Games you thought were awesome until you went and replayed them years later

[Galbalan]

Two games in particular stick out in my mind as having been mind-blowingly great (at the time) and then I realized what steaming piles they were after going back to them. Both are PS1 games.

Final Fantasy VIII: At the time, I was totally enamored with Squaresoft and FFVII had been, like, SOOOO awesome. While FFVII is still (to me) a solidly made game with a number of flaws, it was when I tried to replay FFVIII several years later that I realized it truly was an awful game and never deserved the praise it got. I know it's the most popular FF to hate on, but everything about it was so poorly designed that the trainwreck nature of it is all the more painful.

Vagrant Story: Worst. Action. RPG. Battle. System. Ever.

Granted, even at the time I didn't really "get into it" because I tried hard, even using the strategy guide to work my way through, and I lost interest...booting it up years later, I realized it wasn't just me. It truly was an awful POS.

And what are yours?

[kupomogli]

Dragon Warrior. All throughout 8bit and 16 bit consoles I went back to it frequently and praised it as being a great game. At the time there wasn't too much overshadowing it, but it was clearly the worst of them. As soon as the PSX came out, great RPG after great RPG, a lot of others like Dragon Warrior 3, Final Fantasy, even Phantasy Star(though not so much,) still hold up in comparison to newer RPGs. But going back to the original Dragon Warrior. It's like. Man. This game is fucking terrible. I like the graphics, the classic Dragon Warrior monster designs, the music, even the world layout, but the grindfest in a specific few locations and the poor gameplay was just too much. I still get fanboyish over the underworld on Dragon Warrior 3 since it's the world of the original Dragon Warrior, but Dragon Warrior 3 is enjoyable to play. Even Dragon Warrior GBC isn't any fun and you get twice the amount of Gold and EXP.

[Emperor Megas]

I can't think of any honestly. When everyone was being blown away by 3D gaming, I was one of the few people who thought that those early 32-bit polygon graphics were HORRIBLE, and that a game really had to be great to overshadow how terrible they looked. I never got suckered into garbage hype games that were 'the future!' either, like SEGA CD's awful FMV games.

If I liked a game back in the day, chances are I'll still enjoy it just as much today. And if I come across a game that I've never played before, but it's dated, I'll still enjoy it if it was something that I would have when it released.

[heybtbm]

Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire (N64 - 1996)

Then:
Powerful new system, epic soundtrack, unbelievable graphics and varied gameplay. The first level (Snowspeeder vs. AT-AT's) was a window into the future of 3D (everyone was done with 2D by then). Goodbye SNES!

Now:
An unplayable, glitchy, cheap, blurry mess with terrible controls and one of the worst 3D camera's of all time.

[portnoyd]

Robodemons.

Nothing else more to say, just let that sink in.

[Edmond Dantes]

I kinda hate myself for saying this, but:

Romance of the Three Kingdoms - NES
Back then: Epic strategy game full of depth, strategy and layers of management, which actually rewarded you for being intelligent and not just buffing up your army. Note that I first played it in 1998 and it was nowhere near being the first strategy game I ever played.

Now: A sluggish game where you sit around doing nothing until either you decide to attack somebody or they attack you, and then the battles consist of "spend half the time limit walking to where the enemy is and the other half having a war of attrition--or setting everything on fire until you can grab their rice/castles." (This being said, I would imagine it would be an awesome multiplayer game if you could dig up eight friends who had a lot of patience).

It doesn't help that I've read the actual novel since then (FWIW, best novel ever) and the game does a poor job of replicating any part of it.

[Colorado Rockies]

Spyro the Dragon, Medievil, Resident Evil 2.
Mainly a lot of games from the 32 bit era. That generation has held up the worst imo. The graphics have aged horribly, the camera angles are awful etc.

[Dangerboy]

Mainly a lot of games from the 32 bit era. This generation has held up the worst imo. The graphics have aged horribly, the camera angles are awful etc.

Such is the problem with the ushering in of a new visual standard. The 3DO is even worse in some regards. But then 3D has and always will have this problem. Go play Uncharted 2 and Final Fantasy XIII on a PS3, and then go back and play Resistance 1 and Lair - you begin to see just how truly non-next-gen those games were.

