A lot of games have been announced for a 2012 release date, and big games at that. Already, it’s looking like a wonderful year for gaming, with more announcements obviously coming our way some time in the future. However, as past experiences have taught us, not all highly anticipated games are always as good as we expect them to be, even if they are good. Last year, games like Dragon Age II, Brink, Duke Nukem Forever and the like disappointed us. Hopefully, we won’t have to see more disappointments this year, but there are some games that might turn out to be disapppointing, based on the information we have on them, the form the developers have been in or what we have seen of the games so far.
So here’s a list of 10 games coming out this year that we certainly look forward, but might just turn out to be disappointing.
Remember, we’re not saying the games will disappointing, just that there’s a chance they might be. Also, we’re in no way hating on the games listed below, or the developers either. We’re looking forward to each one of these games with great anticipation. So keep this in mind before you bring forth your hate comments.
So enjoy, and give us your feedback in the comments section below.
Mass Effect 3
Mass Effect 3 is probably the most anticipated game of 2012. Considering just how good Mass Effect 2 was and how much better Mass Effect 3 looks to be, the hype is certainly not unjustified. By all means, the game definitely should not be disappointing. But given the circumstances surrounding BioWare right now, there’s a chance it might be. There’s a lot of pressure on BioWare Vancouver, the developers of Mass Effect 3. Being the follow up to what is considered by many to be one of the best games of this generation, a lot is riding on Mass Effect 3. Obviously, the pressure can take a toll on the developers, and they might do something stupid while trying to optimize the game as much as they can. It’s happened before, and it can definitely happen right now. BioWare Vancouver being one of the best development teams around these days, there’s very little chance of that happening, but there is a chance nonetheless.
Then there’s the fact that the story files that were leaked a little time back showed a narrative for the game that was, well… disappointing, to say the least. Fans were outraged at the poor writing, saying that it felt more like a poorly written Mass Effect fan fiction. BioWare have, of course, decided to take that feedback into account and change the story accordingly, but there’s a huge chance the final narrative will still be disappointing. Everything we’ve seen of the game so far definitely looks impressive- very impressive-, but all taking all these facts into account, there’s a chance that Mass Effect 3 might not be as good as we’re expecting it to be.
Final Fantasy XIII-2
Oh come on, you all expected this to be on this list. The Final Fantasy franchise has been going downhill ever since Final Fantasy XII. Final Fantasy XIII was good, but disappointing after all was said and done, and we’d rather not talk about the buggy, glitchy abomination Square likes to call Final Fantasy XIV. Final Fantasy XIII-2 does look to fix all the mistakes that Square made with its direct predecessor, but it’s hard to put the disappointment that was FF13 behind us so easily. Admittedly, yes, Final Fantasy XIII-2 does look very good, and it seems like Square have managed to fix most of the flaws in 13, but it’s still Final Fantasy, and these days, that means we will all have to be cautious. The game, while looking very good, still doesn’t feel as Final Fantasy-y as we’d want it to, and the fact that even the Japanese market is not buying it in the huge numbers they bought previous Final Fantasy games- even 13- must mean something.
There’s obviously something the game isn’t doing right. Or maybe it’s just the brand image. But the Japanese audience has been criticizing several elements of the game. It could be that the game is trying to appeal to the western audiences, and the Japanese players might not like that. So there’s a chance that we will like the game, but, as I said before, everyone’s approaching this one with caution.
Halo 4
We have seen nothing of Halo 4. We don’t know nothing about it, what it’s story will be focusing on, or what the hell it will be like at all. But we all know why it’s made it to this list. 343 Industries is an absolutely new development team. With Bungie leaving Microsoft to publish games with EA, Microsoft has handed the development of the Halo franchise to 343 Industries. But we all have tons of doubt. Will the game be built in the spirit of the franchise, or will it turn into another mindless shooter, following Call of Duty in its footsteps? We already know 343 will be making some changes, but how radical will they be? What will the story focus on? Will Master Chief turn into a brooding, bulky, generic protagonist? Will the game be any good at all?
Of course, the team at 343 does seem to be capable of handling the franchise well- they managed to remake the original Halo perfectly, and yet, somehow kept it relative to today’s market. But then again, they already had a foundation- more than just a foundation- for that game. With Halo 4, they’re gonna have to start from scratch? So how good will the game be? It’s hard to say right now.
Max Payne 3
After a long, long hiatus, Max Payne is returning. And he’s bald. But he’s back. With no hair.
That’s not the point, though. Developers Rockstar have revealed plenty of information on the game, including some new features, a multiplayer component, and what the game’s narrative will basically revolve around. It looks pretty good, even the multiplayer. Somehow, Rockstar has managed to bring Max Payne up to date with the current market and yet still keep its “spirit” intact. Or so it seems. After such a long pause in the franchise, there’s bound to be some mistakes when it makes a return. Not only do the developers, like BioWare, seem to be under a lot of pressure, there’s also the fact that the developers of the original two games are not working on this one to be taken into account.
I think we need to see some more footage of the game, some new info before we can make up our minds about it. It definitely looks good, but there’s a high chance it might just turn out to be disappointing.
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