The 5 Worst Genres in Video Games

"Genres make up anything that can be categorized. With video games we see these genres expand over the years and some not for the better. For every trend setter like Grand Theft Auto launching sandbox we have bad titles that start terrible new genres or damage the reputation of established ones."

[nopunctuation]

Stealth and Hack and Slash are bad? This could have been a good article if it wasnt for that.

"Gaming is about action not avoiding it and silently taking out guys only to fail if you get caught."
"The actual meat of the game play is smashing the X button and sometimes the Y button (Square and Triangle for Sony gamers). It looks great at first but at what point will gamers tire of these very boring grindfests."

Someone hasnt played Hitman, Arkham or God of War. Dont even approve this.

[Iroquois_Pliskin]

Survival horror and stealth are considered bad genres by this man?? Is he mad? some of the best games ever are stealth (MGS, SC) Survival Horror (RE, Silent hill)

Btw, this article needs a grammar check... badly.

[wiggles]

I think that the author got his ass kicked from not knowing how to conserve ammo in Survival horror IMO

[SonyPS360]

It needs a quality check more than anything. It instantly lost all credibility when it listed Stealth, and then Survival Horror.

His reasons for disliking them are completely stupid as well. The control schemes in some survival horror games aren't great, so that makes the entire genre bad?

Stop putting this crap on N4G.

[NoBias]

Wrestling as well?? Come on... WCW vs NWO: Revenge, No Mercy & Wrestlemania 2000 were some of the most fun game with my friends growing up.

I haven't watched WWF (WWE) in yyyyears but WWE All Stars had a touch of that awesomeness as well.

Anyways... Dating Sims is the only one that should be on that list.

[Electroshocked]

Stealth, Hack N Slash and Survival Horror are bad genres? So he's saying that Sly Cooper, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Assassin's Creed, God of War and Dead Space are bad games? What a f***ing delusional idiot.

[DragonKnight]

This guy is clearly insane. Stealth games are amazing, they make you think in a different way than most games have you think. You can't go in mindlessly killing, you have to be smart and patient.

I'd make an article for him titled "3 genres the guy at gameplaytoday.com likes" and they would be the following.

FPS: This genre's largely run and gun style requires no thought and that's why it's the best. It has remained largely the same this gen with no real innovations but he'll likely consider it to have immensely deep gameplay and stories that engross the player for endless hours of emotionally packed fun.

(There is no deep story or gameplay.)

Sports: Who doesn't love the fun of playing monotonous games that you can play in real life outside? Yes sports games are those epic tales of two great warring states coming together to see who can kick a ball, shoot a puck, or shoot a basket the most. You'll have immense fun going back and forth countless times and pressing the same controller buttons (unless you're playing on Kinect) over and over. And of course, the highlight is the GOOOOOOOAAALLLL!! Innovation, story, deep gameplay. These sum up the great sports genre!

(I bet that's what he actually thinks too)

Racing: If you thought sports games were fun, wait until you discover the thrill of driving around in elaborate circles over and over. Watch the deep story elements unfold as you try to go around the circle faster than anyone else. Feel the deep gameplay elements as you hold a directional button and a gas peddle button. You'll be more immersed than ever!!

Maybe I should make that an article. It would get posted here for sure.

[thats_just_prime]

so that this idiot is basically saying is that the only 3 genres worth playing are shooters, sports and rpgs.

Personally I kind of sick of shooters

[Cerberus29]

Well I was gonna add a comment saying how this guy is a complete retard... But it appears that's already the general consensus.

[SilentNegotiator]

And "Olympic Titles" is only an honorable mention? lol

[Carnage]

I don't think there ever was a good Olympic Game.

[ThatArtGuy]

The original T&F is awesome! I love "bash and dash" games.

[MidnytRain]

Lol, we're not going to choose not to approve this just because you don't like his opinion.

[nopunctuation]

N4G is not about opinions. It is about factual news and sometimes ambiguous rumors. The fact that is isnt from a real website such as IGN or gamespot further shows that it does not belong on N4G.

[MaxXAttaxX]

"Opinion Piece" is a valid form of article.

They fact that this opinion sucks, is a different subject.

[mobijoker]

Agreed!Stealth is one of the few genres that tests you and hack 'n slash is one of the most satisfying(if not the most satisfying) genre.Some retard wrote this to get hits and apparently he succeeded.

