The past few years have been a wake-up call for the gaming industry. Some great games have pushed the industry forward and gamers’ expectations continue to evolve. But that means that there have been some high-profile, heavily hyped releases that have completely missed the mark. Let’s dig into four significant gaming flops and explore what they teach us about what’s happening in game development.
1. Marvel’s Avengers: When Great Expectations Sink the Ship
With the massive popularity of the MCU among consumers, Marvel’s Avengers was expected to be a blockbuster hit. Instead, it fell far short of fan expectations and was ultimately pulled from online and physical stores in 2023. So, what went wrong?
- Unfamiliar Faces, Unmet Expectations: Players wanted an immersive experience with their favorite MCU heroes, but the characters neither looked nor sounded like their cinematic counterparts, alienating fans right out of the gate.
- Identity Crisis: The game couldn’t decide between a story-driven single-player campaign and a looter-style live service, ultimately satisfying neither side. Players who enjoyed the story were disappointed with the mid-game shift to repetitive, grindy missions.
- Dull Rewards: For a looter game, the loot itself fell flat. Lackluster rewards left players feeling unmotivated, missing that addictive excitement of earning meaningful upgrades or new abilities.
2. Skull and Bones: The Pirate Adventure That Missed the Treasure
Announced with high hopes, Ubisoft’s Skull and Bones promised a pirate adventure full of naval combat and treasure hunting. But players were left high and dry.
- Repetitive Gameplay: What was advertised as a rich pirate simulation turned into a repetitive looter-shooter with minimal variation. Naval battles lacked the strategy and excitement that players expected, leaving the experience feeling shallow.
- Technical Woes: Technical glitches plagued the PvP mode, and buggy live-service elements left players frustrated. These issues were amplified by multiple delays, which only increased the game’s development costs and put further strain on player expectations.
3. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League – A $200 Million Mistake
Developed by Rocksteady, the creators of the successful Batman: Arkham series, Suicide Squad was expected to carry the torch forward for the studio. Instead, it’s projected to have caused up to $200 million in losses for Warner Bros.
- Shifting Directions: Initially envisioned as a melee combat game, Suicide Squad was later transformed into a gun-based live-service game to salvage early missteps. This change in direction fractured the gameplay experience, leaving it feeling repetitive and uninspired.
- Lack of Live-Service Experience: Rocksteady, renowned for single-player games, struggled with the shift to a live-service format. The game’s structure felt clunky and unrefined, failing to engage players in the way successful live-service games like Destiny 2 and Fortnite do.
4. Immortals of Aveum: The $120 Million Overreach
Ascendant Studios’ debut, Immortals of Aveum, was an ambitious project with a staggering $120 million budget, but its timing and overhyped marketing doomed it.
- Terrible Timing: Released during a packed launch season alongside Starfield, Baldur’s Gate 3, and Armored Core 6, Immortals of Aveum struggled to get the spotlight and quickly faded amid fierce competition.
- Misleading Marketing: With $40 million of the budget poured into marketing, expectations soared. But when the gameplay didn’t live up to the hype, players felt misled, and excitement fizzled out quickly.
What Can We Learn from These Failures?
Each of these games highlights critical lessons for developers and studios hoping to succeed in an industry that’s fiercely competitive and constantly evolving.
- Effort vs. Reward: Marvel’s Avengers reminds us that players need to feel rewarded for their efforts. Exciting loot and meaningful progression keep players engaged, while unrewarding systems drive them away. Developers must balance gameplay with incentives that feel genuinely satisfying.
- Authentic Marketing: Unrealistic marketing promises, like those seen with Suicide Squad and Immortals of Aveum, can sink a game before it even launches. Unlike movies, games depend on continuous engagement and replayability, which means the player experience must meet or exceed advertised expectations.
- Success Doesn’t Equal Adaptability: Rocksteady’s history of success with Batman: Arkham didn’t translate into live-service expertise for Suicide Squad. Even top studios need to adapt to new genres, technologies, and player preferences to stay relevant.
- Stay True to Strengths (or Invest in the Right Expertise): As seen with Skull and Bones, multiplayer and live-service games demand specific expertise. Studios with limited experience in these areas should consider investing in specialized teams—or focus on what they already excel at instead of chasing trends.
The Bottom Line
The gaming industry is especially competitive and expectations shift with every new release. The only way to succeed is to stay adaptable. For studios, that means reading the pulse of the gaming landscape, evolving with it, and more importantly, pivoting strategies if needed. In other words, success in gaming requires not just delivering on promises, but also constantly learning, adapting and innovating to meet the evolving demands of players.
