Though 2024 was a quieter yr for giant releases, it nonetheless had some improbable video games. However, on the different finish of the spectrum, it had its fair proportion of stinkers too. In fact, evaluations are and at all times have been goal critiques and no matter you may consider a recreation is your personal opinion. You may need even performed and loved a few of the video games on this listing – all of us have responsible pleasures, proper? However truthfully, there have been some actually unhealthy video games launched in 2024 that we undoubtedly advocate you keep away from…
5 – Mediocre
IGN’s official overview scale, fives are thought of ‘Mediocre’ video games – the “sort of bland, unremarkable video games we’ve largely forgotten a couple of day after we end enjoying.” They’re removed from the worst video games on the listing and aren’t even essentially “unhealthy” (that’s 4s and decrease), however you’re going to must work onerous to get any actual enjoyable out of them..
As probably the most populous rating on this listing, you’ll discover quite a lot of completely different video games. There are video games like Slitterhead, an absurd action-horror recreation from a crew of ex-Silent Hill veterans the place people should fend off parasitic monsters. Sounds enjoyable however sadly it’s simply boring. Equally, Terminator: Darkish Destiny – Defiance takes the struggle in opposition to Skynet (nice!) and turns it right into a mediocre RTS (not so nice).
There was additionally a string of bland technique video games like Millennia, which our reviewer known as “Civilization at residence” after the McDonald’s at residence meme; Sins of a Photo voltaic Empire 2, which is a lacklustre sequel to the 2008 4x recreation in house; and Homeworld: Huge Reaches. To not be confused with Homeworld 3, Huge Reaches is as a substitute a method recreation constructed for VR, however feels extra like a tech demo than a full recreation.
There have been additionally a number of disappointments that acquired a 5. Video games many people have been eagerly trying ahead to solely to be let down by the ultimate product. The First Descendant is a gorgeous-looking live-service shooter that sadly is extra seems than substance, and the Till Daybreak remake barely justified its existence over the superb choose-your-own-adventure horror recreation unique.
Developer Supermassive Video games didn’t have higher luck on The Casting of Frank Stone, a Useless by Daylight spinoff primarily based round one of many killers from the favored on-line horror recreation. The sub-six-hour horror journey is hardly scary and provides nothing to the lore of Useless by Daylight in accordance with our reviewer.
The viral hit Bodycam – which captivated audiences due to a trailer that includes super-realistic graphics that appeared like footage from a police bodycam – was additionally extra sizzle than steak because the precise recreation was nothing near what we noticed within the trailer.
Maybe most noteworthy is Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, which was additionally one of many first 5s IGN handed out this yr. We waited nearly a decade for a brand new recreation from Batman Arkham builders Rocksteady, and sadly the wait was not value it. Many have been already bummed to listen to Rocksteady was not growing a brand new Batman recreation however fairly a Suicide Squad recreation, however that would have had potential given how enjoyable and zany these characters are. It might have been Rocksteady’s likelihood to unfold its wings and transfer away from the grimdark Arkham-verse and go for a extra colourful route. However finally what we bought was sort of a letdown, let’s be trustworthy.
Forgoing the single-player goodness of the Batman video games, Rocksteady ventured into the world of live-service with a squad-based looter-shooter wherein gamers and associates crew up as members of the Suicide Squad like Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, and King Shark. Sadly there simply wasn’t sufficient of something to makeSuicide Squad satisfying. The beloved fight from the Arkham video games was fully absent, swapping crunchy melee for running-flying-shooting gameplay that felt okay, nothing extra. Even looter-shooter followers would discover the missions in Suicide Squad repetitive and bland. A forgettable expertise from the adorned builders at Rocksteady.
One other large miss was Mario & Luigi: Brothership. The latest entry into the Mario & Luigi collection developed particularly for the Nintendo Swap “misunderstands what made the Mario & Luigi collection nice,” in accordance with IGN’s reviewer. The primary unique Mario RPG to be launched this yr alongside remakes of Tremendous Mario RPG and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Yr Door, Brothership has none of their appeal and loads of drawbacks such because the “ridiculously chatty dialogue, overbearing hand-holding, and boring, runtime padding fetch quests.” Bummer.
Rounding out the remainder of the 5s is Take a look at Drive Limitless Photo voltaic Crown, whose unique spearheaded the idea of on-line MMO racing video games, however this sequel fully ignores any single-player content material in favor of an annoying online-only technique. There’s additionally a brand new SpongeBob Squarepants: The Patrick Star Recreation, which tries to revive the traditional mascot platformer to middling impact, whereas Unknown 9: Awakening was a “routine motion journey recreation that in all probability wouldn’t blow me away even when it was effectively executed,” in accordance with our overview. And let’s not neglect Kong: Survivor Intuition, a bizarre Metroidvania-style recreation wherein you play as a human making an attempt to outlive in a metropolis that Kong is destroying
One recreation that was a private disappointment was Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed, a brand new recreation primarily based on the animated movie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. Given the standard of previous TMNT video games and the standard of the animated movie that is primarily based on, the ensuing recreation was sadly far in need of both.
4 – Dangerous
With the 5s out of the way in which, let’s make our approach to the genuinely unhealthy video games. Actually, our overview scale qualifies video games that obtain a 4 as “unhealthy.” There are solely three that acquired this distinction this yr so let’s spend our time going by means of every of them.