[Adam2101]

He is mad .. he never played God of war 3,and metal gear is a bad stealth game?(yeah right). conviction was cool.

dead space 2 was great. so i agree with dating sim.

he just picked all the bad games for all genres! pfff

[x5exotic]

I'm not gonna read this article,, but
1)FPS
F*********** YEAAAAAAH i said it!!

[DragonKnight]

Agreed.

[TheMrMadzen]

You obviously haven't played Amnesia
http://static.fjcdn.com/pic...

[Chewy102]

(Hides in the cabinet)

>_<
0_>
>_<

[MidnytRain]

I think one of your eyes is backwards, lol.

[Chewy102]

Yas uoy sdrawkcab?

[jeeves86]

I dunno if I was more scared when he walked in with the monocle and top hat or just naked.

*looks again*

Definitely the monocle.

[zatrox]

Kinda silly that the article mentions JRPGs blending with dating sims and somehow this being bad, nonetheless failing to mention WRPGs have taken such steps, as well. Began with BioWare, and now a whole lot of WRPGs feature relationship systems.

And I'm not as closed-minded as this author, I do like a few, and believe that the inclusion of some kind of relationship-building in RPGs can help positively the character development as a whole.

Hell, dating sims themselves when done right can be rather rewarding in themes such as storyline it could be quite comparable to a normal romance novel in that regard. Except with less fancy writing, wish-fulfillment and whatnot.

Meh, this whole list presents inane, flawed points, and seems written by a child.

Then again, opinions and whatnot.

[soundslike]

Maybe he meant "Rape-sims"

Still, this guy is ...the r word.

no..wait..the other r word.

[zerocrossing]

Nice defence on dating sims :D

I havent played any pure dating sims myself but I agree that type of system when worked in to rpgs Japanese or other wise can be very intaresting.

the article is a insult imo =/

[Urrakia34]

How was this approved?

[nopunctuation]

Because N4G knows that titles such as "Worst blank in video games" written with bad grammar stir up controversy. N4G is all about hits and we keep giving it to them. Even though I called this article out before it was even approved, I knew it would be approved. They say opinionated blogs are not allowed but they let them in by the masses everyday. Its sad really.

[MidnytRain]

Why are opinionated blogs not allowed if N4G has an option to mark a submission as an opinion?

[Chewy102]

The boobs.

[SageHonor]

Mashing the same buttons doesnt work in Ninja Gaiden or God of War....

The stealth genre alone i can quitee understand.. But most games implement stealth into the mechanics now ..

Survival Horror ehh

[Kee]

To be honest, a genre can be bad but still have good games belonging to it.

Take hack and slash, for example.
The concept of this genre is awful and sounds mindless, repetitive and boring, but most of the games from it are really actually quite good.

Stealth- Again, very bad concept for a video game. Makes it seem like you are avoiding the action that you crave and playing the game wrong. But metal gear solid pulls it off brilliantly with boss battles adding a little jumpstart to the action every now and then.

As for survival horror- I don't like most games from this genre but resident evil is fun to play. It doesn't stop the genre from being bad, but there are stand out games.

As for dating sims and wrestling games, well, that's obvious why they're there.

[dragonyght]

the title should like : "in my opinion these are 5 Worst Genres in Video Games"

the original title sound like its a fact lol

[Rocket Sauce]

"Last years Deadly Premonition is a fine example of when your horror title turns into an awkward comedy."

Deadly Premonition is an awkward comedy on the fringe of horror.

[Miiikeyyy]

Christ, that game looks like garbage XD

[Rocket Sauce]

It's glorious, sweet candy-coated garbage. Seriously, best $20 I ever spent.

[deserteaglexix]

Shmups get an honorable mention? Now, you're trolling.

BTW- How many Dating Sim make it to the US?

[badjournalism]

Just the ones made by Bioware.

[Legion]

What about GTA IV?

[VG_Releaser]

Closest I can think of was the dating sim element in the AWESOME JRPG Thousand Arms on the PSone.

[nolifeking]

Persona 4 also had something similar to a dating sim, and that game kicked all kinda ass.

[Claous]

There's also Azure Dreams.

[Dark_Overlord]

A lot of them actually, you'd be surprised how many. Most however are only available to purchase online.

[quietlygamingaway]

IMO things that should go

music games

hack n slash

Jrpgs

MMOs

Facebook games

[jc48573]

how about get a life?

[VG_Releaser]

That's G** D*** Burt F****** Reynolds you're talking to. You will address him with a mustache and quirky laugh and at attention.

Wait a sec. That's not Mr. Reynolds at all. ;)

[Jack-Dangerously]

Dog, that's his opinion. I don't agree with it. But geez man c'mon...

