PS3 Worst Reviewed Launch Ever?

[Spartan_X]

PS3 Worst Reviewed Launch Ever?

We find out which modern console really came with the worst games.

by 1UP Staff, 11/24/2006

We all got excited when the PS3s finally arrived. But that initial high wore off in shockingly short order. As talk circulated around the office from everyone playing the games for reviews it became clear that beyond Resistance, the launch lineup dropped off pretty sharply. It didn't take long for the gut feeling to develop that PS3 might just have the worst reviewed set of launch games in modern videogame history.

And then the Wii's arrived. While the response wasn't quite as pronounced, it was equally obvious that The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess stood head-and-shoulders above the rest of the offerings. But surely, the Wii, with a Zelda game, couldn't be the worst reviewed launch lineup...could it?

We had to know.

So, we decided to dig in and find out. Deciding how far back to go was pretty easy. The launch of the original PlayStation started the modern era of videogames, and it seemed only fitting to begin there in light of its third descendent sparking our curiosity. And while it could be argued that strictly speaking it began with Sega's Saturn, it arrived with only one launch game, making comparison seem unbalanced. That same problem struck the N64, which arrived in North America with only two games. We chose to keep it in the study for the sake of continuity.

That made our full lineup PlayStation (Sept. 1995), Nintendo 64 (Sept. 1996), Dreamcast (Sept. 1999), Playstation 2 (Oct. 2000), GameCube (Nov. 2001), Xbox (Nov. 2001), Xbox 360 (Nov. 2005), PS3 (Nov. 2006), and Wii (Nov. 2006).

And the loser is...

As it turns out a Sony console did indeed have the worst reviewed crop of launch games, but not the one we thought. The original PlayStation holds the title, with the nine (out of 12 release games for which Gamerankings has a composite score) racking up a lackluster 70.4 average score. Looking at the games, and remembering the launch, it makes sense. There wasn't a true standout among them. Warhawk topped the list, along with Battle Arena Toshinden, and Ridge Racer. And for as many fond memories as it has, Twisted Metal only managed a disappointing 66.9 average.

Neither was there a big winner. Turns out, when you stack them all up against each other all the launches have averaged in the 70's. Well, except N64, but it's hard to compare it because it only had two games at launch, and one of them was Super Mario 64. For all the others, launch lineups have numbered in the teens, with PlayStaion 2 topping the list with close to 30 games at launch.

And not only isn't PlayStaion 3 the worst reviewed launch lineup in recent memory, it's not even the worst in this latest "next-gen" round of launches. Believe it or not, that distinction goes to the Wii, despite having Zelda. Its 20 games combined for a 71.3 average, making it actually the second worst launch next to the PlayStaion. With PS3 coming in at 73.4, that gave the crown to Xbox 360, which averaged 77.3 for its launch library.

Averages are just that, though, and don't tell you much about the best games that accompanied the launches. And the best of the batch wasn't a surprise, but it wasn't a Nintendo game either. Soul Caliber for the Dreamcast, with an average of 96.4 just barely squeaks out the win over the Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess for Wii. At the other end of the spectrum, both Wii and PS3 share the worst stinkers with Happy Feet for Wii coming in at a 45 and Gundam: Crossfire at the very bottom with its 34.8.

Here's a quick look at the overall rankings, with the best and worst games of each launch:

GameCube - 79.4 Average Score, 12 games

* Best: Madden 2002 - 90.0

* Worst: Disney's Tarzan Untamed - 62.9

Xbox 360 - 77.3 Average Score, 18 games

* Best: Call of Duty 2 - 90.1

* Worst: FIFA 06 Road to FIFA World Cup - 61.9

Dreamcast - 74.3 Average Score, 19 games

* Best: Soul Calibur - 96.4

* Worst: Mortal Kombat Gold - 56.5

PlayStation 2 - 73.7 Average Score, 29 games

* Best: SSX - 91.4

* Worst: Evergrace - 52.1

PlayStation 3 - 73.4 Average Score, 13 games

* Best: Resistance: Fall of Man - 89.2

* Worst: Mobile Suit Gundam: Crossfire - 34.8

Xbox - 73.0 Average Score, 19 games

* Best: Halo - 95.7

* Worst: Shrek - 50.9

Wii - 71.3 Average Score, 20 games

* Best: Legend of Zelda: the Twilight Princess - 96.2

* Worst: Happy Feet - 45.0

PlayStation - 70.4 Average Score, 9 games

* Best: Warhawk - 89.4

* Worst: Total Eclipse Turbo - 47.5

*Nintendo 64 - 91.3 Average Score, 2 games

* Best: Super Mario 64 - 95.8

* Worst: Pilotwings - 86.8

[How we did this: We began with the list of launch titles available from wikipedia. From there we used press releases and retailer launch lists to fill out the rest as best as possible. Aggregate review scores are those listed at gamerankings.com]

Source: 1UP

[Bhav]

The title is SO misleading...they end up concluding that PS1 had the worst reviewed launch ever, followed by the Wii :laugh: :rofl:

And on top of that, as they identified, N64 launched with two games - that, by default, should be the worst launch ever (regardless of whether it featured Mario 64).

[NienorGT]

yea, should be the worst of this gen...

[Corris Veteran]

Jeez, only two for the N64, ouch.

