Another Top 10 Video Games That Got Better After Launch

#10: “Assassin’s Creed Unity” (2014)

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Upon release, this game was marred by clunky controls and a myriad of technical issues. The response was so toxic that the CEO of Ubisoft Montreal apologized to the fans for the game’s lackluster launch, and the company decided to halt the annual release schedule of the series, citing poor reception and sales of recent titles. But like a good parent to a disappointing child, Ubisoft never gave up on “Unity,” and after numerous (and very large) patches, the game is very playable today. It runs smoothly, remains glitch-free throughout, and most importantly, the streets of Paris seem alive for the first time after the bugs and rendering issues were fixed. It’s still not perfect, but it’s certainly better.

#9: “No Man’s Sky” (2016)

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When this game was released, you’d think that the developers killed puppies. The game was almost universally despised online due to its overall underwhelming experience and broken promises, and it brought out many a gamers’ frothing rage. And while the game remains flawed, there’s no denying that the Foundation update did wonders for the experience. Especially welcome are the two new game modes – survival mode, where the stakes are higher and the difficulty much harder, and Creative Mode, which removes mechanics that can kill the player and gifts them with unlimited resources, allowing them to fully explore the worlds on offer. There’s still a long way to go, but the Foundation update is a step in the right direction.

#8: “Halo 5: Guardians” (2015)

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“Halo 5” had its fair share of problems upon release, namely a relatively poor campaign, a punishing difficulty, straight-up dumb AI, and a very “safe” multiplayer. But that’s nothing a little free DLC can’t fix! 343 Industries went on record by saying that there would be fifteen additional multiplayer maps released for free, as they didn’t want to exclude anyone from the new offerings. Now that’s how you keep your fans happy! And happy they were, as the DLC, along with the maps, contained new game modes like Big Team Battle and Infection, a Forge mode, customization options, bug fixes, and matchmaking preferences. Now this is the “Halo” we know and love.

#7: “Street Fighter V” (2016)

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“Street Fighter V” has to be one of the decade’s biggest gaming disappointments. With sky-high anticipation, gamers watched in agony as the game came with minimal characters, a surprising lack of single player content, and an extremely unstable online performance. All of these detriments were so bad that Capcom issued an apology and admitted that the game needed more work. Well, turns out they were right, because after some spit and polish, “Street Fighter V” is now much better. It now comes equipped with a cinematic story mode, titled “A Shadow Falls,” and many of its online issues have been rectified, allowing it to be the smooth and responsive game it should have been in the first place.

#6: “Rage” (2011)

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“Rage” was developed by id Software, a development team known for their revolutionary titles like “Wolfenstein” and “Doom.” Unfortunately, “Rage” was not one of them. While it was definitely a solid game, it wasn’t a masterpiece, and the PC release suffered from numerous and atrocious performance issues which hindered the overall experience, including tearing, a lack of graphical options, and constant texture popping. Seriously, you couldn’t go anywhere without something or another failing to load properly. Fortunately, many of these technical issues were patched after release, and the graphics and the game finally became noteworthy and deserving of a powerful PC.

#5: “Rocket League” (2015)

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Upon release, “Rocket League” was a breath of fresh and simple air in a multiplayer market overcrowded with military shooters and sports games. However, it DID have its problems, most noticeably bad servers, connectivity issues, and a lack of content. This has since been remedied with the game’s numerous DLC packs. Some of the new content includes custom presets, numerous game modes like ice hockey and Rumble mode, Rocket Labs, which gives players the option to test out new and experimental maps, and many other noteworthy additions that are far too numerous to list here. To put it simply, a lack of content is certainly not something you would fault the game for today.

“Killzone Shadow Fall” was a launch title for the PlayStation 4, and while it was certainly a great representative of the console’s potential in terms of power and graphics, it fell a little short in the gameplay department, as the campaign was lackluster and the multiplayer very by-the-book. However, after some tweaks, the game finally reached its full potential. The Valor Patch allowed players to earn an in-game currency called Valor after matches, which could be spent on special content which, before the patch, could only have been accessed by paying real money. Other notable fixes included offering support for left-handed players, giving the UI a facelift, and trimming the campaign to eliminate scenes and sections that received criticism.

#3: “World of Warcraft” (2004)

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Looking at the behemoth that is (or at least was) “World of Warcraft,” it’d be hard to imagine that it was once an unplayable disaster. As the game neared release, anticipation was high…a little too high. Blizzard launched the game with excitement but immediately went scrambling like chickens without a head, as their servers were flooded with numbers that they weren’t prepared for, resulting in extremely long queues and latency issues. Oh, and also the constant disconnecting, because this was 2004, and the internet sucked back then. Luckily, after some rather nice expansions and server updates, the game was finally running smoothly and eventually became one of the most popular video games of all time.

#2: “The Elder Scrolls Online” (2014)

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The Elder Scrolls? Online!? Hells yeah, sign us up, son! Well, actually, don’t, because upon launch, the game was a complete disaster. Common criticisms included the exorbitant subscription model, the infamous phasing issues, its problematic progression system, and bugs. A LOT of bugs. The criticisms were so prevalent that the developers backpedaled on a lot of ideas, including the subscription model, which was axed in March of 2015. They also released some favorable DLC, which added various mechanics like new currency, dungeons, and questlines, and removed problematic gameplay elements like the Veteran Progression System. The game continues to be worked on and added to today, with the promise of player housing in 2017. Before we get to our top pick, we have one quick Honorable Mention “Mass Effect Andromeda” (2017)

#1: “Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege” (2015)

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Man, talk about how DLC can help a game! “Siege” launched with a solid foundation, but it significantly lacked a single player experience, maps, and game modes, and it was heavily criticized for being a barebones and disappointing AAA release. However, the DLC cavalry was on the way, and what a rescue it was. Maps were constantly added as free downloadable content, with yet another year of additional DLC scheduled for release in 2017. This DLC also contained new CTUs and operators, not to mention some fancy looking weapons. With all this new content, the game is finally allowed to breathe and be the quality shooter it always had the potential to be.