Most Disappointing Games of 2023

Tickets for the Hype Train are so cheap and plentiful these days. Sooner or later everyone is on board, gassing up the latest AAA masterpiece. Inevitably this leads to bitter regret, confusion, anger, and disappointment when things don’t turn out the way you hoped. Chances are you got burned by at least one of the items on this list. Here then, are COGconnected’s ten most disappointing games of 2023.

10) Diablo 4

In a way, Diablo 4 was doomed from the beginning. No game could possibly measure up to a decade’s worth of anticipation. After many players got burned by Diablo 3’s stark departure from the formula, 4 was a beacon of delicious possibility. What if things were different this time? This is the lie called hope, smiling as a scorpion’s tail unfurls behind you. To be fair, the game was fine. But it most definitely was not ‘Diablo’ good. Not by a long shot. And who knows? Maybe this too will end up better than the product we got at launch. Stranger things have happened, after all.

9) WrestleQuest

Wrestlequest is a wrestling RPG that was, uhhhh… Apparently it wasn’t great. Unlike some other entries on this list, Wrestlequest didn’t let down the entire gaming world. And that’s okay! Sometimes a disappointing game only has to hurt the members of a very specific community. It’s got all the makings of a top-tier love letter to the sport: colorful artwork, RPG elements, quirky writing. Actually this one is making more sense. Developers fell hard for this aesthetic, but it’s a real anglerfish. We’re too savvy for quirky retro charms anymore, a game’s gotta have some serious barbed hooks to keep our focus. Wrestlequest just couldn’t quite pierce our cheeks, so to speak.

8) Lords of The Fallen

A remake of a 2014 game, Lords of The Fallen let players down on a tidal wave of bugs. You’d think a remake would be a slam dunk in terms of player expectations. Give us the old biz, but much better than before. Easy, right? Well, maybe not so much. While the devs were great about fixing bugs, they also ‘fixed’ the in-game economy to a cataclysmic degree. After a lot more backlash, the devs corrected this issue by by not fixing it at all. Instead they solved a different problem in the hopes of sort of fixing the first one. Mark goes into more detail here. Long story short, mistakes were made, some were fixed, and many people were sad. But, there were fewer disappointed players than when the game first launched! So, that’s something.

7) Hogwarts Legacy

In terms of disappointing players, Hogwarts Legacy is a tricky one. You see, if you grew up a huge fan of the series, this was an all-timer. Without those rose-tinted lenses, the game doesn’t look quite as good. This is further complicated by the fact that so many gamers are also HP fans. As such, depending on who you ask, this is either a 1/10 dumpster fire or a 9/10 masterstroke. Hogwart’s Legacy is a layer cake of disappointment. Either you’re let down by the game’s many alleged flaws, or you’re crushed that so many of your straight friends didn’t boycott it. Or, on the flip side, you’re frustrated that more of your friends never played it for some reason. Truly there’s a little something here for everyone.

6) Hellboy: Web of Wyrd

Hellboy: Web of Wyrd is the second deep cut on our list. But not to worry, smaller games can also be massive letdowns. The devs worked hard on bringing the comic book’s style to life. This somehow translated into choppy animation and bland, cookie-cutter backgrounds. Also, the actual combat is plagued with problems. It really seems like Hellboy can’t catch a break as far as adaptations go. Another object lesson in the limits of style versus substance. Your game can’t just look awesome, it’s also gotta play right.