SHELLSHOCK 2: BLOOD TRAILS

Shellshock 2: Blood Trails is maybe not completely without its redeeming qualities, such as its genuinely creepy atmosphere, but it is, at the same time, also a classic case of a game that is as unfun to play as it is conceptually interesting. Broken shooting mechanics and AI, terrible level design, frustrating controls, you name it- the game was riddled with issues that made it an absolute nightmare to play.

DUKE NUKEM FOREVER

Few games deserve a spot on such lists as much as Duke Nukem Forever do. After spending an interminably long time in development hell and changing developers more times than anyone could keep track of, the long-in-development FPS was brought to market by Gearbox, and it. Was. Awful. As broken and bland in its design as it was dated and abrasive with its writing, with a host of technical issues to boot, Duke Nukem Forever was an unmitigated disaster.

XIII (2020)

The original XIII, back when it first came out, may not have been special by any means, but it certainly didn’t deserve a remake as horrific as the one it got in 2020, which may truly be one of the worst games ever made. 2020’s XIII may have had some cool visual flourishes, but from a mess of technical issues to braindead enemy AI to painfully dull shooting to so, so much more, it was an atrocious time. A major overhaul in 2022 did sand out many of its rough edges, but it’s still a tough game to recommend.

MEDAL OF HONOR: UNDERGROUND (GBA)

We understand that Medal of Honor: Underground came at a time when it was common to see completely different versions of the same game for different platforms- but why the hell would you try to develop an actual first-person shooter for the Game Boy Advance? Unsurprisingly, it did not go well. Medal of Honor: Underground looked awful and was frustratingly limited in the gameplay department in ways that an FPS just cannot afford. Other than as a curious novelty (that stinks like week-old socks), there is no reason for this version of this game to exist.

ALIENS: COLONIAL MARINES

Everything about this game was an absolute dumpster fire. Gearbox and Sega made huge promises in the lead-up to Aliens: Colonial Marines’ launch, but the game itself fell spectacularly short in so many ways. Game-breaking AI issues, crippling technical problems (including a huge visual downgrade), and more combined in an experience that failed to satisfy in any real way. Hell, so bad was Colonial Marines that Sega and Gearbox literally got dragged into court over claims of false advertisement.

ROBOCOP (2003)

Coming after an unusually long development cycle of four years (for the time, at least), Titus Interactive’s RoboCop arrived in 2003 on the back of the promise of an authentic FPS based on the beloved sci-fi property, and roundly failed to deliver on that promise even the teensiest bit. Terrible licensed games were far from a rarity in those days, and given how repetitive, generic, and painfully dull it was, it was no surprise to see RoboCop join that list.

REDFALL

Until not too long ago, it would have been impossible to imagine that the studio behind the original Dishonored and 2017’s Prey would end up delivering one o the worst shooters ever made, but the sad and indisputable fact is that Redfall is that bad. Broken, buggy, and uninspired, it exhibits none of the ingenious design that Arkane is typically known for, all in favour of a co-op looter shooter structure that it also doesn’t do any sort of justice to. On top of ending support for Redfall and cancelling its DLC plans, parent company Microsoft also went on to entirely shutter Arkane Austin, which shall always be this game’s unfortunate and tragic legacy.

BATTLE: LOS ANGELES

Coming back to poorly received licensed games, here’s one that you may not even remember ever existed- which would be a blessing in disguise, because boy is this an awful game. Battle: Los Angeles launched in 2011 and was just as bland and forgettable as the movie it was based on. A shockingly short campaign that lasted under an hour and painfully dull level design and gunplay were just a few of its many glaring issues.

THE WALKING DEAD: SURVIVAL INSTINCT

The Walking Dead as an IP has had its ups and downs in gaming. Survival Instinct definitely falls in the latter category, and may even be so bad that it’s its flag-bearer. Focusing on the Dixon brothers, The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct made thin promises of being a genuinely well-made game, before being roundly criticized by one and all upon launch for being a disappointingly shallow and broken experience, to the point of being downright unplayable.

