Home Gaming FFD: Was 2014 a disappointment?

FFD: Was 2014 a disappointment?

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FFDIsapointed

There were a bunch of excellent games released this year – we are celebrating them with all our awards today. However, many of us are looking back on 2014 and wondering what happened. It was supposed to be an amazing year for gaming, but so much went so wrong.

There are some games I knew were coming that lived up to expectations – Dragon Age, Mario Kart and others were announced far in advance, and didn’t disappoint. There were even some games that weren’t on my radar originally that blew me away, like Shadow of Mordor. However, other games seemed to miss the mark. Perhaps I built up Watch Dogs too much in my head, but it just didn’t blow me away in the ways I was hoping. Titanfall and Destiny both promised to change the pew pew genre, and yet didn’t really live up to expectations. And do I even need to talk about Assassin’s Creed: Unity?

More than that were the delays. I don’t mind delays – I’d rather see a game delayed than play something broken. However, many of the year’s most anticipated games were delayed into 2015. Just look at our E3 awards – we were desperate for The Witcher, Evolve and Batman… none of which are coming until next year. They will hopefully be worth the wait, but they made 2014 feel that little bit less amazing.

In fact, for much of 2014 there was nothing I was excited to play; it’s only been the past month or two that I’ve been happily addicted again. Debating about which games should get what awards has reminded us how few games really blew us away this year. 2014 was a bit of a let down, despite the presence of some incredible games.

Are we just moaning for no reason, or was 2014 a bit of a disappointment for gaming?

Last Updated: December 19, 2014

117 Comments

  1. Admiral Chief on leave

    December 19, 2014 at 10:37

    2014, the year of the overhype, unfinished, patchy, pricy, moany groany and let us not forget:

    Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      December 19, 2014 at 10:43

      A bright point of the year!

      Reply

      • RinceThis

        December 19, 2014 at 10:47

        0_O

        Reply

        • Alien Emperor Trevor

          December 19, 2014 at 10:48

          What? Look how bright it is. Lumo green.

          Reply

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 10:49

            Hahaha bright spark

          • RinceThis

            December 19, 2014 at 10:51

            “it” is? I trust you are referring to Darryn?

          • Alien Emperor Trevor

            December 19, 2014 at 10:57

            No, the mankini. If I was referring to Darryn I would have said “bronze, sun-kissed frame”.

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 10:59

            O_O_O_O_O_O_O_O_O

          • RinceThis

            December 19, 2014 at 11:00

          • Kensei Seraph

            December 19, 2014 at 11:02

            Well there went my appetite.

          • RinceThis

            December 19, 2014 at 11:03

            You mean Darryn’s pic didn’t do that already? Get help!

          • Kensei Seraph

            December 19, 2014 at 11:06

            I edited my previous comment before you even commented.

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 11:06

            I have a craving for peanut butter all of the sudden

          • Kensei Seraph

            December 19, 2014 at 11:11

            Hmm… not sure which gif better shows my feelings about your statement.
            Shocked Kirito or Captain Jack Sparrow
            http://media.giphy.com/media/wVRM3ItKfEsmc/giphy.gif or http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m83tks6Fjr1rys4czo1_500.gif

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 11:06

            Bwaaaaaaahahahahahhaa

          • Quo Vadis?

            December 19, 2014 at 11:25

            That reminds me, I’m off to the Brazen Head for lunch 😀

      • Quo Vadis?

        December 19, 2014 at 10:51

        you’re a “glass half full” kind of guy, aren’t you?

        Reply

        • Alien Emperor Trevor

          December 19, 2014 at 10:56

          It’s a really nice glass too!

          Reply

    • ToshZA

      December 19, 2014 at 10:51

      WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?!?!?!?!?!

      Reply

      • Admiral Chief on leave

        December 19, 2014 at 11:15

        Consider it, a parting gift

        Reply

        • ToshZA

          December 19, 2014 at 11:18

          I’m sure you’d like to part his ‘gift’. Amirite? XD

          Reply

          • Alien Emperor Trevor

            December 19, 2014 at 11:20

            “Admiral, Santa’s got a special present for you. Oh what’s that? Mistletoe?” bowchickawowow

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 11:20

            Mrs Kempff will be pleased

          • Kensei Seraph

            December 19, 2014 at 11:22

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 11:21

            Sorry, I’m not hip to that kind of innuendo

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:22

            When were you hip at all? ;P

          • ToshZA

            December 19, 2014 at 11:23

            LOL!!

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 13:12

            I ain’t no hipster

    • Raptor Rants A Lot

      December 19, 2014 at 15:31

      WHY WOULD YOU REMIND US!?!?!?!

