10 Overrated RPGs

The unusual predicament withFinal Fantasy XIV Onlinelooks great now. What you see now showsFinal Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. Final Fantasy XIV OnlineSquare Enix, the developer and publisher, took the game offline in November 2012 after it was poorly received in September 2010, rebuilding it from the ground up, which resulted inA Realm Reborn.

Like mostFinal FantasyFinal Fantasy XIV was an anticipated release. Promises of online play attracted many players, including newcomers to the Final Fantasy series.Final FantasyOnce it launched, there was little to get excited about. Fans and critics agreed the launch failed; it featured unstable servers, a confusing user interface, and weak quest design.

Game design principles caused the issue. Near-empty areas still needed high processing power because simple items like flowerpots used over 1000 polygons and 100 lines of shader code. Graphics looked good, but if you crash often and cannot see the flowerpot, what is the point?

DestinyDestiny is an enigma.Calling the game an RPG is sketchy because Bungie aimed to create its own genre when releasing this title. It contains RPG elements, and definitely MMORPG elements like raids.Destiny is sketchy because Bungie aimed to build its own genre upon releasing this title. The game has RPG elements, and it certainly has MMORPG elements like raids.DestinyDestiny had to make the list because a $500 million budget meant the standard was "take over the industry or bust."

Destiny's shortcomings were foreseeable.The Halo franchise declined while Bungie released Destiny. This is clear from an eSports view, given how far the series fell behind competitors. Design choices between Halo 2 and Halo 3 were questionable, despite Halo 3's major success early on. Many players accepted the changes and stayed, but only as long as they could be patient. With Destiny, Bungie ran into trouble with story elements. The narrative felt broken, and worse, it seemed unimportant.Halo 2Halo 3Halo 3's major success in its opening years.Some view Bungie as a studio whose best years are over. Whether that is true depends on where Destiny goes next. It is intended to evolve over years, and time will show if that happens.

ArcheAgeHaloThe Halo franchise declined when Bungie released it. This is clear from an eSports view, given how far the series fell behind competitors. Design choices between Halo 2 and Halo 3 were questionable, despite Halo 3's success early on. Many players accepted the changes and stayed with the series, but they only stayed as long as they could wait. With Destiny, Bungie faced trouble with story elements. The narrative felt disjointed, and worse, it seemed unimportant.Halo 2andHalo 3were questionable, despiteHalo 3's major success in its opening years. Many players stomached the changes and kept with the series, but they only stayed for as long as their patience could last. WithDestiny, Bungie ran into trouble with story elements. The narrative was disjointed, and worse, it felt unimportant.

Some consider Bungie a studio whose best years are finished. Whether that is true depends on where Destiny goes from here. The project aims to change over years, and only time will show if that occurs.DestinyIt is intended to be a project that will evolve in the years to come, and only time will tell if that actually happens.

ArcheAge's reception is quite mixed, but the hype before its release was real. This game did not start in North America; Trion Worlds ported it from Asia, a publisher known for poor game launches. The fact that ArcheAge does not hold a big share of the MMORPG market is a shame for many.ArcheAgedoesn't hold a great stake of the MMORPG market is a shame in the minds of many.

PvP advocates watched the sandbox environment for some time. The class system offers unique, variable options. This creates character balance problems for a game claiming PvP leads gameplay. Trion's effort to present this title fell short.

Trion Worlds lost player trust quickly.ArcheAgeThe player base faced broken promises. Founder's Packs sold before the North American release promised features like Guild castles (landholding is a major part of ArcheAge).ArcheAgeWhen ArcheAge released, players found no guild castles.ArcheAge has no guild castles.Trion's communication with players was almost nonexistent. This made matters worse.

Overall, ArcheAge is a solid creation now that the release dust has settled. Publishers should look at ArcheAge as an example of how not to port a good foreign game to a new region.ArcheAgeAs a game, ArcheAge is solid now that the release dust has settled. Many publishers should review ArcheAge.ArcheAgeArcheAge shows how not to port a good foreign game into a new region.

Electronic Arts made many mistakes in gaming history. This failure is memorable. It failed online and offline.SimCitySimCity 2013 launched with little fun.

The SimsThe Sims brought fun offline, but many players expected a large online expansion or port.SimCity2013It promised something. "New transportation options. Population determined by roads. And... an intricate multiplayer network that supports inter-city trading and requires SimCity to be online at all times." These features sound exciting, except the last one.SimCitySimCity requires constant online access. This feature is exciting, but the last requirement is not.