GOLDENEYE: ROGUE AGENT

Rogue Agent was literally announced with the working title GoldenEye 2 back in the day, but the actual game couldn’t have fallen further from those implied heights. Though it hid some fleeting moments of fun in its innards, there was by and large just too much else that dragged the game down, including uninspired levels, lackluster gunplay, and a nonsensical story that was almost hostile in its disrespect for James Bond canon.

007 LEGENDS

We’ll stick with the man with the license to kill a tad longer, because we can’t really talk about bad Bond games and not mention 007 Legends, which may even be one of the worst games ever made, period. Conceptually, its promise of combining all eras of the Bond movies in a single, anthological experience was an intriguing one, but the game seemed much more interested in instead being a poorly made Call of Duty clone that did not even have the shooting mechanics to back up those ambitions.

TERMINATOR 3: WAR OF THE MACHINES

Also often known as the poor man’s Battlefield 1942, Terminator 3: War of the Machines is a rare example of a game where it’s genuinely hard to come up with legitimate redeeming qualities. In almost every way that mattered, this was a game that came up short in significant ways. It was ugly to look at, its awful level design made it a chore to play, it was riddled with technical issues, its multiplayer was downright broken- and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

FAR CRY VENGEANCE

The Far Cry series has generally maintained an admirable level of quality with its mainline entries over the years, but its spinoff offerings have stumbled in more worse ways. Exhibit A: Far Cry Vengeance, an absolute mess of a remake of a game that wasn’t that great to begin with. Vengeance checked almost none of the boxes that you want a Far Cry game to check, instead coming across as an underwhelming cashgrab with mindlessly repetitive offerings and downright ugly visuals.

ROGUE WARRIOR

How this game was allowed to release in any form, much less as a full-priced $60 release back in the day, will forever remain one of gaming’s greatest mysteries. Releasing in an era that was oversatursated with shooters, Rogue Warrior offered absolutely nothing of value. Rather than focusing on fun shooting and stealth and solid design, the game instead relied on horrible writing and dull mechanics, all delivered in a shockingly short campaign and broken multiplayer modes.

HAZE

Haze was one of several games to be billed as a supposed Halo killer in the lead-up to its release back in the day, and like every single one of them, it did not live up to that billing. On the contrary, in fact, it has rightly gone down as one of the worst games of its era. Though Haze could show fleeting flashes of quality from time to time, it was ultimately far too much of a mess across both its campaign and multiplayer modes to be remembered as anything more than than massive disappointment it was.

All James Bond games to have been published under the Activision banner- Quantum of Solace, developed by Treyarch, 007: Blood Stone developed by the now shut down Bizarre and 007 Legends by the also shut down Eurocom (wow, Treyarch needs to be careful)- have been pulled from Steam altogether- this means that you cannot purchase those gaemes anymore.

And it’s not just Steam, they have been taken off every other digital outlet as well.

Maybe it’s because Activision no longer owns the rights to the James Bond video games, but that wouldn’t mean them having to take their titles off digital distributors, would it?

007 Legends released in November of 2012, and it was panned universally, including here at GamingBolt. Following its critical and commercial failure, the game’s developers, Eurocom, were shut down.

Activision has not yet commented on those games being taken off Steam, but stay tuned, and we will keep you updated.

[Source]

“Today Dean Nelson, from Midlands business advisory firm Smith Cooper, was appointed Administrator of Eurocom Developments Limited, who have been experiencing financial difficulties due to expected contracts being delayed, which has resulted in a severe cash flow shortage,” read a statement from Eurocom earlier today.

“Since 2008, there has been a steep decline in the sales of Console and PC games, which has led to a severe contraction in the number of new games being commissioned from global publishers of entertainment software. The company has also faced intense competition from developers in countries with lower costs or those subsidised with generous games tax credits.

GoldenEye 007- Wii Gameplay

“As a result of pressure from HMRC, the directors of Eurocom filed a Notice of Intention to Appoint an Administrator at Court in order to allow time for attempts to save the Eurocom business. The Administrator and the company’s directors have been negotiating with customers surrounding new contracts to develop console games, however these contracts could not be secured in time and due to insufficient funds to pay outstanding wages, Eurocom today entered Administration.

“As a result, the remaining 42 employees have been made redundant today and the business has ceased to trade after some 25 years, having grown organically to become one of the largest and most prolific independent console games developers worldwide.

