# What were the biggest wastes of your gaming dollars? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [May 15, 2009, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533 "2009-05-15T15:26:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2009, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/121 "2009-05-21T22:07:41Z")
It’s been a long time, but I’ve still gotta go with Pac-Man for the Atari 2600. I begged my mother to show up at the mall first thing, certain that there would be a mad run on the cartridges and I’d miss out. I gave her $50 of my hard-earned cash, a princely sum for its time. School was a blur; I daydreamed of mazes and monsters, fruits and keys. The bus couldn’t get home fast enough, and I _sprinted_ from the stop to our home. Barreled through the door, panting and sweating, to hear—not the familiar “wakka-wakka” of consumed dots, but instead a dull, monotonous beeping. “Bong bong bong ba-bong bong ba-bong bong.” Then I saw the screen, and my world collapsed into bitter anguish. A close second would be “Mole Attack” for the VIC-20. Around $40, and even at the time on that system it was a piece of shit. ---
**Author:** ![Meeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Meeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meeko)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/122 "2009-05-22T04:40:45Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > _Outlaws_ had a sniper scope, and beat _Goldeneye_ to market by about five months. > > Not sure what you mean by “mission structure.” I think he means the checklist of things to do, in a particular way, instead of a general always on rules. Instead of “Shoot everything that moves” Missions are “Disarm 5 alarms” and “Get the key from the office, before the guards start their rounds” ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/123 "2009-05-22T04:47:12Z")
> [@Meeko](#): > > I think he means the checklist of things to do, in a particular way, instead of a general always on rules. > > Instead of “Shoot everything that moves” Missions are “Disarm 5 alarms” and “Get the key from the office, before the guards start their rounds” Ah. In that case, _Outlaws_ had that first, as well. ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/124 "2009-05-22T05:13:47Z")
> [@Mr\_Buttons](#): > > Almost 100 posts and no one’s mentioned a Dragon Ball Z game? > > I remember buying Dragon Ball budokai 1 or 2 about 4-5 years ago, brand new for $50-55. I was kinda watching the series on TV during college w/ my roommate, and thought maybe it’d be cool for multi-player. > > Good lord, the controls were horrible, graphics lame, lame combos, and the single player mode couldn’t decide where the hell it was going. The early Budokai games were… interesting to say the least. Budokai 3, Budokai Tenkaichi 2/3, and (to a much lesser degree) Burst Limit are considered about as good as anime games get, bastard AI notwithstanding. The only ones that have come to the forefront of beating them are the […] of Ninja games coming out for Naruto, which I find incredibly hit/miss personally. ---
**Author:** ![Robin\_Goodfellow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Robin\_Goodfellow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robin_Goodfellow)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/125 "2009-05-22T06:29:48Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Ah. In that case, _Outlaws_ had that first, as well. It also had [crap for production values](http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&safe=off&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&um=1&q=lucasarts+outlaws&revid=1844062568&ei=hEUWSu64Dt3Etgfl2-X3DA&sa=X&oi=revisions_inline&resnum=0&ct=broad-revision&cd=1). Seriously, Miller. I’d be embarrassed to admit this game came out within the same decade as Goldeneye. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/126 "2009-05-22T11:13:19Z")
> [@Hi\_Neighbor](#): > > I’ve wasted a ton of money on shitty games. _Command and Conquer_ for N64 comes to mind, as well as _Quest 64_. C&C - well, RTS games in general - are downright awful with a controller (I haven’t learned my lesson - I just bought _Red Alert 3_ for PS3). _Quest 64_ was easily the worst “RPG” I’ve ever played. > > More recently, _Call of Duty: World at War_ is absolute garbage. Treyarch fails at the series. I’m only buying CoD games if they’re developed by Infinite Ward from now on. I never got this. What’s so bad about World at War? It’s practically the same as Modern Warfare, just with a different skin. I argue that the sub-machineguns are a little overpowered and the bolt-action rifles are a little underpowered, but outside of that, I actually find it to be the superior game. ---
