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Launching a video game isn't easy. More often than not, things can go wrong with big-budget AAA launches, as has been evident from the majority of releases in the last decade. From technical hurdles like bugs, glitches, and server issues to false marketing and overhyping games before launch, there have been countless reports of launches that didn't go according to the publisher's plans.
Due to the ongoing trend of publishers releasing broken games and fixing them post-launch via patches and updates, some video games miraculously recover from their dreadful launch. Titles like Assassin's Creed Unity, No Man's Sky, and even the infamous Cyberpunk 2077, which were once synonymous with the worst video game launches, have massively recovered since then.
However, some titles aren't as fortunate as the rest and fail to gain a footing following their broken launches either due to a lack of support from developers or player interest. Here are five video games that launched badly but are worth revisiting now and five titles that players should avoid.
Note: The article is subjective and reflects the author's opinions.
Five video games that have greatly recovered from their broken launch
5) Assassin's Creed Unity
Assassin's Creed Unity was one of the most ambitious titles in the franchise. However, the title's rushed launch and technical shortcomings hampered the series' stellar reputation. At launch, Assassin's Creed Unity suffered from a myriad of technical issues. From unstable and choppy framerates and frequent crashes to severe progression-blocking bugs and glitches, the game had it all.
The issues were so severe that Ubisoft had to apologize to players and issue the game's season pass for free to all owners of the title. Thankfully, the developers stuck to the game, releasing multiple updates that massively improved the game's technical stability.
As it stands now, Assassin's Creed Unity is one of the best games in the series, with robust stealth mechanics, a fluid parkour traversal system, and a gorgeous recreation of 18th-century Paris.
4) Final Fantasy XIV
Final Fantasy XIV is considered one of the best MMORPGs of present times. It is a milestone for the genre, and players don't have to rely on grinding and unnecessary pay-to-win mechanics in it. However, the game wasn't always like this. In fact, at launch, Final Fantasy XIV was a complete disaster.
The title was incredibly buggy and had a plethora of technical issues that bogged down the overall experience for players. As a result, its initial reception wasn't anything to write home about, which caused players to quickly abandon the title, hurting the sales of the video game.
Fortunately, Square Enix did not give up on this title and decided to reboot the experience with some help from the legendary Yoshi-P.
Multiple expansions like A Realm Reborn, Stormblood, and the most recent Endwalker — which massively improve the core experience of Final Fantasy XIV — make it one of, if not the most engaging MMORPGs that fans of the genre should not miss out on.
3) Halo: The Master Chief Collection
The Halo franchise is one of the highest-rated and beloved first-person shooter video games out there. The series has numerous great titles under its belt, from the classic Halo: Combat Evolved to the very underrated Halo: Reach. Suffice to say that fans were beyond excited when Microsoft announced that they would be remastering all the previous Halo games, from Combat Evolved to Halo 4, in a collection for players to enjoy on the new Xbox One.
However, the launch of the remastered collection was nothing short of a tragedy. Technical issues like bugs and glitches, as well as network-related problems, prevented players from accessing the online multiplayer side of the game for hours after launch.
Developer 343 Industries was quick to offer multiple fixes and additions to Halo: The Master Chief Collection, which not only increased the game's stability and performance but also saw the inclusion of a plethora of new and exciting content for players to delve into, ensuring it became one of the best FPS video games for players on Xbox and PC.
2) No Man's Sky
No Man's Sky is a video game that fell victim to its own hype. Developer Hello Games is an indie game development studio helmed by Sean Murray, who seemingly lied about multiple aspects of the game that were evidently not present in its final release.
Adding to the disaster that was the result of the false marketing by the developers, the game also had severe technical issues at launch, which further marred the experience for players. It seemed like a failed project with no scope for recovery. However, Hello Games did not give up on their most ambitious video game so easily.
A multitude of post-launch updates added player-requested features to No Man's Sky, such as a fully functional multiplayer system and even VR, and fixed the plethora of technical issues players had faced in the game.
Hello Games continues to add additional content and expansions to the title without any extra cost. This shows the dedication the developers have when it comes to delivering what they promised, even though they fumbled with the launch.
1) Cyberpunk 2077
Cyberpunk 2077 was easily the most hyped video game of the last decade. Teased back in 2012 with a concept trailer, the game kept fans waiting for a long time, only to end up failing miserably upon launch. The game was riddled with technical issues that made it virtually unplayable for many players.
Cyberpunk 2077 was so dreadful on consoles that Sony and Microsoft started issuing refunds for the game without asking any questions. Sony even removed the title from its digital storefront, which was an unprecedented move for the company.
Although the game worked relatively decently on PC, given the player's computer met the hefty recommended requirements, it was never a pleasant experience. With constant framerate drops for no discernable reason, frequent crashes, bug-filled quests that blocked progression, etc., the video game suffered from so many problems no one thought it could salvage.
However, CD PROJEKT RED made the impossible happen by offering frequent fixes and updates for the game that substantially improved its stability and performance. With the most recent Patch 1.5, Cyberpunk 2077 finally resembles the title that CD PROJEKT RED advertised before launch.
