LEVEL ZERO: EXTRACTION

Doghowl Games’ extraction shooter is currently in early access, so technically, it can get better- but that isn’t the trajectory it has followed thus far. Level Zero: Extraction had a promising enough premise, but was let down by significant gameplay and balancing issues even at launch. In the time since then, the developer has consistently made updates that have proven unpopular with players, leading some to wonder just how healthy the game’s future is going to be.

15. Pac-Man Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs

Considering how successful Pac-Man 99 was, it’s understandable that Bandai Namco Entertainment sought to make a follow-up. Chomp Champs even took a multi-dimensional approach, allowing players to escape the confines of their mazes and devour the opposition (and their Ghosts). However, this isn’t so much a spiritual successor as a port of PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle, which launched in November 2020 and sank alongside Google Stadia.

All these years later, Chomp Champs is little more than the same experience for other platforms but with cross-play. The gameplay can be fun for a bit and performance is solid, but the overall package is so barren that it’s impossible to ignore the flaws. Whether it’s the embarrassingly low-rent user interface, lack of offline modes, the bland music or the terrible Ranked experience, Pac-Man Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs is imminently forgettable.

14. Graven

Boomer shooters are common these days, but the sheer variety and creativity many exude is great. As a spiritual successor to Hexen, Slipgate Ironworks’ Graven seemed like a winner from the moment early access was announced. Sure, there were some rough edges but there was hope that subsequent Acts would be even better. However, the final product is left wanting.

A reliance on checkpoints instead of a traditional save system seems fine until you’re hard stuck or puzzles begin to break, setting progress back by a fair amount. The immersive sim elements are intriguing but ultimately lacking, the stamina system is restrictive, and the enemy design is frustrating. Couple this with numerous bugs and glitches, some game-breaking, and Graven fails to measure up to its inspiration.

13. Endless Ocean Luminous

As a follow-up to Endless Ocean: Adventures of the Deep from 2009, Endless Ocean Luminous could have offered a relaxing aquatic exploration experience with some bits to help you learn more about various species underwater. Unfortunately, its focus is all over the place, bogging down the overall product. There is a story, but progression is an annoyance due to the clunky scanning, which you must constantly engage with. The lack of realism to the whole affair is also a bummer, and the dull visuals don’t help either.

12. Alone in the Dark

Not only is it another failed attempt to bring the classic survival horror franchise into the new generation, but the developer shut down shortly after due to its lackluster reception. Nevertheless, there’s no denying that the reboot just wasn’t good. Combat feels unpolished and rough, but given the lack of compelling challenges, it’s more of an inconvenience. The sheer amount of bugs with the audio alone is enough to keep fans away, and despite the intriguing set-up, the writing and performances from its lead actors are simply lackluster.

11. Sker Ritual

Have you ever played Maid of Sker and felt, “Hm, this needs a first-person shooter spin-off with multiplayer”? Probably not, but that didn’t stop Capcom and its awful Resident Evil multiplayer modes. Thus we have Sker Ritual, which essentially borrows the round-based format from Call of Duty’s Zombies mode. However, it’s lacking in many ways, from the matchmaking and UI to the glitches and messy visuals. Couple this with an issue at launch where the host could retain their XP on quitting while other players couldn’t, and it’s easy to see why Sker Ritual is essentially dead.

10. Outpost: Infinity Siege

Team Ranger’s Outpost: Infinity Siege is a genre mash-up that could have worked with more focus and less tedium. A tower defense/first-person shooter hybrid can be great – as evidenced by the beginning of the game, despite the laughable dialogue and increasingly absurd plot. However, once the rogue-like and extraction shooter elements come into play, things fall apart. The horrible AI, dull map designs, grindy progression and numerous glitches on release didn’t help either. Though it’s seen many improvements and updates since then, Outpost: Infinity Siege needs a rethink of its fundamentals.

9. Die by The Blade

Outside of Tekken, Street Fighter, Guilty Gear, and whatnot are more niche fighting games that could use some exposure. Die by the Blade isn’t one of those games. It’s not even in the same stratosphere based on the mechanics alone, with clunky combos and movement that feels like molasses. Matches devolve into little more than rock-paper-scissors, and the lack of content beyond that, including no campaign or proper ranked mode, results in a tedious experience.

8. Undead Inc.

Ndemic Creations’ Plague Inc. was one of my favorite mobile games back in the day, and there was some hope that Undead Inc. from Rightsized Games would channel some of that nostalgia. It doesn’t, unfortunately, and can’t even provide a compelling management experience on its own. Numerous bugs, lackluster content, be it in the biomes or facilities, crashes, horrible interface – the list goes on. What is a compelling concept that could have explored the darker side of pharmaceutical companies ends up way out of its depth.

