The FPS genre is one of the most popular in all gaming. Some of the most iconic franchises of all time are first-person shooters:Halo, Half-Life, Call of Duty, and countless others.
It shouldn’t be surprising that there have been plenty of critically acclaimedFPS gamesover time. Half-Life 2, Metroid: Prime, Halo: Combat Evolved, GoldenEye 007, BioShock, the list goes on and on.
10 Highly Reviewed Games That Are Actually Overrated
None of these games are bad, but they aren’t the world-beaters that the reviews would have you believe.
Not every game that receives critical praise has held up over time, though. That’s natural; some games tend to age poorly. I’m arguing, though, that these games were overrated from the start and not worthy of the praise they received.
Not As Good As The Original
Left 4 Dead 2
2008’s Left 4 Dead was an excellent cooperative FPS that utilized clever artificial intelligence called the “Director” that dictated what the game would throw at you.
This resulted in gameplay experiences that never felt the same, always adapting to how things were going. Most of all, though, I grew attached to the playable characters. They were filled with personality, threw banter off one another, and made serving the zombie apocalypse much more enjoyable.
Left 4 Dead2’s announcement was a surprise, as I was curious just how muchValvecould expand on the original’s gameplay experience. If you ask me, the answer was not much.
Yes, the core experience remains the same, and there are some new zombie supertypes and weapons thrown in there, but Left 4 Dead 2 struggled to justify its existence. We didn’t need a fully-fledged sequel with a new, less likable cast and inferior maps that only split the player base.
9Borderlands 3
Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked
Borderlands 3
The originalBorderlandswas released at the right time. It perfectly encapsulated what gamers wanted to experience leading into the 2010s and had a sense of humor to match.
Subsequent sequels would one-up the ante, delivering more of the same and continuing to refine the enjoyable gameplay loop, but as time went on, you couldn’t help but wonder if Borderlands was a relic of its time.
2019’sBorderlands 3tried to prove that its personality was timeless, delivering the same juvenile humor you came to expect. As you’re able to imagine, some of it aged poorly, but longtime fans and critics didn’t seem to mind, proving they were happy Borderlands was back.
There’s just one problem: after a couple of mainline games and spin-offs, the gameplay loop was running thin. Bulletsponge bosses are no longer interesting, no matter how many jokes they throw at you.
10 Best Games With Loads Of Weapon Types
All these weapons, how will you choose one?
8Duke Nukem 3D
All Out Of Gum
Duke Nukem 3D
In 1996, critics agreed: Hail to the king, baby. Jake in 1996, however, disagreed.
Yes, I was only nine and in no way, shape, or form should have been playingDuke Nukem 3D, but when I spent time at my family’s for holidays or whatever, I’d sneak up to my uncle’s PC and boot up the classics: DOOM, Quake, Wolfenstein 3D, and yes, Duke. I’ll let you guess which game failed to capture my imagination.
Duke Nukem 3D has the bones of the classicboomer shooterswe all know and love, with the added personality of the titular character. However, that alone isn’t enough to put it over the top.
There’s a reason why we still play DOOM and Quake today. They’re showcases in game design that stands the test of time. Duke, however, does not, and while its gameplay is undoubtedly impressive, it’s pacing fails to capture my imagination at age 9, and even today, as I approach 39 years old.
7Far Cry 4
This Feels Familiar…
Far Cry 4 builds on the success of its predecessor, refining the open-world gameplay and delivering another commanding presence from its villain, Pagan Min. Like Vaas, Min steals the show every time he’s on screen, resulting in positive buzz following the game’s release.
Over time, though, it becomes apparent that he’s carrying the game, hiding its shortcomings.
One thing that I noticed immediately back in 2014 was how similar the gameplay loop was compared to Far Cry 3. The first three titles in the franchise did a great job of offering something new with each release, but at this point, Ubisoft started to rinse and repeat, including when the Far Cry Primal map wasidentical to Far Cry 4.
The problems were already starting to show here, though. The story is a mess, the gameplay systems were beginning to become chores, and it wasn’t the same breath of fresh air as Far Cry 3. It’s a good game, don’t get me wrong, but nowhere near deserving of all the praise it got on release.
6Destiny: The Taken King
Lost In Space
Fextralife Wiki
I feel like I give Destiny a chance every handful of years, normally when I hear positive buzz from critics and fans claiming that Bungie has fixed all of its flaws. My time with Destiny 2 has been far more limited than with the original, specifically The Taken King release, which aimed to, well, fix all of its flaws.
On the surface level, it did just that. Bungie’s gameplay has always been rock solid in my book, and I was starting to find myself having fun logging into Destiny on a regular basis. Playing with friends, completing missions, queuing up for group content; it was all a blast until the content started to wear thin.
On the one hand, I feel like this is commonplace for any online multiplayer experience, but for some reason, Destiny failed to hold me in the way World of Warcraft did.
