Top 10 Video Games That Might Suck in 2020
#10: “Watch Dogs: Legion” (TBA)
Don’t get us wrong - we’re absolutely excited for “Watch Dogs: Legion”! The ability to turn NPCs into a playable character had us hooked the moment it was announced, but it comes bearing some concerns. With so many potential characters in the mix, might the story suffer? Another factor in our worry lies in Ubisoft’s recent announcement that the game would be delayed from its March 6th release date due to “Ghost Recon: Breakpoint” failing to meet expectations. With efforts being focused on making “Breakpoint” a better game, will “Legion” be able to make the 2020 - 2021 window? Are developers going to have to crunch to get the game out on time? Only time will tell.
#9: “The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners” (2020)
“Saints & Sinners” looks like a solid action VR game, but its downfall may lie in just its name. You mean to tell us that there's another “Walking Dead” game coming out? Much like the television series, there are some fans who feel the franchise is starting to overstay its welcome in the video game space. We can certainly feel the brand fatigue, too, what with Telltale’s series just ending in March 2019 and Overkill’s game failing to impress anyone in 2018. “Saints & Sinners” may turn out okay, but given how many “Walking Dead” games have spawned this past decade, it may not be turning any heads.
#8: “Medal of Honor: Above & Beyond” (2020)
As if EA didn’t have enough shooters under its belt, “Medal of Honor” is once again being resurrected, but rather than making a first-person shooter to compete with “Call of Duty”, Respawn Entertainment is turning it into a VR shooter. There’s a few things wrong with this picture, the first being Respawn’s workload. How has the studio managed to dedicate enough time to this while supporting “Apex Legends” AND finishing “Jedi: Fallen Order”? Second, how is this military shooter going to stand out from the hundreds of other shooting gallery VR games? And finally, if 2012’s “Warfighter” was a critical and commercial flop, how exactly is “Above & Beyond” going to break the mold?
#7: “Comanche” (2020)
This is one of those ‘90s franchises that fans hold in relatively high regard. As such a reboot is an exciting prospect, but this doesn’t seem to be the one fans were hoping for. Announced at Gamescom 2019, the “Comanche” reboot is bringing the series back while leaving behind one of the best parts of the franchise - the single-player campaign. Scheduled to release in March 2020, “Comanche” is to be an online team-based deathmatch title...and not much else. Maybe it would have been better to release a “Comanche” collection to reintroduce the series and buy enough development time to make this a full-fledged game.
#6: “Predator: Hunting Grounds” (2020)
Ever since Illfonic stopped producing content updates for “Friday the 13th” (due to a complex lawsuit involving the franchise), we’ve been curious to see what they’ve been up to. “Predator: Hunting Grounds” is the answer, and it seems like it could be a promising asymmetric multiplayer game. Unfortunately, the small amount of gameplay that’s been shown to date has us worried that Illfonic may not have learned its lessons from “Friday the 13th”. Even by pre-alpha standards, the graphics are not all that impressive. As for the gameplay, things seem a little too chaotic and gives us flashbacks of “Evolve” and “Umbrella Corps” - neither of which lived up to their expectations.
#5: “Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Quarantine” (TBA)
Like “Watch Dogs: Legion”, “Rainbow Six: Quarantine” is another title Ubisoft delayed because of “Breakpoint’s” poor performance. However, we’re more concerned about “Quarantine” in the same that we worry about “The Walking Dead”. Ubisoft’s showcase at E3 2019 showed that the publisher is planning a hefty number of Tom Clancy games, and it's gotten to the point where they’re starting to blend together. “Rainbow Six: Quarantine” is trying to spice things up by being a zombie-style shooter, but...seriously, how many zombie-type games before we can call it “too many”? How much Tom Clancy are we getting in 2020? Are the games even related to his books anymore?
#4: “Pokémon Sleep” (2020)
Nintendo hasn’t had a great track record with mobile games lately. “Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp” introduced an eyebrow raising subscription plan and for “Mario Kart Tour”, the monetization was insane. These recent outings have us concerned about Nintendo’s mobile efforts, and “Pokemon Sleep” could be a breaking point. Get this - it’s a mobile game that tracks how long the user sleeps, and the Pokemon Company has said it will turn “sleeping into entertainment”. What does that mean exactly? Who knows, but it doesn’t sound like its going to do the franchise a favor! Last thing we want is a snore confirming a purchase for premium currency or a limited edition Mewtwo with a nightcap.
#3: “Minecraft Dungeons” (2020)
“Minecraft Dungeons” may have previewed well back at E3 2019, but to be honest, we’re just not seeing it. Look at it this way - take away the voxel style, and this could be LITERALLY ANY GAME! On top of that, there is nothing special about it beyond the visuals. It’s a dungeon-crawler with no crafting, no building, and no harvesting - you know, the whole point of “Minecraft”? There isn’t even a class system, which is something even standard dungeon-crawlers typically have! The big question “Dungeons” will have to answer is “Why?” Why play this when most people can go play “Minecraft” right now? Or a different dungeon-crawler! Here’s hoping things improve before launch.
#2: “Marvel’s Avengers” (2020)
What started out as promising new Marvel game made by Crystal Dynamics has quickly devolved into an uncanny title that’s reminding us of the days of bad superhero games. For starters, there’s the uncomfortable resemblance to the MCU Avengers, which makes the designs come off as indecisive. Then, there’s the fact that this is going to be a live service title with microtransactions, a double whammy that has turned off many players already. With Square showing very little of the game and already announcing heroes for post-launch, this could end up being one of the year’s most disappointing games. Here’s hoping they prove us wrong! Seriously… we WANT this to be good.
#1: “Halo Infinite” (2020)
With the imminent wave of next-gen hardware on the horizon, we’ve been eyeballing this one pretty hard, and not for good reason. We’re already on edge with “Halo: Infinite” due to rumors of the game being a live service title (which was heavily implied in its title and announcement trailer). However, there have been some waves behind the scenes that have us deeply concerned. In August 2019, “Infinite’s” creative director, Tim Longo, left 343 Industries, and lead producer Mary Olson left two months later. The studio has tried assuring fans that there is “no creative dilemma”, but this is looking like a pattern eerily similar to another live service title. Yeah, something tells us this might be a rough launch…