video game challenge

VGC Day 20: Disappointment

Posted by

Welcome back to our 30 day video game challenge! If you’d like to catch up with the other days, click here.

Oh, that killer of a word: “disappointment.”

Day 20: What sequel disappointed you the most?

At first, I thought I’d be talking about Dragon Age II again, even though it did have some solid moments and I did like the overarching story, and even though it felt rushed and, at times, sloppily done.

But I don’t think a game has disappointed me the way The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword disappointed me. Part of it was the terrible 1:1 movement controls that were most certainly not 1:1, and part of it was the fact that Fi is one of the most irritating characters I’ve ever come across. Part of it was always having to listen to an explanation of what amber, monster claws, and whatever else I picked up were, even though I had sat through the explanation a million times before. Part of it was, I’m not going to lie, the cartoony graphics – coming off of Twilight Princess, I just wanted to see that art style continue.

Image result for skyward sword

A big part of it was that I wanted to like it so badly. The dungeons and puzzles were fascinating, especially the one where you have to move the actual rooms in the dungeon to get to the end. The final boss battle with Ganon Demise was fantastic, since it really made you utilize all the sword and shield skills you had learned throughout the game. I jumped out of my chair in excitement when my suspicions about the old lady’s identity were confirmed. I wanted to like it so badly. But it’s the Zelda game I’ve played the least, and is the one that has felt most like a chore to me.

To be completely frank, it’s one of the reservations I had about Breath of the Wild before it was released. I saw that cartoonish look again and cringed… not more Skyward Sword, for the love of Nayru…. Thankfully, no on has panned Breath of the Wild the way Skyward Sword was criticized, so that’s always a good sign. But that was how disappointed I was – I was excited for Dragon Age: Inquisition after the slight disappointment of Dragon Age II, but was actually wary of picking up another Zelda game after Skyward Sword.

So there you have it. My disappointment in a video game. I’m looking forward to Breath of the Wild now, of course, but I wonder… have I been too harsh on Skyward Sword?

What about you? What sequel has most disappointed you? Has it turned you off to a series? Did you ever give it another chance? Let me know in the comments!

Thanks for stopping by, and I’ll see you soon!
~ Athena

Is your subscription to our blog not enough? Do you want more AmbiGaming? Of course you do! So you should definitely book us a face on our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter @TheAmbiGamer and say hello! You can even find us on Google+ if that’s your thing, and if you’re really adventurous you could check out our Let’s Plays.

37 comments

  1. Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus. I loved the original FF7 as well as Crisis Core (prequel) and Advent Children (sequel). But Dirge was a straight-up WTF that got everything wrong. As a massive FF7 fan, it left me seriously deflated.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    2. So weird.. this game keeps popping up all over the place ever since passing on a copy of it in a Goodwill for $3. I never played it or even heard of it prior to finding it in the store, but when I read that it was a third person shooter featuring Vincent I immediately put it down. What? A shooter as a sequel to one of my favorite games of all time, FFVII? So weird.

      And yet, I keep getting signs that I should have bought it. Strange!

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    3. Ah I feel your pain, as a fellow FFVII fanatic. I never played/watched Dirge, but I’ve heard about how disappointing it was. It’s a shame because the things I have read about it were suppose to flesh out the story a bit more and be about people connected to my favorite character Sephiroth. I still would like to watch as much of it as I can stand one day, but I’m not expecting much.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

  2. I loved Skyward Sword, I don’t think you’re being too harsh, although the motion controls “worked” for me, it was me mostly franticly flailing my controller to attack the enemies. Because the game was never too challenging this worked out for me. For tougher enemies that required you to attack at certain direction, at first those were tough but quickly came used to it. I did hate Fi because she didnt’ respect the players intelligence and had to tell you literally EVERTHING. Another annoying thing was when you reloaded your game, everytime you collected a bug, it always had to present it as if it was a new item you never saw it before, so weird.

    For my, the most dissapointing sequel in recent memory is Xenoblade Chronicles X. Although the game brought a really cool world to explore, the story aspects of the game absolutely sucked. I tried so hard to like it and now that I’m at the last boss, I can’t say I’m pleased with the overall experience.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Skyward Sword did have some great moments, I will admit. I’m glad you didn’t have so much trouble with the controls! My poor Link always seemed like he was fighting with a dislocated shoulder…

      I’ve heard that about Xenoblade Chronicles X. That’s too bad that it didn’t provide the experience that you wanted overall, but at least it’s (almost) done now!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  3. Ahh Skyward Sword – the only Zelda game I never finished, or at least never really even started. Played it for like 2 hours, the first hour was a monotonous, boring tutorial that never ending, and the first dungeon was an exercise in motion control frustration. I don’t even mind passing on it _but_ I would love a re-release one of these days with a new control scheme, although I’m sure that’s so complicated that it will never happen.