None of us sitting here on this website typing comments and reading articles has NO right to tell someone to get a life.

imo.

[jc48573]

Oh, I'm sorry?

[quietlygamingaway]

personal attacks on me!?

who are you losers?

you A-holes go get a life

i just got off work!!!

[zerocrossing]

I disagree intirely youre as bad as the moron who wrote the article. game and let game... nuf said ;D

[khamvongsa09]

MMOs... No.. Just no..

[badjournalism]

Better article titles: "Game genres I don't like and don't have to play but feel the need to bitch about anyway." or "How dare people like different things than I do!?"

[jc48573]

this is the reason why the industry is going to die if more people think like this dummy.

[STK026]

Tycoon? Roller Coaster Tycoon is still one of my favorite PC game of all time, how did that get an honorable mention?

And what's wrong with wrestling games, No Mercy, Day of reckoning and SD:HCTP are some of the best games of the last decade in my opinion.

Saying that Hack n slash games are bad because you only need to press a few buttons is like saying that FPS are bad because they have you use the right trigger too often.

Stealth games are great, this author probably has never player SC:Chaos Theory or the hitman series to say that.

[Klaykid123]

YES! A RCT lover! <3 forever My favorite would have to be 2. I like 3 for the modding and community and all that jank, but the graphics were a bit disappointing, even back then. Also, it was confusing.

[Troll-without-Bridge]

How'bout NO!

[Eazy-Eman]

You crazy Dutch bastard!

[Noctis106]

The author of this article must be either a super dumbass or a totally retard when he says: Hack & Slash, Survivor Horror, & Stealh are worst genres.

[Honest_gamer]

Thank god by that picture I thought he/she was going to be dissing on visual novels by far one of the best game genres out there with games like clannad (also check out the anime!), kanon, ever 17 out of infinity, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (when they cry for the English name), Fate/Stay Night, tsukihime, cross channel, true remembrance and for you hentai guys or gals sagura family :)

[STONEY4]

Judging by the picture, that's what I thought it would be too. Scared me for a moment. The problem is, when most people think visual novels, they think it's all hentai n' pron.

One word (or 5): Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni. Easily one of the best stories and atmospheres ever created. No hentai, pure amazingness. There are so many others out there, but it's definitely one of my favorites.

[Honest_gamer]

I know it’s annoying how people think hentai when they think anime and visual novels, and they think eroge for manga (hentai manga) and for people saying survival horrors are dead you should play some survival horror visual novels for being just text, graphics and sound with very little moving parts some can be bloody scary! Like Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni for example Chaos;Head, Divi-Dead, Saya no Uta, Corpse Party and Gore Screaming Show. It’s a shame most gamers don’t class visual novels as games although they are some of the best selling games in Japan wish we got more in the uk.

[Tuxedo_Mask]

So in other words the guy who wrote this article only likes shooters. I think we have our first dude-bro "game journalist".

[DlocDaBudSmoka]

lets make that First Person Shooters, since he has shmups as a honorable mention.

[ExitToExisT]

oh my god what a shitty website. i love stealth , hack&slash , survival horror games u idiots!

[BabyColada]

So this list should be renamed to something along the lines of "Five Genres I Don't Play, So They Must Be Bad." I have to ask: how do crap articles like these get approved?

[NyGiants7]

I like all of those except Dating Sims, should have put whatever genre that game Linger in the shadows is.

[phoenixdown]

how did this get approved?

[Peaceful_Jelly]

Change "Wrestling" for "Shmups" and add "RPG" and "2D fighting games" and there you have all of my favorite genres in Video Games. Apparently the only genres the author of this article like are Wii-Sport and FPS. XD

[BlueEye]

This seems to be very biased and opinionated.

Dating Sim - Agreed, but then again how lame they are is a universal understanding.

Stealth - I have little experience with them but from what I know there are a lot of popular stealth games.

Hack n Slash - A good example of a Hack n Slash would be God of War one of the best games to come out in the past decade or so, its just amazing, fun and crazy!

Wrestling - They seem to sell rather well, the only problem I see personally is that the controls are rather sluggish.

Survival Horror - One word: Amnesia.

[Lavalamp]

Holy cow this site is desperate for hits. This is the same site that wants the dating sim Love Plus localized for the west...

[Spenok]

Is it really?

If so then EPIC FAIl! lmao, i have never been to this site so i wouldnt know, but thats some ironic shit right there.

