9 Video Games Saved By RIDICULOUSLY Last-Minute Changes

8. Making Deacon Way More Likeable - Days Gone

When it was first announced all the way back at E3 2016, Days Gone received something of a backlash. It wasn't just that the zombie game felt a little too late to the open world party, but the central idea of focusing on a biker gang in a post-apocalyptic story was easy to ridicule.

Protagonist Deacon St. John didn't make things any better either, with previews all commenting how he was nothing more than yet another by-the-numbers gruff, white anti-hero in an industry where gruff, white anti-heroes are the default. Though Sam Witwer is a compelling performer, it was clear the material he had to work with wasn't all that great, with Deacon's dialogue coming across as cliched and a little phoned in.

However, before release, Sony Bend made the right decision to soften Deacon's rougher edges and give him more of a unique personality that wasn't just "gruff biker". He was still an outsider hothead, but there was a more clearly defined arc now, while his relationships with the people around him - especially wife Sarah - became a major highlight of the experience, rather than being the groan-worthy laughing stock they used to be.