The firstGame of the YearI remember is the Academy of Interactive Arts & Science debut award, now known as the D.I.C.E. Awards. It was GoldenEye 007 for the Nintendo 64, which beat out an interesting list of titles such as Final Fantasy VII, PaRappa the Rapper, and Age of Empires.
8 N64 Games That Have Aged Like Fine Wine
Not every N64 game has aged well, but these classics have.
Some argue thatGoldenEye hasn’t aged too well. The controls definitely don’t hold up, and the N64 cannot handle the action, with the framerate often stuttering during multiplayer sessions.
It got me thinking, though: what Game of the Year nominees have aged like milk? We’ve dug through the archives of over 25 years of Game of the Year nominees to see which ones have aged the worst.
8Donkey Kong 64
Please, Nintendo, Give Me Quality of Life Updates
Donkey Kong 64
I am once again asking Nintendo to release an updated version of Donkey Kong 64 that lets me change characters on the fly. That’s all this game needs: a substantial quality-of-life update that will make the game not just more enjoyable but prevent it from continuing to age so poorly.
Here’s the thing: on the surface, Donkey Kong 64 is an incredible achievement. It balances the line of perfect platforming and collecting seen inBanjo-Kazooiewithout having the bloat of Banjo-Tooie. The DK Rap remains as iconic as ever and ranks among one of thebest Donkey Kong gamesever made.
Yes, the game sometimes steers into being too much, but if you give me the ability to change these characters on the fly, I won’t care. That’s all it needs!
8 RPGS That Have Aged Like Milk
These previously acclaimed RPGs haven’t aged well at all.
7Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Animal Crossing: New Horizons which may be the poster child for releasing at the right place and time.
In 2020, we were in the midst of peak COVID-19 lockdown. For many, myself included,Animal Crossing: New Horizonswas the only way I could socially interact with friends. Going out to restaurants, local game stores, or, well, anywhere wasn’t possible in the real world, but it was in New Horizons.
Yes, there’s a lot to like in New Leaf, but there was also a severe lack of content compared to past games, a recurring theme for several Nintendo Switch games.
Aside from being our only form of interaction, New Horizons offered plenty of nostalgia that fans were desperate for. We had been waiting on a new Animal Crossing game for nearly a decade following 2012’s New Leaf, which I feel is the high point in the franchise. It was great to dive back into an Animal Crossing game, but the more I played, the more I realized it didn’t compare.
6Final Fantasy VII Remake
Stretched Too Thin
Final Fantasy VII Remake
Yes,Final Fantasy VII Remakeis a good game, but let’s not mince words here: Square Enix took the opening hours of Final Fantasy VII and stretched it out razor thin. Not everyone needs an expansive backstory. We didn’t need a new plot that involves changing destiny or whatever. We only wanted to play an updated version of a belovedJRPG classic.
Final Fantasy VII Remake has its moments for sure, but it’s often dragged down by bloat, and the new content is far and away the worst part of the game.
Remake’s biggest crime is a fundamental misunderstanding of what makes Final Fantasy VII so great: it’s a non-serious game that can, at times, have a serious message. It’s something Rebirth addressed and updated. Hopefully, the final release in the trilogy can continue that trend.
5Call of Duty
Boots on the Ground
Call of Duty (2003)
I have to be honest: I have no idea howCall of Dutywon Game of the Year in 2003. It beat some heavyhitters, including The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.
Yes, Call of Duty helped usher in the popularity of the WWII shooter in the mid-2000s, offering an intense single-player campaign that was well worth the price of admission.
Here’s the problem, though: if you play through the game now, it feels incredibly dated. The visuals have aged like milk, as is the case with many PS2-era games. But the gameplay and action are outclassed not just by its immediate sequel but also by other superior FPS titles of its era, most notably Halo: Combat Evolved and Metroid: Prime.
Without the original Call of Duty, we wouldn’t have many of its rightfully acclaimed sequels, but if we’re re-ranking Game of the Year nominees, never mind winners, there’s no denying this one hasn’t aged well.
4Battlefield 1
The War To End All Wars
Battlefield 1
Never mind aging like milk, I’m not sure whyBattlefield 1was nominated to begin with. Games like Overwatch, Inside, and Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End were absolutely deserving, and there’s no denying the cultural effect the industry saw from Pokémon Go.
Having said that, I dare you to look me in the eye and tell me that Battlefield 1 is better than Dark Souls III, Firewatch, or DOOM.
If Battlefield 1’s accomplishment of being a Battlefield game that wasn’t broken at launch warrants it this end of the year award season love, then we may need to reimagine things. Battlefield 1’s campaign is short, its multiplayer is a frustrating experience, and once the novelty of taking place during World War 1 falls off, you’re left with a technically sound, gorgeous-looking game that rings hollow before you know it.
If anything, it only amplifies the problems DICE has as a developer as of late: when their games are functional, they’re far too shallow to leave an impact.
3PUBG: Battlegrounds
Right Place at the Right Time
PUBG: Battlegrounds
I’m convinced thatPUBG’s success was solely due to gamers' desire to dive headfirst into theBattle Royalegenre.
Even upon release, people had their concerns; the game has an average score of 77 onOpenCritic,and only 57% of critics recommend it.
Yes, PUBG combines the best parts of multiplayer FPS, tactical shooters, and survival games into one convenient package, but it still lacks polish.
Many were willing to look past the technical hiccups and issues. Still, as time moved on, other Battle Royale contenders ascended to the throne, offering a far superior experience compared to PUBG. As a result, the one-time king of the Battle Royale genre is just a footnote in history, becoming yet another Game of the Year nominee that has aged like milk.
10 Games That Would Make A Great Battle Royale
PvP on the grandest scale.
2Angry Birds
The Mobile Sensation
Angry Birds
There’s no denying the impactAngry Birdshad on mobile gaming. The game’s addictive nature and surprisingly complex play helped it become a massive success, even earning a Game of the Year nomination in 2010.
To give you an idea of how insane that sounds, let’s talk about some of the games that D.I.C.E. didn’t nominate that year: Super Mario Galaxy 2, Xenoblade Chronicles, Super Meat Boy, and even another viral sensation in Plants vs. Zombies.
I’m sorry, but as much as I played Angry Birds back in the day, there’s no way it’s better than those games, plus countless others I haven’t mentioned yet, such as Civilization V and Halo: Reach. Compared to its fellow nominees, it’s become a footnote in gaming history, whereas titles like Red Dead Redemption and Mass Effect 2 continue to age like a fine wine. There are countless2010 games that continue to captivate gamers today. Most have moved on from the Angry Birds fad.
1Blade Runner
Good Immersion and Story, But…
Blade Runner
The best part about 1997’sBlade Runnergame is how impressive it is as a licensed game. It nails the story, atmosphere, and immersion we’d expect from the iconic sci-fi franchise, proving that it was more than possible to deliver not just a good game based on a movie, but one faithful to the source material.
Its flaws, though, were apparent even back then, and they’ve only become more magnified today.
Combat can sometimes be a clunky mess, which sadly breaks the game’s immersion and leaves you more frustrated than anything else. The more you play it, the more these issues compound.
Blade Runner is at its best when it focuses on its visual style and story. The more you actually play the game part, though, the more the shine starts to dim. Plus, like any other older game from the 90s, it suffers from a severe lack of direction at times, leaving you stuck with no idea of how to proceed.
10 Indie Games That Aged Like Fine Wine
I feel old, having played Cave Story for my entire life.