As for actual game play, FF8 was *never* good. I've noticed I've fallen out of good graces with anything linear - where I used to play games like TMNT, Streets of Rage, Final Fight, etc like they were the only game on Earth, now I can't even make it half a stage before turning it off. This goes for current gen too - I fell asleep in the first hour of FFXIII, and truth be told, if Uncharted didn't have the story / acting it did, I'd have never made it through.

Also, some classics I just can't do anymore - Anything Breakout / Arkanoid style, or games that are "for points" no longer amuse me. Fallout and Mass Effect have ruined me -
I must have moral choices, amazing soundtracks and the chance to change everything I did and then change it again.

Such is the hobby.

[Edmond Dantes]

It may just be your tastes changed.

I know it happened to me. I used to prefer slow paced, "intellect" games--Strategy, RPGs (leaning more towards Western in my younger days), simulations etc. Nowadays I like fast-paced platformers, fghting games and shoot-em-ups and usually can't get into slower games unless there's something really compelling about them, or they have some sentimental value.

[Baloo]

It may just be your tastes changed.

I know it happened to me. I used to prefer slow paced, "intellect" games--Strategy, RPGs (leaning more towards Western in my younger days), simulations etc. Nowadays I like fast-paced platformers, fghting games and shoot-em-ups and usually can't get into slower games unless there's something really compelling about them, or they have some sentimental value.

Same. Before I could play through relatively long games, now I simply want to play fast-paced arcade games "for points" and pinball for the most part these days. RPGs, MMOs and FPSs just put me to sleep. But Ms. Pac-Man I could play until the cows come home. Years ago I loved games like Super Mario 64, when I got my Wii I tried to play through Super Mario Galaxy and was bored to tears.

Although I did manage to get really into Panzer Dragoon Saga a few months ago and enjoyed it a great deal. Played through the whole game in a week, although the game was only 12 hours, which is short for an RPG.

[Aussie2B]

None, to be honest. I've never really been a sucker for hype or excited over the "newness" of games. I look at a brand new release no different than an old game that's new to me. Like take my SNES purchase for example. It was the first system that truly belonged to me, and rather than get all excited about the "latest and greatest" games I would have access to, the first game I got was Super Mario All-Stars. I was more concerned with reacquiring and playing the old Mario games that I loved.

That's not to say that I didn't play the heck out of some games that I wouldn't have much interest in playing now, but that was due to the small number of games I had as a kid. I was fully aware deep down that I didn't think the games were so hot, but it was better than playing nothing or having to replay my other games even more than I already was doing. A perfect example of that would be Tetris 2 on SNES, bleh.

[BetaWolf47]

There are a couple of N64 games that come to mind. I'll mention Cruis'n World. Back then, I could play for hours a day, working to unlock the ultimate car in the game. It was... decent for its time. Now, looking back, it has that cheesy win screen with the trophy girl, and the female announcer, and is just a boring game.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game is another one. I used to love any beat-em-up back then. I rented TMNT2 more times than I can remember though. Never really got past the 4th stage back then though. Now, when I go back, it's incredibly lame compared to even other NES beat-em-up. Not to mention Shredder being one of the most broken end bosses of all time.

[Flam]

not that I've played them recently but I'm sure Spy Hunter and Rampage would be pretty boring. I also bought NARC (which was one of my favs) and I don't like it either.

[calgon]

Good topic.

Mortal Kombat 1-3. The look, the control and gameplay are pure trash to me now.

[7th lutz]

Double Dragon for the Atari 7800. It is now a mediocre game for me.

Multiple things happens that caused my feeling of Double Dragon for the Atari 7800 to change.

When I got Double Dragon for the Atari 7800, I never played the arcade version of Double Dragon. That meant I didn't realize the 7800 version of Double Dragon was missing stuff like moves or some weapons such as a whip, dynamite, and the ability to throw drums as examples.

Double Dragon was one of the first games I got for the Atari 7800 in late December 1989. That meant I really didn't what the 7800 was capable of since I didn't have Commando, or Midnight Mutants over 18 years after getting Double Dragon for the Atari 7800.

