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[KdylanR92]

- Pokemon Black & White 2

On what planet does one of the top 2 best games in the series feel like it just rolled off the production line?????

 

[Livedili]

Forza series
Literally all EA Sports series
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2
Call of Duty series
Mass Effect Andromeda
New Super Mario Bros
Halo 5
Gears 4

Esp. the latter two ones are just plain uninspired, bland and bad games. How anybody enjoys them is beyond me. Ohwell, to each their own ¯\_(&#12484_/¯

 

[PMS341]

On what planet does one of the top 2 best games in the series feel like it just rolled off the production line?????

Were you on the production team or something? Those games were kind of ass.

 

[TheMoon]

Were you on the production team or something? Those games were kind of ass.

then why do keep hearing similar praise for B2/W2 again and again

 

[Zukkoyaki]

On what planet does one of the top 2 best games in the series feel like it just rolled off the production line?????

When it's absurdly similar to its predecessor and nearly every asset in the game is re-used.

Doesn't mean the games are in any way poor. Calm your shit lol.

 

[QuantumSquid]

Dark Souls 3 felt like this in places. Still had a great time with it, though.

 

[Bobo Dakes]

When it's absurdly similar to its predecessor and nearly every asset in the game is re-used.

Doesn't mean the games are in any way poor. Calm your shit lol.

Were they supposed to build the exact same areas with new assets. It's a direct sequel in the same region with new areas added.

Also fixed a lot of the problems with the originals.

 

[Brushguy Woodthreep]

Were they supposed to build the exact same areas with new assets. It's a direct sequel in the same region with new areas added.

Nobody forced them to make a new game that reused the same region (and thus assets). They chose to do so because it was cheaper.

 

[Mr. Nice_Guy]

Where to start with this one...

...Well, here are the games:



Katamari was never intended to be a concept, or even series, to be milked as a cash cow. In fact, creator Keita Takahashi even called it a comment on consumerism.

He also explained why he left Bandai Namco:



As for the games themselves, we know Namco greenlit them because they knew the series sold, even though its creator never had the intention to work on them. Indeed, the last game Takahashi did work on was We Love Katamari - the second PS2 game.

I remember David Jenkins' review of the Vita launch Katamari game encapsulating the problem well:

Completely agree. Usually I see people lump Beautiful Katamari in with this lot, but I enjoyed that one about as much as I did OG and We Love Katamari. Still, I would be lying if I said I didn't wish for Takahashi to come back for just one more, since he was SO good at making them. I'd take a nice big compilation of all the games too honestly.

 

[Sami+]

Were they supposed to build the exact same areas with new assets. It's a direct sequel in the same region with new areas added.

Also fixed a lot of the problems with the originals.

mfw when they figured out they could spend just a tiny smidge more time and money changing stuff and use that as an excuse to sell another pair of games instead of the traditional third version

 

[Cyanity]

Oblivion? Oblivion.

 

[Toadthemushroom]

Completely agree. Usually I see people lump Beautiful Katamari in with this lot, but I enjoyed that one about as much as I did OG and We Love Katamari. Still, I would be lying if I said I didn't wish for Takahashi to come back for just one more, since he was SO good at making them. I'd take a nice big compilation of all the games too honestly.

Haha, I'm glad someone noticed that I left our Beautiful Katamari. The sheer scale of the game and move to HD, made it feel a bit special at least.

 

[Toadthemushroom]

Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam definitely felt like a rushed, "factory-line" created entry of the series to fill in the software gaps Nintendo was having on both their systems at the time. It's the most recent entry in the series, and the most recent one I played, yet it's the one I remember least about.

Yeah, Alphadream seems destined to crank out another Mario RPG in two year's time.

I actually really enjoyed Paper Jam, Paper Mario enlivens combat to no end and they definitely had some neat ideas to make overworld exploration feel more organic and less "digital" (if that makes sense) but there's no hiding the fact that newer entries in the series are feeling more tired, more like retreads, and the devs just need a break. When I got to the Papercraft Mecha battles I rolled my eyes, it was the exact same setup as Dream Team where developer Good-Feel was called in to make a 3D minigame to tick a box.