It isn't perfect by any means — there are still a few visual anomalies that can show up like T-posing NPCs and texture popping — but for the most part, Cyberpunk 2077 has improved drastically from its dreadful state at launch, making it worth a second try for players that might have given up on the game since its initial 2020 launch.
Five video games launched in a poor state that never recovered
5) Mass Effect: Andromeda
After the controversial ending of Mass Effect 3, players were really intrigued about how Bioware would handle the next Mass Effect title. Their previous game, Dragon Age: Inquisition, truly captured the true essence of Bioware's storytelling abilities, which had left fans cautiously optimistic about their next project.
However, Mass Effect: Andromeda turned out to be something even worse than Mass Effect 3. The game was essentially broken at launch, which rendered the title completely unplayable for most players. Andromeda's buggy state was a clear indication of EA and Bioware having pushed the game out before it was ready for launch.
While the title's narrative was a saving grace to a certain degree, it still wasn't enough for players to look past the unfinished state of Andromeda. Even after multiple post-launch patches, the game still has remnants of its unpolished launch, from inconsistent framerate to constant texture-popping, which is distracting enough to disrupt players' immersion.
Although, at its core, Andromenda is a good game, the lack of polish and inconsistent performance hampers the game's immersion factor, which is crucial for a role-playing experience such as Mass Effect.
4) Anthem
Anthem was Bioware's first attempt at creating a Destiny-like looter-shooter video game. Players' expectations were really high with Bioware's one last attempt at redeeming itself and restoring the faith it'd lost with its previous disastrous release, Mass Effect Andromeda.
Unfortunately, Anthem's launch turned out to be even more catastrophic than Andromeda. The game is severely lacking in terms of content, which is an issue given its nature as a multiplayer looter-shooter. Apart from the range of technical issues, Anthem was fundamentally a rushed and broken product that no amount of post-launch updates could ever remedy.
Bioware is known for its storytelling prowess. Even its worst creations, Dragon Age 2 and Mass Effect Andromeda, still delivered a rather interesting narrative. However, Anthem fails miserably with its plot that is all over the place, rarely making any sense.
Anthem's gameplay was admittedly fun, but its repetitive quests and mundane plot never complimented its flashy and fun combat. It is yet another example of rushed video games that, despite the backing of a big-name publisher, failed to deliver on player expectations.
3) WWE 2K20
WWE 2K20 is a bad game, and players should definitely avoid it. The game was basically a retread of the last few annual WWE 2K games, but worse. From graphical issues that render the game virtually unplayable to performance issues that still linger, even after multiple title updates, the game reeks of an unfinished product made available in a hurry.
WWE games are usually a mixed bag, given their annual release schedule; however, most of these titles are at least somewhat entertaining and fully functional. However, WWE 2K20 is quite possibly the worst of the bunch.
The launch of WWE 2K20 was so bad that it compelled publisher 2K to give the next game an extra year of development, which not only resulted in a much better game than 2K20 but also gave one of the series' best titles to date.
2) The Culling 2
The Culling 2 was considered by many players to be one of the first titles to adopt the battle royale genre. It featured a unique melee-focused combat system that separated it from the competition and made the title somewhat of a cult classic.
However, with the sequel, developer Xaviant essentially offered a rip-off of PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, ditching any semblance of originality the first title had. Needless to say, players weren't impressed by The Culling 2, which resulted in the player count dropping to single digits just a couple of days after the game's launch.
The title even had a plethora of technical issues that were never addressed by the developers. Due to the debilitating player count, the game quickly died within months of its release.
Xaviant even tried to resurrect the franchise with Culling Origins with a weird pay-per-match system that required players to pay for the privilege of playing the video game they'd already paid for. It goes without saying that players did not take kindly to Xaviant's monetization practices, and the game was eventually delisted from Steam.
1) Battlefield 2042
After the not-so-pleasant launch of Battlefield V, players were expecting DICE and EA to take lessons from their previous venture and release a finished and complete product in Battlefield 2042. However, this video game somehow turned out to be even more broken than its predecessor.
Battlefield 2042 was sold on the promise of providing players with an authentic Battlefield experience, with a modern setting and huge multiplayer maps. Fans were really excited for Battlefield's return to the modern military setting.
Unfortunately, cracks started showing during the closed beta of the game, months prior to its actual release. The problems, instead of getting fixed, were only magnified with the final release of the video game.
Battlefield 2042 ditched the signature class system of the previous Battlefield title in favor of specialists (akin to operators in Call of Duty games). The change was unacceptable for many players as Battlefield titles are known for their gritty and authentic-feeling FPS experiences, which were severely undermined by the introduction of specialists turning the game more into a run-of-the-mill Call of Duty clone.
It also didn't help that the video game was fundamentally broken at launch, with a host of technical problems ranging from graphical glitches, poor performance on both consoles and PCs, and a plethora of gameplay-related issues. Despite DICE's best efforts to fix the title, it never picked up steam and still sits as one of the biggest disappointments in the series' history.
Battlefield 2042 is one video game players should definitely avoid, given there are far better options out there, including some of the previous offerings in the Battlefield series itself.
