not every games gonna make it big no
matter how much you’ve invested in it
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top 10
most expensive video game flops
before we begin we publish new videos
every day so be sure to subscribe for
more great content for this list we’re
taking a look at the works in the
history of video games which based major
commercial failures costing their
creators large amounts of money and
resources in the process to be clear
these are games that made it to the
store shelves
rather than being cancelled mid
production yet ultimately words worth
the cost to produce we number 10 layer
[Music]
even the best can fail to live up to
expectations that appears to have been
the case with layer an early PlayStation
3 title created by Star Wars Rogue
Squadron developer factor 5 pedigree
could not save this strange blend of
motion controls and dragon mounted
action a mixture which came across many
as unwieldly and awkward the game
community also seemed to agree given
that sales of layer were reportedly way
below expectations while the exact cost
of production is still unclear it may
well have contributed to the 2009 shut
down a factor fives of North American
branch move girl
our men need us number nine Shenmue it’s
not a movie a world that transcends
games
[Music]
there’s not makin a lot of money and
then there’s bringing an end to an
entire line of products the brainchild
of Sega am-2 founder Yu Suzuki Shenmue
remains significant thanks to its
introduction of some of the most
enduring mechanics in the open world
genre yet when all was said and done the
game’s 1.2 million copies sold were
insufficient in covering the development
costs estimated to be between 47 and 70
million Sega’s losses are suggested to
have been a major factor in their
eventual departure from the console
market ending further work on the
Dreamcast console in the process yet up
I’ll allow you to die like a warrior
number 8 defiance
oh stop go you’re alive when the sci-fi
television network was developing the
show defiance they came up with a rather
interesting idea
connect the show’s events to an ongoing
MMO and have the to influence each other
the Matt and 70 million was put into
building a full-fledged online shooter
from scratch
in order to launch it alongside its
television counterpart it was definitely
a novel idea but it was hampered by the
game proving to be less than compelling
to new players leading to the adoption
of a free-to-play model a year after its
launch with a limited user base and a TV
series that only lasted three seasons
defiance is a clear example of a clever
idea that never really had likes to
stand on they’re gonna need help I’m
sure we’ll be in contact our
number seven Messiah in a world gone mad
and unlikely hero was convinced those
around him to take it different for
several years shiny entertainment toiled
away on this third-person shooter about
an angel sent to earth to rid it of sin
and corruption huh good luck buddy when
it finally reached store shelves in
March of 2000 Messiah was met with an
overwhelming cry of men from critics and
general audiences alike for many players
the unique premise wasn’t enough to
distract from underwhelming shooting
mechanics and a variety of glitches
exact sales figures for Messiah are
scarce though it’s known that the game
sold poorly enough that SHINee opted to
cancel the console versions
witness number six pac-man Atari 2600
version then the pac-man heads for the
corner spot then he eats his bill how do
you mess up a bonafide classic well
Atari managed to somehow do it with a
2600 version of pac-man a glitch ridden
mess of a game notorious among gamers
for its embarassing bugs and bizarre
instances of slowdown this game
nevertheless had Atari support Once Upon
a Time Atari spent around 1.5 million
dollars just on marketing the dang thing
and that’s even before getting into the
cost of developing 12 million copies
which largely went unsold in the end it
was just another sign that Ataris days
atop the gaming industry were numbered
have you played pac-man it’s the new
video computer game everyone’s talking
about number five Duke Nukem Forever
yeah I’m back baby
we’d make a joke about it being in
development forever but honestly it’s
just a very sad situation Duke Nukem
Forever was once an eagerly awaited
follow-up to the acclaimed 1996 shooter
Duke Nukem 3d but interest soon
plummeted as it spent more than a decade
in limbo as it turned out the game’s
production allegedly cost tens of
millions of dollars with the total
budget growing alongside delays
downsizing and a change and development
team any hope of final release being
worth all that trouble was dashed when
Duke Nukem Forever launched to a very
negative reception and lackluster sales
I mean I don’t understand any of it but
I bet if I did that guy over there would
still have his arm and at least one of
his balls
now before to human if ever you are
tempted to forego the struggle remember
this we are mankind’s only hope watching
a game fail can be pretty hard seeing
failure befall to an apparent passion
project is just kind of devastating such
was the case for two human conceived by
Silicon Knights as an epic Norse
mythology themed RPG for the Sony
Playstation but only fully realized on
the Xbox 360 near
ten years after being stuck in
development hell years of hype and
buildup and well over a hundred million
in production costs was not enough to
overcome a mixed reception and
widespread disinterest only are reported
700,000 copies of two human were sold