“The Directors of Eurocom would like to offer their heartfelt thanks to all their staff that have been made redundant at this difficult time, and show their appreciation of all of their hard work in consistently delivering exceptional games.”

“Whilst this is unfortunately the end of the established Eurocom business, efforts are continuing behind the scenes to attract interested parties to Derby in order to help fill the void left by Eurocom,” said Administrator Dean Nelson. “We are still hopeful that there will in the future be a specialist software business operating in Derby in place of Eurocom, but the focus will be completely different and therefore this is sadly the end of the console games development business.”

Eurocom has developed several notable titles over the years, most of them being James Bond titles. Some of their best games over the years have been 007: Nightfire, The World Is Not Enough, the Wii remake of GoldenEye 007, and the Xbox 360 and PS3 port of that, GoldenEye 007: Reloaded.

It’s a shame to see another studio go down like this. Thanks for all the great games, Eurocom.

[Eurogamer]

With barely functional combat, 007 Legends has the feel, look and rotten stench of a mediocre Call of Duty 4 mod, with vast segments which would’ve looked spectacularly bland back in 2007. Guns have absolutely no weight at all, with no clear distinction between one another, most scenarios can be handled with the stock Walther P99, rendering many of the allegedly more powerful weapons useless. Shotguns cause enemies to flop straight into ragdoll mode in a way so unconvincing it would make a game like Unreal Tournament 2003 red with embarrassment. Bond just doesn’t feel like the razor-sharp killing machine you’d expect, enemies take far too many bullets, resulting in combat feeling more Johnny English than James Bond.

Stealth elements feel similarly ham-handed and largely superfluous, especially when left in the wakes of combat masterclasses from the likes of Dishonored. Upon alerting an enemy of your presence, each instinctively know Bond’s position, haphazardly attempting to shoot through walls, a mere footnote in 007 Legend’s inherently abysmal AI.

With so many opportunities to recreate iconic Bond moments, with appropriate theme music and delicious combat, 007 Legends regularly yanks control away from the player to display lukewarm buckets of cinematic slop, far inferior to those of the films, negating the very purpose 007 Legends is meant to serve in an interactive medium and no amount of sporadically-placed quite-time events will change this.

Gadgets are at best redundant and at worst an irritating means of shattering immersion. Hacking keypads requires flitting back and forth between Bond’s anachronistic deus ex machina smartphone and pad itself, creating frustration and adding to the growing desire to put the game down and do anything else.

The solitary piece of care and attention put into the game itself, aside from the fantastic opening credits, are the likenesses of the Legends themselves, Blofeld is clearly Blofeld, Goldfinger is Goldfinger and Craig is Bond but poor lip-synching makes faces look like the cheap silicon masks bank robbers wear. Combine this with Timothy Watson’s best Tesco Store Manager impression as if Daniel Craig only did it out of cold-calculated contractual obligation and you’ve got yourself a lifeless mess.

Hand-to-hand combat is equally half-hearted, thumbsticks for the appropriate high and low, left and right-sided attacks but it fails to achieve any sort of fluidity; a tedious exercise in waiting for the thoroughly patronising quick-time button icons to appear. 007 Legends is consistently both overly patronising and completely baffling in its mission markers, blurting out “shoot here” in the most obvious of situations then not affording a single clue when advice is sorely necessary.

The competitive multiplayer is but another good idea on paper, with Legends mode allowing player control of Bond villains, each with unique abilities, but the limp combat combined with the heinous crime of recycling identical segments from the single player really is the final nail in 007’s coffin. So many elements of 007 Bond are systemic indications of a short development cycle: segments of Blofeld’s lair are “night vision” with the sole intention of covering up beige level design and textures, running doesn’t decrease shooting accuracy and a myriad of elements are simply recycled from aged Call of Duty titles.

Not only is 007 Legends a terrible game, it goes one step further and is quite possibly one of the worst Bond iterations to date. Especially in this, its 50^th glorious Anniversary, 007 Legends is nothing short of an insult the good name of Bond. A game which feels more like shopping in Lidl than playing the part of Bond, chock full of bland, lifeless environments and an overwhelming sense of vapidity saps the very soul, personality or charm from a potentially brilliant game. Created without the slightest attention to detail, Bond’s Aston Martin Vanquish is a left-hand drive and Blofeld seems to have an iPad atop his desk, 007 Legends is as jaded and desensitised to the action and explosions as Bond himself. A joyless exposition of a criminally short development cycle, it’s high time the Bond name was afforded a proper developer, given an appropriate budget and given the tribute it sorely deserves.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox 360. 