    My biggest disappointment in a sequel? Easy: Banjo-Tooie. I hated that stupid awful game. Despite so many improvements and fun additions, they turned it into a maze of insanity, having to take notes off-screen and remember _so much_ about the interconnectivity between levels. It was horrendous and I honestly think that God himself reached down and handed me the last Jiggy required to beat the final boss – without ever entering the final level. What a break I got there. I had just enough Jiggies to finish her off and never revisit that POS again!

    Side note, Banjo-Kazooie is my third favorite game of all time. Banjo-Tooie my third least favorite. Imagine that.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. I’m impressed that your lists of likes and dislikes are so precise!

      I was a little disappointed in Banjo-Tooie, as well. My reaction was like yours to Skyward Sword – I wasn’t driven to finish it, or even play it for any extended period of time. I’m glad you got through it, though!

      Yes, I feel bad dumping on Skyward Sword because there were so many great elements, but they seem so overshadowed. I would definitely play a re-release with different controls! …and perhaps a small step away from all the hand-holding… Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

      Like

      Reply

  4. I will admit that Skyward Sword is my least favorite 3D Zelda game, and I agree with most of the points you made. Indeed, this is probably the only game in the series that didn’t grab me right away, so I ended up completing it about two years after I actually got it. However, I think it speaks for the series’ quality that it manages to be on par with certain other creators’ best efforts.

    I’d say the most disappointing sequel I’ve ever played was Yoshi’s Story. Yoshi’s Island is one of the SNES’s best 2D platforming games, but Yoshi’s Story was a mess. The stages end abruptly, depriving anyone who plays it the satisfaction of getting to the end of a particularly difficult level. It would be like making a racing game where you only get to run half of one lap before being declared the winner. Also, the presentation was ridiculously insipid. I was dismissing it as a game for little kids when I was in the third grade.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. That’s true about Skyward Sword. A bad Zelda title is still better than the best titles from some other developers.

      I’ve heard that about Yoshi’s Story. That’s too bad, because Yoshi’s Island was such a wonderful game! I’m a little glad I skipped it… Especially if third-grade you thought it was for little kids!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  5. I’m sorry but Dragon Age II is the best DA game I ever played! (simply because its the only one I have so far, haha).

    I share your taste in Zelda graphic styles! Twilight Princes is by far my favourite style, but I’m okay with the more toony look. Skyward Sword was just an “okay” game to me. The controls were frustrating, and OMG, if I ever see The Imprisoned boss again I’m gonna scream at Nintendo via Twitter! 🙂 Most of the other boss fights were great though. I also loved the Lanayru Desert time puzzles.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. “Athena, Imma let you finish, but Dragon Age II is…”

      Ahem. What was I saying? haha Oh, yes. Twilight Princess – I really loved that game! And I’m with you about The Imprisoned… How many times did we really need to fight that freaking avocado?? I forgot about the Lanayru Desert puzzles! Those were great. I agree, I agree. The puzzles were spot-on, and the boss-fights were very interesting!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. “…one of the best Dragon Age games of all-time. ALL-TIME!” – KanyeEllen 🙂

        He does look like an avocado, lol! Add the 20+ times I fought him in Hyrule Warriors to whatever the Skyward Sword total was. Ugh…

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

  6. I don’t think you’ve been too hard on Skyward Sword. Time has not been kind to the opinions on that game.

    Now what has most disappointed me? Hmm… I have a list of sequels that let me down. Stuff like Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy XII, X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter, Balder’s Gate: Dark Alliance II, Perfect Dark Zero, and I’m sure if I keep rooting around in my brain, I’d come up with more.But the one that really still irks me is Resident Evil 6. I pretty much hate played my way through the final 25 hours or so of that game. It didn’t turn me off from the series, although it made me very skeptical of the Revelations games and 7. I haven’t returned to it and I don’t know if I ever want to torture myself for another 20-30 hours like I did the first time.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Oh no! Scaredy-cat-me never go into the Resident Evil games, but I’ve definitely hate-played a game (not to its completion, so kudos to you for that!), and it wasn’t a fun experience.

      Although, if it makes you feel better about the series, my friend just played Resident Evil 7 and she absolutely loved it.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  7. I really enjoyed Skyward Sword, and I don’t think you’re being too harsh. There are a lot of issues with that game, and I certainly had a lot to complain about at the time. I was actually more disappointed at a different Zelda game, Phantom Hourglass. Now that was a Zelda title that wasn’t fun to play and actually frustrated me with its stealth dungeon that you had to enter multiple times.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Skyward Sword definitely has its merits, to be sure. Unfortunately I never got into handheld gaming, so I’ve missed pretty much every single title that wasn’t available on a console (sigh). But I know I never like when games that aren’t stealth-based suddenly force you to use stealth in order to progress! It’s so frustrating…

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

        1. Now that I’m thinking about it… The Silent Realms come to mind immediately… haha. As does the Gerudo Camp in OoT and the Pirate Fortress in MM, and going through Telma’s bar in TP, and… omg you’re right!!! What have I been doing with my Zelda life?? haha

          They’re hard to shoehorn in to otherwise not-stealth games, that’s for sure! I like stealth games, but yeah… some stealth sections are definitely done better than others!