Because SimCity 2013 required the Internet, the purchase became useless when EA's servers kept breaking down. The fanbase became very disappointed. However, EA did the right thing and gave away some free games in return.SimCity2013It gave away some free games.As a title under the Sims series, SimCity 2013 was a disaster no one saw coming.SimsseriesSimCity2013

Dragon Age IIDragon Age II is a great example of a developer's biggest mistake when making a great game. This happens often with movies and books turned into video games: the project was rushed.Movies and books became video games; this project rushed.It made movies and books into video games; the project rushed.

Players saw many elements from the original Dragon Age in the sequel.Dragon Agewere also present in the sequel. In an industry that changes constantly, developers must keep up. Dragon Age II did not do that.Dragon Age IIAccording to an Escapist forum poster, there were few weapons and inventory items compared to Baldur's Gate.Baldurs Gate, Neverwinter Nights, [and] even Dragon Age 1.Dragon Age1.

Bad game? No, of course not. Good game? Maybe... yes.

This is the usual response from Fallout 4 players after they complain the story is confusing and predictable at once. The game's failures center on the plot. Play it if you want fun. But watch out: Fallout 4Fallout 4Players hear their rant about the confusing and predictable story. The game's failures focus on the plot. Try it if you want a fun game. But be warned:Fallout 4Fallout 4 shows how unexpected twists can hurt players.

Many aspects of Fallout 4.Fallout 4.Fallout 4 raises questions, yet players still predict game-changing parts of the main story. The wayFallout 4 tells its story; character motivations are not all shown. Gameplay becomes less interesting than older titles. Successes and failures seem less important now.The consequences of your successes and failures matter less in Fallout 4.

Some claim the series got old, but the real issue was the hype for Fallout 4.Fallout 4's release was real, but the product failed to deliver.Fallout 4's release was real, and the product just did not deliver.

The third generation of Pokémon started losing innovation for the series. Catching them all felt fun in the first generation (Red).Pokémon.The third generation started declining in innovation. Catching all Pokémon felt entertaining in the first generation (Red).Red.BlueBlue.Blue, and YellowYellow.The second generation felt fresh (Red, Blue, and Yellow).Gold.Gold, SilverSilver.Silver, and CrystalCrystal.The second generation (Gold, Silver, and Crystal) offered a more realistic and fun world than the third generation (Ruby).Ruby.Ruby, SapphireSapphire.Sapphire, and EmeraldEmerald.EmeraldRuby.Ruby and SapphireSapphire.Ruby and Sapphire are top-notch; each uses the GameBoy Advance hardware well.

Generation three disappoints due to missing time. At the start, players jump from a truck with items and set the clock in the bedroom. Generation two lets the starting time set which Pokémon appear during play. The sun moves, changing city and route looks.

As an RPG, generation three feels incomplete next to its predecessors. Generation three offers more challenge than before. Getting badges and defeating the Elite Four is harder now.

The hype for this title makes sense: it followed the legendary Final Fantasy VII.Final Fantasy VII.Final Fantasy VII

Many players defend this title, though most are series fans. This is not the clearest RPG in combat.Final Fantasy VIII.Final Fantasy VIII changed the battle system from the FFVII style.FFVII.Many players argued the new fighting style was too hard. This caused the game to be a big letdown.

Many fanatics claim Earthbound is a great RPG, but many people disagree. A big problem is the game lacks replay value for non-fans.Earthbound.Earthbound is a great RPG. Many people disagree; there are nearly equal numbers of critics. A major problem is the game's low replay value for non-fans.

Earthbound shows credit; its battle system pioneered the RPG genre. Enemies chase or flee based on your strength level.Earthbound.Earthbound was ahead of its time in PvE. However, as a modern RPG player, it feels like something is missing.Earthbound.Earthbound led the way in PvE, earning credit. Picking up this game as a modern RPG player shows a lack.

Characters, story, and storytelling modes carry the weight for Earthbound.Earthbound.This likely attracts a cult following. Each character remains memorable with a chance. The story maintains solid pacing; it avoids lulls and dry spells. The game mixes humor and horror, but this does not make it an all-time great among RPG releases.

Many people will not find this inclusion surprising. Some argue that by the time theBioShockThe series reachedInfinite, it should have been finished. Still, hype built up for the release.

BioShock InfiniteBioShock InfiniteBioShockBioShock

BioShock InfiniteBioShock Infinite flipped the script. It added non-player characters for interaction. The story might have needed this, but it did not have to, and probably should not have, given the genre. Switching from solo shooting to dialogue sequences irritates many first-person shooter fans. Some series fans will not even try if they compare it to earlier games.