      Reply

  2. Quo Vadis?

    December 19, 2014 at 10:37

    Too many patches, too many overhyped games. I still cannot describe what a disappointment Evil Within was for me.

    Reply

  3. RinceThis

    December 19, 2014 at 10:39

    I think with all these patches people have a right to get pissed off. That being said I do think that many people are crying babies.

    Reply

    • Dutch Matrix

      December 19, 2014 at 10:53

      LoL. Your balls must be blue from sitting on the fence so much!

      Reply

      • RinceThis

        December 19, 2014 at 10:57

        Loads of people bitch about games and continue to do so. If it’s about day one patches I agree with them, but when you get fanboys that hate on anything not THIS, then they are babies in my opinion. Also, the ones who act like the upcoming game is going to ROCK because they love the franchise then that also screams fanboyzzzz! So leave my blue balls alone!

        Reply

        • Dutch Matrix

          December 19, 2014 at 11:04

          If i learnt anything from the Sims 4 and Saints Row IV it is to keep your mouth shut until you’ve played the game.
          The Sims was I think one of two AAA titles I bought and wow… I feel like I got a shell and no bang for my buck, you know?

          Reply

          • RinceThis

            December 19, 2014 at 11:11

            Eish. But you have swimming pools now!

          • Dutch Matrix

            December 19, 2014 at 11:32

            You know what I really want? I want a Sims 4 Hard Living expansion. Where Sims can get addicted to smoking the Simquivalent of weed, or become alcoholics, or become addicted to Woo-Hooing so much, they end up working street corners to feed their addiction.
            And Teen Sims can get pregant, run away with their hippy older boyfriends and cause Sim Parents sleepless nights of heartbreak, despair or anger.

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:33

            Too much like everyday life ;P

          • Alien Emperor Trevor

            December 19, 2014 at 11:33

            You mean SimGoodwood?

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:35

            #shotsfired

          • Dutch Matrix

            December 19, 2014 at 11:38

          • ToshZA

            December 19, 2014 at 11:13

            I actually am enjoying the Sims 4, I don’t feel shafted at all. SR4 though won’t get my money, ever. Because SR3 wasn’t amazing for me.

          • Kensei Seraph

            December 19, 2014 at 11:14

            I bought SR4 and a month later they released the GotY edition with nearly all the DLC.
            I was saddened.

          • ToshZA

            December 19, 2014 at 11:18

            Eish, yeah man that sucks. 🙁

          • Dutch Matrix

            December 19, 2014 at 11:28

            I dunno to be honest. I kind of feel like I am playing half a game. Especially if I play for a few hours. And I am not missing the shitload of expansion The Sims 3 had.
            Saints Row 3 was kind of the game that gave me hope for gaming again. It was fun, silly and never took itself too seriously.
            Then Saints Row IV happened. The power ups is crap. The game takes place in the exact same city as SR 3. It should have rather been a DLC than a full release.

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:32

            I loved SR3 also. SR4 got boring quickly with those power-ups. That said, I played both co-op, which does make things a bit more fun.
            Hopefully they’ll give us a new city and go back to the SR3 guise if they ever bring out a next.

          • ToshZA

            December 19, 2014 at 11:34

            Well it was originally a DLC pack for SR3, got turned into a full game because $$$$$$$$$$.

            Either way – Sims I only ever played 1 and 2, didn’t really get into it then. So with 4 it’s my first real foray into the series, so I think that’s why I’m enjoying it really. Not because it’s better than 3, but because it’s the first I’ve spent more than 20 minutes in.

          • Dutch Matrix

            December 19, 2014 at 11:51

            LoL. I see. My only hope is that the expansions coming out will add some much needed depth to the game.

  4. Captain JJ the engaged

    December 19, 2014 at 10:39

    2014 was a great year of gaming for me to be honest. Then again, the only AAA title that I bought on release was Shadow of Mordor.

    Reply

  5. Hammersteyn

    December 19, 2014 at 10:39

    I think the biggest problem is that most of us have shiny new consoles with too few exclusives and too many remastered games. Destiny is still addictive thanks to the new DLC. Watchdogs wasn’t a bad game. I liked it a lot. Both got too much hype. Same with Titanfall. Then there was the slew of broken games which didn’t help at all. I think this year must be a record for games being patched.