Have a look above.

007 Legends releases on October 1 for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. A Wii U release date is also planned.

A first-of-its-kind Bond gaming experience, 007 Legends ties together five classic Bond movie-inspired missions, plus a sixth mission based on this year’s highly-anticipated movie, Skyfall. 

Combining state-of-the-art spy gadgets, an arsenal of weapons, sleek vehicles and exotic locations, players can experience what it’s like to be Daniel Craig’s James Bond and relive the world famous spy’s most iconic and intense undercover missions from 50 years of the Bond film franchise.

From the PR release: “In order to thwart the plot, Bond takes action to infiltrate Goldfinger’s headquarters with help from a questionable acquaintance – Pussy Galore. Upon arrival at Fort Knox, 007 is tasked with defusing a nuclear bomb before it detonates, and the only thing standing between Bond and the bomb is Goldfinger’s henchman – Oddjob – and his notoriously deadly hat. Will Bond be able to defeat Oddjob? Will Goldfinger’s evil plans succeed?”

Goldfinger will join the likes of Die Another Day, Moonraker, Licence to Kill and On Her Majesty’s Secret Service to tell the story of James Bond’s rise to glory. A sixth playable mission based on the upcoming Skyfall will also be available after launch as DLC. 007 Legends is out this Autumn for XBox 360 and Playstation 3.

Activision announced in Nintendo’s Wii U preview event that they will be releasing 007 Legends on the Wii U as well, as a launch window title for the system.

It will be joining the already announced Xbox 360, PS3 and PC versions of the game.

007 Legends takes 5 classic Bond movies, including Moonraker, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, License to Kill and Die Another Dayand gives you a memorable mission from each. A sixth mission from the upcoming Skyfall will also be included in the game as post-launch DLC. What’s more, original Bond actors will be reprising their roles in the game.

It’s like a wet dream for all Bond fans, and now it’s going to be on the Wii U too.

Skyfall joins other third party heavyweight titles like Assassin’s Creed III, ZombiU, Rayman Legends, Black Ops 2, Darksiders 2, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Monster Hunter 3 and many more in the Wii U’s lineup.

Oh, also Bayonetta 2, which will be exclusive to the Wii U. Yeah.

Stay tuned for more info.

With Moonraker and On Her Majesty’s Secret Service already confirmed, Die Another Day and Licence to Kill have been outed as the third and fourth Bond movie-inspired missions, with two more to be announced.

I don’t care what anybody ways, Quantum of Solace was a marvellous games, it’s a shame that 007 Legends looks like I’ve scrawled it on the back of a napkin and accidentally put it in the washing machine.

In 007 Legends, you’ll take on the role of James Bond as played by Daniel Craig, running missions in the most iconic settings of 007’s five-decade film history. The places and times remain classified, but each retains the look and feel of the original movies, updated with reimagined characters, expanded gameplay and exciting new plotlines.

Which brings us back to your current predicament. The clock is ticking. Will this be yet another close brush with death,

or has your remarkably good luck dried up at last?

Legends will feature Daniel Craig’s Bond -the best Bond in our opinion- with Rory Kinnear -the Prime Minister in Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror- voicing Bill Tanner, the MI6 Chief of Staff.

The already announced Moonraker mission will see Michael Lonsdale reprise his role as villain Hugo Drax, with Richard Kiel also playing Jaws. Naomie Harris will also make an appearance, set to feature in the forthcoming 23rd Bond film, suggesting that elements of Skyfall will feature in the game.

007 Legends is also set to be written by Bruce Feirstein, veteran writer of Pierce Brosnan’s 90s Bond films and scored by David Arnold and Kevin Kiner.

The game aims to set out an original, overarching storyline which ties together five classic Bond films, with the sixth, Skyfall, being released as post-launch DLC.

Developed by Eurocom, 007 Legends comes to Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC on 16th October.