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10 of the Worst Levels in Gaming History

10 of the Worst Levels in Gaming History

There are some seriously bad levels in games. Even a title we love can have that one mission that nearly ruins it for us. Maybe it’s poorly designed. Perhaps it suddenly takes gameplay to a different genre. It could impose an unreasonable time limit upon us. Sometimes, it just isn’t very good in general. Duds happen. So today, we’re going to commiserate about those tasks we absolutely hate in games. These are the ten worst levels you’ll ever encounter in some otherwise fine adventures.

Metal Gear Solid 2

Metal Gear Solid 2

Know what I hate? Stealth levels. There are very few games that really get these missions right, and even the ones that do know what they’re doing mess it up. We’re going to go ahead and call out Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty here. When you’re inside Arsenal Gear, Raiden wakes up completely naked. You need to sneak your way through the underwater fortress with none of his equipment or items. While it is hilarious, especially since he can do naked cartwheels, it can also be rather difficult and tedious.

Halo: Combat Evolved

Halo: Combat Evolved

With Halo being such a masterful shooter, it’s difficult to believe there could ever be something wrong with it. Enter The Library, a mission in Halo: Combat Evolved. Perhaps we should give it a pass, since it was in the very first installment? But then, is there really ever any excuse for a level that’s basically walk a few steps, deal with a swarm of the Flood. Another few steps. More Flood. It had us going through the same hallways, facing the same enemies, over and over again. Worse, because it was all the Flood, it was hard. Not only the worst Halo level, but one of the worst levels ever.

Mario Kart

Mario Kart

It doesn’t matter which version of Rainbow Road you play. Each one is a nightmare. A track with tons of twists and turns and no rails to keep you from falling off of it would be bad in any game. Put it in one where all of your enemies have weapons that could cause you to go careening off the edge through no fault of your own? That’s just mean. Super Mario Kart’ s version is my least favorite, but they’re all bad in their own way.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

Do you hate timed missions? I hate timed missions. The pressure drives me nuts. The only thing worse is when one of these tasks requires near perfect precision to actually accomplish. This means Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare’ s epilogue mission, Mile High Club, is the perfect storm. Depending on the difficulty, you have one to three minutes to reach a captured hostage, shoot the enemy using him as a human shield in the head in about five seconds, then escape in thirty seconds. It’s too much pressure!

Dragon Age: Origins

Dragon Age: Origins

You know a game level is terrible if people put together a mod that lets you skip it on PCs. Dragon Age: Origins’ Broken Circle quest sends you into the Fade to defeat a Sloth demon. This means going through an incredibly tedious realm with hazy boundaries and encounters you need to defeat on your own, all while you try to find the rest of your party and get out of their. While this may be set in the dream realm, it is absolutely a nightmare.

Final Fantasy XV

Final Fantasy XV

There is a chapter in Final Fantasy XV that Square Enix is actually issuing a patch to fix it. Can you comprehend that? The developer saw how this part of the game looked, saw feedback, and had to change it! It may be called Redemption, but the only way to redeem it is retooling it. Noctis is traveling alone, he can’t fight, and it takes forever to complete!

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

I have played The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time four times. I still don’t think I could get through the Water Temple without a guide. It’s this atrocious balance of poor level design and tedious backtracking to raise and lower water levels. It’s so easy to get turned around. There will be points where you’ll just keep going back and forth, trying everything, because maybe you needed to go into this room a different way? Or that room from another entrance? And you have to do it. You can’t not do it. It’s an unavoidable chore. At least the 3DS version is a little easier.

Battletoads

Battletoads

Battletoads , as a whole, could be used in a court of law as sufficient evidence to prove game developers hate children, adults, and anyone in between. The game was brutal. But, perhaps the worst part of the experience hits you early on. The third level, Turbo Tunnel, added the “joy” of auto-scrolling with knee-jerk obstacles and general misery. Can’t beat this level? You can’t play more Battletoads !

Red Dead Redemption

Red Dead Redemption

Red Dead Redemption is a great game. We love Red Dead Redemption . Rockstar Games, give us more!

Except we’ve clearly forgotten that Red Dead Redemption hosted what was probably the worst escort mission in the history of ever. In My Sister’s Keeper, we needed to get Miranda Fortuna to safety. Which is terrible, since you can’t use your horse. You have to use her coach. Oh, and you need to get her to safety while running an obstacle course within a certain amount of time. Also, you fail if you lead army units to the dock. Yuck.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Rockstar Games, what are you doing to us? Not only did Red Dead Redemption have one of the worst tasks ever, but Grand Theft Auto: Vice City did too! I’m speaking, of course, about Demolition Man. You have to destroy a construction site. Fine. We love wrecking things in GTA games. Except you have to use it with a RC Goblin helicopter. It has four bombs that must be planted, one at a time, at very specific locations at the site. The toy controls horribly. Getting the bombs in place is a chore. The workers will try to stop you from doing your job. Also it’s all timed. Because if something is horrible, you want the added stress of needing to finish it in under seven minutes.

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