**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/127 "2009-05-22T11:43:32Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Somebody, somewhere bought _ET_, you know. I’m pretty sure I got it as a Christmas present, which is the only reason I can say it isn’t the biggest waste of _my_ gaming dollars. On the cosmic justice level, however, Atari still owes me a decent prezzie. ---
**Author:** ![Hi\_Neighbor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hi_neighbor/32/494_2.png) [@Hi\_Neighbor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hi_Neighbor)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/128 "2009-05-22T14:22:00Z")
> [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](#): > > I never got this. What’s so bad about World at War? It’s practically the same as Modern Warfare, **just with a different skin**. I argue that the sub-machineguns are a little overpowered and the bolt-action rifles are a little underpowered, but outside of that, I actually find it to be the superior game. I guess that’s just it: it felt too similar to _Modern Warfare_. WaW could have been a mod offered on the PSN for $19.99. The jump from CoD3 to MW was quite big - the graphics were sharper, the gameplay was more polished, the multiplayer was spot-on, and the modern setting was refreshing. WaW saw no vast improvements. It went back to the tired WWII theme, and although some of the levels were inspired (i.e. the PT boat stage), the rest felt repetitive and mundane (shoot at an endless stream of enemies until a game timer runs out, move on to a new area, lather, rinse, repeat). ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/129 "2009-05-22T17:10:47Z")
> [@Robin\_Goodfellow](#): > > It also had [crap for production values](http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&safe=off&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&um=1&q=lucasarts+outlaws&revid=1844062568&ei=hEUWSu64Dt3Etgfl2-X3DA&sa=X&oi=revisions_inline&resnum=0&ct=broad-revision&cd=1). The graphics were nothing special, but they weren’t terrible for the day. The cutscenes were fantastic. The soundtrack was one of the best I’ve ever heard. > [@](#): > > Seriously, Miller. I’d be embarrassed to admit this game came out within the same decade as Goldeneye. I’m not. It was a great fucking game. I’m not saying it was better than _Goldeneye_, because I never played _Goldeneye_. But it was a hell of a lot of fun, and it broke a lot of ground in new game developments. I still play it occasionally today. ---
**Author:** ![Zeriel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/58956e/32.png) [@Zeriel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeriel)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/130 "2009-05-22T18:19:59Z")
Many of mine have been said, but just to reiterate: **Master of Orion III** - I literally destroyed my game discs rather than sell 'em or give 'em away, it was that bad. **Imperium Galactica II** - This was the one that made me wait for reviews before I bought a game (which led to me dodging a bullet with Battle of Britain II) **Battlecruiser 3000AD** - Oh how I wish this game did 10% of what the box claimed. I had ET for the Atari and it wasn’t as bad as the first or third items on this list. ---
**Author:** ![Airk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@Airk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airk)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/131 "2009-05-22T19:40:53Z")
> [@magnusblitz](#): > > **Dungeon Siege.** Hey, this will be like a 3D Diablo! Oh wait, there’s no character skills. And every new area has the exact same enemies, just with palette swaps. Nevermind. Dungeon Seige is a total waste of money. UNLESS you use it to play [Ultima V: Lazarus](http://www.u5lazarus.com/), in which case all bets are off. ---
**Author:** ![Airk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@Airk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airk)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/132 "2009-05-22T19:53:00Z")
> [@Zeriel](#): > > Many of mine have been said, but just to reiterate: > > **Master of Orion III** - I literally destroyed my game discs rather than sell 'em or give 'em away, it was that bad. I was forewarned of this one, mercifully. But people who bought it owe it themselves to soothe their space 4x souls with Sword of the Stars. I know I wander through and plug it every so often, but it’s hard to pass up a chance when you hear people lamenting their MOO3 purchase. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Zeriel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/58956e/32.png) [@Zeriel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeriel)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2009, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/133 "2009-05-22T20:17:01Z")
Also, I hated Goldeneye for the controls but that’s my own quirk. =P Also, you guys reminded me: **Civilization: Call to Power** _shudder_ ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/134 "2009-05-24T02:15:21Z")
