5 video games that were too late for their time

There were many instances when video games were released ahead of their time, generally not receiving the praise they deserve. Yet, they set a precedent that many titles would follow in the years to come.

However, there are times when a video game is released way too late, past its expected time, and seems to gain a lackluster reception.

These video games might have labored in developmental hell for way too long, had their visions changed too many times, or both. This would have resulted in a postponement of the release date, ultimately being launched at a time when its competitors were leagues ahead in terms of gameplay, world design, or graphics.

While fan response might get these games a decidedly okay performance in the market, sometimes, not even that can save such titles.

Note: This article reflects the writer’s opinion.

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Five video games released too late

1) Duke Nukem Forever

Once upon a time, Duke Nukem was a video game series that was a fan favorite to many, letting players (possibly only the male version) engross themselves in a smart talking hunk of a man who had a snarky response to everything.

The last time Duke was a popular character was in 1996’s Duke Nukem 3D. It remained that way even after the release of a new video game in 2011.

Two factors were responsible for this downfall. One was the character of Duke himself, which largely remained unchanged across the 15 years that the series had been absent.

Unlike Doom Slayer or B.J. Blazkowicz, who got some much-needed character depth in their new titles, Duke remained his shallow smart-a** self.

The second nail in the coffin was that this game went through so many revisions and promised so many things that the final product never met expectations.

It was considered outdated, bad looking, and an overall failure on launch. If this product had launched in the early 2000s, it might just have been lauded as the best Duke Nukem game ever, so maybe it’s fortunate that it didn’t.

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2) Prey (2006)

Prey was initially released in 2006 via developer Human Head Studios under contract for 3D Realms and published by 2K Games. It was completely unrelated to the 2016 FPS video game and was a different experience altogether.

First announced in 1995, it was supposed to be the flagship title for 3D Realms’ in-house engine. The departure of creative head Tom Hall started a rough run of this video game until its development was completely rebooted and handed over to Human Head Studios.

Finally, it was released in 2006 as an FPS with teleportation mechanics. If only it had been released a few years earlier, it could have benefitted from its own success.

While it was a commercial success and received positive reviews, and a sequel was planned, it was already too late. Three years down, Bethesda acquired the rights to this IP and completely changed the entire premise and concept of the game, with a new game also titled Prey being released in 2016.

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3) L.A. Noire

First announced in 2004, L.A. Noire took about seven years to be finally released in 2011, developed by Team Bondi and published by Rockstar Games. This video game performed well on release, with many praises aimed at its facial animations and details during its interrogation segments.

However, the title was criticized for a lot of its normal gameplay elements, such as shooting and driving, compared to other games of the time.

This was largely due to its lengthy developmental period, which meant that many game mechanics remained the same as their initial design. The game was planned for a 2008 release by Rockstar Studios, but it was nowhere close to being completed, seeing it pushed back some more.

These delays were primarily attributed to the development of the facial expressions of the various NPCs using the MotionScan technology of the developer. While the game performed admirably, it would have had a much more significant impact if it had been released a couple of years earlier, when the rest of its features would have been in line with other games of the time.

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4) Aliens: Colonial Marines

Aliens: Colonial Marines was a first-person shooter video game developed by Gearbox Software and published by SEGA in 2013 for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360. Inspired by the second movie in the Alien film franchise, this action shooter would give players a similar experience of battling Xenomorphs in an alien setting.

They took control of a marine sent out to find survivors after the original movie’s events. The title was laughably bad at release, with some of the worst enemy AI, bad graphics, and performance issues in the last couple of years.

The graphics were quite the point of contention as actual gameplay was significantly worse than anything shown in the press demos.

The AI of the Xenomorphs was also unpardonable and objectively broken, depicting the ‘apex predators’ in unpardonable injustice. This was not a game people expected to play in 2013, as maybe if it was released 5-10 years prior, it might have been passable as a fun experience.

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5) Halo Infinite0

Now, Halo Infinite isn’t a bad game. In fact, it is pretty good and possibly even the best Halo game ever made, with actual good writing, stellar gunplay, and some of the funniest AI (in a good way) in recent video game history.

Yet, there are a few points at which this title deserves an entry into this list. Despite its long developmental period (even discounting the pandemic), Halo Infinite’s open-world leaves much to be desired.

For a video game released in 2021, its open world is mostly the same, with little variety. A bit of diversity, with maybe 2-3 different biomes, would have gone a long way to give Halo fans a better feel of the Halo ring.

A more extended campaign would also have not gone amiss, as most of the story can be blazed through in a day, minus any side activities, which feels just a tad bit short and would have benefitted from a longer runtime.

Finally, a missing New Game+ seems like a missed opportunity as even large-scale RPGs offer that these days.