We Got This Covered’s 12 Most Disappointing Games Of 2014

Freedom Wars

As a portable device, the PlayStation Vita was heralded as the first system that could put the power of a console in the palm of your hands in earnest, and you know what they say comes with great power. With an Uncharted game in tow, Sony’s handheld had a solid debut on a sector of the market long thought to be dead, but soon the triple-A support — across first and third-party studios — began to peter out.

Fast forward to 2014 and the device is very much considered as a system where only indie games thrive. But one major, first-party title that looked set to thrive on the Vita was Japan Studio’s Freedom Wars — a post-apocalyptic RPG that with some notable pedigree behind it. Placing a heavy emphasis on combat and customisation, the Vita exclusive wasn’t lacking in content, and even sold relatively well in Japan before making its way west.

But solid gameplay and an intriguing, Orwellian setting were’t enough to make up for the game’s missteps. A pernickety control system and grinding that soon became repetitive — even in a genre renown for it — made the experience of reducing your outrageous sentence more of a chore than instilling a tangible sense of progression. Because while the plot and its post-apocalyptic setting is nicely set-up, not to mention the Panopticons and the myriad of rewards, Freedom Wars never really delivers on its promising foundation.

-Michael Briers