10 Video Game Products That Insulted Their Key Audience

10. Inflatable Omni Blade - Mass Effect 3

The sprawling space epic that is the Mass Effect series rivals that of any sci-fi story in recent memory. Commander Shepard's epic quest to stop the Reapers from achieving galactic destruction drew players in with its enticing story and brought them to their knees with gut-wrenching moments that still hit hard a mere 8 years later.

The themes that Mass Effect explores, from planetary xenophobia to galactic unity are undoubtedly for mature audiences, and while gore is kept to a minimum, the complex tale that the trilogy presents is clearly for those of us above the age of 16.

It was insulting, then, that select preorders for the concluding chapter, Mass Effect 3, offered a free inflatable Omni Blade with a copy of the game. This product only functions under the assumption that Mass Effect is suitable for younger audiences, or that the target audience would benefit from an inflatable toy.

Its inclusion in the preorder does nothing to combat the notion that video games are nothing more than a lazy kid's pass-time. Anyone who would be easily occupied from an inflatable toy is far too immature to enjoy the game its bundled with.