Buzz
In most video games, the hero is pretty clear. Players control a single character as they progress through the adventure. While this formula is predictable, it offers plenty of space to develop the character and their journey. But not every game follows this blueprint.
Some games throw in additional characters for players to control, which often leads to complications. While variety can be exciting, splitting the development effort between multiple heroes is rarely effective. Many of these alternate protagonists feel underdeveloped—both in their mechanics and their role within the story. They're often included for novelty, without much thought for how they blend with the rest of the game. This approach can result in tedious levels, diminishing the overall experience. By the end, you'd prefer these extra characters hadn’t been included at all.
10. Clank
In a franchise like Ratchet & Clank, it makes sense for the little robot to have some involvement. He mostly serves as a source of information and a hover pack to assist Ratchet's gliding, but those roles don't offer much depth. Occasionally, you take control of Clank as he navigates tight spaces or vents. He then engages in platforming and puzzle-solving, controlling other robots in the process. It sounds more exciting than it actually is.
Clank’s levels often feel like simplified versions of Ratchet’s. The puzzles are basic at best, and much of the platforming revolves around them. While the idea of controlling smaller bots might sound appealing, the implementation is too awkward. What makes these sections even worse is that they’ve been a part of the game since the start, with developer Insomniac consistently refusing to remove them. In fact, they’ve only grown in length. And no, the sidekick's standalone game doesn't solve these issues. Secret Agent Clank still fails to impress. In this area, the rival series Jak & Daxter takes the lead.
9. Big the Cat
As the Sonic series evolved, Sega and Sonic Team introduced a slew of new characters, but none have been as universally disliked as Big the Cat. This clumsy cat first appears in Sonic Adventure, where he’s on a mission to find his friend, Froggy—but his method of searching involves fishing. Yes, you read that right.
Big’s levels involve casting a line and waiting for a fish to bite. Many games feature fishing as an optional activity, but rarely do they make it a central mechanic for progression. What’s worse, this slow-paced task feels completely out of place in a Sonic game. The franchise is known for its speed, so such a lethargic minigame kills the pacing. At least the creators took note of their misstep. In Sonic Heroes, Big is transformed into a powerful fighter similar to Knuckles, which at least removes the boredom.
8. Mary Jane Watson
Insomniac has a major issue: their otherwise excellent games are often weighed down by sluggish minigames and unnecessary side characters. The prime offenders are their Spider-Man titles. These games frequently halt the web-slinging action to focus on Spider-Man’s love interest, Mary Jane. Reimagined as a second-rate Lois Lane, the fiery redhead places herself in constant danger in her pursuit of a good story. Her predictable escapades become a headache for both Spider-Man and the player alike.
MJ’s sections are both irritating and forced. The narrative goes to extreme lengths to shoehorn her into the story, practically thrusting her into every scene. The gameplay does nothing to make her presence worthwhile, with a shallow stealth mechanic that offers no variety or room for creativity. Players simply create distractions and stun fixed enemies to clear the way to the objective.
This mind-numbing gameplay disrupts the flow, and that frustration only grows as the levels stretch on in the sequel. To sum it up, MJ’s attempt at heroism is unnecessary, unwelcome, and unforgivable.
7. Silver the Hedgehog
Sonic fans may despise Big’s fishing minigame, but he’s just a minor part of a much larger game. Ironically, the fifteenth anniversary of the series introduces a far worse character. 2006’s Sonic the Hedgehog introduces a time-traveling character named Silver. His psychic powers allow him to levitate and telekinetically throw objects at his enemies. It sounds like a blast, but in reality, it’s anything but. Aiming the psychic projectiles is near impossible, and the levitation feels more like a hindrance than a help due to sluggish controls and poor platforming mechanics. These issues are already frustrating in small doses.
Sadly, you control Silver for about a third of the game. The story unfolds from the perspectives of three hedgehogs: Sonic, Shadow, and Silver. As a result, you’re stuck with these cumbersome mechanics for hours. Moreover, Silver’s lack of speed makes his gameplay experience feel even more awkward compared to his faster counterparts, making navigation through the unnecessarily large hub worlds a tedious task. It’s no surprise this failed futuristic character has faded from the series.
6. Atreus
2018’s God of War hints heavily at Kratos passing the torch to his son, Atreus, so it’s not unexpected when players take control of the boy in certain parts of the sequel. Unfortunately, God of War: Ragnarok doesn’t set him up as a worthy successor. He has only a fraction of his father’s skills and equipment, and his small size means he can’t take many hits before going down. You’d think this would make him fast, but the camera is far too close to the action, making dodging an unwieldy task. Yet that’s nothing compared to the impact he has on the story.