The other thing that made me changed my opinion was the fact I only owned an Atari 2600 Jr. and recently got an Atari 7800 at the time. That meant I didn't have nothing to compare other versions of Double Dragon at the time in terms of game systems.

[SpaceHarrier]

Super Mario Sunshine
Playing it again (after the superb Super Mario Galaxy).. now I so clearly see its flaws and repetition.

Strider (arcade)
Loved this when I only had a couple quarters left, back when I was young. Now -- the control just feels clunky, the animation framey. Getting knocked around by just about everything doesn't help either. Admittedly, I don't have much skill at the game, but I no longer even have the patience to play much into it. I still like the graphics, though.

btw, I still like FFVIII after all these years

[j_factor]

I can't think of any games that did this for me.

Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire (N64 - 1996)

Then:
Powerful new system, epic soundtrack, unbelievable graphics and varied gameplay. The first level (Snowspeeder vs. AT-AT's) was a window into the future of 3D (everyone was done with 2D by then). Goodbye SNES!

Now:
An unplayable, glitchy, cheap, blurry mess with terrible controls and one of the worst 3D camera's of all time.

I played that game in 1996, and your "now" is pretty much exactly what I thought of it "then". I really hated that game.

[retroman]

Clash At Demonhead for the NES...i use to love this game, and now its like what the hell was i thinking

[APE992]

Virtually every NES game I played back in the day. Most of them have graphics AND sound that didn't age well (Zelda is a notable exception IMO with Metal Gear being an example of crap) as well as a console that is a royal PITA to keep functional.

[Edmond Dantes]

A few others:

Prince of Persia - I owned the PC and Sega CD versions
THEN: Hey, this is a pretty engrossing little puzzle-platformer game! OMG I beat it? I want more! Hey, there's a PC compilation of both games for a low price! Yay now I get to play POP2! (note: I never beat POP2)

NOW: Wow, so you spend an hour mostly doing the same sort of scrambling around and running but not-too-fast-or-you'll-die and fighting guards who never change their strategy throughout the game. What was fun about this, again?

Silent Hill (first one, I borrowed from a friend
THEN: Whoa hey, this is actually kind of creepy. Fog, dark rusty world, what the hell is even going on here? Oh god I don't think I wanna know...

NOW: Okay you stupid demon nurse quit trying to stab me I'm trying to solve a bleepin' puzzle!

Half-Life (first one, non-Source version)
THEN: Oh my goodness wow, this is one hell of an engrossing game. I love the atmosphere of Black Mesa, the story, the setting, the--did that man just get pulled through a vent? Oh wow, things are stepping up! Come on Freeman, you've got to survive! Wow, I actually like this alien world!

NOW: Is this a first-person shooter or a first-person walk through empty hallways? This place is kind of boring, and there's nothing to do here! Are there even any secret areas or something that I can find? Oh gee, another telegraphed set-piece. What happened to the days of Doom when you just fought hordes of monsters? Now that was a game!

----

On a more positive note, has anyone ever had a time where the exact opposite of this topic's title happened (IE "games you thought were utter garbage until you replayed them years later")?

I have:

Dragon Warrior - NES, and keep in mind I first played it on an emulator.
AT FIRST: Man, RPGs were pretty freaking primitive on the NES! One dude, not many options, and all you did was grind? Hell, this is miles behind Ultima IV!, much less anything on the SNES! Screw this, I'm gonna go back to playing Xenogears.

BUT LATER: You know what, I'm bored, I feel like something old-school... eh, why not. I'll give my character a stupid name and just faff about for a bit... oh man, I just got so served by that ghost! Good thing I keep all my EXP... hmm... might check up on these rumors... wonder what's in that cave... (hours later) wait, am I actually playing freaking Dragon Warrior and enjoying it?

System Shock
AT FIRST: Wait, how is this shitty game a classic? The controls are so unwieldy and unintuitive! This game is unplayable. Screw it.

BUT LATER: Oh hey, this thing is pretty interesting... wait, did SHODAN just spring a trap on me? Holy shit, I love getting my butt kicked! This is creepier than all four Clock Towers combined! How the hell did this game sit unplayed in my library for so long?