Poll: Top 10 most overrated games I?ve ever played *WALL OF TEXT AHOY!*

[Thyunda]

Sorry. I have to disagree with practically everything I've read. You've said, first, that you haven't played System Shock, but based on what you've heard it was absolutely amazing. This being a piece on overrated games. I'm sorry, but that's just hypocrisy.
"BioShock is overrated because I heard System Shock was better." Alright buddy. I'll let you roll with that.

GTA IV represented Rockstar moving from action-comedies to seriously dramatic story. The silliness awards go to Saints Row, now, and the Grand Theft Auto series can focus on the writing Rockstar pull off so spectacularly. Your gripes with the controls...you're upset about walking? I don't...I can't...what? Why is this worth getting upset over? Draw your gun, you run automatically. That's really the only time you'd need to worry about that.

And John Marston being awkward but friendly? He's not awkward...just polite. Good God, what country are you from, where good manners are a sign of awkwardness?

 

[Tryzon]

You know what your problem is, you hate games for not being what you expect them to be... rather than appreciate them for what they are!

Also, your post is insultingly meandering and pedantic. You go off on a 3 paragraph spiel about your personal situation before you even start on the actual relevant subject.

And the arrogance to say that games that simply don't suit your personal tastes are "over-rated". Ratings are industry consensus. Over-rated would mean the consensus of the industry isn't really as high as the actual score but that it was somehow inflated for whatever reason.

Black is not Modern Warfare or Rainbow Six, it is like an action movie where you are supposed to empty a long burst of awesome full sounding machine gun fire, not a tight neat burst or single shot. And you have to give appreciation to the sound an effects of explosions, though low res they were just the best ever shown.

You don't even play Tomb Raider games and you call them over-rated. You don't seem to even understand HOW the controls work! It's not supposed to have light easy fluffy controls but very particular controls all about exploiting the long jumps getting them just right. It's a game where you have to THINK about every step you make and think 3-4 steps ahead.

I'll have you know I go into games blind whenever possible. For instance, I've deliberately avoided all the Skyrim information that I can so that I can go in and find out what my honest opinion of it is.

And what does it mean for something to be overrated? The general consensus doesn't match my opinion, so I think it's overrated. Seems simple to me. I think you're making a mountain out of a molehill there, though that's apparently a theme of my piece.

I've played outlandish, action movie-esque shooters. Urban Chaos: Riot Response comes to mind, and that has shooting that never feels anything other than satisfying and fair. Guys take a while to die if you just hit their torsos, but unlike Black, headshots are considerably easier, so it's not a problem. Play that on its hardest and it IS hard until you earn enough upgrades, so don't think I just want an easy shooter. For me, Black is underwhelming and not even supremely good soundwork solves that. Speaking of which, I did point out the awesome sniper rifle sound, at least. Were this a full review, I certainly would've made more fuss about the sound, but 'tis not the case.

And I said I played Tomb Raider! All the PS1 ones, if I recall! Not right to the end, sure, but I said I played them and didn't enjoy them. What's not to understand? Something like the Prince of Persia trilogy requires planning too, but the controls are nowhere near as awkward, likely because they were made at a time when 3D was well-established as the industry norm. I feel like we're going in circles now. Thought we'd cleared this up already.

 

[cefm]

Agree with GTA4 - it's an impressive technical achievement, but nowhere near as fun as Vice City. They should have realized that they were going a bit too far off course with San Andreas, and then went fully overboard in 4.

Disagree with KOTOR - It's an RPG, the leveling/item/party composition/combat system is more or less what you'd expect to get into with an RPG. Don't expect smooth combat. Also the movement was slow enough to see what you were doing in closer quarters and indoor areas - once you're outdoors, use the "force speed" power - that's what it's there for!

 

[Ubermetalhed]

I scrolled down half way and decided yeh I agree with you mostly then I saw increasing amounts of sacralidge... MGS4,Red Dead,KOTOR and finally Tombraider.

But you took particular offense with the old Tombraider games controls. If you have a problem with the controls well then either you must be pretty bad at the games or you just don't get them. The controls are a core part of tombraider much like Resident evils tank controls are and even Metal Gear Solids. They work, they add to the tension, to the difficulty, they make the game skillful and most importantly rewarding. If you don't have the patience to get used to them and get good at them don't play the games.

