Cue the Stinkers: The Worst Games of 2018
This year has been filled with gaming triumphs, from indie favorites like Dead Cells and Monster [...]
This year has been filled with gaming triumphs, from indie favorites like Dead Cells and Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom to huge AAA releases like Red Dead Redemption 2 and Lego DC Super-Villains. Just when we thought we've seen one of the best games this year, another would come around and floor us even more.
But then...there's the flip side. We've also gotten our fair share of stinkers this year, including games that made it incredibly hard to see any sort of fun. And no, we're not talking about games that were flawed with technical issues, like Fallout 76. We mean just plain bad games.
So let's take a look now at ten of the worst we came across in 2018. Whatever you do, avoid these, because they'll more than likely cause you a headache. Or a wallet-ache. Or both.
10. Tennis World Tour
How can you mess up tennis? Like, seriously. For the most part, tennis games that have come out over the past few years have aced the aesthetic of it whether it's Nintendo's Mario Tennis Aces or even Sega's Virtua Tennis series. But Tennis World Tour...yeesh.
The gameplay just feels sluggish, like you can't even properly get into a match without running into some kind of error. And even with a patch or two added to the game, it just doesn't look that alluring. And if you tried to involve other players in your match, they'd probably just glance at you oddly after a few rounds and ask to play something else.
Worst of all, the developers released the game knowing it was a lackluster effort and said sales would catch up after patching it. Um, no. That's not how you're supposed to release a game.
9. Super Seducer 2
We're not sure if the first game intended to be satire, or if creator Richard La Ruina was intending to make an effort on the same level as cringe-worthy movie fare. Regardless, Super Seducer was a hard game to take in. But imagine our surprise when Richard and company set out to make a sequel, in the hopes of "righting its wrongs" (so to speak) with even more scenarios that show you how "successful" it is to pick up women- or men.
And, yep, it's just as uncomfortable as the first. There is a slight bit more balance here with two female-driven chapters, but Super Seducer 2 still falls flat. The dialogue is stilted in some scenarios, and there are bugs that can sometimes get in the way of your success. (Intentional? Are they part of the experience?)
There are some folks that are quick to defend the likes of Super Seducer 2, but, honestly, the most you'll likely get out of this game are the cornball results from making some truly weird decisions. Just don't let them carry over into your real life, yeah?
8. Past Cure
Creating a new kind of action/horror/shooter game is an intriguing idea, but be aware that as provocative and original as it can be, it might also end up blowing up in your face if you don't put the right level of development into it. That's exactly what happened with Past Cure, a game that follows a former elite soldier as he and his brother attempt to dig into a dark conspiracy.
The game has its moments with stealth and action-based gameplay, but there's nothing really compelling here to keep you for the long-term. Worse yet, the development seems half-assed, as if the team couldn't quite fulfill its intriguing story enough to see it through. As a result, most players are likely to lose interest following the first hour of gameplay- and there's no given Cure to get around that, save for playing a better game.
7. ARK: Survival Evolved (Nintendo Switch version)
ARK is enough of an acquired taste as it is, an open-world adventure that's not going to suit everyone since you have to make so much from the experience to get anything out of it. But imagine having to battle the odds with poor development on top of that. That's what happened to the Nintendo Switch version of the game, which came out just a few weeks ago.
We know that the Switch can handle more complex ports of bigger games, provided the right development team is on the job (looking at you, Panic Button). But the two behind ARK just couldn't get the job done; and as a result, they've created one of the worst games for the system. It's loaded with bugs and technical performance problems; and it just can't handle the massive world that you have to tackle throughout.
Stick with better technical ports, like Panic Button's amazing Warframe and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. You'll be far better off than trying to trudge your way through this mess.
6. Fear Effect Sedna
The Fear Effect games were a thing of beauty back on the original PlayStation; and when we heard that Square Enix was working with Sushee on a revival, we couldn't wait to see what the team was doing with it. But this is not the Fear Effect we remember.
Aside from using an entirely different game design that just doesn't work well at all, Sedna suffers horribly from bad storytelling and dialogue, which betrays the characters that we've come to know from the first two games. Worse yet, the gameplay doesn't do much at all to get us to stick around; and the combination of poor puzzle design and bad combat do very little to balance the ship.
