3 – Star Wars Battlefront II
It seemed like Star Wars Battlefront II had everything going for it. The hype-inducing trailers just increased the anticipation for the latest game in the Star Wars series, and every tidbit of information seemed to point to its success. At least, it did, until everything seemed to fall apart with its release last month. Many were upset about the pay-to-play model EA set in place, and despite the fact that the microtransactions have indefinitely been put on pause, Battlefront II has the lowest user score on Metacritic of any game this console generation. Although EA made a better effort with Battlefront II, with more content, better graphics, etc., there’s no denying that Battlefront II’s sales have suffered and that in itself is more than disappointing.
2 – Agents of Mayhem
Despite the popularity of the Saints Row series, Agents of Mayhem was supposed to be the spin-off that would breathe life back into the lovable franchise. Early impressions made it seem like Volition would use their tried and true formula of the Saints Row franchise, and make it new with Agents of Mayhem. Â Unfortunately, with repetitive gameplay and missed opportunities to delve deeper into each of the characters, Agents of Mayhem simply fails to live up to its hype or potential. With hugely successful open world titles this year, like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey, the way Volition executed open world within Agents of Mayhem falls flat. Instead of having a world that beckons you to explore, this just leaves you wanting more.
1 – Mass Effect Andromeda
Mass Effect Andromeda was one of the most anticipated titles of the year, yet it is now being called the killer of the Mass Effect franchise. While this may be a harsh sentiment, it’s not without reason. The original Mass Effect trilogy is held in the highest regard by fans worldwide, so when Bioware announced a brand new space adventure, anticipation soared. Unfortunately, Mass Effect Andromeda simply failed to live up the hype, or the critical acclaim set by the three previous titles. Although Andromeda is a good game overall and reviewed quite well, it has struggled to reach its sales targets, despite regular price drops. Currently, less than a year after its launch, it is available for less than $20 USD on Amazon. From the moment it launched, Andromeda was criticized for its awful facial animations and technical issues. Although Bioware continued to release patches and fixes to Andromeda for a few months, after 5 short months they confirmed they would no longer be updating the game in any way. If that doesn’t say that Bioware wants to forget that Mass Effect Andromeda even existed, I don’t know what does.
What do you think? Are there any games that didn’t quite make the list that you felt should have?