10 'Next Big Thing' Video Games That Failed Miserably

2. Shenmue

Sega's multi-million dollar medium-shaker is routinely the embodiment of something that was going to 'change everything' - though in this case, it was centred on progressing how narratives and stories are told in video games.

In a way, Shenmue did succeed - every single Dreamcast owner played it, and there are a number of game mechanics like quick-time events, sporadic minigames and environmental object interaction that would go on to directly influence everything from Heavy Rain to Yakuza and even L.A. Noire.

That said, take a step back from the inbuilt console audience readily available for Shenmue, and the game releasing mere months after the mighty PS2 meant the vast majority of punters completely missed out.

Being its budget was around $70 million, it would've required a relentless stream of sales to recoup - something Sega just couldn't deliver when they were up against such relentlessly juggernaut competition.

Retrospectively, Shenmue was clearly ahead of its time, though many of its biggest innovations are still attributed to the more widespread likes of David Cage's games or Telltale's first season of The Walking Dead.