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Video games based on movies often carry a reputation for being underwhelming, and for very good reason. From rushed development to baffling gameplay decisions, these adaptations frequently miss the mark, leaving players with experiences they'd rather forget. Join us as we explore some of the most infamously terrible video games to ever emerge from the silver screen, proving that not every blockbuster translates well to your console or PC.
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00:00Video games based on movies tend to have a bad reputation, and for a good reason.
00:14Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks of the worst games based on movies.
00:2520. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
00:28Harry Potter's video game adventures seemed to dip in quality as they went on, culminating
00:47in the absolute trash pile that is Deathly Hallows Part 1. Gone was any semblance of magic or creativity
00:53that could come from being a wizard. Instead, Harry's quest to hunt down Voldemort's horcruxes
00:59was dumbed down to a bare-bones third-person shooter with monotonous gameplay and mechanics.
01:04Everything about it was far too simplified, making for an overall dull experience. It didn't benefit
01:10from being a part one either, which led to a relatively short playtime. Not that you'd want
01:15to spend too much time with it anyway.
01:2419. Aliens Colonial Marines
01:27While it's technically a sequel to one of the Alien movies, Colonial Marines is too notorious to not
01:43have it on the list. It's still one of the most famously disappointing launches of a tie-in game,
01:48and even one of the worst games of the 2010s. Hype was pretty high but was quickly shattered when
01:54everyone got their hands on it. One of the biggest criticisms was the graphical downgrade between the
01:58pre-release footage and the actual game. Even if it had looked perfect, that wouldn't have helped
02:03with the short playtime of its campaign. Horrible enemy AI, dull gameplay, and a multitude of bugs.
02:1718. Bad Boys Miami Takedown
02:20Based on the second movie in the Bad Boys franchise, Miami Takedown makes it clear that
02:33the series should've just stuck to the big screen if it was going to turn out like this.
02:38The gameplay is serviceable, if not completely generic. But you can't even mildly enjoy that,
02:43because the controls are so stiff and cumbersome. Everything else makes it a pain to play too.
02:48It looked terrible even for the time, and the audio design is laughably bad,
02:53making it both an ear sore and an eyesore. That's not to mention the horrendous dialogue delivered
02:58through some pretty poor voice acting. It's all just a mess.
03:0917. R.I.P.D. The Game
03:12Nick Walker was one of Boston's finest police officers. The kind of guy that doesn't flinch in a firefight,
03:20which is unfortunate because he died.
03:22It isn't as if the R.I.P.D. movie did well commercially or critically, so we doubt many
03:28people played the tie-in game. For anyone who did, though, we offer our condolences.
03:34This was clearly a low-budget cash grab. But even by those low standards, it's pretty subpar.
03:40Outside of a short comic-style cutscene at the beginning and end, there's also no story. It's
03:46basically just a handful of boring levels strung together by boring third-person shooter mechanics
03:50aimed at boring enemy designs. It's rare to be lulled to sleep in the first few minutes of a game,
03:56but R.I.P.D. accomplishes it. Sure, it was sold at a discounted price, but even that was too much.
04:0916. Ghostbusters
04:12Man, Aaron and Abby are my heroes. They believed in the existence of the paranormal when it wasn't
04:17even cool. Ditto. Before meeting those ladies, I only had myself to look up to.
04:22The Ghostbusters have had their ups and downs when it comes to video games,
04:26but the bottom of the barrel has to be a tie-in to the 2016 reboot.
04:31Being another sequel, the game doesn't even have you play as the cast of characters.
04:35They're busy off saving the White House from ghosts of famous assassins,
04:39and that sounds way more interesting than what we got to play through.
04:42It follows four new team members hunting ghosts in New York.
04:45From the repetitive top-down shooter gameplay, to the bland levels, to the sad,
04:49cringy attempts at humor, there's nothing interesting about this game.
04:54We got our first mission, Ghostbusters. Everyone ready to save this city from imminent death and
04:58destruction just like our foremothers?
05:0015. The Expendables 2 Video Game
05:04He's been held in the old industrial sector a few miles northeast, but you'll be taking that info to
05:09your graves.
05:11You would think that an action franchise as explosive as The Expendables could churn out
05:15an at least halfway decent game. Sadly, you'd be wrong. The franchise's second installment did
05:22receive a video game, and it's nothing short of terrible. The top-down shooter did have plenty
05:27of explosiveness in its sound design, though not in a good way. With gameplay this generic and
05:32repetitive, the constant gunfire from your four characters drills into your brain, driving you to
05:37madness. It's both irritating and exceptionally dull, which we admit is an impressive balance to strike.
05:44The drab, muddy brown color scheme of every single level does nothing to help matters either.