Remember when Alphadream got to make a Hamtaro Olympics game, and Tomato Adventure?

 

[Snacks the sober sea lion]

Were you on the production team or something? Those games were kind of ass.

Main journey was weak, but easily some of the best post-game. Nothing is going to match Pokemon World Tournament.

 

[javadoze]

Yep. As divided as I felt about Apollo Justice, I could at least respect its attempt to take the series in a new direction. DD felt as if they wanted to retroactively pretend the former never existed and bring Phoenix back as a lawyer.

(To give the dev team credit, SoJ was better writing-wise and attempted to reconcile the previous two games. At this point though, I'd rather have a clean break from the current cast and have the story be smaller in scope.)

 

[Bobo Dakes]

mfw when they figured out they could spend just a tiny smidge more time and money changing stuff and use that as an excuse to sell another pair of games instead of the traditional third version

Fans typically ask for (or at least expect) a third version, they decided to throw in a little more this go round.

 

[The_Hitcher89]

Crackdown 2 from what I've seen of it

 

[andymcc]

New Super Mario Bros and the Donkey Kong Country games come to mind.

They have some unique gameplay mechanics here and there but it's really undermined by the incredibly similar art styles.

Which DKC games are we referring to here...

NSMB may have underwhelming 2D art (which is really something that effects ALL 2D Mario games) but Wii and U are world class in terms of level design. The best in the series.

 

[Sami+]

Fans typically ask for (or at least expect) a third version, they decided to throw in a little more this go round.

Mmm, did they though? The only real benefit of the third version before was that you could get almost all of the stuff that was previously version exclusive, plus extra polish, plus some bonus goodies. The sequel games have all the same problems as the normal two-version pairs and sit in a weird middle ground where they're not really new but not refinements of the old one either. It's like if instead of a Super Street Fighter 2 they had just made a really really similar and lazy Street Fighter 3.

 

[Toadthemushroom]

I agree about Black and White 2 feeling like they came off the assembly line, but I bet they'll have no competition when Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon are released. There's a reason TPC and Nintendo have been so shtum in revealing tangible changes to those games so far...

As for BW2, they are good games with fun features but circumstantially they come across as assembly line fodder to fit DS's sparser release schedule post 3DS, much like how I roll my eyes when I find out Nintendo has inevitably greenlit another Yoshi's Island platformer...

 

[Bobo Dakes]

Mmm, did they though? The only real benefit of the third version before was that you could get almost all of the stuff that was previously version exclusive, plus extra polish, plus some bonus goodies. The sequel games have all the same problems as the normal two-version pairs and sit in a weird middle ground where they're not really new but not refinements of the old one either. It's like if instead of a Super Street Fighter 2 they had just made a really really similar and lazy Street Fighter 3.

I mean it only contained the best post-game since gen 2, but whatever.

 

[Morrigan Stark]

Gears 4.

Uninspired in every sense of the word.

Too safe, too sterile and feels like it was designed by committee.


Also garbage robot enemies that were unsatisfying to fight.

Not entirely untrue, though I did enjoy it far more than Gears 3 which was total ass. But yeah, both GoW3 and 4 are rather forgettable.

I'll add Uncharted 3 to this list. Entirely forgettable with a shite story too.

---


And now I must defend Dark Souls 3. DS3 has the same excellent intricate level design and epic and memorable bosses as the other games. It even has completely unique and new "gimmick" bosses (after everyone complaining, completely unfairly, mind, about all those "dudes in armours" in DS2) like High Lord Wolnir, the Cursed Tree, Yhorm, etc. and tons of unique, non-gimmicky ones like Aldrich, L&L, Abyss Watchers, Church of the Spear, and some of the best "traditional" bosses as well (Gail, Midir, Sister Friede, Soul of Cinders, Pontiff Sulyvahn). And sure, it has references and throwbacks to the past games, because of course it does, it's a sequel! It doesn't abuse those in any way and always does so tastefully. It has tons of QoL improvements, and the most jaw-droppingly beautiful locales that will stay in your mind forever (Irithyll, Lothric Castle, the Ringed City). It also has the best PvP arena of the series by far.

