10 Worst Video Game Launches Ever

Video game development is incredibly difficult. There’s a reason we see so many delays from major and minor studios. The path to release is long and winding, and sometimes the end product fails to live up to expectations. In the modern landscape, a disastrous launch isn’t necessarily a death sentence, but it can destroy fan hype. Below, you’ll find a list of the ten worst game launches in video game history. As mentioned, some of these games were able to turn out of the tailspin and become beloved, but a few of them died on the vine, sometimes taking their developers with them.

Here’s a list of the ten worst game launches in video game history, presented in alphabetical order.

10) Anthem

BioWare wasn’t at the peak of its powers in 2019 when it launched Anthem. The developers’ most recent game was Mass Effect: Andromeda, which was a technical mess and a narrative disappointment. That said, Dragon Age: Inquisition was a hit, and fans were excited to play BioWare’s multiplayer action RPG.

Unfortunately, it was a total dud at launch. While the combat and flying around were great, technical issues plagued Anthem, leading most fans to drop off quickly. Publisher EA said the team would continue working on the game, but the rework that began in 2020 never materialized, and Anthem will officially shut down its servers in January 2026.

9) Concord

Almost as soon as it was unveiled, Concord‘s chances of becoming a breakout hit for Sony were effectively dashed. There are simply too many live-service shooters on the market, and asking fans to put down cash to buy the game was going to make that sledding even tougher.

Unfortunately for developer Firewalk Studios, Concord was an immediate failure. Technically, Concord was solid, but it could not bring in players and was shut down shortly after launch. Firewalk was also shuttered soon after.

8) Cyberpunk 2077

Cyberpunk 2077 is the first success story on this list. CD Projekt Red’s first game outside of the Witcher universe showed incredibly well in pre-release coverage, leaving fans frothing at the mouth with anticipation of diving into Night City. At launch, Cyberpunk performed so terribly that it was pulled from the PlayStation store.

That’s rare, especially for a game with the profile of Cyberpunk 2077. Thankfully, CD Projekt Red was committed to fixing the game’s countless issues. It took some time, but by the time the Phantom Liberty expansion launched in 2023, Cyberpunk 2077 had made a complete turnaround.

7) Diablo 3

I don’t know about you, but I still have nightmares about seeing the “Error 37” message pop up on my computer screen. Granted, fans got that error because Diablo 3‘s server capacity was filled up at launch, meaning it was incredibly popular. That said, low capacity was far from Diablo 3‘s only issue.

What really stuck in the craw of players was the real-money auction house, effectively turning the loot grind everyone loved in Diablo 2 into a pay-to-win system. Thankfully, Blizzard eventually pulled that feature out and got D3 into a good state, but this is one of the few Blizzard games (Warcraft 3: Reforged is also up there) that everyone would rather forget.

6) Final Fantasy XIV

When Final Fantasy XIV first launched, it was nearly unplayable. In many ways, it felt like an MMO that was half-finished, which killed any momentum when compared to the content-stuffed World of Warcraft. Things were so bad, Square suspended subscription fees and brought in Naoki Yoshida to try and save the game.

The famed developer and his team did just that, dropping Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn a few years later. That move worked wonders, as FFXIV has become one of, if not the biggest, MMOs on the market. It’s the only MMO that’s truly challenged World of Warcraft‘s supremacy and continues to build momentum.

5) MindsEye

MindsEye is the first game from Rockstar legend Leslie Benzies’ new studio, Build a Rocket Boy. With the Benz behind it, expectations were through the roof. After all, he was often seen as the guy who helped some of Rockstar’s biggest releases come together.

Unfortunately, that pedigree did not pay off. MindsEye bombed critically and commercially. Build a Rocket Boy’s co-CEO would then make a few odd comments, claiming there was a “concentrated effort to trash the game,” and it was reported that the studio had a large swathe of layoffs a few weeks after launch.

4) No Man’s Sky

Like Cyberpunk 2077, No Man’s Sky looked like a revelation when it was first announced. It didn’t help that Hello Games’ founder Sean Murray just kept announcing new features. Living up to those expectations was going to be tough, and No Man’s Sky was far from the mark at launch.

To be clear, No Man’s Sky wasn’t a bad game when it released, but fans felt like they were sold the world by Hello Games, and the developer didn’t deliver on its many promises. However, Hello Games stayed committed to No Man’s Sky, giving fans dozens of updates over the years, slowly turning it into a success. As of June 2025, it’s still being updated with robust new systems and features like an expanded settlement and a Lovecraft-themed expedition.

3) SimCity

For fans of city-builders, the SimCity series is often seen as the gold standard. So when Electronic Arts and Maxis announced a new SimCity for 2013, fans were understandably excited. Then, they learned that their beloved city-builder would be an always-online game, even if you didn’t want to team up with other players around the world.

Predictably, the servers exploded at launch, rendering the game, which many wanted to play solo, completely unplayable. There were several smaller issues with gameplay, but the borked launch was the main driver behind most fans leaving SimCity behind for Cities: Skylines.

2) The Day Before

It’s hard to say if The Day Before was even a real game. Developer Fntastic announced its online survival horror extraction shooter in 2021. It quickly became one of the most wishlisted games on Steam after early trailers showed great-looking, open-ended gameplay.

The Day Before hit early access on December 7th, 2023, but was pulled from the Steam store four days later due to poor sales and worse reviews. Some accused Fntastic of making an asset flip and scamming fans. The studio closed a few weeks later, but announced a comeback in 2024. Their next project was again accused of being an asset flip and failed to meet its Kickstarter funding goal.

1) WWE 2K20

It’s hard to imagine a yearly sports game having an entry so bad that it causes the series to take a year off, but that’s exactly what happened with WWE 2K20. Technically, the game was a disaster, with countless bugs and horrific-looking character models.

While the developer said WWE 2K21 was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the lackluster sales and scathing reviews for WWE 2K20 certainly played a part in the team taking an extra year to reassess. 2K will never save WWE 2K20, but the series is in a much better place in 2025. Maybe more sports games should take a break every once in a while.

What video game launches do you think were the worst? Let us know in the comments below!

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