far below what Silicon Knights had
expected and not nearly enough to make a
tidy profit were still too human
factored into litigation with epic which
would come to drive Silicon Knights
right out of a business never forget
what we have sacrificed for the
humanity number three daikatana
[Music]
as the second project undertaken by the
studio ion storm daikatana existed in
park to show the company’s creative and
technical potential however a lengthy
and tumultuous production cycle during
which publisher I dose would spend 44
million to push the game out the door
ensured that the game’s promise would go
unfulfilled generally gamers found to
daikatana to be bogged down by cliched
writing ugly environmental design and a
plethora of bizarre or broken shooting
mechanics needless to say the game did
not earn back its budget serving as the
central catalyst for the departure of
ion storms two founders
number two APB all-points bulletin but
only one that matters B is somebody a
being nobody like the saying goes crime
doesn’t pay
at least that’s the impression many took
away when APB all-points bulletin faced
slim early sales numbers and the
server’s shut down just a few months
after its launch this much maligned cops
versus criminals online game was
developed with a budget of more than a
hundred million dollars with the
expectation likely being that APB would
recoup the costs upon its release glass
the game was met with criticism for
being released in a bug written state
with game sales really suffering as a
result though it would later return as a
free-to-play game known as APB Reloaded
the game was never quite the retail hit
that its creators would have wanted
[Music]
before we unveil our top pick here a few
honorable mentions
[Music]
late soldier I’ll get in here and give
me 20
I have an offer in mind
[Music]
number one et the extra-terrestrial if
nothing else managing to upend an entire
industry and leave the future of gaming
uncertain is definitely quite the
achievement we must say Atari spent an
undisclosed amount of money speculated
to be in the millions on the rights to
make a game based on the hit film eg the
extra-terrestrial it was a smart move in
theory but then Atari rushed the lead
designer and pushed the game for release
in Christmas of 1982 resulting in one of
the most widely despised works in the
history of the medium this game not only
had a major role in the 356 million
dollar debt that Atari supposedly had by
that year’s end but it is also viewed as
the final straw that set off the 1983
game industry crash finding a phone to
call home and discovering the best thing
on earth friends
do you agree with our picks check out
these other great clips from watch mojo
and subscribe for new videos every day
[Music]
matter how much you’ve invested in it
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top 10
most expensive video game flops
before we begin we publish new videos
every day so be sure to subscribe for
more great content for this list we’re
taking a look at the works in the
history of video games which based major
commercial failures costing their
creators large amounts of money and
resources in the process to be clear
these are games that made it to the
store shelves
rather than being cancelled mid
production yet ultimately words worth
the cost to produce we number 10 layer
[Music]
even the best can fail to live up to
expectations that appears to have been
the case with layer an early PlayStation
3 title created by Star Wars Rogue
Squadron developer factor 5 pedigree
could not save this strange blend of
motion controls and dragon mounted
action a mixture which came across many
as unwieldly and awkward the game
community also seemed to agree given
that sales of layer were reportedly way
below expectations while the exact cost
of production is still unclear it may
well have contributed to the 2009 shut
down a factor fives of North American
branch move girl
our men need us number nine Shenmue it’s
not a movie a world that transcends
games
[Music]
there’s not makin a lot of money and
then there’s bringing an end to an
entire line of products the brainchild
of Sega am-2 founder Yu Suzuki Shenmue
remains significant thanks to its
introduction of some of the most
enduring mechanics in the open world
genre yet when all was said and done the
game’s 1.2 million copies sold were
insufficient in covering the development
costs estimated to be between 47 and 70
million Sega’s losses are suggested to
have been a major factor in their
eventual departure from the console
market ending further work on the
Dreamcast console in the process yet up
I’ll allow you to die like a warrior
number 8 defiance
oh stop go you’re alive when the sci-fi
television network was developing the
show defiance they came up with a rather
interesting idea
connect the show’s events to an ongoing
MMO and have the to influence each other
the Matt and 70 million was put into
building a full-fledged online shooter
from scratch
in order to launch it alongside its
television counterpart it was definitely
a novel idea but it was hampered by the
game proving to be less than compelling
to new players leading to the adoption
of a free-to-play model a year after its
launch with a limited user base and a TV
series that only lasted three seasons
defiance is a clear example of a clever
idea that never really had likes to
stand on they’re gonna need help I’m
sure we’ll be in contact our
number seven Messiah in a world gone mad
and unlikely hero was convinced those
around him to take it different for