05:4914. The Fifth Element
05:52Still regarded as a sci-fi classic, The Fifth Element received a video game that failed to capture
06:10any of the zaniness or imagination of the film. We can at least give the developers credit for
06:15having to switch between playing as Corbin and Leeloo, who have different playstyles.
06:20But that's as far as our praise goes. Your time is divided between tedious third-person action
06:25mechanics either way, along with forgettable puzzles and set in lazily-designed levels that are
06:31all varying shades of gray. Released on the PlayStation in 1998, which was an incredible year for the
06:36system, we feel sorry for anyone who picked this up instead of something else.
06:4113. Fight Club
06:43The Fight Club game was released five years after the movie, lightly trying to cash in on the cult status
06:58it earned after disappointing at the box office. Ignoring the irony of doing so for a film with so
07:04much anti-consumerism messaging, the game is as lazy as they come. We know we've called a lot of
07:10these games repetitive, but that's a common thread tying them all together in the landscape of horrid
07:15tie-ins. This is the most basic fighter you could come up with, with mechanics so easy there's essentially
07:21no skill ceiling. Or rather, it's so low that anyone could reach it. It's awful to look at too,
07:27with poor character models and animations. 12. The Wizard of Oz
07:39The Land of Oz is full of magic, wonder, and plenty of other elements that would make for a
07:44great video game. This, obviously, is not that. While reviews at the time were positive, reception
07:50turned on it in the modern era, and it's easy to see why. The pleasant visuals might lure you into
07:56thinking you're getting a quality Super Nintendo game. But playing it is a huge chore. Controls are
08:02clunky, and every character does minuscule damage. The exception is the Tin Man, but he can't even jump
08:08in a platform game. There's also some really bad collision and hit detection. All of this combines
08:14for a game that is needlessly hard and absolutely no fun at all to play.
08:1811. RoboCop A first-person shooter following RoboCop should've been an easy home run. And yet, this 2003
08:38tie-in on Xbox is the exact opposite. We get that the on-screen hero isn't exactly agile or quick,
08:45but trudging along these uninspired cityscapes is an absolute slog. The targeting system is also
08:50inspired by the movies, but it happens so frequently on enemies and items and is so bright
08:56that you'll see it whenever you close your eyes. It's meant to be helpful, but winds up being
09:01detrimental almost immediately. Add on some really bland mechanics and a shoddy control scheme,
09:06and RoboCop is a huge disappointment to its namesake. Though, coming from the studio behind
09:12Superman 64, we shouldn't be surprised. 10. Street Fighter The Movie
09:30Based on the movie that was based on Capcom's Fighter series, this is an entry best forgotten.
09:43It isn't as if the movie was good to begin with, but the campiness at least offers more enjoyment
09:48than trying to play this garbage. Released in arcades as well as on the Sega Saturn and PlayStation,
09:54the console versions are wildly considered weaker. The gameplay was essentially the same as Super
09:59Street Fighter 2 Turbo. Except it was made much worse by horrid frame rates and poor animation that came
10:05with the digitized graphics and a significant amount of lag and glitches. It's one thing to make a bad
10:11movie tie-in, but to also ruin the perfection of your previous game? That's almost impressive.
10:169. The Crow City of Angels
10:31A video game tie-in to a sequel that most fans would choose to ignore, The Crow City of Angels received
10:37skating reviews to match its source material. And it isn't as if time has been kind to it. It's basically a
10:43checklist of the most frustrating things a video game can have. Input lag in its controls, an annoying camera,
10:49abysmal collision detection, and a lack of direction on what to do made everything entirely frustrating.
10:55Maybe we could forgive its poor visuals and voice acting, which it has in spades,
10:59if not for the rest making it so unfun to play. It's no wonder the IP hasn't received another game since.
11:068. Terminator 2 Judgment Day
11:20Terminator 2 received a wide variety of games across multiple platforms, some of which were
11:25pretty good. But we're not here to talk about those. The 16-bit version, whether played on the
11:30Sega Genesis or the Super Nintendo, is a truly miserable playthrough. Despite the timeless visuals
11:36many games on either system had, Terminator 2 looks terrible, with tiny character sprites and
11:42substandard animations. Gameplay is simple, but controls are incredibly weak, and that's especially
11:47true during the confusing driving sections that caused many players to rage quit. It's aggravating to
11:52play throughout. But what will really drive you up the wall is the music, which never changes.
12:057. Waterworld
12:07When a game is released on different platforms, it can sometimes lead to wildly different experiences.
12:24But no matter where you played Waterworld, inspired by the Kevin Cosner-led film, you had a bad time.
12:30Even still, the most widely accepted worst version was released on Nintendo's Virtual Boy. That system
12:36was already a financial disaster due to its cumbersome design, limited color scheme,
12:41and technology that actually caused players physical harm. But this game was panned for its
12:46lackluster enemy designs, poor visuals, sluggish controls, and, as we've seen with several others
12:52on this list, poor collision detection. Some even consider it the worst game on the Virtual Boy,
12:58which only ever got 22 releases before it was discontinued.
