10 Biggest Video Game Financial Disasters This Generation

4. Fallout 76

On paper, Fallout 76's 2.4 million copies sold doesn't seem that bad, but in comparison to the other games in the series, and the titles it was directly competing against, it indicates a project that wholly underperformed. The last game in the franchise, Fallout 4, sold an astonishing 15 million copies, while the lowest-performing release under Bethesda's oversight has been New Vegas - a game which overcame its bugs to still sell well over 8 million units.

Of course, a lot of this disappointment had to do with the game's disastrous launch. Mediocre reviews hounded the game, while the myriad of bugs and glitches it launched with made it virtually unplayable for a lot of fans. Consequently, many were skeptical of early adopting, even with a quick price cut by Bethesda.

Many pointed to the lower sales as being down to the shift in sub-genre, with 76 being a live-service multiplayer shooter rather than a straightforward RPG, but that should have actually benefitted the game. These kinda of experiences are incredibly popular at the moment, and that wave of excitement was something Bethesda was clearly trying to capitalise on.