Microsoft, like its console competitors, had a strong presence in the computer world before it ever started thinking about getting into gaming. It’s had a long and successful history since then, even if Phil Spencer currently oversees the largest expansion and most legal complications since the company was founded, all while smiling like the kid who took your lunch money.
Role-playing games have always been at the core of gaming, with immersive worlds and engaging stories. While Xbox has had a number of RPG hits through the years, from Fable to Starfield, it’s had just as many titles that have shown limitations or poor quality control, which should come as no surprise from the company that brought us Windows 8. Here are the worst RPG’s on every generation of Xbox console.
Xbox: Dinotopia: The Sunstone Odyssey
Dinotopia: The Sunset Odyssey is probably the closest thing we got to Ark: Survival Evolved before it was released, with the player taking on the role of a family stranded in the titular dinosaur-infested land. It’s a fairly interesting concept, as leading man Drake Gemini tries to defend his new home from pirates (and dinosaurs). The actual visuals look dated, even for being on the first generation of Xbox, and the minimal UI was outdated even then. With every repetitive “Uhh,” that the enemy lets out when you strike them, it’s easy to see why this title was critically panned for being lackluster, and just a poor experience for anyone with an original Xbox console.
This sucks because if this game was any good, childhood me would’ve gone absolutely nuts to fight against pirates and threatening species of Dinotopia. As it stands, however, this is but one more disappointment on this long journey into the grave. More like The Stone Cold Bummer Odyssey, I’m afraid.
Xbox 360: Two Worlds
I’m not going to lie, this one hits even closer to home for me because I spent what little allowance I had buying the boxed edition of this game. I thought, that because it was a boxed edition, it must be a good RPG, along the lines of Oblivion and Morrowind, which my cool older cousin had shown me. My friends, that was the day I learned of my own hubris.
It’s just a really boring game that thinks an open world and monsters make for a Bethesda Softworks-worthy title, and it definitely doesn’t. The animations are stiff and incredibly repetitive, with enemies flinching the same way every time they’re hit, and it features one of the more lackluster combat systems you’ll find in this generation of games. The UI also seems like it wanted to be realistic and give a feel of tabletop RPG games, but it was mostly just really boring, and not even fun-boring, like Kingdom Come: Deliverance.
Xbox One: Toro
Bullfighting, one of the worst traditions in entertainment, isn’t a great idea for a game, being based on a barbaric activity that seems relevant only to an ever-shrinking community in Spain. It’s not even a good representation either, as the bull and custom player characters in Toro just move stiffly beside one another, with no real flair or artistry to make the game interesting.
I’m not kidding, the entire premise of the game is trying different passes to get a better score and applause from a stadium of NPCs. While it’s not a fantastic game, it’s good to know that those who enjoy the torture of those animals will have something to turn to when the rest of the dwindling audience realizes watching bulls being tortured is pretty messed up. You’ll always have Toro on the Xbox 360, you sickos.
This game makes me laugh every time I look at it. This came out on the Xbox One, a console released just a decade ago, way past the point that games looked and played as simple as this. While it might not be your idea of an RPG, it is definitely my idea of a game bad enough to be on a list like this. Anyone that has a problem with that is invited to stiffly run at me while I awkwardly shuffle out of your way.
Xbox Series: Redfall
I was unfortunate enough to have to play this game to write up some guides, but was thankfully fortunate enough that I did not have to write an in-depth review of it. There were whispers that players shouldn’t expect much from Redfall ahead of release, but I kept my mind open until I actually played it. At which point it didn’t run well on any system we used and was pretty flat in gameplay, which was tragic for being an Arkane game. They’ve made some truly amazing games, so it was largely a disappointment when it released and drew speculation about whether or not executives had their mitts in the game after having been acquired by Xbox in 2021. I think in 2023 we all have our answer.
There are so few redeeming qualities in Redfall that I could literally lose access to it from my account and not notice. It’s just hard to explain how much that game irritated me as I struggled to get it to function long enough to get a guide or two out on my PC and Xbox. Regardless, it wasn’t an enjoyable experience and I’d like to forget it exists now, forever. Thank you. That’s my review.
Check out our Best and Worst RPG’s on Each Generation of PlayStation!