    Reply

    • Admiral Chief on leave

      December 19, 2014 at 10:45

      Perhaps I should try WD again after the new CPU…

      Reply

      • Mark Treloar

        December 19, 2014 at 11:12

        No. Fullstop………

        Reply

    • Jonah Cash

      December 19, 2014 at 10:53

      I also liked Watch Dogs, it was great hacking everything!! And the story was just good enough for me!! I will buy Watch Dogs 2 in a heart beat!!

      Reply

  6. GooseZA

    December 19, 2014 at 10:41

    2014 – The year of day one patches, shop exclusive pre-order only content, and remasters of old games for full price.

    Reply

  7. Matewis Jubilai

    December 19, 2014 at 10:41

    On earth in general it was. Some crazy stuff happened this year 😛

    Reply

  8. Sageville

    December 19, 2014 at 10:41

    2014 – The year of Delays

    Reply

  9. Alien Emperor Trevor

    December 19, 2014 at 10:42

    It’s been good for me. Because I discovered Warframe & haven’t bought or played any games released in 2014. WIN!

    For people who have rushed out for buy day one this year, what a disappointment in so many cases. Looking forward to the POTY winner.

    Reply

  10. Matewis Jubilai

    December 19, 2014 at 10:43

    Quick reference and a, uhm, brief summary: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_in_video_gaming

    Reply

    • Captain JJ the engaged

      December 19, 2014 at 10:46

      Check how few of those are original titles and not sequels.

      Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      December 19, 2014 at 10:46

      Still cant find Suikoden on PSN >:(

      Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      December 19, 2014 at 10:47

      I think my favourite part of that list is how they call PC games, “Win”. 😉

      Reply

      • Matewis Jubilai

        December 19, 2014 at 10:53

        Lol yeah. I’m curious what the gaming scene is going to look like in 10 years. It seems that the Linux gaming movement is picking up pace

        Reply

  11. Captain JJ the engaged

    December 19, 2014 at 10:44

    Biggest disappointment for me was TESO
    Biggest win was Child of Light and Valiant Hearts.

    Reply

    • Matewis Jubilai

      December 19, 2014 at 10:48

      From the very start I thought that there was no way that it could be a success, or at least be true to the Elder Scrolls vibe. Creating an elder scrolls mmo was just completely defeating the purpose behind elder scrolls: a massive open and immersive world, that is not an mmo 😛

      Reply

      • Captain JJ the engaged

        December 19, 2014 at 10:52

        I agree. The moment they announced an MMO elder scrolls I hated the idea. I’m disappointed with the fact that they actually made it, not because I expected it to be good.

        Reply

  12. ToshZA

    December 19, 2014 at 10:50

    Trevor’s new name: “2014”

    Reply

  13. Matewis Jubilai

    December 19, 2014 at 10:50

    I sometimes wonder whether there are weeks when the lazygamer staff worry that they won’t be able to think of a FFD topic 😀

    Reply

  14. Jonah Cash

    December 19, 2014 at 10:52

    I just bought Trine Enchanted Edition!! And I can’t wait to play it, as Trine 2 which I got with my PSN sub blew me away!! In my top 3 of the year!! I have Destiny, The Last of US(Only played it this year) and then Trine 2!! Further than that, I had a very quiet year gaming wise…. The least amount of games I have ever bought in a single year, so yeah 2014 wasn’t all that good!!

    Reply

    • Captain JJ the engaged

      December 19, 2014 at 10:52

      Trine is a great game. All of them.

      Reply

      • Jonah Cash

        December 19, 2014 at 10:54

        Really looking forward to playing the first one!! It is busy downloading!!

        Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      December 19, 2014 at 10:53

      Trine 2 was my GOTY last year. Both of them are so cool.

      Reply

      • Jonah Cash

        December 19, 2014 at 10:56

        Trine 2 in 3D on the PS4 is just amazing!! It is what they said 3D movies would be…..

        Reply

      • Admiral Chief on leave

        December 19, 2014 at 10:56

        I was about to buy it, but I already own it, wtf? WIN!

        Reply

        • Kensei Seraph

          December 19, 2014 at 11:00

          It was in one of the Humble Bundles a while back so that’s probably where you got it.

          Reply

    • CAE9872

      December 19, 2014 at 11:17

      Trine is sitting in my basket! I want to get that and then move to Trine 2. I know I will enjoy.

      Reply

      • Admiral Chief on leave

        December 19, 2014 at 11:19

        BUY nr2 NAO!

        Reply

      • Captain JJ the engaged

        December 19, 2014 at 11:19

        You will not be disappointed. I bought the special editions of both. Worth every cent.

        Reply

      • Jonah Cash

        December 20, 2014 at 06:39

        It really is amazing!! And if you have a 3D TV then try it out in 3D it is really something to behold!!

