Next Gen Underachievers

Remember when your teacher would give you progress reports and it always said something like, “Not living up to potential”?
Yeah, me either. But I am sure it happens to people out there, just as we know that some games are not living up to their next-gen potential. This post will examine these chronic underachievers.

Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction – Aside from the Sixaxxis motion controls and the amazing graphics…nothing next gen here at all. This game plays the same as the PS2 versions, which is fine, since that means it is fun as hell, but still…leaves you wanting.

Devil May Cry 4 – Same thing here. Better graphics, but who cares because the gameplay is identical, not to mention you play through the game as one hero, switch to another, then backtrack through the same levels and bosses with the other one. Lazy and not next gen.

Mercenaries 2: World in Flames – This one plays the exact same as the first one! Online Co-Op is a nice touch, but you have to stay a certain distance within each other, which is kind of restricting and not what I expect from a blockbuster next gen title! Plus, the AI is brain dead, which is getting inexcusable.

One game that I must mention is GTA IV. It’s kind of in between. The detail is amazing and could not have been done on the PS2 or Xbox, but they left out THINGS FOR YOU TO DO! It’s one detailed empty city with not a thing to do in it. Next gen, yes, but also kind of a setback.

So there you have what I feel are the biggest culprits of underachieving in this new generation. What games are living up to their promise? Well, Gears of War, Fable 2 and LittleBigPlanet all spring to mind. What games out have you guys felt were not really a step up from the previous era of gaming?

Written by

Age: 34 PSN ID: Starkiller81. I've played games since before I can remember, starting with my dad's Atari and I haven't stopped yet. Keep them coming and I will keep playing them.

23 thoughts on “Next Gen Underachievers”

  1. Good post. I feel like Mario Galaxies was an under-achiever in terms of it being able to be on previous systems. I mean, without motion control, there’s nothing that makes it a Wii game versus a Gamecube game.

    I feel the same way about MGS4, except in terms of its incredible graphics.Halo 3 is kind of toss-up. Some of the community features are a huge step forward for this gen in general, but as a whole I felt like a lot of the game could have been done on the original XBox with lesser graphics.

  2. Yeah, I agree. I kind of left off the Wii b/c does any of that feel next gen?

    Yeah, the online stuff with Halo 3 is what kept it off this list. I also thought about MGS4, but I crap on that game enough,lol.

  3. Mario Galaxy had me feeling…sad. It didnt leave me with the feeling that 64 did. It felt too…happy childish, and nothing spanking new. And Far Cry 2….man. They crapped out. They traded space for content 🙁

    On the other end I think games like EndWar are next gen title worthy. Bringing same concepts of RTS but with voice recognition.

  4. Spider-Man 3. That game under-achieved in a big way. Treyarch took Spider-Man 2, slapped on a high-def upgrade, and shipped it out.

    Considering that Spider-Man 2 was such a massive leap in the web head’s games, it makes me sad even thinking about number three.

    Mercenaries 2 probably wouldn’t have been such a disappointment if it had shipped a year earlier. In 2007, it would have been the open-world hit we needed. Now, it just seems like too little, too late. (Still fun, just putting that out there)

  5. Space for content?Can you clarify?

    Endwar, I played the demo and it doesn’t recognize anything I say!

    I could not even get out of the tutorial!

  6. then either your mic sucks or youre voice is worse then a parrots. and i feel like a lot of sports games dont feel next gen, like they could all be ps2 games, and also resistance, i dont know, but i feels like it almost doesent belong, like its a good game, but just not, next-gen.

  7. I know,lol, I felt bad. I am going to try again, but I have a decent bluetooth headset, no problems. maybe I am talking too loud, b/c it wants to keep my voice in the middle of the bar and it shoots to the top. But i was being quiet so I guess I better whisper my battle commands,lol.