I may have another: I just got Feeble Files from gog, and it’s been a lot of fun and interesting for a decade old game. But now I’m in a spot where I have to win games to proceed! I hate that shit! I didn’t like it in Leisure Suit Larry, and I don’t like it now! I need 240 tokens to proceed, and I can win 5 tokens about 1/3 of the time. Fuck this shit. Developers who insist on making a game of this sort unwinnable without a long and consistent streak of luck or a tedious series of tucking away five tokens and saving 48 times should be shot without trial. OK, so I only wasted five bucks, but still . . . ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/135 "2009-05-24T03:24:51Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Ah. In that case, _Outlaws_ had that first, as well. Actually, Didn’t Dark Forces have a mission structure? It came out two years before Outlaws. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/136 "2009-05-24T03:47:12Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I’m not. It was a great fucking game. I’m not saying it was better than _Goldeneye_, because I never played _Goldeneye_. But it was a hell of a lot of fun, and it broke a lot of ground in new game developments. I still play it occasionally today. 100% agreed. “Outlaws” was an excellent game. Graphics are not the important thing about a video game. What’s important is the GAME. ---
**Author:** ![Apocalypso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Apocalypso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apocalypso)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/137 "2009-05-24T03:50:10Z")
When the Sega Genesis came out, most of the games were going for outrageous prices. Golden Axe was $70. Golden freaking Axe. Seventy Clams. No I didn’t buy it. I didn’t. Quit looking at me like that. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/138 "2009-05-24T03:59:10Z")
> [@Zeriel](#): > > Also, I hated Goldeneye for the controls but that’s my own quirk. =P You do know that Goldeneye had about six different methods of controlling Bond, right? I always did want to become proficient using two controllers for one character. First and last time I saw it as an option, to use two controllers, was Goldeneye. Bad assery at its finest if I do say so myself. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_C](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Captain\_C](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_C)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/139 "2009-05-24T04:47:45Z")
> [@Covered\_In\_Bees](#): > > You do know that Goldeneye had about six different methods of controlling Bond, right? > > I always did want to become proficient using two controllers for one character. First and last time I saw it as an option, to use two controllers, was Goldeneye. Bad assery at its finest if I do say so myself. They could have made the control schemes more explanatory though. I used the default from release, thinking it was the only useful one after frittering with each of the others for about 20 seconds. Two years ago I had a friend over and we got out the old N64. He showed me you can change it so you aim with the control stick and move with the yellow buttons. That’s so much easier than aiming with the yellow buttons! He wiped the floor with me, but it was well worth that bit of information. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_the\_Immortal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Max\_the\_Immortal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_the_Immortal)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2009, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533/140 "2009-05-24T04:59:06Z")
> [@Zeriel](#): > > Also, you guys reminded me: **Civilization: Call to Power** _shudder_ Oh, gods, I think I had blacked out memory of that game. I didn’t think of it once as I was sifting through my memory while reading this thread. Now I’m having flashbacks of having enemy lawyer units paralyze my cities by “filing injunctions” with impunity. _shudder_ _shudder_ **Master Of Orion III** was indeed a huge letdown. It played like a clone of **Pax Imperia: Eminent Domain** , which had come out about five and a half years earlier and was also terrible. Having to live up to the Master of Orion name made it that much worse, though. Similarly, **Civilization III** was pretty bad. In particular, the corruption and waste mechanic just wrecked everything. It would totally cripple a globe-spanning empire, and you’d actually end up weaker if you’d conquer your enemies. Using the world editor to remove corruption and waste would make the game halfway playable, but it really wasn’t balanced around having little or no corruption/waste. Oh, and the way they implemented unit hit points was pretty crummy, too. **Imperialism II** also failed to capture the feel of its excellent predecessor. Shifting to an earlier time period was a huge mistake IMO. The changes they made to terrain improvements, research, and resources in general were all steps backward, too. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-the-biggest-wastes-of-your-gaming-dollars/496533.md?page=8)