In with you. It just didn't feel like it was doing anything special. And it treated DLC as non important packaged content with no endings.

...None of the Soulsborne games have any "endings" to their DLCs. The only one that has something close to an "ending" is DS2, after you beat all the DLCs you get a minor optional cut scene if you bring all the crowns to the memory of the King. That's it. I don't know why DS3 gets singled out about that.

And you all bought it, most Souls fans don't even know who Miyazaki is until people start talking about how disappointing DS2 is as a sequel.

If DS2 wasn't so poorly received by the fans, they wouldn't even bother bringing back Miyazaki for Dark Souls 3. If Bamco really respect and give a shit about Miyazaki's vision they wouldn't DARE to made Dark Souls 2 without him directing in the first place. Bamco would've waited for Miyazaki if they care.
Miyazaki is only back in DS3 so you'll fucking buy another Dark Souls sequel and all the DLCs.

Fans: ''Man screw Dark Souls 2, Miyazaki is back directing Dark Souls 3! Hell yeah! Even though he just finished Bloodborne and still has to work on a huge DLC and it makes no sense that he has to direct a game this big under a year but I don't care. He is back directing DS3! He TOTALLY directed the whole game within less than 10 month! No doubt!''

Bamco got you twice. And you still think the sun you're praising is the same one you always loved. The sun already died after the first game, silly.

This post is so dripping with condescension, I don't even know if I should bother addressing this nonsense.

The level design, boss design, story and atmosphere is simply unmatched. On par with Artorias of the Abyss DLC, if not better.

Funny because Artorias DLC has the weakest level design of all the Soulsborne DLCs, but no one ever mentions that... Only the Oolacile Township is worth anything level design-wise, and it's still not that great compared to, say, Shulva, Brume Tower, Fishing Hamlet, Ringed City, etc.
Artorias DLC is great for its bosses only, not for its levels, which the best piece of it is only average by Souls standards. But I guess it's OK when DS1 recycles its own assets with Royal Woods, but when DS3 dares to have catacombs (that are completely different than DS1's catacombs, mind), the horror!

 

[Falchion]

Crackdown 2 is the first that comes to mind. It took all the things that made the first awesome, right down to the transforming car based on your driving skills, and got rid of it all in favor of standing on beacons and zombie hordes. It was a severe disappointment.

I remember reading a preview on IGN or something before it came out and the interviewer was telling the developer all his favorite features and aspects from the original and he was like, 'Yeah that's not in there. That's not in there either'. It felt weird and definitely foreshadowed the game that came out.

 

[antitrop]

The Darkness 2 had almost nothing that I liked about the first one. It was still a decent game for what it was, but it was nothing like what I was expecting out of a sequel to The Darkness. I had to wait until Wolfenstein: The New Order to get what I was waiting for.

 

[Malio]

Pokemon games

Assassin's Creed

Call of Duty

 

[pretty done]

Every recent Battlefield and Call of Duty game (except WW2)
Pokemon
Dynasty Warriors (including spinoffs)
Tales of <Generic Anime Word>

 

[PackAPunchedMick]

Forza Motorsport.

Churned out like a cardboard box.

Making almost zero enhancements since it's inception.

 

[Toadthemushroom]

I'm surprised the LEGO games by TT haven't been mentioned yet, and that I've only just thought of them now.

At least one in every two LEGO games feels highly derivative of the last. Lego City was a breath of fresh air for having a wholly original cast and a script written by a former British comedian at TT Fusion, but even then the actual game mechanics were very restrictive in the way you pushed through levels.

 

[s_mirage]

The Force Unleashed 2. Some improvements to gameplay, but it was so short and underwhelming that it felt like it was churned out in a hurry, which supposedly was precisely the case.

 

[jem0208]

Halo 5


Esp. the latter two ones are just plain uninspired, bland and bad games. How anybody enjoys them is beyond me. Ohwell, to each their own ¯_(&#12484_/¯

Eh, it's only one of the best multiplayer FPS titles of the gen so far...