        Reply

  15. Captain JJ the engaged

    December 19, 2014 at 10:53

    It was a disappointing year if all you looked at were “AAA” titles.

    Reply

    • Axon1988

      December 19, 2014 at 11:00

      Many of the indie titles and smaller companies sure did release some amazing titles!

      Reply

      • Captain JJ the engaged

        December 19, 2014 at 11:00

        Exactly. I honestly had one of the best gaming years.

        Reply

        • Axon1988

          December 19, 2014 at 11:02

          Any titles worth mentioning?

          Reply

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:10

            Child of Light
            Valiant Hearts
            Brothers: A tale of two sons.
            The Banner Saga
            The Forest
            Gauntlet (worth it on sale, not so much full price)
            Shadow of Mordor (also worth it on sale)
            And I’m still to play Divinity Original Sin, but it’s looking great.

            Sir, you are being hunted – also a fun little game, but not amazing

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 11:11

            Did you play “Sir, you are being hunted”?

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:12

            Oh yes.
            Never thought robots could be scary.

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 11:14

            Any good?

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:18

            Well, it’s not going to blow your mind and I don’t think it’ll keep you busy for very long.
            It’s VERY basic, but I liked it. Only put four hours into it so far.
            It’s basically just about finding things on four different islands and bringing them together whilst trying not to get killed by the robots.
            Check out some vids first though, maybe it’s not your thing.

          • Kensei Seraph

            December 19, 2014 at 11:13

            I’m going to get Shadow of Mordor as a Christmas present for myself.
            Do you think it’s worth getting it now at 25% off or waiting to see if it gets cheaper?
            Since it’s fairly new I’m thinking that it won’t get any cheaper.

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 11:14

            Wait

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:14

            It’s worth it at 25% off, for sure.
            It’s a great game, the story is just bland and some of the missions get repetitive quickly.

          • Axon1988

            December 19, 2014 at 11:17

            Sir, you are being hunted I have played. It seems they rushed for released and under delivered on features they promised.
            Banner saga and Valiant hearts I really want to try. Cannot play Shadow of Mordor because it is dx11 only. Which breaks my heart as I was really looking forward to it.

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:19

            I agree with you on Sir, you are being hunted. A bit disappointing considering what they promised, but it kept me busy for a bit. Valiant Hearts is amazing and Banner Saga has an incredible music score.
            The Forest is KAK scary, but still early access. Runs better than most Ubisoft games though ;P

          • Axon1988

            December 19, 2014 at 11:24

            Good to know! I can’t really get scary games though, because the fiance likes to watch and comment as I play. She gets terrible nightmares from scary games.

          • Captain JJ the engaged

            December 19, 2014 at 11:25

            I got terrible nightmares myself, so then I will retract that recommendation 😉

          • Quo Vadis?

            December 19, 2014 at 11:26

            “runs better than most Ubisoft games” is like saying “hey look! that fat kid is faster than that one” XD XDX XD XD

  16. Norman Pleasant

    December 19, 2014 at 10:54

    Alien: Isolation is the only game I’ve played this year worthy of the GOTY crown, and I’ve played all of them but Destiny.

    Reply

    • Admiral Chief on leave

      December 19, 2014 at 11:00

      I think I just might install that today/tomorrow

      Reply

      • Norman Pleasant

        December 20, 2014 at 00:40

        I’ve been through six pairs of pants in the last five hours.

        Reply

  17. Kensei Seraph

    December 19, 2014 at 10:55

    I can summarise my feelings about how 2014 turned out:
    My holidays start this afternoon and I have DA:I waiting for me to get home.

    Oh, and my Steelseries Siberia Elite headphones are falling apart (literally).

    Reply

  18. Matewis Jubilai

    December 19, 2014 at 10:56

    Wasteland 2 and Age of Wonders 3 alone made 2014 worthwhile for me, as do the continued gleeful wait for Pillars of Eternity and Satelite Reign.

    Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      December 19, 2014 at 10:59

      SR is on Steam Early Access right now. Or are you waiting for the official release?

      Reply

      • Matewis Jubilai

        December 19, 2014 at 11:00

        Waiting for the official release… and the first couple of patches 😛

        Reply

  19. Axon1988

    December 19, 2014 at 10:58

    So I played more older games than I did new games. There were a couple, but this year marks the first year where I went back and checked out my older games rather than playing the newer titles.
    And this was due to a couple of things;
    1. I buy a new game and after it’s done installing it starts downloading patches.
    1.1. Patches are done so I play the game for a bit.
    1.2. Next day I switch on my pc, try to run the game but it’s downloading patches again.
    1.3. Stop the download and uninstall the game due to frustration.
    2. The games that I were looking forward to got delayed.