[danielle007]

This guy is just being ridiculous. Hack & Slash games are amazing. Stealth games are amazing, especially MGS. Thief is also good. And Survival Horror is amazing. Silent Hill, Amnesia, Siren Blood Curse, etc.

Worst list I have read in a long while.

[yog-sothot]

why did I click

I knew it would suck, every fiber of my body screamed this would be a pathetic troll article

but I clicked anyway

I'm too weak, dammit

[Carnage]

Your just curious about his opinion thats all. Don't be so hard on yourself.

[zerocrossing]

This is a joke right?. Each one of these genres have a large fan base because they have entertainment value (that means people enjoy playing them so devs make them) this is obviously a dig at genres that you happen to not be a fan of thus making them the worst ? go and play COD or Fifa since you missed out the abomination which is sports games and keep your opinions to yourself, We wont be missing anything. By the way "hack and slash" is not a genre its a game element. Dynasty Warriors is a "Action" game. Look it up, Its called research something this article is severely lacking in.

[vgchica]

It's a sub genre.

[FlintGREY]

I actually thought Siren: Blood Curse was pretty scary...it scared the shit outta me to the point where I was scared to turn corners.

[iWishTifaWasReal]

The actual meat of the game play is smashing the X button and sometimes the Y button (Square and Triangle for Sony gamers)

o.O

[squidyj]

Drive hits by trolling? Yes We Can!

[Spenok]

LOL perfect.

Seriously how did this get approved?

[Romudeth]

Flame bait article.

[Xof]

N4G wouldn't be N4G without shit users making shit comments about shit articles.

[ShAkKa]

This list is madness!

[mamotte]

This madness get approved here in N4G. I dont know how.

[mamotte]

We should open a new section in N4G called "Humor" to shitty articles like this.

[TXIDarkAvenger]

This article is stupid imo.

Stealth, Hack and Slash, and Survival Horror genres are NOT bad. WTF? TBH there's not really such thing as a bad genre if people like them, then in their opinion, they see it as a good genre.

[nevermore]

i love all of those genres... except dating sims :)

[Darkfiber]

First person shooters, third person shooters...uh...second person shooters. I dunno, maybe I need to be American to understand the whole "gun nut" thing.

[Jack-Dangerously]

Maybe you should be American to understand the "nut" part.

maybe you should just stop hating on everything homie. Jesus.

[kagon01]

To me the worst game genres are FPS and Madden...

[Paragon]

Joke and flame-bait article, it looks like. I personally love Hack and Slash, but honestly - why in the world is Hack and Slash and Stealth on the list? Both genres have some amazing games.

"Gaming is about action not avoiding it and silently taking out guys only to fail if you get caught. Stealth games also have a tendency to be popular only for their narratives. Have you ever noticed how stealth games have the wackiest plots of all video games? It has to be why gamers come back and put up with sub-par action. I played Metal Gear Solid for the insanity of that series story, not the stealth action toted on the box."

Stealth - Metal Gear Solid 1-4, Splinter Cell 1-5, Thief, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, and many other games include it as an optional also. Gaming is *not* solely based on action. Sheesh, sounds like the article writer thinks Call of Duty all the time is the way to go.

"An entire army stands in front of you, the lone warrior. Sounds great except that Hack N Slash titles are all about looking pretty as you topple large armies and creatures. The actual meat of the game play is smashing the X button and sometimes the Y button (Square and Triangle for Sony gamers). It looks great at first but at what point will gamers tire of these very boring grindfests. Dynasty Warriors Gundam has done it right by at least including a hefty storyline that keeps the player sane."

God of War, Devil May Cry, Ninja Gaiden, Bayonetta, and more - a lot of critically acclaimed titles are incredibly fun and successful franchises - including Dynasty Warriors (personal favorite of mine, to be honest).

Overall, the article felt cheap and yeah - incredibly famebait.

[WorstUsernameEver]

A perfect, spot-on example of sensationalist editorial, guaranteed to get hits. I commend you, gameplaytoday.com

[The_Quiet_Man]

Couldn't be bothered to read this article from what've read in the comment section & because of the title. This guy can't be much of a gaming journalist? since he seems to hate alot of popular genres.

I would've thought you'd have to enjoy many different types of games to be considered a games journalist. Seems like he's not too happy with his job if he has to make up articles moaning over genres he's not interested in, instead of discussing games he's actually into.

I don't even see any benefit to writing an article like this, unless it's just to cause controversy & garner hits for the site (which if thats the case its a pretty cheap move on his part). No doubt thats why it got approved on N4g too.

Overall it just comes off that he's not much of a gamer & I 'd never bother reading any of his articles or reviews in future, thanks.