          Liked by 1 person

          Reply

          1. Silent Realm is the worst, though I also grew up hating Gerudo Fortress and Pirate Fortress. Heck, I hated that part where you sneak in the courtyard to see young Zelda for the first time! There’s one stealth exception that I actually liked, surprisingly enough. And of course, it comes from the newest Zelda. 😉

            Liked by 1 person

            Reply

  8. I enjoyed watching Skyward Sword, which is much different from playing it. I can understand the frustration with the controls though, and I will have to say I wasn’t super found of Gharahim. I don’t know…it almost seemed like they were trying to emulate another franchise’s creepy, “white hair/black heart” trope, but that could just be me. I enjoyed the lore of the game.

    Hm, I want to say FFX-2, but I haven’t played it lol. I’ve been talking about it with LightninEllen though because it makes ZERO sense as to why Squeenix decided to have its demure, priestess-like heroine suddenly decide to become a pop singer in the second iteration. Um what? How does this make any sense? I get she was upset by certain spoilerific information, but the mental gymnastics you have to jump through to get to that point in that setting are baffling. This is a world where machinery/technology is considered evil, though I suppose at the end of the first game, it might make sense that that mindset was gone, but it’s just very odd. Again I haven’t played it, but the premise is just confusing.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. But Ghirahim was so *fabulous!* haha I loved how Link was more disturbed than scared around him. The story was great! Just there were some gameplay elements that just made the game SO annoying to get through.

      So, I had to look up the cover of FFX and FFX-2 to remember which ones they were, and I think I remember hearing something about that pop singer transformation. That seems very weird and hard to follow… Unfortunately I have nothing super intelligent to add to the conversation, but if you and LightningEllen think it doesn’t make sense with all of your FF knowledge, then the devs must have really missed the mark!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  9. Pingback: VGC Day 21: Bad to the Bone

  10. This is my exact complaint with the newer Zelda games. Too cartoony. I like my original Ocarina, Majora’s Mask, and Twilight Princess style. I got through Wind Waker, but the graphics made me mad. I couldn’t even get past the start in Skyward Sword. We’ll see about Breath of the Wild. Also, although I did not love Dragon Age II, each time I play through that series again, it gets better and better! It is my new favorite series.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thanks for commenting!

      Yeah, I didn’t own a GameCube, so I never played Wind Waker (even though it’s considered a great game). I played a demo and it was cool, but it was, again, hard to go from Twilight Princess to Wind Waker. And of course OoT and MM had great styles for the system they were on. I think Breath of the Wild actually has a very nice art style, almost like a painting, so I’d be interested to see it in action.

      I’m the same way with DAII. I was very disappointed the first time around, and while it still has things that bug me, I like it more each time I play it. It has wonderful characters and I loved how focused the story was on that (needless to say, I loved that in Mass Effect 2, as well). And Dragon Age is far and away my favorite series, with Origins being my favorite game, so I’m with you there 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  11. My husband has been playing Breath of the Wild. It is really pretty, but the voice acting is a little strange! I think I would like all the crafting in it now.

    Origins will always have my heart ❤ I actually started with Inquisition, but I go back for Origins every time.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  12. That’s funny that you led off with Dragon Age II because it was one of the first games to pop in my head when I read this headline. As for Skyward Sword, I liked it a lot. If anything, Twilight Princess was my least favorite Zelda game in recent memory. Wasn’t a big fan of the temples, puzzles, or the whole turning into a wolf thing.

    For me, I would have to say my biggest disappointment is Ninja Gaiden III. I loved the first two because of their fluid combat mechanics, well-designed, difficult boss battles, and awesome variety of weapons/items. 3 was completely stripped down in the beginning. You could only use one sword, there were way too many quick time events, bosses were too easy, and combat mechanics were just downright sloppy. I hated that game. However, I heard a lot of these issues were fixed in the Razor’s Edge edition, but I never played it.

    Crackdown II is a close second, followed by Dragon Age II.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Fair enough! It’s really too bad, because there were a lot of things that I liked about DAII and Skyward Sword. DAII is one that, the more I play it, the more I appreciate its good points (although I still cringe at some of the weird stuff in it). Haha I didn’t like the wolf thing, either, but I thought it was a great way to convey to the player how helpless and frustrated Link must have felt, as well!

      I’ve heard that about Ninja Gaiden III, especially regarding quick time events and the sloppy handling. If the issues were fixed, that’s good, because it’s a good series.

      I’m not familiar with Crackdown II (never had an Xbox), so I can’t comment about that one 🙂 It’s always disappointing when the second game (or any game) in a series isn’t what you wanted it to be, though…

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

Leave a comment