7. Winter Survival (Early Access)

Yes, it’s early access, but Winter Survival is seemingly set on doing everything wrong with its survival sandbox premise. An empty world lacking in much to do, a lackluster crafting UI, awful combat that focuses on timed strikes and often ends in disaster – it’s all the worse when you’re constantly nagged about having to sleep, eat and drink. The injury and trauma system could have been something unique, but as it stands, Winter Survival has a ways to go with its fundamentals.

6. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League

For all the backlash it received after its initial gameplay reveal, you would think Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League would have something on its sleeve to win players. Honestly, the opening hours of the story were intriguing, even if each squad member, their CO, Amanda Waller, the Rogue’s Gallery, the brainwashed heroes, you name it, couldn’t go five minutes without chatter. Once the Elseworlds kick in, the plot promptly falls off a cliff. The awful boss battles and recycled open-world activities further kill the enthusiasm (even if the gunplay was passable).

Even with the marketing might of Warner Bros. Discovery and recognition of the Suicide Squad property, Kill the Justice League fell short of expectations, contributing to a $200 million impact on revenue. Its first season is a dud, and player numbers range in the hundreds on Steam nowadays. On the bright side, at least WB is committed to completing the current roadmap. After that? It could end up joining the likes of Anthem and Marvel’s Avengers.

5. Skull and Bones

What are the chances that February would bring not one but two long-in-development, live-service titles that failed to resonate with players? Of course, nothing is ever guaranteed with Skull and Bones, announced at E3 2017 and facing multiple delays, reported reboots, leadership changes and more throughout its nightmarish development.

The fact that it finally launched is shocking enough…until you play the game and grind through the menial labor that is the story. Activities served as little more than sailing from point A to point B, shooting some ships and/or mythical creatures, and maybe plundering a few hapless souls. The loot felt menial; the actual pirate aspects felt empty and soulless, and the game is just the same grind with a dash of PvEvP thrown in. Skull and Bones didn’t exactly have every opportunity to succeed but seeing it flop so succinctly is sad.

4. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants

As a port of Raw Thrills’ 2017 beat ’em up, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants seems unassuming enough. Then you see that GameMill Entertainment of The Walking Dead: Destinies and Skull Island: Rise of Kong is involved. While not a disaster on the level of those two titles, it’s still a miserable experience. The combat is terrible. The movement is terrible. The visuals are bland and the distinctions between characters are almost non-existent. Even if all those issues were shored up, there isn’t enough content or replay value to justify revisiting it.

3. Bulletstorm VR

How do you mess up Bulletstorm, one of the most fun first-person shooters ever made? As it turns out, very easily. Though original developer People Can Fly published it, Bulletstorm VR is developed by Incuvo, who worked on Green Hell VR (released to a mixed response on Steam). The gunplay is cooked right out of the gate, from its horrid aiming and reload mechanics to the lackluster impact. Then there were the crashes, missing textures on Quest headsets and poor performance.

If that wasn’t enough, several missions were outright cut. Remember your emotional bond with Waggleton P. Tallylicker and controlling it to wreak havoc on enemies? Gone. Not even the extra missions focused on Trishka could salvage this mess. Several updates were released to improve the experience and even add the vulgarity back in but alas, it’s too little, too late.

2. Taxi Life: A City Driving Simulator

Nacon’s had some pretty horrendous releases over the years like Gangs of Sherwood and Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Earthblood, but it’s also had winners like RoboCop: Rogue City and Session: Skate Sim. Taxi Life unfortunately falls into the former, as part of the publisher’s iffy “Simulator” series.

The “simulation” part has its share of problems, from the unrealistic behavior of the traffic and passengers to the infuriating pedestrians, who will walk in front of you when the light is green with joyous abandon. The lack of support for many steering wheels is bad enough yet the default controls are equally shabby. Performance, despite the admittedly decent-looking visuals, leaves much to be desired. Creating any sim is a tall task, but Taxi Life makes it seem like a herculean effort.

1. Jujutsu Kaisen: Cursed Clash

Imagine being able to launch a video game based on the popular Jujutsu Kaisen series, that too just a few months after the conclusion of the Shibuya Incident. What better publisher than Bandai Namco Entertainment with its success on other shounen franchises like Naruto and Dragon Ball? Unfortunately, Jujutsu Kaisen: Cursed Clash isn’t it. It’s little more than a shameless cash-in, existing for no other reason than to cash in on a peak moment in the series’ popularity.

The combat is exceedingly dull, marking a new low for any sense of depth an arena fighter could have. The balance is all over the place, the visuals are ugly and the Story Mode does a horrendous job of representing the first season and Jujutsu Kaisen 0. Any hope of deriving fun from the online multiplayer is quickly dashed by the terrible netcode. Even if you’re a die-hard fan of anime games, Jujutsu Kaisen: Cursed Clash is little more than cursed.