Worst Video Game Disappointments of 2010 to Date

While there has been great video games released in 2010, others have been terrible disappointments. While they may have peaked my interest with their plots, these games are full of glitches and poorly executed. Unfortunately, these 5 video games are my picks for the worst of 2010 so far.

Dark Void
I remember being hyped about Dark Void well before its release. The premise of a time warped, jet pack touting hero seemed unique and exciting. I played the game and the story was uninteresting and disjointed. The controls were difficult and frustrating to get the hang of. The combat was slow and unsatisfying, with melee working better then the Gear of War style cover and shoot system. The jet pack wasn't a big enough feature in the game. Another problem is the camera and frame rate get in the way of the action most of the time. Dark Void was my first disappointment of the year.

Lost Planet 2
I enjoyed the first Lost Planet and was eagerly looking forward to its sequel. While the multiplayer is fun, the campaign isn't. The campaign's story is broken into several different perspectives. It becomes difficult to follow, especially as the game goes on. Another problem is the lack of checkpoints in the missions. The co-op mode has its faults as well. If one player dies during a mission, they can not jump back into the action. Instead, they have to wait for the other player to finish or die. While Lost Planet 2 isn't a horrible game, it is a frustrating disappointment that could have been much better.

The Calling
I was a bit over optimistic about the quality of this video game before I played it. I was hoping for a scary, smart Japanese type horror. Instead, I found a barely playable video game. The Wii remote served as a telephone. The sound quality was so bad, it sounded like a cartoon and not scary. The graphics were grainy and too dark. Plenty of time was wasted looking for tiny clues in the pitch black hallways. I knew it wasn't going to be "game of the year" material, but I was disappointed in how unplayable it was.

Naughty Bear
With its different and quirky premise of a teddy bear that's gone crazy, I was excited about this video game. Unfortunately, the game is repetitive and gets boring quick. The weapons don't lock onto the bears you need to kill, but they stop or get winded, so killing them is easy. The graphics aren't good and the camera is annoying at best. The other bears glitch in the walls and floors. The levels aren't fun or exciting. The multiplayer glitches and frame rate is even worse then the single campaign. Even with a funny, unique story, this game fails to be any more then a disappointing mess.

Deadly Premonition
I love survival horror games and Deadly Premonition is one that looked promising. The story and the characters are good, but the rest of the game is a terrible disappointment. The pacing is incredibly slow. Driving through town multiple times is torture. Even going from one screen to another or picking up an item is slow. The camera and controls are terrible. This makes boss fights frustrating because if you can't beat the boss with the ammo you have, you can't restart the mission. The terrible graphics look about 10 years old. The sound feels outdated in a bad way as well. You also can't move while reloading or shooting which makes the action slow to a crawl. Deadly Premonition is another example of a game with a good story that gets bogged down in the disappointing mechanics.

All of these video games could have been much better. Originally, I was drawn to these game because of their interesting stories or premises. The mechanics and horrible gameplay turned them into disappointments.

Sources:

Personal Experience