10 Disappointing Video Games That Never Lived Up To The Hype

Marketing can often make or break any video game. No matter how good, raising awareness about a game before it’s released is the surefire method companies have used for decades to ensure any new release is an instant hit.

While many games live up to the promises sold by huge billboards and epic TV commercials, several highly anticipated titles have sadly never lived up to the hype and legendary status built around them. before their release.

As a result, they are a huge disappointment to casual and hardcore gamers, as well as reviewers who have all been underplayed compared to the developers’ initial promises. In some cases, the damage from subpar games that failed to live up to the hype was enough to kill entire franchises and all potential sequels to what should have been classic games.

Technical issues can also be heavily responsible for killing the hype. This has come to the fore in recent years, with some primarily online games having massive server issues at launch, preventing players from accessing in-game assets, and thus effectively killing any anticipation around the release.

The oldest game on the list, Duke Nukem Forever from 2011 has a long troubled history. It was the sequel to the hugely popular Duke Nukem 3D released in 1996 which was a pioneer in the 3D first person shooter genre.

Originally announced in 1997, there was so much initial hype for the game, even debuting a massively promising trailer at E3 in 1998 with a promised release the same year. What followed can only be described as pure chaos, as the development team changed game engines several times. Development of the game was even started from scratch in 2006 after years of turmoil.

The game then lingered in development hell for a full period. 14 years old until it was acquired by Gearbox Software, which eventually terminated it. Duke Nukem Forever was then marketed heavily with the launch of several mini-games and online sites to promote such an anticipated release.

Upon launch however, it was quickly hailed as one of the most disappointing and worst games of the year. This was mostly due to obvious signs of its hellish development, including outdated graphics, gameplay, level design, and frankly offensive and outdated humor.