14 Awful Examples of Padding In Video Games

Video games can be an absolute rollercoaster of a ride when developers have a good understanding of how to control the pace of the experience. But this is easier said than done, and sometimes even the best of developers (intentionally or otherwise) overlook significant portions of the game that do nothing but artificially bloat the campaign with uninteresting activities. This is commonly referred to as padding, and we will be talking about 14 terrible instances of the same in this feature.

Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain – Repeat Missions

Metal Gear Solid 5 is a great game where you can spend dozens upon dozens of hours just tinkering around with the sandbox and its many systems, but there’s little argument to the fact that the game is excessively padded out when it comes to the missions in Chapter 2. Many missions in the last chapter are rehashed missions from before, but players now have to complete those missions with brutal challenges tacked on which can quickly turn into frustration as you try to satisfy the new clear conditions. Granted these can be satisfying for some players but given that the story ends randomly, these repeat missions stick out as a sore thumb. Those familiar with the game’s turbulent development cycle might know why this otherwise great game has been padded out, but it doesn’t really soften the blow of it regardless.