With the success of the Hollywood movies, the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise is enjoying the most success it has had in its 30-year lifespan, especially with the newly released Sonic Origins. The package is a remastered collection of the first three games in the series, and while that's a dream come true for most '90s kids, it's lost on a few others who think the games are criminally overrated.
But the Sonic games aren't the only ones that gamers think are overrated, especially when it comes to AAA releases. Whether it's online first-person shooters, the gold standard of open-world gaming, or releases that focus more on story than gameplay, Redditors are a hard bunch to please.
Prince Of Persia: The Forgotten Times (2010)
Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands is a direct sequel to the crown jewel in the series, The Sands of Time. So it's no surprise that the game is considered something of a return to form for the franchise. However, Merlaak has some huge criticisms about the movie, including that players can't die, that there isn't much combat, and that collecting Light Seeds is a lazy way to progress through the game.
The Redditor adds, "I feel like the reviewers must have been playing a different game than I did. The only thing the game has going for it is the visuals. The game is beautiful." But given that it's the last proper game in the series, it was a great end to the franchise, though it'll no doubt pale in comparison to the Sands of Time remake that's in development.
Borderlands (2009)
Borderlands has become one of the most beloved game franchises today, especially when it comes to online play, as 2K Games is constantly updating the games and adding more and more downloadable content. And it all started with the original 2009 release, which had a unique sci-fi aesthetic that made it so fun to play.
But Daredood wasn't as satisfied as others, arguing, "I was super hyped about it when it came out. Played it for a few days (excitedly,) then just lost interest in it, and have not touched it since." However, it doesn't sound like the user even got past the offline story, and while that element of any game is important, Borderlands is a party game more than any other first-person shooter. The game is so much better with friends or online, and it has become an onling staple.
BioShock (2007)
The only good thing that Thilehoffer has to say about BioShock, the 2007 first-person adventure horror, is that it wasn't awful. The Redditor explains, "This game was scored a perfect 10 on many sites. I felt like my character was two feet tall. It wasn't awful, but I just didn't feel the immersion factor that all the critics raved about."
BioShock isn't so much a gamer's game, as it's soaked in the underwater world aesthetic and focuses more on world-building than it does gameplay. While the gameplay did improve in its sequels, it's almost secondary to everything else in the original game. And, in that respect, it's understandable why some might not love it as much as others. Regardless, the game is a totally immersive experience and comes with a mind-blowing plot twist, and it's one of the most-wanted video game remakes.
Grand Theft Auto IV (2008)
Grand Theft Auto IV was another game that was awarded 10s across the board, as the first GTA game on the 7th generation of consoles was a huge leap in open-world gaming. But a deleted user didn't take kindly to the game, arguing, "GTA IV is the highest-rated game for Xbox 360 on Metacritic... For a clunky and unfun single-player experience (if you can call it that) that's way too high.
In fairness, while Rockstar is the gold standard when it comes to building open-world games, the fourth GTA game was surprisingly lacking in some areas, and players were extremely limited compared to the previous game, GTA: San Andreas. The world was much smaller, players couldn't purchase property, and it simply didn't feel like much of a sandbox. But between having the series' best storyline and the realistic car physics, some think the 2008 release is the best GTA game.
The Sims (2000)
The Sims is one of the most famous simulation games, as it had players create their characters before leaving them to figure out the Sims life on their own and fail miserably along the way, just like in real life. Punchymcpunch is a huge critic of the game, calling it "One of the biggest games ever, and it's utterly lame."
The easy argument to make against the game is that players could easily live their real lives instead of playing a simulator that literally requires them to carry out household chores, clean themselves, and go to work. In that respect, the game is sometimes more mundane than real life. But it's still fun to live vicariously through the weird virtual people, and gamers can waste hours upon hours building their dream houses. And there are definitely worse simulator video games out there.
Portal (2007)
Though Portal 2 is considered one of the best puzzle games of the 21st Century, the first game isn't far behind. The game is a mind-bending first-person puzzle game with completely original mechanics. However, Macinslash doesn't think the game is as great as everyone thinks it is. The Redditor comments, "Alright, I'll be that guy. I played through the whole thing, but I don't get why everybody loves it so much."
Portal's hilarious quotes have been memed to death at this point, which might be why some players might feel fatigued by the game, but there's no denying how innovative it was. And while the first Portal game is only around four hours long, it still isn't lacking when it comes to value for money. Portal is just one of three games included in The Orange Box, which was a single release. The other two games are Half-Life 2: Episode 2 and Team Fortress 2, all of which could easily be sold as individual full-priced releases.
Fallout 3 (2008)
Bethesda is known for developing two of the most beloved open-world RPGs, one is the mythical Elder Scrolls series, and the other is the post-apocalyptic Fallout series. Fallout 3 was a huge step for the franchise, as it featured a massive open wasteland the players were free to roam around in, but Drtyfrnk thinks that was part of the problem.
The Redditor posits, "I just couldn't get into it. Trekking across a barren wasteland that took 15-20 minutes to get across, just to get killed because I wandered into a place that I didn't know I shouldn't have gone to." Ironically, the Fallout series has seen better days lately, as the most recent releases like Fallout 76 were criticized for being broken, and anybody who enjoys them would think they're criminally underrated.
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (2009)
While the newly released Uncharted movie adaptation uses the airplane sequence from Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, and most of the narrative is taken from Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, it's the 2009 game that most fans think is best. Among Thieves is the crown jewel in the series, as it builds on what was great about the original game, but A deleted user didn't understand the hype.
The Redditor explains, "I just don't get it, doesn't climb as good as Assassin's Creed 2, doesn't fight as good as Arkham Asylum, and doesn't shoot as good as Gears of War 2. Shallow story, linear gameplay." While the user has a point, those games don't feature all the different styles of gameplay that Uncharted 2 does. And even then, Arkham Asylum's fighting mechanics would be totally out of place in an Uncharted game.
The Tekken Series
CaspianX2 takes aim at the Tekken video game series, and they simply don't get the appeal of the simplistic gameplay. The Redditor notes, "I just don't see the attraction to this series. Virtua Fighter has the super-complex technical gameplay, DOA has a nicely-balanced PRS system, and Soul Calibur has a little bit of everything... what the hell does Tekken have to offer?"
Of all the beat 'em up games, the Tekken series is one of the most fun, but it's also one of the most accessible, as there isn't as steep of a learning curve as there is in games like Street Fighter. That also means that the game encourages button mashing, meaning that there's no skill to it. So the user has a point, but it's still one of the most popular fighting video games.
Sonic The Hedgehog
Whether it's Xbox players vs. Playstation players or SEGA vs. Nintendo, gamers have always had feuds and point blank turned their noses up at the other consoles' exclusive games. That seems to be the case with Dstew74, as they seemingly think Sonic the Hedgehog was overrated simply because it was on SEGA Genesis.
The Redditor bluntly puts it, "Sonic. I already had a Nintendo." But the Redditor now has another chance to enjoy the game series. The universally lauded first three games have been remastered and repackaged as Sonic Origins for the blue hedgehog's 30th anniversary, which is available on every console.