Games that have aged horribly

[pixiejedi]

I'm throwing in Mass Effect. I love the game and it looks real shiny but after playing the 2nd one with the polish and the QTE's it feels like a total chore to go through fighting in the1st one. I know there is RPG debate over which one is better but despite the simplification it just feels nice to pull the trigger and see the gun shoot at what you are pointing at instead of some stupid behind the scenes math. Thats groovy with a more fantastical game but not here. Their forward thinking makes ME 1 feel more hodge podge to me.

That sucks though since I'm inevitably going to have to do it to get in various set ups for the last one

 

[Nazulu]

I tried Golden Eye 007 not long a go but I just couldn't get into it, both the graphics and the N64 controller give me the shits. I'll try again in another 2 years to see if I change.

 

[RyQ_TMC]

I'm ashamed to say it but I couldn't play Torment because of the graphics. I really wanted to, but the pixels were hurting my eyes.

Torment gets extra points in that its graphics had this problem already when it was released... 640x480 worked fine enough for Baldur's Gate, but Torment's larger sprites made it painful to look at even back in the day...

I still loved it, and recently replayed it though, so YMMV I guess.

I find that many, many games become nigh-unplayable after an improved sequel comes out. You get so used to all the little improvements that you just get more and more frustrated with the original, as you reach for an option which could get you out of a hairy situation, but just isn't there. Age of Empires is a good example.

 

[Xerosch]

Most Star Wars games come to mind. Though it's only graphics, can live with that.

I'm ashamed to say it but I couldn't play Torment because of the graphics. I really wanted to, but the pixels were hurting my eyes.

Good news, everyone! There's an unofficial resolution patch which lets you play almost every game made with the Infinity Engine with your desired resolution. I'm currently playing 'Planescape: Torment' in 1280x1080.

 

[Thedutchjelle]

Deus Ex.

Good god, Deus Ex.

What do you mean? I recently played it and got into it with no difficulty. Great game. I don't care about graphics much, so those don't bother me.

The game controls great and the graphics don't get in the way of performing any actions. They don't actually look half bad in my opinion.

bye far deus ex its really hard to into because of it

Are you really that superficial? The graphics are sufficient enough to not get in the way of anything. The gameplay remains completely intact and is far more enjoyable then most games I play nowadays. In fact, it has so much replay value. I get engrossed in it because of the story and the awesome multi-path gameplay. Non-lethal ftw.

I absolutely love the story and graphics do not matter much to me. For me, it's the A.I. that aged badly in Deus Ex - understandable, because the A.I. wasn't really top notch those days in any game. I recently replayed it (first time I could play it without FPS stuttering I had on my old computer! ) and the opponents sometimes didn't see me when I was in clear sight or I just steamrolled them.

I still enjoy the game though.

A game that aged badly could be Sim City 4000. I only played it one or two times, but it looked and felt so much worse than Sim City 3000. It could be the graphics or the bugs, I don't know. Something felt wrong.
As a general rule, games with 2D graphics or sprites tend to hardly age at all, atleast for me. I think it's because the more 'realistic games' will be outdone by technology in a few years, and they'll look terrible. But my old SNES games still look very good to me.

 

[70R4N]

Most Star Wars games come to mind. Though it's only graphics, can live with that.

I'm ashamed to say it but I couldn't play Torment because of the graphics. I really wanted to, but the pixels were hurting my eyes.

Good news, everyone! There's an unofficial resolution patch which lets you play almost every game made with the Infinity Engine with your desired resolution. I'm currently playing 'Planescape: Torment' in 1280x1080.

And i am currently playing Planescape Torment in 1366x768 on my laptop! It's awesome.
Oh, and check this out:
http://thunderpeel2001.blogspot.com/2009/01/planescape-torment-fully-modded.html

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Half-Life 2.

It's just been done so many times and so much better.

OK, I'll bite. Like what?

 

[joshuaayt]

Turn and menu based JRPG. Lacking the adrenalin punch administered by most real time games, these kids are held up mostly by their complexity. Gamers demand more complex JRPGs, so we get them, and the old ones are left with archaic gameplay. "Point gun here and shoot", however, can only change so much, and will remain fun until people forget what solid ammunition is.

Also Pong. Pong has not aged well, a truth it shares with its precursor, Tennis For Two.

 

[Frybird]

Almost everything on the PS1 and N64. Very few don't look like a giant ass, especially on the PS1. FF 7 makes my eyes bleed.

Agreed so much.

There are a few exceptions (On the PSone Side, Crash Bandicoot and some of the racing games and on the N64 Side, most Games that have Mario in it, for example. Still ugly, but at least bearable), but early 3D is mindblowingly ugly nowadays and its almost funny with how much the could get away back then and our minds were still blown.

EDIT: Also, i think Unreal 1 hasn't aged as well as Half Life 1, despite clearly being the better looking game back in the day. I'd say retrospectively Half Life 1 profits from having enviroments that are less "ambitious"

 

[MercurySteam]

Half-Life 2.