Atreus completely removes any sense of freedom. His sections are the definition of linearity, pushing players along narrow corridors with no chance to explore. As you advance, other characters deliver long-winded exposition. This is particularly absurd, given that these moments often focus on trivial tasks rather than important plot points. The worst offender comes when Atreus spends three hours helping a girl with daily chores in Jötunheim. This side mission halts the already slow-moving plot in its tracks. If this is a glimpse into the future of the series, it’s in trouble.
5. Desmond Miles
The modern-day segments in Assassin’s Creed have always been the weakest part of the series. This is especially true in the earlier games, which try too hard to make Desmond Miles appear more significant than he actually is. This unremarkable bartender is the latest in a long line of assassins, with both the Assassins and the Templars vying for him to unlock crucial secrets from the past. What they don’t realize is that his destiny is just glorified maintenance work.
Desmond’s gameplay mainly consists of flipping switches and solving trivial puzzles. These monotonous tasks often disrupt the flow of the open-world historical adventures and intense period drama. Even when Desmond takes on more action-oriented missions, they never quite match the dynamic nature of his ancestors’ exploits, owing to his limited skillset. Thankfully, later entries shorten or make the modern-day segments optional. Unfortunately, the early games constantly break immersion, making fans groan whenever they’re yanked out of the time-traveling experience.
4. Sherry Birkin
The early Resident Evil games make zombies feel like a real danger, but the protagonists can still fight back. Sherry, however, is a different story. In Resident Evil 2 (both the original and the remake), players control this young girl as she tries to escape the crazed police chief, Brian Irons. It’s an easy way to generate cheap thrills.
These sections fall flat for many of the same reasons as MJ’s levels. They consist of basic, on-rails stealth, where all you can do is hide behind boxes and distract the villain. The game also makes you run back and forth to retrieve essential items needed for progress. One can’t help but wonder why the developers make you suffer through this nonsense. Claire Redfield or Leon Kennedy could easily take down Irons in seconds. In fact, Sherry eventually does this herself using her G embryo, rendering all that frustration utterly pointless.
3. Abby
Who thought this would be a good idea? The Last of Us Part II introduces a heavily muscled woman named Abby, who brutally tortures and kills Joel, the protagonist from the first game. She does this in revenge for his role in her father’s death, but that doesn’t change the fact that players had become deeply invested in Joel’s character. Despite this, the narrative shifts focus to Abby and her group of one-dimensional companions for almost the entire second half. It’s a fresh start with characters that you don’t care about, and Abby herself is insufferable—making the hours spent with her feel like a chore.
This shift not only derails the pacing of an already bloated game but is also aimed at pushing a pretentious theme about the futility of revenge. The story, which should be the main draw, is bogged down with aimless cutscenes filled with awkward dialogue and stilted pauses. Instead of being a profound exploration of human nature, it feels desperate and, frankly, silly. The gameplay suffers from this as well.
Abby’s muscle-bound appearance makes little sense. Not only is it hard to believe she could maintain such a physique in a post-apocalyptic world, but the gameplay itself diminishes the perceived danger of her surroundings. She simply runs up and punches infected enemies into submission—an image that’s unintentionally absurd. It reduces the limited depth of these linear games and weakens the menace of the zombie hordes, ultimately diminishing the world-building. For many fans, Abby symbolizes the decline of a once-beloved franchise.
2. Taiga Saejima
To be fair, Saejima is just as playable as any character in the Yakuza: Like a Dragon series. His strikes pack a punch, with powerful combos and devastating throws. His raw strength can crush even the most formidable bosses. So, what’s the issue?
Well, Taiga Saejima is a fugitive. When you take control of him in Yakuza 4 and 5, he’s on the run from the law. The massive guy can’t explore Japan freely like his peers. Instead, he’s confined to much smaller areas, where paths are often blocked by patrolling cops or invisible barriers. To escape, he must navigate a maze of underground tunnels, abandoned buildings, and towering rooftops. These constraints make simple movement unnecessarily complicated, and they clash with the series’ trademark freedom. It’s hard to fully enjoy a sandbox when you’re constantly boxed in.
1. Blink the Mole
The Spyro franchise typically delivers great playable characters, but Blink is a glaring exception. This mole first appears in A Hero’s Tail, where he hunts for dark gems across various underground caverns. Armed with his trusty laser and good old-fashioned punches, he battles the creatures lurking within. These levels should be simple enough.
Unfortunately, the developers ruin them in almost every way imaginable. Basic climbing and platforming become frustratingly difficult because of how heavy Blink feels. His laser and melee attacks should bring exciting combat, but their clunky execution makes them unreliable, often struggling to defeat even a single enemy. The levels come off as a disjointed mix of elements that don’t blend well together. Who could have predicted that this mole would leave such a bad first impression on Spyro fans?
