The year is 1998 and both Armageddon and Deep Impact are getting us ready for the inevitable future when an asteroid destroys humanity as we know it. This is also the year that brought us Sex and the City, a Whopper made for left-handed people and The Offspring were Pretty Fly (For a White Guy). But we're not here to ask for a 13 and draw a 31, because today we're counting down Electronic Gaming Monthly's best reviewed games of 1998. Give it to me baby.
Judge Dredd & James Bond 007 (Tie)
#5
If there's one thing you should expect from an episode of EGM's Worst, it's a heavy dose of licensed games. In that sense, 1998 definitely didn't disappoint. Pretty much everything in this episode is going to come from some sort of licensed source, starting with Judge Dredd and James Bond 007, which are both tied at fifth place with an average score of 2.9 out of 10.
Let's start with Judge Dredd, a light gun game in the spirit of Area 51 and Maximum Force. The good news is that this Activision release isn't connected to the cheesy Sylvester Stallone movie, but don't get too excited, because it still sucks. I think John Davison puts it best when he says: "Maybe two years ago this would've been at the pinnacle of mediocrity. Now though, in light of other games that handle the genre infinitely better, it's fortunate to fall just this side of terrible." Crispin Boyer complained that the "tacked-on full-motion video story is pointless and certainly no incentive to keep playing." Two decades later, I might argue that the awful FMV is literally the only reason to play this game.
When it comes to James Bond 007, this Game Boy game had a lot to live up to. Not only was the movie franchise suddenly hot again, but Nintendo had just published GoldenEye 007, one of the best reviewed games of all time. All eyes were on the Martini-swirling hero to bring guns, girls and glamor to the Game Boy. Sadly, that's not what happened. Shawn Smith thought 007 should have been marketed as a kids game, because "I can't see how anyone could take this James Bond game seriously." Dan Hsu was the most vicious to the game, noting that he "absolutely, positively cannot recommend this game to anyone." "I can list about 50 more Game Boy titles I'd rather play than this simplistic, moronic, sorry excuse for a game. The action is repetitive, the dialog is ridiculous, the clues are overly simplistic and the secrets are obscure." While everybody else gave it 3s and 4s, Dan went hard with a 1. This tanks the average down to a 2.9 out of 10.
Mike Piazza's Strike Zone
#4
1998 was a year of change for Mike Piazza. After spending most of the 1990s with the Los Angeles Dodgers, the catcher and MVP runner-up made his way to the Florida Marlins and then was immediately traded to the New York Mets. 1998 was also the year when Mike Piazza also got his own video game, and it somehow fared even worse than his time in Florida. Mike Piazza's Strike Zone was not just a bad baseball game, but it's also the first sports game to make its way onto EGM's worst reviewed list since Super Off-Road in 1994.
"The first word that comes to mind when playing Strike Zone is ROUGH," starts Shawn. "The graphics are simple if not just plain lame and the music and effects are low-fi and often muffled sounding." Dean Hager complained about the lack of commentary and how it couldn't decide if it wanted to be a simulator or an arcade-style sports game. Kraig, on the other hand, went knives out, saying that "Strike Zone is so amateurish that it could almost be mistaken as a bad 16-bit game." With an average score of 2.6 out of 10, Mike Piazza's Strike Zone is the worst reviewed sports game by a large margin.
Batman & Robin
#3
By 1998, video game developers had pretty much given up on making a good game based on the Dark Knight. From Sunsoft's brilliant Batman adaptation on the NES to Sega and Konami tackling different genres with Batman Returns, there used to be some effort put into those older games. But much like the critically-panned movie, quality was the last thing on people's minds when making the Batman & Robin game.
"This could have been so brilliant," starts John D. "It's a 3D action game, a driving game, it's got combat, puzzles detective bits ... and the coolest superhero ever. So why is it such an infuriating, poorly executed farce with a ridiculously tough learning curve?" Sushi X called it "one of the sloppiest releases" he's seen in a while, noting that the "camera in Batman & Robin is the worst yet in a 3D adventure title and the game is loaded with glitches and enemy AI problems." Shawn gave it the highest score with a 3 out of 10, but don't take that to mean he liked it. He concluded that even if he had Bruce Wayne's unlimited money, he still wouldn't buy this awful adaptation. And with an average of 2.4 out of 10, I don't blame him.
The Fifth Element
#2
The Fifth Element is one of those movies that seems tailor-made for a video game. It has flying cars, a futuristic setting, crazy weapons and a larger-then-life villain played by one of the best character actors of all time. And yet, here we are. What could have gone so wrong to have Crispin call this Activision game "the worst" PlayStation game ever made?
"Isn't it a little odd when developers choose to break fundamental rules of action/adventure games?" asks Sushi X. "Bad control, confusing button layout and a choppy frame-rate all conspire to make The Fifth Element a forgettable experience." Shawn agreed, wondering if the whole thing was an elaborate joke. "Terribly awkward control, a poor excuse for a camera and some of the lamest puzzles I've ever encountered plague The Fifth Element." He warned readers to not buy this game, because "you'll be mad if you do." With an average score of 2.1 out of 10, you're better off watching the movie for the twentieth time.
Deadly Arts
#1
Finally! It's a game that isn't based on a movie, TV show or sports star. But don't get too excited, because Deadly Arts is not only the worst reviewed game of 1998, but it's the lowest scoring game we've seen yet from EGM. What's even more troubling is that this long-forgotten turd was released by Konami, which topped the best reviewed list with Metal Gear Solid, the first game to ever receive a perfect 10 out of 10 average. How is it possible for a company to reach those heights and then turn around and release a game this bad?
"This is the worst N64 game I've ever played," explains Dan. "Bad technology: Polygon drop out, sluggish animation, buggy camera angles, horrible graphics ... Bad gameplay: piss-poor control, retarded moves ..." Whoa, let's stop right here. Two decades later, I have to imagine Shoe probably wouldn't use the same words to describe Deadly Arts. Moving on, John R called the game "TERRIBLE." "There's nary an ounce of decent gameplay to be found anywhere. The fighting engine is a joke, the controls are sluggish, the animation sucks, the characters are ridiculously lame and the music is awful, too." I think it's safe to say that everybody hated Deadly Arts, which is why it tops this list with an impressively bad average of 1.75 out of 10.