Also comments about Lara and sexism are dumb. The games were good that's why people bought them. And to think people bought them to stare at jagged breasts is equally stupid.

Actually looking at alot of these you tend to attack the controls. All of the ones you go for work fine and function well. I don't think you understand how restrictive control schemes actually make games better. Or again you are just not very good at these games.

Regarding MGS4, there are alot of cutscenes granted but if you are a true MGS fan you are more than happy to see them and I found the whole end to the series compeltely satisfying. No more need for ambiguity as it's an end to a saga. Gameplay wise it is brilliant and there is enough to keep you busy provided you play the game properly and play non-lethal, no detections. The running and gunning is there if you want to but it is something which I believe was put in for those whom had completed the game and wanted to just shoot everything for a bit of light relief. If you begin the game and aim to play it as a shooter then you are seriously retarded.

And you were doing so well in the beginning. I wanted to hug you for mentioning how BioShock is inferior to System Shock 2 and for your comments on Black, Halo 2 and Half-life 2. But the latter arguments are just completely off.

Okay, there's a lot to cover here. I appreciate that game controls can be utilised in such a way as to enhance the experience, but from what I've seen, that's VERY tricky to get right. Unless you hit that magical balance, I find myself feeling handicapped and frustrated. For instance, I don't care what argument a developer might make, I think the ability to run in a straight line seems like a fairly simple thing for any normal, non-motor-impaired person to do, so Lara's inability to manage this is evidence of bad controls. I appreciate the controls were of their time, but it's the lack of evolution in Tomb Raider that I hate most of all; making mistakes and learning from them is what I'd like to see.

And I feel I was restrained on the sexism thing. Did I say people bought the games "to stare at jagged breasts"? I don't believe I did. What I meant was that, shockingly enough, sex is the biggest seller in pretty much any industry you care to mention, and I doubt supremely that Tomb Raider would have either sold as well or avoided being ignored as an Indiana Jones knock-off if the protagonist had been a bloke. That's what I meant and that's what I'm sticking by.

Now for MGS. To be honest, I'm not sure I'd call myself a fan of the series so much as just MGS3. Every other one I've played has come across as preachy, full of half-baked ideas and in dire need of someone who could cut out some of the flab. The Legacy of Kain and Watchmen Motion Comic examples show that I'm not simply someone whose attention span is too short to enjoy good dialogue, but that's the thing: I wouldn't call a lot of MGS4's dialogue good, in the sense that it adds nothing to the overall story. I was SO ready for that ending when it finally rolled round.

I didn't play it as a shooter deliberately, but found that doing so was extremely easy. To me, a stealth game should allow for occasional cock-ups without giving you the ability to just rampage. Thief and Hitman do that well, and even Splinter Cell somewhat, but MGS4 not so much. AGAIN, this is all my view, but I just want to dispel the idea that I went into MGS4 wanting to shoot things. I would've thought my visible love of the previous game would make that clear.

At least we agree on those other things you mentioned, though. I hope I've managed to explain myself a bit better now. Comrades?

It is fair that they haven't updated the controls much (lara can run in a straight line btw, not sure which game you were playing where this happened) but for me that's fine it's a distinctive control style. I've always been more annoyed that the newer installments have had such bad level design than anything else.

It is debatable over whether Laras 'sex appeal' was the main selling factor for the series, my point of the jagged breasts is that it was unlikely to sell the game to everyone. The games were good they used to get 97% scores, so I would argue that's what prevented them from being Indiana Jones knock offs.

MGS dialogue has always been a bit all over the spot but that has always been the fun of it all. I'd think those who'd played the previous installments would either enjoy the cutscenes/dialogue/plot by now or would be able to stomach it as there'd be little purpose in buying a game you know you were going to have problems with.

I think it is good that there is the option to shoot and like I said I think that is just for a bit of light relief. It's good to have the choice. The game also rewards you for no alerts, kills etc so there is incentive to restart the area if you are spotted or are engaged in a fire fight. It is easy to blast your way through but that really is not the point. You mention Hitman but the option is also there if you wish to blast through, the fact you can take and use guards weapons is a clear indicator of that.

