A ton of video games launch incomplete. Overall, this console generation is -- despite some claims to the contrary -- no different in this regard. While some broken games have been fixed thanks to patches and diligent developers, a few remain borderline unplayable.
Here are five video games that launched totally broken.
Fallout 76
Fallout 76’s launch in 2018 is infamous for being one of the worst of this console generation. Issues ranging from game-breaking glitches to hacking plagued the game. Fallout 76 had so many issues at launch that Bethesda had to include an update larger than the game itself the day it came out. However, this did very little to improve Fallout 76 with players finding all sorts of problems within the game. To make things worse, Bethesda replaced the nice canvas bag included in the Power Armor Edition with a cheap nylon sack.
Bethesda eventually gave canvas bags to the people who bought the Power Armor Edition but did little to fix Fallout 76's gameplay. There is still an abundance of bugs and glitches throughout the game with some updates even making things worse. While there have, admittedly, been some improvements, Bethesda still has a lot of work to do to make Fallout 76 worthy of its name.
E.T.
E.T. for the Atari 2600 is often regarded as one of the worst games of all time and is often viewed as having caused the video game crash of 1983. While it did contribute to the crash, it wasn’t the sole reason for the rapid decline of video games. Nevertheless, E.T.’s legacy of being a complete broken mess lives on.
Atari only gave E.T.’s developer Howard Scott Warshaw five and a half weeks to finish the entire game. Warshaw did the best he could to complete the game by his deadline but didn’t have enough time to polish anything. The game suffered greatly and launched in an unfinished, buggy state, although it's somewhat amazing Warshaw was able to make something playable at all. However, E.T. will remain one of the medium's most notorious games.
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 5
The Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series is one of the most beloved franchises in gaming today, and most installments are fantastic skateboarding experiences chock full of great levels and wacky objectives. However, 2015's Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5 is arguably the worst game in the franchise.
Pro Skater 5 was an incomplete when it released, with the disk only containing the park editor and tutorial. The developers had to release a seven-gigabyte patch on launch day so people could play the rest of the game. However, the patch failed to fix Pro Skater 5's issues, resulting in a terrible, glitchy game.
Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing
Coming in with a whopping Metacritic score of 8%, 2003's Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing is best known for its horrendous gameplay and the fact it's obviously unfinished. Players can drive through buildings, fall through bridges and even leave the map if they drive far enough. The other racers don’t even leave the starting line! Once a player completes the "race," a screen pops up congratulating them by saying “You’re Winner.”
As a result of Big Rigs' incredibly broken gameplay, the game has found something of a cult following, with players developing a love for its hilariously buggy nature and laughable driving mechanics. It is one of those games that is so bad it's good, and driving around uncovering glitches can be more rewarding than people might think. Plus, being reminded that you’re winner is pretty flattering.
WWE 2K20
Calling 2019's WWE 2K20 an incomplete and buggy is an understatement; The game was a complete disaster. Wrestlers fell through the ring, facial features disappeared (causing characters to look nightmarish) and the game's physics sometimes ceased to exist. WWE 2K20 received so much criticism that the 2K Games had to halt the yearly series.
Most of WWE 2K20's issues can be traced back to the game's developer’s lack of experience with the game's engine. Visual Concepts took over the WWE 2K series after Yuke’s left to work on new projects after the release of WWE 2K19. Visual Concepts was not familiar with all the ins and outs of the game’s development program and didn't have enough time to learn it to make a great installment in the wrestling franchise. Instead, 2K rushed the game out in a completely broken state. This caused the game to be one of the worst-reviewed wrestling titles in years, with many fans taking to the internet to voice their grievances. The game has improved a bit since release but still plays worst than previous WWE 2K entries.
It’s a shame that so many games have been released in nearly unplayable states. Some had a lot of potential but fell short due to being incredibly broken. While video game delays might suck, they give developers time to polish and smooth out issues, meaning people are less likely to buy an unfinished product that, overall, causes players to afterwards distrust certain publishers and developers.