Damaged Roads was the primary recreation in 2024 to obtain a 4. This turn-based RPG set in post-apocalyptic Australia tried to ship a extra severe RPG expertise full with an bold morality system the place gamers resolve who lives and who dies. Slightly than selecting one of many typical ethical alignments like lawful good or impartial evil, Damaged Roads offers gamers a full questionnaire that determines your beliefs in extremely particular methods. However the issue is, exterior of the questionnaire the system hardly issues.
Per our overview, “There are only a few conversations involving an ethical alternative within the first place, and also you’re locked out of just about all different conversations when you’ve began down a given alignment path, leaving no alternatives to strive one thing drastically completely different later.”
As fascinating as a extremely particular morality system is, what good is it if the sport doesn’t put it to any use? Even worse, the extra you play the quicker you notice that Damaged Roads is generally full of a bunch of fetch quests interrupted by exhausting dialogue. No thanks.
One other recreation that acquired a 4 is Limitless Ocean Luminous, a remake of the unique Limitless Ocean first launched on the Nintendo Wii. It’s a scuba diving journey recreation wherein every mission entails diving right into a procedurally generated space of the ocean, to catalogue its varied sea creatures and landmarks. Sadly, all of this turns into repetitive and, frankly, boring actual quick.
The procedurally generated maps start to look strikingly comparable to one another nearly instantly, and with out an enormous number of missions or goals, you’re successfully going from one a part of the ocean to the subsequent, cataloguing creatures till you hit your objective and transfer on to the subsequent map. Then you definitely repeat for hours. Our reviewer performed about 26 hours of the sport and have been nonetheless not near beating it – perhaps that’s why it’s known as Limitless Ocean – and the kicker is that it was boring for many of that point..
The ultimate recreation to obtain a 4 was one you little question noticed trailers for. I’m speaking about Funko Fusion, an journey recreation the place you journey by means of some of popular culture’s largest films and TV reveals, the twist being you’re enjoying because the Funko Pops from these varied worlds.
Funko Fusion is finest in comparison with the LEGO video games, that are easy however gratifying 3D platformers primarily based on widespread bricks. However Funkos don’t have the identical appeal as LEGO and Funko Fusion is nowhere close to nearly as good as even a few of the worst LEGO video games. The story is all however meaningless, the mission design is repetitive, and you may’t overlook the game-breaking bugs that can cease your progress as an alternative.
Three – Terrible
The excellent news is that IGN didn’t award any 2s or 1s this yr. Truly, we haven’t given a recreation a 1 since 2009, however that’s neither right here nor there. The unhealthy information is there are three video games we gave a 3 to, which in our scale means they’re “Terrible.”
The primary is Atomic Coronary heart’s Trapped in Limbo DLC. It’s the second of Atomic Coronary heart’s two DLCs and takes place after the occasions of the primary recreation, and is stricken by two godawful gameplay mechanics.
The primary requires gamers to slip for actually lengthy stretches of time, avoiding obstacles and leaping when required. Our reviewer described this specific section “like enjoying Tony Hawk with a damaged ollie button, and the half-pipe is mined.”
Subsequent, the DLC launched first-person platform segments however sadly Atomic Coronary heart simply wasn’t designed for exact, first-person leaping, making them a painful slog proper up till the tip, which doesn’t take lengthy to get to contemplating how brief this DLC is.
Do you keep in mind there was a brand new South Park recreation this yr? Me neither, but it surely’s in all probability for the most effective. South Park: Snow Day is the third South Park recreation in a collection that includes Obsidian’s wonderful South Park: The Stick of Fact, and the equally good South Park: The Fractured however Complete, each of which have been enjoyable RPGs primarily based on the favored cartoon.
Snow Day ditches the RPG style and is as a substitute a 3D hack-and-slash, which wouldn’t be a lot of a difficulty if it weren’t for the way awkward and clumsy the controls are. Worse nonetheless, Snow Day additionally ditches the one factor the animated collection is liked for: the humor.
Per our overview, South Park: Snow Day options “appallingly flat writing [that] makes an already unhealthy recreation not even value pushing by means of for a number of laughs.”
Our remaining 3 of the yr was handed out to Empire of the Ants’ single-player marketing campaign. An actual-time technique recreation the place gamers management a colony of ants, this 12-hour journey is sadly a far cry from its potential.
Whereas the trailer showcased hyper-realistic ants shifting in real-time, it’s apparent much more time was spent on the way it seems fairly than the way it feels to play. With an issue curve that goes from straightforward to unattainable within the blink of an eye fixed, the marketing campaign is an train in ache tolerance as one second you’re mind-numbingly bored combating straightforward enemies, earlier than immediately discovering your self defending your nest in opposition to a seemingly unattainable wave of enemy ants. And with out the flexibility to save lots of mid-mission, failure means you’re ranging from the start. No thanks.
And there you will have it –these are the worst reviewed video games of the yr in accordance. You should definitely take a look at our Finest Reviewed Video games listing right here as a palette cleanser, and tell us if you happen to performed any of the video games on this listing and the way you’re feeling about them.
Matt Kim is IGN’s Senior Options Editor. You may attain him @lawoftd.