I felt punished for not logging on a consistent basis, which led to me discovering the game’s flaws that much quicker. It was a step in the right direction, but still nowhere near the experience we were promised.
5Battlefield 1
At Least It Worked?
Battlefield 1
Christmas morning, 2016. I’m someone who almost always asks for cash. Riveting, I know, but hey, I put it to good use that same day by picking up games on Steam. Two of them wereBattlefield 1and Titanfall 2, some of thehighest-rated FPS gamesof 2016.
I went back and forth between the two, absolutely loving my time in Titanfall 2 and wondering when I’d feel the same way about Battlefield 1. That feeling never came.
All of my time spent in Battlefield 1 was time wishing I had been playing Titanfall 2. Its campaign is severely lacking, though that’s on par for a DICE game, but the true crime is the multiplayer experience.
Battlefield 1 lacks the magic of what made Battlefield such an iconic franchise. You know what I’m talking about: the organic moments during a match that make you stay up late playing with friends.Instead, my experience was complete chaos, more in line with a Call of Duty game.
I have no idea how this was nominated for Game of the Year; it absolutely boggles my mind.
Can Your PC Run It?
First, let’s get this out of the way: the notion ofCrysisgetting a remaster is silly to me, considering all the hype the game saw on release. Your PC needed to be beefed out beyond belief to run this thing effectively.
If you were lucky enough to be able to build a rig powerful enough, you were treated to a very good-looking game with some enjoyable open-ended gameplay. I had a lot of fun sniping people with the shotgun, thanks to my trusty laser scope. It wasn’t realistic, but I didn’t care. It was a blast.
That doesn’t make it one of the best shooters of all time. The game was short, flawed, and lacking. Yes, the open-ended nature of the gameplay was good, but it also lacked direction. The story failed to captivate me, and the sandbox wasn’t big enough to get lost in.
The more I played Crysis, the more frustrated I became with it, with its latter moments failing to live up to its potential. Call me crazy, but I greatly preferred the focus found in the sequels.
The Definition Of Overrated
The originalPortalisn’t just one of the greatest games of all time, it’s one of the most perfectly paced video games ever. There isn’t a moment gone to waste, nothing is stretched too thin or bogged down by bloat. Portal 2 proves that bigger isn’t always better. Yes, there are more puzzles, stories, and jokes, but the problem is that it doesn’t always land.
More often than not, I find myself frustrated and waiting to engage with thepuzzle solving that worksso well. I don’t want to hear J.K. Simmons talk about the history of Aperture Science, I just want to solve clever puzzles. It’s like Valve saw how crazy the fanbase went for its humor and said, “More of that, please! We’ll figure out the puzzle part later.”
Yes, those puzzles exist in the co-op, but the replay value there is limited, which is the problem with Portal 2. Yes, it’s good, but it pales in comparison to the original and delivers an experience that, ultimately, feels lacking. The campaign’s puzzles aren’t overly challenging, and playing co-op with someone on a different skill level isn’t an enjoyable experience.
8 AAA Games That Need A Cozy Spinoff
Cozy games are rarely celebrated outside the indie sphere, so here’s some Triple-A’s that could be doing it better.
2BioShock 2
You Better Look Under The Sea
BioShock 2
Speaking of sequels that don’t compare to their predecessor, it’s time to discussBioShock 2. Some believe that BioShock 2 is the best in the “trilogy,” expanding on the original and delivering a more focused and refined experience compared to BioShock: Infinite. If you haven’t guessed, I’m not one of those people.
The biggest issue going against BioShock 2 is that I can’t help but feel like we’ve been here before. Developed by 2K Marin, and not Ken Levine’s Irrational Games, the game feels like it only exists to make more money from a successful and original idea.
It tries so hard to stay within the spirit of BioShock while providing something new and worthwhile. The issue, though, is that BioShock: Infinite does a far better job of this.
Trading in the city of Rapture for Columbia and delivering a narrative with new ideas and themes is the best way to pay homage while offering something new. Running it back but “better” doesn’t do enough, and that’s why BioShock 2 is overrated.
Master Chief Returns
Halo 4honestly had no chance on release. How do you follow in the footsteps of Bungie, especially after their magnum opus that is Halo: Reach? Someone had to, especially sinceHalowas, believe it or not, at one point the most popular franchise in the gaming industry.
Newly formed developer 343 Industries gave it their shot, and it resulted in an experience that felt like Halo while still offering something new. The gameplay remains solid, but can’t match the perfection of Bungie developed gunplay.
My biggest issue with Halo 4 is the story. The Forerunner threat feels generic, but the biggest issue is Cortana’s plot. Her story, particularly her sacrifice, doesn’t leave the emotional impact 343 expected, due in part to poor writing. For such an important moment in Halo’s lore, I couldn’t have cared less, a stark cry from the incredible writing that came from Bungie’s titles.