And of course we can be comrades, you still get massive props for the argument about BioShock!

 

[Lunar Templar]

all righty then, I'm a attack these in order and to save time replace your thoughts with mine

Prologue


BioShock (?07)
never played it, so can't really comment other then nothing about it has looked interesting enough for me to want to

Black (?06)
>.> I'd kinda forgotten this game existed honestly, although i do remember playing it and oddly enjoying it, despite it being an FPS, the fact i remember nothing else about it kinda says valumes for what i think of it

Doom 3 (?04)
had it come out while i still liked FPS games IE the 90s, i might have actually played it, but it didn't and so i didn't

Grand Theft Auto IV (?08)
i've actually YET to play a GTA game that i conciser good, at all. terrible controls, lame story, even the rampages where dull. now, SAINTS ROW, that's a good game

Half-Life 2 (?04)
half life 1 wasn't interesting enough to finish so when this came out ignored it. only valve game i've finished is Portal, only valve game i want, is Portal 2

Halo 2 (?04)
yeah, its a cheap shot, but meh, Halo 1 was mildly amusing, but no where near the 'greatest game ever' i kept hearing, at any rate i did actually try Halo's 1 and 2 and i got bored with both before the 2 hour mark.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (?08)
>.> .... <.< ... i beat this game, twice, in 1 week, and for the life of me don't remember much about it story wise, the boss fights where fun though, and challenging if your trying to NOT kill them. also, must be said, that entire bit where you pilot Metal Gear Rex, fucking WIN
but other then that >.> i got nothing, it got to weird and hard to fallow at points and this is from some one that loves MGS. lastly, still one of the best planned final bosses EVER

Red Dead Redemption (?10)
this is GTA, in the old west, guess how much i cared when this came out

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (?03)
i have this on steam and ..... i cant care enough to reinstall it let alone care enough to beat it, this is partly due to it being 'star wars' which I'm on record for believing it to be over hyped to begin with. another problem is, Bioware, ironically, now, i finished DA:O loved that, but their sci-fi offerings just seem so boring to me, so you can guess how i feel about Mass Effect (i own 1 and 2)

Tomb Raider (the franchise) (?96 - MYGODTHEYSTILLMAKETHESE)
another i have never played, nor will i ever play, because!!! -.- I'm not 15, it will take more then a set of tits on the cover to get me to buy your game, and anything Tomb Raider has done, The Legacy of Kain did, and did better, and with more interesting characters.

so there ya go my 10 cents or so

 

[Sammi Costello]

Try leaving this sort of stuff to Zero Puncuation. Yahtzee does it FAR better than you anyway.

 

[Tryzon]

Sorry. I have to disagree with practically everything I've read. You've said, first, that you haven't played System Shock, but based on what you've heard it was absolutely amazing. This being a piece on overrated games. I'm sorry, but that's just hypocrisy.
"BioShock is overrated because I heard System Shock was better." Alright buddy. I'll let you roll with that.

GTA IV represented Rockstar moving from action-comedies to seriously dramatic story. The silliness awards go to Saints Row, now, and the Grand Theft Auto series can focus on the writing Rockstar pull off so spectacularly. Your gripes with the controls...you're upset about walking? I don't...I can't...what? Why is this worth getting upset over? Draw your gun, you run automatically. That's really the only time you'd need to worry about that.

And John Marston being awkward but friendly? He's not awkward...just polite. Good God, what country are you from, where good manners are a sign of awkwardness?

Calm down a bit there. Actually, everyone's been saying that to me today. Let's just all calm down. The System Shock thing is a bit iffy, yes, but I did say that the plot and such were the main similarities between it and BioShock, and the latter definitely has a very similar twist to System Shock 2. That's my main issue.

And yes, GTA IV's walking annoyed the smeg out of me. It's a stupid complaint, but a stupid problem to have to worry about. I don't understand how a game from 2008 can have worse movement controls than one from 2002. That does not compute. The fact that the multiplayer controls are so much better is just icing.

And I wrote the Red Dead segment a while ago, but I distinctly remember thinking Marston came across as a bit awkward, particularly when making a very weak attempt at debating the morals of burning people's houses down. I think that's what the mission was about. I try not to dwell on it.

