5 Games That Get More Hate Than They Deserve

Some video games are so infamous that they have earned the hate of gaming community for years to come. Titles like DmC: Devil May Cry and Aliens: Colonial Marines are examples of games that will always invoke gamer rage.

Yet some titles have either been misunderstood or are hated because of the sins of the games that followed. Not all games really deserve the hate of the community, but should be appreciated for what they achieved.  

Here are five games that have gotten more hate than they deserve.

5. Watch Dogs

Watch Dogs was a new take on the open-world crime genre that attempts to combine elements of stealth and puzzle-solving into a techno thriller, influenced by works of pop-culture like The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Players had to work with the environment to overcome challenges and obstacles while using their skills to outwit their opponent.

Yet when the game was released, many were not that impressed with the overall result. Critics did modestly praise it but gamers were disappointed in what they felt was a bland title that offered nothing new. It didn’t help that Ubisoft included every trope that could be found in the other open-world games they have published.

The hate for Watch Dogs is rooted in poor timing, along with being over-hyped by fans and the media. Because it was released several months after Grand Theft Auto V, gamers had an unrealistic expectation for the quality of gameplay. Thanks to the long devlopment time, it became overhyped by the community to the point that disappointment was guaranteed. 

If a gamer could look past the hype and not use GTA V as a measuring stick, then they will truly appreciate Watch Dogs for what it really is. 

4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 

After several titles that took gamers to the battlefields of Nazi-occupied Europe, the series was in need of a makeover. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare took the fast paced action of the series into a modern setting with a story inspired by the works of Tom Clancy.

Hailed as achievement for the series, it has now been scorned by the gaming community for being everything that is wrong with the gaming world -excessive DLC, repetitive gameplay, lack of progress, an immature fanbase, and a setup that has been overused. Even worse, other games are dumbing themselves down just to appeal to the Call of Duty demographic.

The hate gamers have for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare has more to do with how stagnant the series has become, along with the poor imitations that have followed. The series may be declining in quality, but back in 2007, this game redefined the concept of the first-person shooter (FPS).

Games like Killzone 3 and Medal of Honor borrowed elements that made Modern Warfare appealing but were able to keep their sense of identity. Meanwhile, games like SOCOM 4: US Navy SEALs and Resident Evil 6 shoot themselves in the foot by trying to be like Call of Duty. 

Also its very common for others in an industry to try an imitate what is successful. Open-world sandbox games dominated the sixth generation consoles thanks to Grand Theft Auto III. While some titles have become memorable, many have been forgotten due to a lack of originality and uniqueness.

3. Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes 

Hideo Kojima introduced gamers to his new vision for this iconic series with a sample of what’s to be expected in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. This demo demonstrated how the series aims to once again redefine the stealth genre by incorporating it into an open-world environment, while allowing gamers to witness the complete transformation of Snake into Big Boss.

Despite what it achieved, this entry has been one of the most controversial titles in the series. It first started when it was unveiled that David Hayter was replaced with Kiefer Sutherland as the voice of Big Boss. Next was the alleged one-hour game time that many gamers felt made the title a petty gimmick to milk extra money from the fans.

Ground Zeroes does have a short game time, but Kojima did try to make up for it by including several mini-games and hidden features. This added to the games longevity by giving it extra content. When was the last time a game included this many side games without charging extra?

Despite its only shortcoming, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes is a masterpiece that takes the series into a darker tone while setting the stage for The Phantom Pain.

2. Mass Effect 3

This science-fiction RPG brings an end to the story of Commander Shepard and his odyssey to save the galaxy from the Reapers. With the galaxy in peril, players must rally their allies to take one last stand against the Reapers and save civilization. 

However, fans were not too happy when it all came to an end with choices being inconsequential, along with several plot holes and contradictions. Also, not many were too happy that Shepard dies at the end. The backlash was so massive that a new ending was made just appease gamers.

Unfortunately, many failed to notice that it’s usually difficult to complete a trilogy properly. Spider-Man and The Godfather are classic examples of trilogies in which the first two installments were masterpieces, but the third was terrible. Even good trilogies are going to have issues, as many face high expectations. Much like The Dark Knight Rises, Mass Effect 3 was not as masterful as its predecessor, but it was still a great title that completed a story.

BioWare should not been surprised by the reaction, as fans will always be outraged over the death of a beloved character. It all goes back to the public outcry that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle faced after killing off Sherlock Holmes in The Final Problem. This trend still continues, as fans are often mortified when a beloved character in a popular franchise is killed off.

Yet what many disappointed fans failed to take into account was the death of Commander Shepard only transformed the character into a tragic hero. Audiences are so used to the hero living at the end of a story that they have forgotten the concept of the tragic hero who is forced to make the ultimate sacrifice. 

1. Resident Evil 4

Resident Evil 4 attempted to reinvent the series while also redefining the horror genre. New gameplay traded the fixed camera angle for an over-the-shoulder perspective, while making the overall experience more welcoming to new gamers.

Ask an old-school fan and they will tell you that Resident Evil 4 was the point at which the series went downhill. For fans, Capcom did not reinvent the series, but butchered an icon just to pander to a new audience. Everything that made it a horror-survival game was lost, and the series has continued its downward spiral ever since.

Like Modern Warfare, it’s not the game that the community hates, but moreso what came after it. Traditional fans of the series have hated Resident Evil 5 and 6 so much that it has manifested into how they feel about Resident Evil 4. 

It certainly didn’t help that Capcom re-released the game nine times across multiple consoles. (The most recent being an HD remaster version released for the PC back in 2014.)

Resident Evil 4 may have reinvented the series, but it actually did keep elements of its predecessors. Ammo was still limited, puzzles were still challenging and not all monsters could easily be defeated by shooting them. These elements, however, were lost in the games that followed as Capcom desperately tried to shoehorn co-op into every sequel. 

What do you think? What games get hate they don’t deserve? Let us know in the comments!