    3. I tried really hard to find some new games that excite me but could not. Most of the recent releases were overhyped, overpromised and under delivered.

    This was a disappointing year for me. Mostly because the game industry is changing. It used to take years for a title to be released. People would speculate. We’d sit at work and daydream about the game. And the day you got your hands on the disc you could not wait to try it out.
    I see Call of Duty and think back to the days of WW2 and marvel at how much fun I had back then. Now I can’t even enjoy the single player experience. Multiplayer is just one big stressful sausage fest.
    I enjoy RPGs a lot, but this year I didn’t play any new ones. I went back to Skyrim. I love how relaxing Skyrim can be, how you can just walk around and take it all in. Granted I have not tried the new Dragon Age and really want to.

    I hope next year will be better. I hope developers get the rewards they deserve for their hard work. I hope the studios get the recognition they deserve. And I hope the large corporations stop pushing out unfinished projects and start thinking about both the developers who are working on that title and the clients who are paying for an unfinished product.

    Reply

    • Admiral Chief on leave

      December 19, 2014 at 11:02

      [ mandatory “tl;dr” ]

      Reply

    • Dutch Matrix

      December 19, 2014 at 11:10

      Patches… I remember the days when patches were almost a non existent thing in gaming. When games released were working, playtested by QA’s until the wee hours of the morning.
      Now QA consists of:
      If I push this stick thingy forward, does my character go forward?
      If Yes Slap on QA Approved sticker and ship.

      Reply

      • Admiral Chief on leave

        December 19, 2014 at 11:11

        Back in the day, a patch ADDED functionality, not FIXING THINGS THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN FIXED

        Reply

        • Alien Emperor Trevor

          December 19, 2014 at 11:13

          You mean when they didn’t have to patch MP into MP games?

          Reply

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 11:15

            Lol

        • Kensei Seraph

          December 19, 2014 at 11:16

          I remember that I never needed to patch my games.
          The closest I ever came to patching was when I installed an expansion pack.
          But now… well we all know how it is now.

          Reply

          • Admiral Chief on leave

            December 19, 2014 at 11:17

            I remember Half Life patches, they added new skins and reworked textures and MINOR bug fixes, and guess what, they did NOT CHARGE FOR IT

          • Kensei Seraph

            December 19, 2014 at 11:19

            I remember Icewind Dale II.
            I played it with no patches originally and only ever patched it because it won’t run on Win 7 unless you’re running version 1.002 (might have more or less zeros).

      • Axon1988

        December 19, 2014 at 11:15

        Agreed, it’s gone down the drain. Soon patches will start removing features just because there might be an issue with them. In the olden days patches added stuff. Unreal Tournament always comes to mind.

        Reply

  20. Jonah Cash

    December 19, 2014 at 10:58

    Played a lot of Destiny and I am still happy with it…. Won’t pay R300 for a DLC but the first two was part of the bundle so I will play them!! Playing a lot less Fifa as the defense in the Ultimate Team sucks!!

    Reply

  21. CAE9872

    December 19, 2014 at 11:23

    Gaming wise = yeah to a large degree. We went into 2014 on back of new more powerful consoles, great expectations of games to come in WatchDogs, Infamous, Destiny, AC Unity, Driveclub.

    And we go out of it with massive disappointments in almost every instance.

    Day one patches became the norm, and we not talking little ones! In the case of Unity its 40GB!!! Games being rushed before being finished properly; publishers forgetting their audience!

    One good thing – indie selection on consoles.

    Reply

  22. Rags

    December 19, 2014 at 11:32

    I really enjoyed the games I purchased this year. Wolf, Middle Earth, Alien, Banished, and others. No complaints from me. Elite just got released too. Star Citizen and Kingdom Come are progressing nicely and should get major updates in the next couple of days. And there are a couple of good games I just don’t have the time for: Divinity, Talos Principle, Door kickers, This War of Mine etc.

    Reply

  23. DrKiller

    December 19, 2014 at 11:51

    2014 started a new era for gaming, where they will release the game on time and then release a 40GB patch afterwards.

    Reply

  24. Ryanza

    December 19, 2014 at 12:39

    What DRM has done to games in 2014 has been disappointing. But at least we can look forward to The Witcher 3.

    Don’t Support DRM. The Witcher 3 is coming.

    Reply

  25. Raptor Rants A Lot

    December 19, 2014 at 15:30

    Yes

    Reply

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