It's just been done so many times and so much better.

OK, I'll bite. Like what?

I guess my original point is that everything that made HL2 a revolutionary game back in the year of it's release can be seen and has been done in so many other games. The physics, the graphics, the silent protagonist has been done so many times over the years. The core game itself is still just as good, but I think the rest has just gotten stale over the years.

The super gravity gun is still awesome, though.

 

[Sixcess]

Half Life.

The story telling techniques that it pioneered are still good, but it's painfully unbalanced and full of instant death fall platforming. You'll die ten times more often to environment hazards and falls than you will to actual enemy fire.

 

[rekabdarb]

I like most of the games mentioned thus far are ALL for aesthetics.

Since i'm to lazy to go through all 5 pages. I agree.

I think the only one i saw (on the first page, yet again) was Duke Nukem because they explained it was boring.

However I must say that FF7 isn't as great as everyone says it is. I played it way back in the yesteryear of 1998 (i was 6 when it came out, give me a break.) But my brother bought it from PSN last year and so i played it again. Quickly reached 97, beat emerald AND ruby, 2 shooted seph and I questioned why everyone loved it. Both Ruby and Emerald were easy as shit.


Um... I think any Square game really hasn't aged well. That ending 'Well we can continue... or do this stuff instead' thing ruins games for me.

 

[Korolev]

Jade Empire and Final Fantasy VII. Now, I know - in their day, both games were pretty damn amazing. However, they just don't stack up when compared to today's games. FFVII was cutting edge when it was released, offering a lot of content for its day. But by the time I played it, in 2005 on the PC, it had aged horribly. The over-world was bare and ugly. The lines were very poorly translated and the midi music was screechy and awful. Again, back on the PS1, it was amazing. Not so much by today's standard. I'll agree that the story is still pretty good, and I had a semi-fun time playing it.

Jade Empire also kinda falls prey to advancing standards. Compare Jade Empire to Dragon Age: Origins or Mass Effect 2, and it just falls short. I played Jade Empire for the first time in 2010, and five years later it just doesn't hold up. The fighting was at first frustrating, then too easy. The pacing was too rushed and although the story was somewhat interesting, it doesn't hold up to the story of Dragon Age or Mass Effect for that matter.

Again, I can imagine Jade Empire being released for the Xbox and blowing away someone's mind! I bet it was pretty unique and awesome back in the day. But just a few years later, it feels really stale and old.

Another one would be the first Half Life. Half Life 2 was good. Half Life 1... not so good.

 

[Farson89]

Silent Hill doesn't really hold up any more, the sequels are still holding their own but SH1 looks so damn blocky and the monsters are so non-threatening that it just doesn't have the same effect it used to.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

I guess my original point is that everything that made HL2 a revolutionary game back in the year of it's release can be seen and has been done in so many other games. The physics, the graphics, the silent protagonist has been done so many times over the years. The core game itself is still just as good, but I think the rest has just gotten stale over the years.

See, I don't really get most of this thread. The few games that have aged badly, imho, are ones that rely on the smaller screens (Dungeon Keeper, Warcraft) where you want to see more of the map. Games like Rogue, Hack, Duke Nukem (The original), Doom are still playable and fun.

Even DK and Warcraft are ok though. And it can't be nostalgia to all of them.

 

[Korolev]

I tried Golden Eye 007 not long a go but I just couldn't get into it, both the graphics and the N64 controller give me the shits. I'll try again in another 2 years to see if I change.

Yeah, I tried playing Goldeneye 007 about 6 years back (I can't anymore, my N64 broke down). It has not aged well. Anyone who has spent time with a dual stick controller will scream with frustration at the controls - having to stop and stand still just to aim properly is very annoying these days. Back then, sure, it wasn't frustrating because it was a relatively new experience. These days however, it is outclassed in every way by just about any other shooter released beyond 2000. Seriously not worth it. The remake, I heard, is pretty decent.

 

[Jailbird408]

Super. Mario. 64.

I played it long enough to get to the end credits and found myself bored out of my mind. I had more fun with DK64. I think I'd enjoy Sunshine if I had a gamecube... sigh.

 

[Jimbo1212]

MineCraft....jeez, those graphics burn my eyes.

 

[Jailbird408]

MineCraft....jeez, those graphics burn my eyes.

DOES NOT COUNT!

A game that hasn't been released cannot have aged horribly.

 

[infernovolver]

Spoiler

Oh my god it doesn't play like my childhood remembers, whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Incidentally I borrowed a friend's copy of Sonic Adventure DX Director's Cut. Dear lord it's flaws are abundant. It's got some of the most awkward controls, awkward camera angles (often paired with the former), terrible animation, bad voice acting, not the greatest of stories, bugs galore, etc etc etc. Most of which have been ported directly from the Dreamcast version, which is a damn shame. Still it's an okay game despite all it's flaws.