Most Disappointing Game, Nominees

At GameSpot, we believe that each game must be considered on its own terms. When we evaluate a game, we try to 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. We had very high hopes for the following five games, none of which came close to fulfilling our expectations and one of which was particularly disappointing.

After years in the making and multiple delays, the highly anticipated first-person shooter designed by former id Software developer John Romero turned out to be mediocre and uninspired. Defective artificial intelligence for some of the game's characters makes Daikatana quite frustrating, while the story is trite and forgettable.

Once known as Gunship III, this helicopter simulation is the follow-up to the original Gunship and its sequel, Gunship 2000. The original game, designed by Sid Meier and Andy Hollis, was a major achievement in flight simulations, and the sequel fared equally well. Unfortunately, this new installment turned out to be just another watered-down, though nice-looking, air combat game.

Shiny Entertainment had worked on Messiah for years, so it was surprising that the game had so many bugs when it was finally released. In addition, while the game's basic design is interesting - your character can possess his enemies - Messiah still often boils down to straightforward, tedious jumping puzzles.

This highly anticipated fully 3D real-time strategy game was talked about for years before its release. The game was intended as a means for Star Wars fans to realize some of their favorite battles from the films, most notably the battle for Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back. However, Force Commander's graphics and gameplay didn't live up to fans' expectations.

Nihilistic Software's action-packed game based on the White Wolf pen-and-paper role-playing game has exceptional 3D graphics and an interesting story that takes place both in medieval times and in modern times. But the game's repetitive combat and lack of depth undermine its potential, while the open-ended multiplayer mode makes players do most of the work.