Next time, Sushee, keep this lesson in mind. Go all in or not at all. Don't screw up a fan favorite, because you're going to tick them off.
5. All-Star Fruit Racing
Some kart games just shouldn't exist. I mean, I know why Nickelodeon Kart Racers does, mainly because of its characters and its "slime system." But All-Star Fruit Racing? Well...we're stumped.
First off, the game's course designs are lackluster, and the character selection isn't exactly the most engrossing out there. Should I race as this fruit girl or this fruit guy? On top of that, the game's performance is pretty terrible, with frame rates that slow down often and visual details that just don't spring to life. And there's nothing significant here to make you stick around- even the local multiplayer option is lapped by the likes of far superior racers like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and the upcoming Crash Team Racing.
All-Star Fruit Racing might have some, ahem, a-peel to fans of the genre, but you're better off just skipping it. Nothing but sour grapes here.
4. New Gundam Breaker
Last year's release of Gundam Versus was awesome in every way, paying loving tribute to the anime series while delivering robust mech action. And that classic Gundam theme song! So we figured with that, Bandai Namco would deliver another great experience with this year's New Gundam Breaker. And...well, nope.
Whereas Versus nailed the gameplay and storytelling aspect, Breaker simply...breaks. The action never really rises above tedious; the graphics fail to "wow" as much as Versus did; and there's hardly any story here to entertain die-hard fans. Also, you know a game is in trouble when you're yawning as battles take place. That is not what Gundam is about.
Fingers crossed that Bandai Namco learned its lesson here and are hard at work on a new Versus. Because the last thing we need is another game on this broken level.
3. Metal Gear Survive
When this game was announced, we were scratching our heads. Who would turn such a legendary series like Metal Gear into a survival game? We suppose Konami just saw dollar signs and figured it'd be a good idea. Well...it was not.
Metal Gear Survive does have some interesting quirks that tie in with the series, but not nearly enough to invest in. The game just feels like a waste of time as a whole, with forgettable combat and item balancing, as well as a story that fails to live up to the weird Metal Gear standard. Oh, and the fact you always have to be online with it is a real pain, especially considering you probably don't want anyone seeing that you're playing this.
Don't waste your time here. Stick with the other Metal Gear games instead, and you'll Survive in a much happier way.
2. The Quiet Man
When Square Enix announced this earlier this year with very little fanfare, we were perplexed what to make of it. Was it a sequel to The Bouncer? Or perhaps a neat little experience that would throw us off guard? Well, The Quiet Man is neither of these things. Instead, it's much, much, much worse.
While the game does have some interesting photo-realistic visuals, that doesn't make up for the fact that its gameplay is miserable. Most of the time you'll be getting into fights that don't make a difference; and there's no "hook" to make you wonder what's going to happen next. On top of that, with a truly bizarre narrative that has no logic to it, you'll wonder why you're still playing at all.
There was a great idea here, but Square Enix's approach just feels off its beat throughout. The Quiet Man simply doesn't have anything to say. He would've been better off just blending into the background.
1. Agony
I'm trying to figure out who this game was made for. You're in hell, okay, I get it. You're a soul trying to find your way around, sure. But where's the "fun" exactly? That's what I was wondering with the time I spent here, which was completely wasted.
I mean, there's no entertainment. Nothing. Even the idea of being scared out of your wits is thrown off by the incredibly dumb AI and the moments that make you question why they were introduced to begin with. Oh, there's torture, and a whole lot of nightmarish visions, but there's no point to any of them. The game is simply structured on shock value and shock value alone, instead of going with a reasonable experience to scare you to your core.
As a result, it never lives up to its premise, and you feel a greater amount of torture than the soul you're playing as.
Oh, and the crashes and bugs. Combined with the hideous gameplay and even worse narrative, you're pretty much being in hell playing Agony. But maybe that was the development team's point to begin with. Just avoid this one and find better gameplay experiences instead. I'd even recommend something like The Quiet Man over this- and I don't recommend that to anyone.
