I love video games, but I’m no snob. If there’s one thing I hate more than anything in the gaming world, it’s the big-name, big-budget titles that are essentially more of the same and cost an arm and a leg just to play in the first place! Here are the most hated video games of all time. This list is completely opinion and some people might like these games, but at Duck Blogs, we do not.
#1. Leisure Suit Larry (1987)
The first game in a series of adult-themed games made by Sierra, Leisure Suit Larry was dubbed one of the worst video games ever by many reputable publications. The game put players in control of a single, forty-year-old virgin who is on a quest to find love and sex in a villa filled with beautiful women. Players interacted with each woman via multiple choice questions and answers. While it might have been fun for some people to play a sexually frustrated older man looking for love, others found it boring and juvenile. Perhaps that’s why Sierra eventually abandoned its mature content line after just two more installments (Leisure Suit Larry Goes Looking for Love (In Several Wrong Places) in 1991 and Leisure Suit Larry: Love for Sail! in 1996).
#2. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
The infamous video game based on Steven Spielberg’s classic film was released in 1982 for Atari 2600 and…well, it didn’t go so well. Poor E.T. ended up as a huge money sink for Atari, selling just 1.5 million copies—and earning one billion dollars in losses for its creator as a result. It has since been cited as one of the worst games ever made, but that hasn’t stopped it from becoming an iconic part of pop culture history. In fact, there are rumors that a reboot is in development for next-gen consoles.
#3. Action 52 (1991)
Okay, so Action 52 isn’t really a game—it’s more like a compilation of games that were made by different companies and slapped together. With only four (four!) titles in its repertoire, it’s not exactly what most people would call popular. But hate is a very strong word and Action 52 certainly didn’t get it for anything. The problem with Action 52 was twofold: 1) The games were all terrible 2) It was sold as a 52-in-1 cartridge, which led to a lot of disappointment when consumers realized they had just purchased one game with fifty-one crappy clones on it. Needless to say, Action 52 has been called one of the worst video games ever created…and we can see why!
#4. Night Trap (1992)
This FMV-heavy game is frequently criticized for its poor quality. But even if it’s not worth a second play, Night Trap deserves its status as an icon of ’90s video games. After all, it was one of a small handful that tried to use full-motion video (FMV) to take gaming to new levels. Instead, critics argued, that Night Trap’s gameplay was boring and repetitive. The controversy over Night Trap led to congressional hearings on violence in video games. The industry responded by creating ESRB ratings, which help consumers make informed decisions about what they buy. And while Night Trap itself didn’t set off any fireworks, it did lead to some important changes in how we think about—and play—video games today.
#5. Duke Nukem Forever (2011)
Nukem’s are developed for eternity, and they haven’t stopped for a minute. Upon its release, it suffered from an unusual blend of old humorous humor and mechanics, due to being written and produced years earlier. The game also suffers from sluggish loading and some minor bugs. The film has likewise dealt with and objectified a number of women in very slanderful and disgusting ways.
#6. Cyberpunk 2077 (2020)
While the PC version was well-reviewed, the console game received extremely poor ratings. The game has low resolution and slow loading texture, bugs breaking the game physics, bad physics, t-posed NPCs, and terrible AI. You have heard of the horrible situation that the game has caused within the community. It doesn’t seem surprising that a fast-developing game is poorly performed on a console. The game does have several problems, but the console version is arguably the worst videogame ever made, despite promises to fix them.
#7. Desert Bus (Unreleased)
Is there really any chance that any game would become worse if it was not made official? Desert Bus – part of a Sega CD collection named Penn and Teller Smoke and Mirror – answers that with a resounding yes. The game is popular because of its grueling gameplay. The Player’s driver must take a bus in-game in real-time from Tuscon, Arizona to Vegas, Nevada – an eight-hour journey. Despite being a joke game, its redeemable qualities have been largely absent. When the car is parked and it is stuck in stall mode, you get back on the right track. The trip is worth ONE Point for every eight hours spent.
#8. Superman 64 (1999)
If you are looking for an example of what happens when an inexperienced game developer gets their hands on a hot license, Superman 64 is that shining beacon. It’s not just one of the worst games of all time; it’s one of those games that make gamers cry. The flying controls were so bad they made people sick to their stomachs and there was even a rumor that some kids threw up while playing it. The graphics were hideous, with bland colors and low-res textures. And as if things couldn’t get any worse, in order to save your progress you had to fly through rings at super speed or else lose your progress entirely!
#9. Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing (2003)
This game is considered one of if not THE worst video games ever created. Users couldn’t even get their trucks to start moving properly. Many players took out their frustration by giving it a zero-star rating on sites like Amazon and YouTube. It has become an internet meme, appearing in popular shows such as South Park and Family Guy. It was so bad that Eutechnyx (the company that made it) has since been renamed Stellar Entertainment.
#10. Drakkhen (1992)
The first thing that people always say about Drakkhen is, Huh? The second thing they say is, Ugh. To be fair, it does look a little bit like a Japanese pachinko machine designed by Salvador Dali and welded onto an Atari 2600, but it wasn’t actually a bad game. It just didn’t have much play value. You were tasked with guiding four characters through eight dungeons to find four magic keys. In order to do so, you had to fight enemies in real-time, which made for some very frustrating gameplay—especially since there was no way to save your progress. If you died at any point in your quest (and trust us: You would die), you had to start all over again from scratch. In short: A lot of work for not a lot of payoff.