¯_(&#12484_/¯

 

[HamsterExAstris]

At least one in every two LEGO games feels highly derivative of the last. Lego City was a breath of fresh air for having a wholly original cast and a script written by a former British comedian at TT Fusion, but even then the actual game mechanics were very restrictive in the way you pushed through levels.

Did you play it on Wii U or on PS4/XB1/PC? If the latter, then I'm not surprised it felt restrictive; you were playing a four-ish year old game...

 

[Harlequin]

TR2013 had a long, troubled development cycle.

Nothing about it feel like it came from an assembly line.

Again, I based my selection on the description in the OP, not just off the thread title and I believe TR 2013 fits some aspects of that description rather well. It does feel like its design came straight from a marketing checklist, it does lack that certain spark (IMO) and while I'm sure that many people worked very passionately on it, the game as a whole just feels a bit soulless, so to speak.

 

[KingBroly]

Kirby

New Super Mario Bros.

The PSP God of War games

Yoshi's New Island

 

[GetLucky]

Nintendo slept through that entire NEW series. Just completely devoid of imagination and effort.

I generally try to understand other people's points of view, but this one is tough. NSMB U is arguably the best 2D platformer ever made. I can kind of see how people would be bored of the art style, but the game play is just top notch.

 

[Manu]

Kirby

New Super Mario Bros.

The PSP God of War games

Yoshi's New Island

Chains of Olympus is totally avoidable, but Ghost of Sparta is one of the best games in the series.

 

[Ryuuga]

I feel like I'll revisit this thread once Destiny 2 is out.

 

[Machina]

Every Call of Duty since 4 and every AssCreed frankly ever

 

[Shang]

Most Kirby and yoshi games

 

[Acquiescence]

Going from Rayman 2 on the Dreamcast to Rayman 3 was an oddly dispiriting experience. One merged fantastic platforming with a magical kind of filmic grandeur. The other felt like a shitty French saturday morning cartoon.

 

[Munch Poke]

Eh, it's only one of the best multiplayer FPS titles of the gen so far...

¯_(&#12484_/¯

Yeah it's a clear upgrade in balance and gameplay. I don't understand how people think it and H4 rolled off the assembly line. They're both very different, opinions aside, then the games that came before them.

 

[Dinjoralo]

LMFAOOOO

I seriously don't get this gif. Are people not allowed to have different opinions, here? Sheesh.

And for me... The licensed Lego games? They've barely changed at all since the early 2000's.

 

[Mugy]

Tho not exactly out yet, Marvel .vs Capcom: Infinite fits exactly what OP describes, at least for me.

 

[almostjuliuscaesar]

Is this Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood & Revelations the thread???

 

[Jencks]

Mario and Luigi: Paper Jam definitely felt like a rushed, "factory-line" created entry of the series to fill in the software gaps Nintendo was having on both their systems at the time. It's the most recent entry in the series, and the most recent one I played, yet it's the one I remember least about.

Damn. Forgot this game even existed.

 

[tareqsalah1]

This is just simply a false statement. Game development doesn’t work like that at all.

So you think call of duty was going more futuristic for the past 4 years and suddenly went ww2 without thinking battlefeild 1 had anything to do with it?

 

[funkystudent]

Uncharted 3.

Glad ND changes their approach to development since because it just felt like a half baked half step from 2.

Is this Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood & Revelations the thread???

Brotherhood felt like the AC2 team thought "what if we made one of these really fast with a smaller scope but we focused on some cool new features to hide the same-ness"

Revelations was being told to do that again right away and just tossing something together.

 

[LiquidSolid]

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. One hub, an uninteresting, unimportant story and the exact same bugs and jank HR had. The least ambitious sequel I've played in a long time, it may as well've been DLC.

 

[Mobile Suit Gooch]

Fallout 4?

 

[CrazedProfessional]

Fallout 4 - It wasn't New Vegas and it had dumb minecraft elements and the plot was an uninspiring mess with boring dialogue options.

 

[K.Jack]

and don't even get me started on Vandal Hearts III...

There was a Vandal Hearts III???

Should I even ask how it was?