And yea, the title is a bit misleading, I think the topic should of been in console gaming though, since it does consider them all, and you will be less likely to be attacked by raving fanboys :laugh:

Edited November 25, 2006 by Giga

[MrKuro]

I find it hard to believe that Soul Calibur for the DC got a higher score than the new Zelda for the Wii.

Trust me, I bought a DC at launch with Soul Calibur, and now a Wii with Zelda, and theres no way in hell SC deserved anything higher than an 80%

It was a good game, but no where near that score.

It is kinda stupid to compare scores of old games to new games, but in this case, Zelda deserves the score it has, and even at release Soul Calibur shouldn't have had a 96.4

Most console release with a sucky launch, I don't get why people judge a console by its launch titles

Talk to me in a year, and then we will put judgement on the better or worst system

[Ajapi]

I find it hard to believe that Soul Calibur for the DC got a higher score than the new Zelda for the Wii.

Trust me, I bought a DC at launch with Soul Calibur, and now a Wii with Zelda, and theres no way in hell SC deserved anything higher than an 80%

It was a good game, but no where near that score.

It is kinda stupid to compare scores of old games to new games, but in this case, Zelda deserves the score it has, and even at release Soul Calibur shouldn't have had a 96.4

Most console release with a sucky launch, I don't get why people judge a console by its launch titles

Talk to me in a year, and then we will put judgement on the better or worst system

Even a year after launch, it'll still be up to personal opinion and fanboys will continue to rave. To put it into perspective: which console was better, the PS2 or the Xbox? P E R S O N A L O P I N I O N.

[magik]

yea, should be the worst of this gen...

But Wii is the worst of this gen.... :huh:

[Lawrens]

I think this gen has the worst fanboys ever too, for all systems.

I personally find the topic title misleading and asking for trouble =P

imo ps3's launch was as crappy as ps2's, and it wasn't surprising, but fanboys will continue to rave about it, my console is so much better than yours, by a few points!

I never liked sony but I'll buy a ps3 when some of the series come out in the future, I might get a 360 when some of the mistwalker RPGs are out, I might get a wii when... I have money and more games are out. I don't see what's wrong with that, but people will continue to compare them.

Lets just admit it and say all consoles are crap, pc is the best gaming system omgsh!

It's the same debate between the pc gamers and consoles, "why would I want them if my computer is 100x better than them", eh maybe for the games?

I still even play those 2d games but people will probably go "gee you still play those, the graphics are so crappy, my 360 is better than that, my ps3 is 100x better than that, the FF is so much more cooler than the old", maybe because I liked those games I play and I have more fun with those? People need to grow up.

PS: I can come up with like 20 reasons of why I like one system more than the other, I can come up with 100 reasons why I prefer PC over consoles, but I'll NEVER EVER buy a PC just for games. Same goes to console gaming, I recommend my friend to get a 360 over a wii, doesn't mean I wouldn't get a wii myself, but seeing that he's a big fan of shooter and fps, and high definition graphics, I'd say he should go with the 360, he'd have more fun in it since he's all crazy over gears of war, but on the other hand I wouldn't get 360 because some of the games simply just doesn't interests me.

Edited November 25, 2006 by Lawrens

[2xSilverKnight]

But Wii is the worst of this gen.... :huh:

well, you know that you're so wrong when you don't know ..

because I played for a full 5 hours with my friend's Wii, zelda and redsteel ..

and it's the best gaming experience I had for a long time, very different and intuitive.

You have to try to give oppinion, so much ignorant comments in this world.

xbox360 and Wii combination all the way ! The guy from microsoft was right when he made that statement actually,

no fanboyitism (yeah new word) comments only the most logical thruth with actual facts.

[dnast]

^ I believe he was referring to the results of the above article.

[MGS4-SS]

well, you know that you're so wrong when you don't know ..

because I played for a full 5 hours with my friend's Wii, zelda and redsteel ..

and it's the best gaming experience I had for a long time, very different and intuitive.

You have to try to give oppinion, so much ignorant comments in this world.

xbox360 and Wii combination all the way ! The guy from microsoft was right when he made that statement actually,

no fanboyitism (yeah new word) comments only the most logical thruth with actual facts.

But if you took time to actually read what the post was about, you wouldn't jump the gun on magik.

The Wii had the worst launch this gen.

[Aud]

It's a Zaku!

Best. Graphics. Ever. *watches the water glitch through terrain*

[magik]

well, you know that you're so wrong when you don't know ..

because I played for a full 5 hours with my friend's Wii, zelda and redsteel ..

and it's the best gaming experience I had for a long time, very different and intuitive.

You have to try to give oppinion, so much ignorant comments in this world.

xbox360 and Wii combination all the way ! The guy from microsoft was right when he made that statement actually,

no fanboyitism (yeah new word) comments only the most logical thruth with actual facts.

Haha, as MGS3-SS and dnast clarified, I was referring to the article which showed that for this gen the Wii has the lowest average game ratings. I'm sure the Wii is a great console as I'm actually planning on purchasing one soon. :)

[Danrarbc]

Wii has a ton of crappy cartoon licensed stuff at launch that nobody buys (like at all, think about the kind of people that buy launch systems, these aren't going to the kids they're for geeks like us). That really drags down an average.

[PL_ Veteran]

Two N64 launch games?!

Oh, what difficult choices! :rofl:

[Michael1406]

Although that's interesting information, it doesn't really matter what the launch games are like. It's how the systems are doing a few years down the line. But I guess you have to do something with your time until then, so thanks for the read. :)