The Xbox 360 has been out for some time now, and during this time we have seen some great titles. Some of these titles have left us with memories and wanting more from the production companies and others make us regret that we even paid for the thing. It makes us say all kinds of bad things to the production companies.

Let’s face it, games are not cheap and when we have to fork out a lot of money for a game, we expect it to be good. At the very least, we don’t expect the production companies to release a game simply because they feel their profits need to be boosted. What makes it worse, is that a game can still be good even if it has a poor story line. Even when the story is useless, providing there are some truly memorable characters, most of us will be happy.

For example, let’s take a look at “Two World’s”, a game which very few enjoyed simply because the graphics were deplorable. Over and above the graphics, the sound quality was equally as bad. If you ever had the chance to play the game and you’re honest, you’ll agree that it was a total failure.

Another game which left a lot to be desired was “Hour-of-Victory”. Now, had this game been released a couple of years before it was, then we may have found it to be acceptable. However by the time it was released, the sound quality and graphics was simply unable to measure up to many other games on the market. In fact if you’re looking for a good WWII game, then you can play “Call of Duty” instead which is in a totally different league.

Vampire games are brilliant are they not? Maybe so, but that was certainly not the case with “Vampire Rain”. As any gamer can attest to, a stealth game should prove to be a challenge as is the case with Splinter Cell. After all, fighting vampires should really be a challenge but if you can get past them by sneaking about, then it defeats the object of the game. It’s hardly surprising then that Vampire Rain became an instant failure. What made it even worse was the fact that so many scenes had been cut, not to mention the game took forever to load. Even the sound and the graphics could only be described as being average at best.

Perhaps the biggest insult of all was a game called “Jumper” which was based on a movie. When programmers are expected to take a game which was originally intended for a cheap machine and tweak it so that it can be used on a new platform, then they need to be given some credit if they pull it off. However, that certainly wasn’t the case with Jumper in that it used PS2 graphics from beginning to end. In fact it left many people wondering if it wasn’t released with the intention of being an insult to the gaming community.

The games mentioned above are just the tip of the iceberg as far as bad games are concerned. As you may have already discovered yourself, it’s incredibly easy to throw your money away on a bad game simply because by the time you realize it, it’s too late.

For your own good, you need to do some research before you purchase a game, bearing in mind that there are some websites which offer good, honest and unbiased reviews. Perhaps the old adage should apply in that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.