As I've said to everyone else, please take this list as the mad exception to my usual rule of focusing on games I enjoy. See the info I stuck at the top of the original post.

 

[craftomega]

20$ that 90% of the people who voted simple red the titles of the games. Also @Tryzon your less of a reviewer then you are a critic (We need more Critics). You cannot argue with pretty much anything you have said here since its all based on fact and not opinion, but there is one thing you have ignored as far as I can see.

Does it matter that all these games have glaring flaws? Kotor; yes played like a MMO with wayyyyy to much traveling and a shitty UI, but the story and characters are par none. So because of those flaws is it over rated? That is opinion, because to some people story is more important than anything else and as long as the game is playable nothing else matters. To others story is a nice addition where game play is the most important, then yes Kotor would be over rated.

Almost all your games on this list have similar flaws (GTA IV and MG4 are not one of those). Niether of them should have got a 10/10 'that is fact'. Infact I can think of no game that deserves that title other then Torment (Long story there).

Also Doom 3 is not over rated most people as far as I was aware thought it was a nice looking pile of dog shit.

 

[Tryzon]

*snip*
so there ya go my 10 cents or so

Wow. That's actually even more rage than what I mustered. Bravo

 

[Phlakes]

Okay, I never TL;DR, but seriously. TL;DR. The thought that you spent all the time to write this is frightening.

Anyway, I did read as much as I could before I felt like I had burned through half a library, and this sounds like the typical "these games aren't as good as you say because I don't like them". They are not overrated. I don't like fighting games, but that doesn't mean the new Mortal Kombat isn't as good as everyone says it is.

EDIT: Also, nobody likes Halo 2 that much.

 

[Tryzon]

20$ that 90% of the people who voted simple red the titles of the games. Also @Tryzon your less of a reviewer then you are a critic (We need more Critics). You cannot argue with pretty much anything you have said here since its all based on fact and not opinion, but there is one thing you have ignored as far as I can see.

Does it matter that all these games have glaring flaws? Kotor; yes played like a MMO with wayyyyy to much traveling and a shitty UI, but the story and characters are par none. So because of those flaws is it over rated? That is opinion, because to some people story is more important than anything else and as long as the game is playable nothing else matters. To others story is a nice addition where game play is the most important, then yes Kotor would be over rated.

Almost all your games on this list have similar flaws (GTA IV and MG4 are not one of those). Niether of them should have got a 10/10 'that is fact'. Infact I can think of no game that deserves that title other then Torment (Long story there).

Also Doom 3 is not over rated most people as far as I was aware thought it was a nice looking pile of dog shit.

They're not reviews. I would've put this in the review forum in they were. Please read the chunk of text I added to the top of the original post. Though you're totally red that the poll people just read the names, as usual. I'm familiar with how the Escapist works and just added the poll because I find them strangely addicting.

I question your definition of "fact", but okay.

 

[RedDeadFred]

The only game I don't agree with you on is KOTOR. But ya, the rest I think are definitely overrated.

 

[Tryzon]

Okay, I never TL;DR, but seriously. TL;DR. The thought that you spent all the time to write this is frightening.

Anyway, I did read as much as I could before I felt like I had burned through half a library, and this sounds like the typical "these games aren't as good as you say because I don't like them". They are not overrated. I don't like fighting games, but that doesn't mean the new Mortal Kombat isn't as good as everyone says it is.

I love MGS3. I think that gives me ample reason to feel secure in my hatred of MGS4, since the genre itself isn't what I dislike. I'm surprised there seems to be some debate of what it means to be overrated. From my perspective, if a game I can't stand seems to be adored by everyone else I discuss it with, I'd call it overrated. You can't get a 100% accurate general consensus, obviously, so this is all relative. I don't think that's worth arguing over.

 

[Phlakes]

Okay, I never TL;DR, but seriously. TL;DR. The thought that you spent all the time to write this is frightening.

Anyway, I did read as much as I could before I felt like I had burned through half a library, and this sounds like the typical "these games aren't as good as you say because I don't like them". They are not overrated. I don't like fighting games, but that doesn't mean the new Mortal Kombat isn't as good as everyone says it is.

