Pokemon Scarlet & Violet has just proven that you can launch a game in a completely broken state and still shift millions of copies. But this is far from the only game 𒁃we&rsꦍquo;ve been guilty of giving a pass.
This week, we look back on the games that w🦩ere released in awful states, but we couldn’t help but fall in love with regardless. What’s your favourite game with the worst launch?
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl
Rhiannon Bevan, News Editor
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Shining Pearl gave me everything I wanted from a Gen 4 remake - a pretty makeover, increased speed, and pretty much nothing else. There is a very valid argument to be had that it was priced too high for what it was, but that was drowned out by complaints of bugs and a general lack of polish. Despite the sheer amount of backlash, I didn’t get any of this in my playthrough, and had a blast reliving the good ‘ol days in Sinnoh. Like yeah, I know it was so broken that 168澳洲幸运5开奖♌网:speedrunners managed to beat it in mere 𝄹minutes not long after launch, but even that felt nostalgic. Even if it didn’t put its best 🅺foot forward ꧟on release day, this is my second favourite Pokemon remake, only behind the legendary Heart Gold & Soul Silver.
New World
Harry Alston, Senior Specialist Writer
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:New World had an explosive launch, hitting one million active players within a week. From the💝re it spiralled down, down, down, until earlier this year the game found a resurgence with the Brimstone Sands update. It was a shoddy launch—the game needed at least a few more months in the tank, although I think they should’ve waited another year. The hype machine was their downfall and after already postponing the game multiple times, they fell for an age-old trap and released it far too soon. Thankfully, the dedicated team of developers have continued to make savvy changes to the game. I now rank it up there with one of my favourite MMOs to jump into for a weekend of crafting and socialising.
Destiny
Lex Luddy, Junior Editor
It is almost hard to remember now but there was a time were saying Destiny was terrible wasn’t a very controversial opinion. After years of rumours and anticipation Bungie, the developer that made Halo, and that revolutionized FPSs forever, finally released a new game. This was a game Activision promised would be a living breathing 10-year MMO and, well, everyone that played the campaign fಌor six or so hours and had seen everything. Despite, this and despite most of my time with the game in 2014 mainly being me grinding the same few strikes over and over, or running around planets collecting materials over, and over, and ov𒁃er, I absolutely loved it.
A big part of this is because even though there wasn’t much there, this was my first time not only with a multiplayer shooter but with an MMO. This was where I met my first friends through a Looking For Group Reddit, where I partook in my first raid, and lived in a really lived-in universe for a while. It was content 🎐light, but I didn’t care, I was living in a different worlಞd for a while.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection
Amanda Hurych, Evergreen Content Lead
Conceptually, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Master Chief Collection is a brilliant idea. Gathering all of the Halo games in one spot is a dream come true for a fan like me. But damn was that launch so sour. The matchmaking took hours. Nothing seemed to load, especially if you tried to customize and filter what sort of game you wanted t🤪o play. I was still pumped to own it, but I recognize its disastrous launch. Nowadays though, the MCC is chef’s kiss perfection. It has all the major Halo games ever released except for Halo 💎5: Guardians and Halo Infinite. It comes complete with Firefight and Spartan Ops. The campaign playlists are a fun way to dip in and out of the different games based on varying themes. And nothing beats dipping in to play CTF on a Halo: Combat Evolved map with a healthy and full player base.
Cyberpunk 2077
Justin Reeve, News Editor
I can’t really think of a worse launch than 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Cyberpunk 2077. This particular title was actually released in such a sad state that I didn’t even bother to pick up the game, several positive reviews notwithstanding. I gave this one a go about a year later when most of the bugs and glitches were patched out, something which I don’t regret doing because the game t✨urned out to be one of my favorites, at least in recent memory. Cyberpunk 2077 comes with a great cast of interesting characters and some surprisingly strong storytelling that touches on a few fascinating themes like love, life, and social belonging. I recommend playing the game at least once if you haven’t already.
Gran Turismo Sport
Lu-Hai Liang, News Editor
The first 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Gran Turismo game to arrive on the PS4 had a maligned launch with reviewers criticising the Polyphony title for a lack of content. Sport lacked much in its career mode, didn’t have so many cars and race tracks, and worst of al𒆙l, the touted Sport’s side to it, the online multiplayer, seemed half-baked. But over years the game steadily expanded until it became a much fuller experience. Luckily, I jumped into Sport in the waning years of the PS4 so I was treated to the bigger game at a discount since I picked the game up from a secondhand store. To be honest, Gran Turismo 7 suffers from similar problems to Sport and could well be a much better experience as its developer steadily adds content post-launch.
No Man's Sky
David W. Duffy, Evergreen Editor
Everyone knows how notorious the launch of 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:No Man's Sky was. Hyped up beyond belief by the Sony marketing machine, it was easy to see why Sean Murray and his tiny team at Hello Games got caught up in the storm. What many expected was quite possibly the game with the grandest scope ever, and instead what they got was a resource farming sim that lacked the diplos of the trailer. And yet, it was a game I adored — a way for me to get lost in a cathartic gameplay loop that was both bleak and intriguing. It's undergone so many changes and additions since then, and it's still my favourite game, but for many, the launch is best consigned to history.