13:016. Charlie's Angels
13:04Good morning, Angels!
13:05Good morning, Charlie!
13:06Well done! Good work! While you were gone, I identified the cargo ship's owner. He goes by the
13:11name of Ed Foster. He's an industry magnate and owns a home in Scotland.
13:15Let me guess. We're going to pay him a visit.
13:18Based on the film reboot from 2000, we can certainly see the appeal of a Charlie's Angels video game.
13:24If only it were nothing like this. Essentially a 3D beat-em-up, the game features incredibly
13:30simplistic mechanics and mission designs that will leave you bored out of your mind.
13:34Even with three playable characters, there's not a single difference between their fighting styles.
13:39And when you aren't bored, you're suffering from the incredible frustration that comes from
13:44controls that were dated even in 2003 and horrendous camera angles. Even for big fans of the movie,
13:50there are no redeeming qualities to be found here. And for fans of beat-em-ups, it's an insult to the genre.
13:56If we found him, why not just send in the police?
13:59I don't want Foster to panic. He could do something reckless at the sight of a uniform.
14:04How do you figure?
14:05Number 5. Back to the Future
14:16Any player familiar with LJN knows how many awful licensed games the publisher produced.
14:22Back to the Future on the NES is one of its most infamous releases and a shining example of what
14:27not to do when transitioning a movie into a video game. The gameplay decisions made here are completely
14:33baffling. Why does Marty collect clocks like some type of paperboy ripoff? Why is his hitbox twice as
14:39big as his sprite? Why is the street so small? Why does he throw bowling balls to attack? And why is there
14:45only a single looping tune? The difficulty level is unfair in both this and its minigames, and it's just such a
14:51hassle to play.
14:53Number 4. Fast & Furious Showdown
15:03Outside of arcade releases, the Fast & Furious franchise has never had a good track record
15:07when it comes to video games. Let's not forget 2020's Crossroads, which was panned and delisted
15:13less than two years after release. Only slightly worse than that was 2013's Showdown. It's set between the
15:205th and 6th movies. But beyond that, it barely features any semblance of plot, with main character
15:25Dominic Toretto not even appearing. It's a shame. A blend of vehicular combat, racing, and the
15:31franchise's signature set pieces seems like a recipe for a fun time. But Showdown is profoundly horrible.
15:38Missions are short and buggy, poor physics make the core driving system a chore, and visuals are bland
15:43at best. Number 3. Friday the 13th
15:51Another stunning piece of trash from the LJN brand, Friday the 13th is just as infamous as Back to the
15:58Future. Following the counselors of Camp Crystal Lake, players must attempt to flee from Jason Voorhees
16:03until they accomplish the proper tasks in order to defeat him. Figuring out what to do takes the patience
16:09of a saint. And on top of that, you have to deal with exceptionally aggravating mechanics and an
16:15unfairly high difficulty level. NES games are known to be hard, but this was beyond belief.
16:20Nothing about it was scary either. Just a tedious, infuriating train wreck of a game. You have a better
16:26chance at surviving a run-in with Jason than actually completing this game.
16:39Number 2. Rambo the Video Game
16:49Encompassing sequences from the first three Rambo movies, this gigantic waste of time from 2014
16:55failed on every single front. It's hard to tell if it was a bigger bomb critically or commercially.
17:01Graphics were laughably bad in comparison to everything else at the time. And while it was
17:06expectedly a shooter, it was an on-rails one, which no one seemed to want. Gameplay was repetitive and
17:12generic, hampered even more by an overuse of quick-time events. And even though it was three movies crammed
17:18into a single game, the short play time made everything feel rushed. In fact, it felt like development
17:24was rushed too, since there were a ton of technical issues.
17:34Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified about
17:39our latest videos. You have the option to be notified for occasional videos, or all of them.
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17:49It's impossible to top a game so terrible, it's considered partially responsible for a literal
18:05market crash. Released for the Atari 2600, it was developed in only a matter of weeks so that it could
18:11be rushed out the door to make the Christmas deadline. And while copies sold well initially,
18:16a swarm of returns followed soon after from annoyed customers. Infuriating controls, unclear gameplay,
18:23pits that caused your character to get stuck, graphics that were poor even by the simplest
18:27standards of the time, it was a dreadfully perfect storm. As a result, Atari suffered major losses that
18:34it never really recovered from, and the home console market entered a recession from 1983 to 1985,
18:40when the NES brought it back. Narrowing this list down to 20 wasn't an easy task, and we had to
18:46leave off a lot of bad games. So, if there's one you think we missed, be sure to head to the comments
18:51and let us know!
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