Most Disappointing Game Worst Game of the Year

MOST DISAPPOINTING GAME OF THE YEAR
 
At GameSpot, we believe that each game must be considered on its own terms. When we evaluate a game, we set aside any preconceived notions about what that game is supposed to be or how good it should have been, and we review the game on its merits. However, sometimes it's impossible not to approach a particular game with a certain set of expectations; some games have such ambitious concepts or such good predecessors that you can't help but wonder whether they could have turned out differently. The following game disappointed us most of all this year:

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Unfortunately, most of these features were cut during the game's difficult development, during which several of the game's original designers and producers left the project. What's more, the game changed hands between no less than three publishers: The Learning Company, holding company Gores Technology Group, and finally Ubi Soft--and by the end, Ruins of Myth Drannor seemed very different from what many had expected of it.

For starters, Ruins of Myth Drannor uses a thoroughly clunky interface that makes exploring its environments needlessly tedious. In addition, the game's actual implementation of the 3rd Edition rules ended up being shallow and rather uninteresting; some fantasy races and classes, such as gnomes and mages, simply don't appear in the game, and those that do use stripped-down versions of the 3rd Edition's interesting heroic-feat system.

Finally, Ruins of Myth Drannor's initial release was extremely buggy. That, as well as the game's overall instability, sluggishness, and generally weak implementation of the 3rd Edition Dungeons & Dragons rules, makes Ruins of Myth Drannor the single most disappointing PC game this year.

Other Nominees:

 
Anarchy Online
Majestic
Oni
World War II Online