  8. Nintendo in general. Their recent games all suck basically, except for a few good games. I wouldn’t have bought the Wii at all if it wasn’t so cheap. So Nintendo as a company is lacking nowadays, and sooner or later, their going to go out of business or get merged with EA or something.
    Anyway, Mario games have died. Sure, they’re simple and stuff, but I guess the gaming community is bored with that. We want interesting storylines, new environments, realistic graphics, online multiplayer, and all the best of the genres.

  9. [quote comment=”1728″]
    On the other end I think games like EndWar are next gen title worthy. Bringing same concepts of RTS but with voice recognition.[/quote]

    Ya, End War is truly a nextgen title. WANT

  10. Cossack, I have to disagree with something you said. I don’t want realistic graphics. I liked the Wind Waker more than Twilight Princess and Vice City was my favorite GTA.

    I am speaking only for myself, but cartoony or colorful games are really awesome to look at and realism is overrated.

    And Mario can be great even without a good story, Galaxy just wasn’t enough.

  11. [quote comment=”1733″]Space for content?Can you clarify?

    Endwar, I played the demo and it doesn’t recognize anything I say!

    I could not even get out of the tutorial![/quote]

    You really have to play with it. I thought it was garbage when i did the tutorial to, but then I found where my mic needed to be and it started to recognize my voice. Just keep going, it will.

    And ‘Space for Content’, The game is HUGE. There are two sections and each is about the size of an Oblivion map. We are talking big. And its mostly….empty. No random lions or anything. bandits can be sparse. To get from one side to the other you have 5 bus stops but those to me suck, yous till have to waste good time getting to a place. no fast traveling and all the vehicles go the same speed. Plus, if you clear out a bandit place, they spawn right back, and you have to waste time fighting them.

    Its a massive game that is repetitive. Same stuff over and over. Instead of mixing it up and making the environment really interesting and putting in a lot of unique things, they hid diamonds in their vast wasteland. It kinda is like Africa…..huge and in places empty 🙁

  12. [quote comment=”1745″]That does sound kinda eh. I will rent that. I hate when you clear something out and they just keep spawning.[/quote]

    Its very annoying in this game. Its more of a time waster than anything. Then it wastes ammo.

  13. I totally agree with you about FarCry2, Sean. With all that space, Ubisoft could have packed some really neat areas into the African wild.

    As it is, you have jungles, a desert, and a few shanty towns. Yawn. Impressive visually, but when you have to drive across a whole map through windy jungle roads, it gets old fast.

    Ubisoft could have cut down some of the time spent on building the gameplay areas and spent it on AI, or a more interesting story.

  14. I think we should ask ourselves, “What IS next gen?”. Anything I’ve seen so far could have been done on prev gen console (but not as shiny is all). There are a few exceptions but future dissappointments will prolly include Gears 2. What did the first do that was next gen? The only real appealing factor was the lancer.

  15. gears of war is only a let down if you want it to be. if you let yourself get as into the story as a halo game, then gow kicks ass, i mean the gameplay is so great, and something new, not just something re-done. you also say that anything could be done on a previous gen, then bash gow for not being next gen, wtf? obviously your gonna think that if you think that about every other game.

  16. I think it was the combination of Gears of War’s interface (no hud/the “look at” features), its jump in and jump out co-op, its crazy graphics and its superb gameplay that made it feel like it was something that took us to the next gen.

    I mean, nearly every shooter since is graded for not having a cover mechanic, which Gears of War has made almost a staple in the shooter genre now.

  17. the no HUD thing has been tried before, but with mixed results. I personally don’t mind a HUD, but kudos to GOW for going without one.

  18. Co-op has been done before but yes, it did work a lot better. However graphics aren’t something that redefines gaming as we know it. The gameplay was basically a more tactical Resi 4 a previous gen game. I’m not saying it was a poor game (it ranks high up on my top whatever list) but it wasn’t… I dunno how you would put it. The only thing I can think of that is a technical masterpeice to show what the consoles can do is Oblivion or maybe LBP. I would say MGS4, but then I’d be argueing a hopeless case as Anthony here would probably ban me for telling him he’s wrong. Nah just kidding you seem nice enough. 🙂

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