Don't Believed the Hype! (Over-Hyped Games)

[lnterSteIIa]

So Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 just came out. Last Tuesday, the game took the glory for giving XBox Live it's highest count of players ever with over two million players online. Every major magazine & review site has been giving the game high praise and "Game of the Year" nominations. So when my roommate decided to get it for his PS3, I had some pretty high expectations.

Turns out, my expectations were blown way out of proportion. What was presented to me as something groundbreaking by the gaming press turned out to be a game so underwhelming I actually had to wonder if I was playing the same game at a few points. The single player experience presents a story told in vague fragments of dialogue heard over a montage of satellite imagery. What must've been a great "cinematic experience" to all those game reviewers felt more like a bad Micheal Bey movie to me.

Then there's the airport level. A scene that seems there just for the sake of shock value as it bears very little, if any, real importance to the gist of the outrageous story. The fact that this level can be skipped is proof of that. And with the scrutiny of certain congressmen on the gaming industry's back, do we really need content like this in big-name games? Sorry, Adam Sessler. I'm gonna' have to differ with you on this one. There's no way I can defend this level in the name of gaming "as an artform."

Naturally, people will say the multiplayer action is really what makes this game. However, I think that argument can be made about any current-gen FPS these days. There's always exceptions, but the vast majority of gamers who buy first person shooters aren't getting them to play through the story a few times own their own. They're getting them to play with other players over and over again. So the multiplayer aspect of these games better be good if it's going to complete with the competion, which is pretty stiff in the FPS genre.

How is the multiplayer on Modern Warfare 2? Mediocre, at best, I'd say. It's greatest strength is in the variety of ways to customize your soldier. Lots of things to unlock in that department. And the perks are definitely incentive to keep playing. The gameplay itself seemed so dry to me, though. Expect to die a lot. Instantly and without warning in many cases. Sure, it might be realistic, but is it really fun? And the matches are small, too - A maximum of only eighteen players on a map aint' much compared to what other games have offered. (60 on Resistance 2.)

This is all, of course, just my humble opinion ....

Long story short, I think the hype machine was working overtime for this game. If this is the Game of the Year, 2009 must have suffered a dry season. I know I'm not the only one to have been disappointed by over-hyped games .... So lets help each other by pointing out the games we think were seriously overhyped!

Have you played anything lately that you think got WAY too much praise by the media? TELL US ABOUT IT!  

[lnterSteIIa]

confused

Or nevermind.  

[User_2629207]

"Seriousness is the refuge of the shallow."

Assassin's Creed. The first one, that is. There's a distinct line between freeroaming and aimless bullshit, and that game pretty much threw itself over it. Hopefully the sequel is better, haven't played it yet but since it's in Venice I'll probably be happy either way.

- Oscar Wilde.

 

[lnterSteIIa]

And Assasin's Creed had a horribly anti-climatic ending, didn't it?

I've seen some of it's gameplay and Assasin's Creed 2 looks pretty solid. Haven't played it myself, but the majority consensus is that it's a pretty good improvement over the first one.

... But don't believe the hype. wink  

[The_Martyr]

Gears of War. I bought it because it was cheap and I had heard a lot of good things. I played it and it was just horrible in my opinion. I just... I didn't like it. At all. In the least... In response to the Assassin's Creed/AC2 thing, AC1 was good but repetitive, but I think it deserved the praise it got. And AC2 is absolutely amazing. I'm on my 3rd play through of it. I'm just wishing it was a lot longer than it was.

 

[Starlight Dragon]

Woh you didn't like Gears of War? I love that game! Hmm I guess each to their own....certain games aren't for everyone sweatdrop

For me it's Prince of Persia...everyone was telling me what fantastic games they are so I tried out Sands of Time....Wow I was bored out of my mind. Beating the game was a chore.  

[loren_aries]

I gotta say as far as over hyped games go.. I think it was fable two that let me down the most.

Now don't get me wrong.. I love lionhead, and I really really enjoyed playing fable. However the ending leaves little to no replay ability, I mean the ending was so bitterly anticlimactic I actually didn't believe it was the end until the credits were rolling. I put my xbox controller down, ejected the disc, put it back on the shelf, and did not touch it again for 6 months.  

[ji-an]

The hype about final fantasy 7 is the one I don't believe. I played it and it didn't really appeal to me.  

[Rualeen]

S a f f r o n S u g a r

"Seriousness is the refuge of the shallow."

Assassin's Creed. The first one, that is. There's a distinct line between freeroaming and aimless bullshit, and that game pretty much threw itself over it. Hopefully the sequel is better, haven't played it yet but since it's in Venice I'll probably be happy either way.

- Oscar Wilde.

Yeah the first one sucked, but I like the second one though I don't really know why though. Just a lot more options and a better story I think. Hate the races though stare  

[User_2629207]

ji-an

The hype about final fantasy 7 is the one I don't believe. I played it and it didn't really appeal to me.

"Seriousness is the refuge of the shallow."

I keep hearing people rave about it all the friggin' time, but I kind of loathe cloud so I don't really feel the need to play it...

- Oscar Wilde.

 

[Starlight Dragon]

S a f f r o n S u g a r

ji-an

The hype about final fantasy 7 is the one I don't believe. I played it and it didn't really appeal to me.

"Seriousness is the refuge of the shallow."

I keep hearing people rave about it all the friggin' time, but I kind of loathe cloud so I don't really feel the need to play it...

- Oscar Wilde.

I'm someone who actually really likes FF7 and I agree how overhyped it is. So many people hype it up to be the best game ever created..... wow it's far from that.  

[ji-an]

S a f f r o n S u g a r

"Seriousness is the refuge of the shallow."

Assassin's Creed. The first one, that is. There's a distinct line between freeroaming and aimless bullshit, and that game pretty much threw itself over it. Hopefully the sequel is better, haven't played it yet but since it's in Venice I'll probably be happy either way.

- Oscar Wilde.

I agree with this one.  

[ms j-ren]

Fable 3. It wasn't bad but it was even shorter than the first two and I myself didn't find the replay value to be high at all. Definitely a renter.  

[Silhouette Covered In Red]

I attempted to play Shadow of the Colossus... didn't work out too well. The storyline is great, but I hated actually playing the game. Not to sound whiny or whatever, but it's really difficult to connect with the main character on both an emotional and a "physical" level... as in I can't relate to him and it's really friggin hard to make him do what I want him to do.

Sounds like my first boyfriend ;D