10 Potentially Awesome Video Games That Were Stupidly Broken

When you stump up the cash you expect a finished product, not a buggy broken mess.

By Bryan Yentz /

Back in the war-torn glory days of the first Gears of War, who could forget the first moment in which they used a chainsaw bayonet to carve through the sternum of a sorry locust Drone? How about Bioshock's perfectly ruined realm of Rapture, or the pangs of shock and lament at Aeris' sudden impalement in Final Fantasy VII? Video games - like movies or books - are built on moments like these. Moments which surpass expectation, defy categorisation and convey the beauty and potential of such a beloved medium. However, for every game which deliver such moments and serve as memorable reminders of videogaming excellence, there are those which make us question our devotion to such a venue of art and entertainment. Games which are not only torture to play, but seem as though they have been purposefully designed to hinder the entire progression of gaming. Broken, buggy, glitch-ridden, controller-smashing... these are just a few of the immediate descriptions which spring to mind when considering the following games on this list. While many games are remembered for everything they did right, others are despised for everything they did wrong.

10. Judge Dredd: Dredd Vs Death

Infinitely more comparable to that of the campy Stallone train-wreck of the 90's rather than that of the excellent 2012 reboot, Dredd Vs Death is one astounding piece of video game hilarity. From the clunky get-go, the game is plagued by one problem after another. If the blocky graphics and muddy textures don't ruffle your feathers, the onslaught of glitches will. Even with Dredd's signature "Lawgiver" and its various ammo-types as well as a severely underused "judgment system", the game fails to be anything more than a broken joke. NPC's which mindlessly trot about the bland environments can be walked through - and when killed can be stood inside of. Dredd himself likes to be caught within walls or objects littering the terrain and even enjoys dying for incomprehensible reasons. While these are humorous bugs scuttling about a nest of busted programming, the real problem comes when the game fails to recognise that missions have been completed or entire levels have been finished. Due to this, players become stuck in either rooms or corridors with no means of exit until the reset button is pressed.