The ten most disappointing games of 2018

It may have been a buffet year of endless hit games, but 2018 was also a year where disappointment was regularly served up on a plate. We’re not talking bad games here, but rather those games that failed to live up their own hype or even the most tempered of fan expectations. Whether they were unpolished, woefully lacking in features or simply just a chore to play, here’s a look at 2018’s biggest disappointments.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider

It may have had the glitz and glamour of previous games, but Shadow of the Tomb Raider’s serviceable action is let down by a narrative arc that turns one of gaming’ s greatest heroes into a thoroughly unlikeable agent of destruction who is well overdue for a vacation out of the spotlight.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: Rewatch Tomb Raider And The Cradle of Life.

Vampyr

What should have been an original tale of blood, the ravages of war and unchecked contagions resulting in mankind’s darker appetites coming to light, Vampyr was instead a lacklustre and boring descent into darkness that definitely wasn’t worth sinking your fangs into.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: Campaign for a Twilight reboot.

Darksiders 3

It didn’t need to match the ferocity of its predecessors, but Darksiders 3 felt like a sequel from another era that drew blatant inspiration from better games and was an unholy graphical wreck on every gaming platform that it landed on.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: Play a less broken game, like Fallout 76.

State of Decay 2

If you loved the first game, you’ll appreciate the changes, like a more structured take on base building and community management. There are fantastic systems in State of Decay 2, hampered by repetitive and shallow gameplay that ultimately feels pointless, while also being one of the most unfinished games of 2018.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: Make some Zombean and cheese burritos.

The Quiet Man

There are plenty of strong words that could be used to describe The Quiet Man, but seeing as how there are children watching this video, we’ll just stick with telling you to avoid this pretentious pile of garbage by any means necessary.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: Learn how to juggle rotary saws.

Call of Cthulu

Interesting for less than an hour, Call of Cthulu’s detective procedural gameplay is squandered within minutes and results in a game that is both infuriating and maddening to play thanks to is cheap design and even cheaper attempts at creating some supernatural horror.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: Watch Lovecraft hentai.

Tennis World Tour

What should have been the definitive tennis game of the year, Tennis World Tour could barely serve up a half-competent suit of standard features as this half-baked grab at quick cash shipped out broken and incomplete.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: See how easy and dangerous it is to piss off John McEnroe.

Extinction

With a simple premise that revolved around players becoming the giant slayer that they always dreamed of being, Extinction’s key gimmick quickly ran its course and saw an interesting game became tiresome, boring and tedious to the extreme.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: Listen to Gwyneth Paltrow and get a Coca-Colanic.

Frantics

Frantics should have been a fun collection of casual-friendly mini-games made in the Mario Party mould, but unfortunately, it’s just a criminally boring diversion from better games.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: Eat a plate of human hair and choke.

Fallout 76

From genre darling to being the poster boy of what not to do with one of the greatest video game franchises of all time, Fallout 76’s problems are as endless as they are annoying. Broken on a fundamental level, limited in scope and creaking under the stress of an aging gameplay engine, Fallout 76 should have stayed in its vault.

Stuff I’d rather do than play this game: Get a suntan just as the nukes land after North (And True) Korea gets pushed too far.

Last Updated: December 14, 2018