Call of Duty and 9 More of the Most Polarising Video Games Ever Made

5. Dynasty Warriors

Even the most avid of Dynasty Warriors fans would find it hard to argue that the series isn’t intrinsically repetitive, dissuading a lot of people from giving it an honesty try. The formula has changed very little in the almost twenty years since it was released in 1997; it’s doubtable that Koei could have predicted the rampant success which would lead the franchise to shift over 18million copies in total to date.

As far as the gameplay goes, there isn’t particularly a lot of depth to it, even for a hack and slash. You can easily cut a path through swarms of enemies with just the press of a button, which almost makes it hypnotic, nearly cathartic. Many fans of the series see Dynasty Warriors as a release, a Feudal Japan stress ball of sorts and it’s hard not to see where they’re coming from.

 

4. Dmc: Devil May Cry

Is it safe to talk about this yet? The furore regarding the newest entry in the Devil May Cry series almost looked like it was never going to abate back when it was released in 2013. Many corners were furious about the main character change and big differences in difficulty from earlier DMC games, which were as hard as boulder balls.

Criticism of the new Dante weren’t unfounded: the guy was generally just aa bit of a doucheload, even distastefully making fun of his earlier design at one point within the game. However, Dmc: Devil May Cry was by no means a terrible game as the action came thick and fast thanks to combat being a smooth, enjoyable process. This may be a case of “New Coke” though as Capcom will no doubt bring the old Dante back for any new games and make franchise fans happy once again.

 

3. Heavy Rain

David Cage is an idiot savante. His games veer so wildly from engrossing, well-told stories to self-indulgent interactive movies starring Juno. Although we can all agree that Beyond: Two Souls was probably just a bit bad, there’s still plenty of discussion surrounding Heavy Rain long after it came out on the Playstation 3 half a decade ago.

Many of its critics disliked how overwrought and emotional it was, whereas its fans believed to be its driving force. The overabundance of quick-time events and Heavy Rain’s relatively short running time were other grievances its detractors had, but the fans loved it nonetheless. Still nowhere near as awesome and ridiculous as Quantic Dream’s Fahrenheit, though.

 

2. Dragon Age II

Despite how good its critical reception has been, it could be argued that Inquisition actually deserves to be on this list instead. However, considering how wildly different Dragon Age II was from its predecessor and how much of an upset it caused on release, it nudges slightly ahead.

It’s by no means a bad game, it’s just exactly what series fans didn’t want: a dilution of the rich combat of the original into a hack and slash. While still enjoyable, Dragon Age II wasn’t anywhere as beloved as the first game in the series, but it still has its fans. Inquisition managed to find ground somewhere in the middle and still has its critics, so I guess Bioware just can’t win. Well, as long as they align themselves with EA, anyhow.

 

1. Dear Esther

Tying in with the debate about video games being art, Dear Esther is one of the most widely-discussed releases in the gaming community. Is it actually a game or does it just dress itself up as an interactive cutscene? “Core” gamers are likely to say the latter.

There isn’t really much gameplay to speak of with Dear Esther as you simply have to explore a seemingly empty Hebridean island with only a wistful narrator for company that eventually leads to an ambiguous ending. There isn’t any DLC, little replayability and no online play, leading many gamers to disregard it without even giving it a chance, which is a shame. Dear Esther is an experience that unfortunately just isn’t for everybody.

Agree or disagree with my choices? Any you feel I should have included? Leave a comment below.