10 Critically-Acclaimed Video Games That BOMBED

It's difficult to overstate just how much of a statement Conker's Bad Fur Day made upon its original release - the boiled potato-tier boring Diddy Kong Racing character had received a trailer for his new suitable for all ages game, Twelve Tales, and expectations were tepid at best.

Another 3D animal mascot platformer? What was this,1993?!

So when the seemingly-AWOL Twelve Tales re-emerged as Conker's Bad Fur Day, a booze-fuelled, hangover-riddled romp through the rowdiest and raunchiest parts of gaming's netherbits, we were all completely blown away at the suckerpunch we'd just been delivered.

What Rare had done with Conker was the antithesis of a safe bet. They'd distinguished their mascot from the pack by making him NSFW, a lecherous drunken uncle - the intention being to draw an older clientele to the Nintendo 64, a console which had struggled with its "kiddy" image in the face of the clubland-cool PlayStation. Yet, they simultaneously alienated the vast majority of the console's player base, who were now unable to purchase or play the game, given its M for Mature rating.

This bet would do wonders in establishing Conker's Bad Fur Day as a cult classic, a genuinely unique title which risked a lot of reputation and faith in the interest of being fresh and unexpected, but targeting such a small part of the overall games market would ultimately be the reason the game failed to meet sales projections, and subsequently, fail commercially.