# Games that haven't aged well. **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [December 24, 2019, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341 "2019-12-24T13:50:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2019, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/41 "2019-12-27T08:04:45Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I kind of have to give Return to Zork a pass on that one, though, because that’s part of the essence of a Zork game. And aside: Where might one find that? I thought I’d played all of the Zorks, but apparently not. Is it a zcode game? You can find it on [GOG](https://www.gog.com/game/return_to_zork); it’s even on sale cheap at the moment. GOG (\*aka \*Good Old Games) is a good place to find lots of well, good old games legally. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2019, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/42 "2019-12-27T12:03:20Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > Assassin’s Creed (mentioned above) is a pretty good example. I remember reading a review of its immediate sequel that referred to AC1 as little more than a proof of concept for the freerunning/climbing gameplay (which really did feel amazing at release). “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” was an even earlier freerunning/climbing game. I played it not too long ago and it was still fun. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2019, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/43 "2019-12-27T13:08:57Z")
_Beyond Good and Evil_ came out at the same time; it also incorporates running, jumping, climbing, etc. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2019, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/44 "2019-12-27T14:25:50Z")
**Dragon’s Lair** - It was beautiful to watch, even today, but even brand new it was a piss-poor gaming experience. Extremely laggy “controls” if they could even be called that, 100% trial-and-error gameplay that still somehow felt really unfair, long load times between literally any two screens, it was just a terrible game through and through. > [@Hoopy\_Frood](#): > > Just about anything that came out for the Wii. If my Wii still worked, I’d still be Wii bowling today. In fact, I don’t think I ever bought any other game for that thing besides the “Sports” game it came with, and everything on that was excellent. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2019, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/45 "2019-12-27T14:51:22Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > If my Wii still worked, I’d still be Wii bowling today. In fact, I don’t think I ever bought any other game for that thing besides the “Sports” game it came with, and everything on that was excellent. Both Super Mario Galaxies are excellent, as is Pikmin 2, as is Mario Kart. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2019, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/46 "2019-12-27T17:19:03Z")
> [@Hoopy\_Frood](#): > > Just about anything that came out for the Wii. I’m not sure I can disagree more. I dusted off the Wii about two or three months ago after having it sit in my closet for 8 years, and the games are great. The Super Mario Galaxies are, IMHO, among the best if not the best in the Mario series. Zelda Twighlight Princess is great; the Metroid Trilogy is Great. My five-year-old now plays Super Mario Party 9 almost every day (which I’m happy with, instead of her watching other people play it on Youtube). The Silent Hill game for it is creepy and makes good use of the Wiimote mechanic. Wii Sports, especially bowling, is still every bit as fun. Xenoblade Chronicles I’ve only just started, and its shaping up to be a solid RPG. Super Paper Mario is one of my favorites; the Punch-Out game is great, and the Wii version of Mario Kart is solid. I actually can’t think of any games in my collection that I flat-out don’t like eight years later. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2019, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/47 "2019-12-27T17:20:08Z")
> [@Balance](#): > > Nicole Bennett, of the _Art of Murder_ point-and-click murder mystery series. Her lines were apparently written by someone who hadn’t the faintest idea how humans communicate, in Polish, then fed through Google Translate, and the output voiced by Google Maps. And she’s dumber than Adrienne on her worst day, which is saying something, because Adrienne was painfully oblivious and dumb enough to repeatedly poke the contacts on an electric chair, no matter how many times it shocked her. Nicole is not helped by the fact that the games themselves are also incredibly stupid. I expect a lot of moon-logic and silliness in point-and-click, but most of them are deliberately funny and silly. These try to present themselves as drama. They just have writing that would be embarrassing in a hidden object game (and the series degenerated into an actual HOG by the fourth game). > > I’m not talking about so-bad-they’re-good games. They’re just really bad, and listening to Nicole is just twisting the thumbscrews. This summary reminds me of a scathing review I read at least 20 years ago in _PC Gamer_ about a game called _Mode_ (its short and indistinct name makes searching for further details almost impossible). I think the gist was having to solve a mystery by conversationally navigating a cocktail party full of performance artists and fashionistas and other 1990’s avant-garde types, i.e. a principality of pretentious douchebags, and it was not intended to be satirical. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2019, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/48 "2019-12-28T15:26:33Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > This summary reminds me of a scathing review I read at least 20 years ago in _PC Gamer_ about a game called _Mode_ (its short and indistinct name makes searching for further details almost impossible). Actually, just Googling “mode video game” gets you to the info you need to search further (an IMDB page and TV Tropes page on the game are the first two hits.) [Here’s an in-depth](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gu0v2ITeYU) review of it. Video of gameplay [here for those interested](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QM9xzpfX1RE). ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2019, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/49 "2019-12-28T15:50:38Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Actually, just Googling “mode video game” gets you to the info you need to search further (an IMDB page and TV Tropes page on the game are the first two hits.) [Here’s an in-depth](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gu0v2ITeYU) review of it. Video of gameplay [here for those interested](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QM9xzpfX1RE). Thank you for finding this. It’s actually a lot worse than I imagined. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2019, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/50 "2019-12-28T15:53:14Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Thank you for finding this. It’s actually a lot worse than I imagined. There’s also a whole [25 episode playlist with commentary](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaSPgE4K0SB3Vi6N13DtVRF-uJq0WLCC3) that walks through the entire game. It’s an interesting concept, but I’m not sure I’d be interested in playing it. ---
**Author:** ![Hoopy\_Frood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hoopy_frood/32/8452_2.png) [@Hoopy\_Frood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoopy_Frood)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2019, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/51 "2019-12-28T16:10:52Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > You can find it on [GOG](https://www.gog.com/game/return_to_zork); it’s even on sale cheap at the moment. > > GOG (\*aka \*Good Old Games) is a good place to find lots of well, good old games legally. Steam also has it on sale for the same price: https://store.steampowered.com/widget/585240 GOG and Steam both have Zork: Grand Inquisitor (a much better game) for $3.97. And Zork: Nemesis as well Though Nemesis is a Zork game in name only. It plays like Myst. And the few allusions to the Zork universe seem thrown in as an afterthought so they can justify why they branded it a Zork game. That’s not to say it’s a bad game, but it’s not Zork. “The Lurking Horror” felt more Zork than Nemesis does, and the TLH only took place in the same universe, it wasn’t meant to be a Zork game. Same with the “Enchanter” series, same universe, but not Zork. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2019, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/52 "2019-12-28T16:32:19Z")
Pretty much any simulator from 5+ years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2019, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/53 "2019-12-28T19:41:00Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > [Here’s an in-depth](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gu0v2ITeYU) review of it. That’s an in-depth review of a sandwich. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2019, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/54 "2019-12-28T20:41:59Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > That’s an in-depth review of a sandwich. LOL. Good thing the only porn I search for on this computer is food porn. [This is the website I meant to link to](https://www.giantbomb.com/mode/3030-47338/), and “in-depth review” is a terrible choice of words on my part. It’s a synopsis. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2019, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/55 "2019-12-28T23:07:16Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > That’s an in-depth review of a sandwich. I assumed it was performance art. ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2019, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/56 "2019-12-29T00:27:08Z")
Grand Theft Auto IV was the weird game that was literally the best reviewed game of all time to a punchline in about two months. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2019, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/57 "2019-12-29T01:29:03Z")
> ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2019, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/58 "2019-12-29T02:22:17Z")
nevermind: shouldn’t have posted. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2019, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341/59 "2019-12-29T09:34:12Z")
NBA Jam Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/games-that-havent-aged-well/845341.md?page=2)