13 fucking years for this game and its by far the worst of the main titles. Getting rid of FF characters and not having any real story for the final entry in the saga is just shameful.
Biggest surprise: This is a tough one. Overwatch was not even close to being on my radar, and then I played the open beta the week before launch and was hooked. Doom 2016 was another one. Despite all the praise people gave doom I never gave it the time of day until recently on gamepass, and its just downright incredible.
Biggest surprise: This is a tough one. Overwatch was not even close to being on my radar, and then I played the open beta the week before launch and was hooked. Doom 2016 was another one. Despite all the praise people gave doom I never gave it the time of day until recently on gamepass, and its just downright incredible.