20 Disappointing Video Games That Didn't Fulfil Their Potential

Games nowadays can be fixed with a patch or DLC, but some aren't so lucky. Some get left behind.

by Matthew Maidment
Mass Effect Andromeda
EA

The video game industry has changed a lot over the last two decades. We’ve gone from games releasing and being left in whatever state they’re in to a game releasing and looking entirely different months later. 

Cyberpunk 2077 and No Man’s Sky are fantastic examples of games that were broken at launch, yet the developers never gave up hope and continuously worked on them, ultimately transforming them into unrecognisable versions from their initial launch. Cyberpunk 2077 in particular now sits on top of many people’s favourite RPG lists.  

Unfortunately, not every game is so lucky, with many being released and left by the wayside to rot away. Today, we’re going to look through some of the unlucky few that were released in a broken mess, but could’ve been fixed with an update or a decent DLC drop.

20. Mass Effect Andromeda

mass effect andromeda peebee
EA

Much has been said about BioWare’s fourth go-around in the Mass Effect universe. After the critically acclaimed Commander Shepard trilogy, expectations were understandably very high. 

Unfortunately, BioWare dropped the ball with Andromeda as it was launched in a near-unplayable state. From hilariously broken facial animations to characters T-posing every now and then, Mass Effect Andromeda was a clear sign that BioWare had a bit of a nightmare during development. 

Now, BioWare did, in time, fix many of the issues that faced Andromeda, but some saw it as too little too late. If you jumped into the game now, you’d experience a much smoother experience, but some bugs have still slipped through the cracks. 

This is only part of the reason Andromeda has made the list, however. If we look at the original trilogy, not only did we have a fantastic story to play through in the main game, but we were also treated to outstanding DLCs. Lair of the Shadow Broker, Arrival and Citadel are just some of the amazing DLCs we experienced in the Mass Effect Trilogy, whereas Andromeda had none. 

It could’ve softened the blow of the rocky launch and lacklustre story if Andromeda had a DLC drop akin to Phantom Liberty for Cyberpunk, but alas, life is cruel, and Mass Effect Andromeda was dropped and forgotten about.

 
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Hey, I’m Matt. I work full-time at WhatCulture's neighbours, MyVoucherCodes. I first joined MyVoucherCodes as a Deals Expert, scouring the internet, leaving no stone unturned in finding the best discount codes, sales and offers for our customers. Moving into my first home during the worst possible time (during lockdown), I understand the necessity of saving money when the purse strings are tight. Outside of saving money, I’m into video games, movies, books and music. I host and edit a video game podcast called The Retry Hard Podcast, where my friend and I go through news, reviews and video games in general. I love movies and watching how they’re made, and I’ve worked as a set decorator for a few months on His Dark Materials season 3, which gave me a massive insight into how it all comes together. I also put out music as a solo artist named Matt Kiano, where I won the award for Best Male Artist of 2025 for Radio Wigwam and have been nomiated for Best Live Act at the 2026 Radio Wigwam Awards.