8 Video Games That Totally Fell Apart After Incredible Openings
First impressions count... but they don't last.
As the games industry continues to be one of the most lucrative entertainment mediums of all, it has an adverse effect on how developers assemble their products. Industry veteran Keith Fuller noted that only "10 percent of gamers actually finish a game", and the remainder "will never see the end unless they watch a clip on YouTube."
Some very true and resonant words for the modern age, but the ramifications for an industry predicated on user interaction really does put an emphasis on first impressions. A demo sliced from a full product, the introduction of a cast of awesome characters with killer lines of dialogue or in this case, perfectly moulded opening levels, developers need to ensure they hook you in - just enough to guarantee you don't plump for a refund, but perhaps not for the duration, as chances are you won't see every last level anyway.
As such, whether it be intentional or otherwise, the following games opened with genuine firework displays of perfected potential... only to fall off the deep end as the credits rolled.
--
8. Fahrenheit/Indigo Prophecy
Remember the first time you played this? The sheer Homer Simpson-like "What do I do?! Somebody help me!"-esque bewilderment of seeing our protagonist Lucas Kane murder a man in a trance, only for gameplay to switch control over, and a gamut of varied story paths presented themselves.
Do you try and drag the corpse to an unseen place? Mop up the blood? Make a run for it? It really was up to you, and the tone of the scene set us up for some sort of gritty thriller, especially as other playable detectives could then be piloted to find specific clues.
Then... it all went to sh*t. Turns out Lucas was some 'chosen one' for an ancient mystical cult, one that was at war with digital systems of any sort. And what was the most 21st century incarnation of pure data? The internet, of course.
Yup, you literally had to swallow the fact that, after this impeccable, weighty intro, you were now following a post-apocalyptic tale where the Internet took physical shape and murdered people. And you thought Hideo Kojima's plots were crazy.