[kma2k]

While i dont agee with most thing said, i do agree about the conrols for horror survival. If resident evil handled like a normal 3rd person shooter, i would love the series. I have tried almost all of the resident evils & i can never get further than an hour or so into the game & give up strickly becuase the controls drive me crazy. Why over complicate something that should be so simple?

[ShawnCollier]

I honestly wonder if all the person behind this plays are dude-bro games (*cough*CoD*cough*) or GTA-inspired titles. I'm getting a real vibe like that from this.

This is still obviously foremost a flamebate article, though.

[8bit_Nes_Rambo]

Yes, definately getting a jock-tard gamer vibe from this trog's piece. Kind of like he can't get enough Spike tv.

[8bit_Nes_Rambo]

Shmups? Seriously? I demand this fool be flayed of his flesh and dipped in iodized salt. Not before he takes a course in English grammar though.

[Terrified]

This guy is a fucking moron. Stealth games are only good for the story-line? Survival Horror games almost always have bad controls and stories? What a terrible review. This is nothing more than a troll obviously, he may have been right about 2 out of the 5, but DEFINITELY not with Survival Horror and Stealth games.

[Optical_Matrix]

Stealth, Hack N Slash and Survival Horror are considered bad? Well I never

[PhantomT1412]

Stealth is so bad even other genres put some stealth phase in their games /s

[Tzuno]

wrestling and dating really sucks but the other ones you just need to STFU!!! are you crazy hack and slash is bad or survival horror? you better return to play sims and STFU!!!

[thekiddfran]

Hits, hits, hits.

[kraze07]

Seriously?

[Tigerfist]

Worst article ever.

Dating Sims - Who doesn't like boobies?

Stealth - Thief, Metal Gear, Splinter Cell... Do I need to say more?

Hack & Slash - LOL? Ever played Ninja Gaiden, DMC, God of War, Bayonetta... Do you live in a box?

Wrestling - There isn't a wrestling genre, it's a fighting game based upon wrestling.

"The sport itself is one of worst things around, and these games just help solidify that no good can come out of Wrestling."

Basically you don't like the sport and you proceed to judge the game upon that argument. Wrestling game are working as they should and as fans want them to.

Survival Horrors - God damn that was dumb... Resident Evil 5 is far from beeing a survival horror, it's Resident Evil going action style. Deadly Premonition was supposed to be awkward.

How about Silent Hill: Shattered Memories and Homecoming (so underrated)? Amnesia: The Dark Descent?

But yes the genre has been going downhill latelly because they are turning most horror franchises into dumb cheap scare action games!

[StrikerZ3ro112]

Survival horror and stealth have no reason being on this list, there are also some pretty good hack and slash out there too.

[morbid237]

more like five genres I (the writer) suck at, so they're no good!

[x5exotic]

Kratos will rape you.

[zero_cool]

The journalist is a moron!

[eddvdm]

I would like to see a Top 5 Best genres from this guy to see what kind of sick games the nut job plays, really.

[BlmThug]

Only Thing That Deserves To Be On That List Is Dating Sims. The Other Genres Are Great

[TheEatingVodka]

This article is worth a LOL

[bobrea]

Stealth, hack and slash, and survival horror are all bad according to this article. and then there's this gem...

"Gaming is about action not avoiding it and silently taking out guys only to fail if you get caught. Stealth games also have a tendency to be popular only for their narratives. Have you ever noticed how stealth games have the wackiest plots of all video games? It has to be why gamers come back and put up with sub-par action. I played Metal Gear Solid for the insanity of that series story, not the stealth action toted on the box."

Just read that first sentence a couple of times.

This is a shit excuse for an article.

[Kos-Mos]

I wonder when -top ten horrible so called gaming-journalists/bloggers- will be made.
Hmmm. Maybe I should make one.

[Relientk77]

What is he talking about

Hack n Slash and Sealth genres are good

[Koromaro]

I like SimDate Games. Those things are hard =X

[Lord_Sloth]

This man has made me lose what little faith in humanity I had left...

Survival Horror, Stealth, and Hack 'n Slash titles are 3 of my favorites!

[Solid_Dave]

This may very well be one of the most terrible lists I have ever read. This man has obviously never played the best games in the genres he mentioned.

[Neko_Mega]

Funny how this person choose something that sells well.

[Shogun Master]

I can only agree with dating sims and wrestling. Opinion or not the rest of the list straight up sucks.

[parasit3]

He must be one of the top 5 worst gamers who plays video games.