several years shiny entertainment toiled
away on this third-person shooter about
an angel sent to earth to rid it of sin
and corruption huh good luck buddy when
it finally reached store shelves in
March of 2000 Messiah was met with an
overwhelming cry of men from critics and
general audiences alike for many players
the unique premise wasn’t enough to
distract from underwhelming shooting
mechanics and a variety of glitches
exact sales figures for Messiah are
scarce though it’s known that the game
sold poorly enough that SHINee opted to
cancel the console versions
witness number six pac-man Atari 2600
version then the pac-man heads for the
corner spot then he eats his bill how do
you mess up a bonafide classic well
Atari managed to somehow do it with a
2600 version of pac-man a glitch ridden
mess of a game notorious among gamers
for its embarassing bugs and bizarre
instances of slowdown this game
nevertheless had Atari support Once Upon
a Time Atari spent around 1.5 million
dollars just on marketing the dang thing
and that’s even before getting into the
cost of developing 12 million copies
which largely went unsold in the end it
was just another sign that Ataris days
atop the gaming industry were numbered
have you played pac-man it’s the new
video computer game everyone’s talking
about number five Duke Nukem Forever
yeah I’m back baby
we’d make a joke about it being in
development forever but honestly it’s
just a very sad situation Duke Nukem
Forever was once an eagerly awaited
follow-up to the acclaimed 1996 shooter
Duke Nukem 3d but interest soon
plummeted as it spent more than a decade
in limbo as it turned out the game’s
production allegedly cost tens of
millions of dollars with the total
budget growing alongside delays
downsizing and a change and development
team any hope of final release being
worth all that trouble was dashed when
Duke Nukem Forever launched to a very
negative reception and lackluster sales
I mean I don’t understand any of it but
I bet if I did that guy over there would
still have his arm and at least one of
his balls
now before to human if ever you are
tempted to forego the struggle remember
this we are mankind’s only hope watching
a game fail can be pretty hard seeing
failure befall to an apparent passion
project is just kind of devastating such
was the case for two human conceived by
Silicon Knights as an epic Norse
mythology themed RPG for the Sony
Playstation but only fully realized on
the Xbox 360 near
ten years after being stuck in
development hell years of hype and
buildup and well over a hundred million
in production costs was not enough to
overcome a mixed reception and
widespread disinterest only are reported
700,000 copies of two human were sold
far below what Silicon Knights had
expected and not nearly enough to make a
tidy profit were still too human
factored into litigation with epic which
would come to drive Silicon Knights
right out of a business never forget
what we have sacrificed for the
humanity number three daikatana
[Music]
as the second project undertaken by the
studio ion storm daikatana existed in
park to show the company’s creative and
technical potential however a lengthy
and tumultuous production cycle during
which publisher I dose would spend 44
million to push the game out the door
ensured that the game’s promise would go
unfulfilled generally gamers found to
daikatana to be bogged down by cliched
writing ugly environmental design and a
plethora of bizarre or broken shooting
mechanics needless to say the game did
not earn back its budget serving as the
central catalyst for the departure of
ion storms two founders
number two APB all-points bulletin but
only one that matters B is somebody a
being nobody like the saying goes crime
doesn’t pay
at least that’s the impression many took
away when APB all-points bulletin faced
slim early sales numbers and the
server’s shut down just a few months
after its launch this much maligned cops
versus criminals online game was
developed with a budget of more than a
hundred million dollars with the
expectation likely being that APB would
recoup the costs upon its release glass
the game was met with criticism for
being released in a bug written state
with game sales really suffering as a
result though it would later return as a
free-to-play game known as APB Reloaded
the game was never quite the retail hit
that its creators would have wanted
[Music]
before we unveil our top pick here a few
honorable mentions
[Music]
late soldier I’ll get in here and give
me 20
I have an offer in mind
[Music]
number one et the extra-terrestrial if
nothing else managing to upend an entire
industry and leave the future of gaming
uncertain is definitely quite the
achievement we must say Atari spent an
undisclosed amount of money speculated
to be in the millions on the rights to
make a game based on the hit film eg the
extra-terrestrial it was a smart move in
theory but then Atari rushed the lead
designer and pushed the game for release
in Christmas of 1982 resulting in one of
the most widely despised works in the
history of the medium this game not only
had a major role in the 356 million
dollar debt that Atari supposedly had by
that year’s end but it is also viewed as
the final straw that set off the 1983
game industry crash finding a phone to
call home and discovering the best thing
on earth friends
do you agree with our picks check out
these other great clips from watch mojo
and subscribe for new videos every day
[Music]
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