I love MGS3. I think that gives me ample reason to feel secure in my hatred of MGS4, since the genre itself isn't what I dislike. I'm surprised there seems to be some debate of what it means to be overrated. From my perspective, if a game I can't stand seems to be adored by everyone else I discuss it with, I'd call it overrated. You can't get a 100% accurate general consensus, obviously, so this is all relative. I don't think that's worth arguing over.

Calling something overrated means you think it doesn't deserve the praise it gets. Disliking something just means that your opinion is different, not that other people are wrong. Although this probably does just come down to semantics.

 

[Tryzon]

MGS dialogue has always been a bit all over the spot but that has always been the fun of it all. I'd think those who'd played the previous installments would either enjoy the cutscenes/dialogue/plot by now or would be able to stomach it as there'd be little purpose in buying a game you know you were going to have problems with.

I think it is good that there is the option to shoot and like I said I think that is just for a bit of light relief. It's good to have the choice. The game also rewards you for no alerts, kills etc so there is incentive to restart the area if you are spotted or are engaged in a fire fight. It is easy to blast your way through but that really is not the point. You mention Hitman but the option is also there if you wish to blast through, the fact you can take and use guards weapons is a clear indicator of that.

And of course we can be comrades, you still get massive props for the argument about BioShock!

I said I loved MGS3, so of course I wanted to love MGS4, but I knew it was set in the future again and therefore bound to have more of the technical jargon that drove me mad in #2. As for shooting, I think there are plenty of dedicated shooters that fulfil that role better, so a sneak-'em-up should stick to the stealth. Just makes sense to me. I must admit, though, that running amok with The Boss' gun is glorious, but I wouldn't want to play the whole game like that.

Hitman does let you just go wild with a shotgun, but you don't tend to get very far on the higher settings. It's very much something you leave as a last resort, which is how I think open violence is stealth games should be kept.

 

[scoopz]

-snip-

Honestly I only read the BioShock, HL2, GTA4, and Doom3 ones because I've actually played those, but anyway I agree with you a bit on GTA4. The others I disagree but I suppose I could be blinded by a slight nostalgia factor for Doom since it is a beloved game of mine.

I am intrigued in your other posts, since I've been reading the comments and in your words this is one that is inferior to the others.

 

[Tryzon]

Calling something overrated means you think it doesn't deserve the praise it gets. Disliking something just means that your opinion is different, not that other people are wrong. Although this probably does just come down to semantics.

Exactly: BioShock got countless awards despite what I see as glaring faults, so I think it's overrated. Overrated is an unhelpfully vague term, I suppose.

 

[Tryzon]

-snip-

Honestly I only read the BioShock, HL2, GTA4, and Doom3 ones because I've actually played those, but anyway I agree with you a bit on GTA4. The others I disagree but I suppose I could be blinded by a slight nostalgia factor for Doom since it is a beloved game of mine.

I am intrigued in your other posts, since I've been reading the comments and in your words this is one that is inferior to the others.

It's inferior in that I'm not as experienced with being negative. I'm an easy-going guy generally, but like I said to someone else, I tend to get very passionate when I do hate something. Don't get me started on what happened when I heard they were remaking Total Recall. HERESY!

 

[Tryzon]

Agree with GTA4 - it's an impressive technical achievement, but nowhere near as fun as Vice City. They should have realized that they were going a bit too far off course with San Andreas, and then went fully overboard in 4.

Disagree with KOTOR - It's an RPG, the leveling/item/party composition/combat system is more or less what you'd expect to get into with an RPG. Don't expect smooth combat. Also the movement was slow enough to see what you were doing in closer quarters and indoor areas - once you're outdoors, use the "force speed" power - that's what it's there for!

...I do feel a bit daft for never thinking of trying force speed. I assumed it just gave you more turns in combat. Anyway, I know how RPGs work, and that was my complaint: collecting stuff isn't fun for me in KotOR like it is in Morrowind and such, just because I could hardly ever tell what I was getting. Plus I was an evil git, so money wasn't terribly hard to come by.

At least we agree that Vice City is the ultimate GTA experience

 

[Gabanuka]

While I do not agree with what you say I will fight to the death your right to say it.