Top 10 Jump the Shark Moments in Video Games

The whole series of Shinobi side-scrolling games are well known for pitting you against a variety of bizarre enemies, as is par for thecourse in ninja-themed titles. The second installment however goes all-out batty by including a mixed bag of cultural icons. Rambo and Godzilla really have no business existing in the same universe but that is nothing compared to the most baffling Marvel-DC crossover ever. At first you may just think you are battling the web-slinger but once you land a few hits, Spider-Man transforms into Batman. We don’t know about you but we don’t want to fight the Dark Spider-Knight.

The third entry to the main Star Ocean series of futuristic action-RPGs pulled the video game equivalent of one of the cheapest plot devices seen in film and TV, the ‘it was all a dream’ twist. This time it transpires that everything you have done and all the lore you have learned is nothing more than a video game called the Eternal Sphere, and everyone in the universe are characters within the game. Not only does this undermine all the events in the series prior to this, but it almost completely ruined it, as later entries in the Star Ocean series all take place before The End of Time.

Not only was The Last Revelation a mediocre game in it’s own right, it included the fake death of Croft, a move that would doom the franchise until the change of developers in 2006. If the series ended there, Lara’s death would have worked but her resurrection for Angel of Darkness wasn’t ever explained, adding to the long list of issues with that game. Desperate for ideas, the developers even wedged in a flashback driven game between The Last Revelation and Angel of Darkness but it only served to prove they were well short of original concepts for the British archaeologist.

For many, this controversial scene from the massive FPS series was an example of how videogames had gone to far, but for more discerning gamers like us, it was more like the moment that Activision left themselves nowhere to go for shock value. Sure, they did a good job of toping Modern Warfare 1’s most shocking scenes, but this is probably the moment where the story mode in Call of Duty really started to fall apart. Crazy, super violent stuff would follow, but thanks for MW2, our eyes had long glazed over from desensitization.

Never has an ending to a game caused so much controversy. Despite the critical and commercial success of all titles in the third-person shooter series, the Catalyst is single-handedly responsible for tarnishing everything that went before. This random AI has been controlling the Reapers all along as they carry out the cyclical genocide of the most advanced organic races but every choice you are given to end the cycle feels so out of keeping with the narrative. The organic-synthetic conflict feels so forced and how on earth can mass genocide ever be the best option? Nothing about it sit’s right at all.

One minute you’re frisking suspects for drugs and the next you’re fighting flaming floating heads and a damn dragon. In a gritty open-world game called True Crime, this removal of reality could not have been less welcome. They might have been trying to distance themselves from the comparisons to GTA but it’s so misguided that it takes away from the largely compelling story. There are plenty of other games with ancient mythological figures and zombies, we really don’t need them in a hard-hitting police adventure. No wonder the franchise died after this one’s sequel.

Of all the sins that the story of the latest Metroid committed, it’s treatment of Samus perhaps it’s most heinous. Upon confronting her archnemesis Ridley, Samus suddenly has a PTSD breakdown and is completely unable to fight. Had this been the first time Samus confronted Ridley, since he did kill her parents so that would have made sense. However this game takes place after Super Metroid, so Samus had already defeated Ridley no less than 4 times and she was totally fine while doing so. Some fans have defended this scene by citing that she first experienced PTSD symptoms in a Japanese only Manga, but that same Manga also shows her triumphing over the disorder, so that doesn’t work either.

How this garish RPG sequel can exist in the same universe as it’s somber predecessor Final Fantasy X both bemuses and angers fans of the hugely successful series. The dark tones are replaced with girls dressing up in glitzy costumes and dancing enthusiastically to similarly up-beat pop tunes. The game begins with Yuna performing one of her ‘hits’, a cinematic that sets the ostentatious tone for this game and began the release of a number of titles that many felt were incredibly disrespectful to the soul of the series.

Ever since the Hedgehog’s move to three dimensions, he has been suffering a constant identity crisis: he has turned into a werehog, ripped off Mario Kart and even skated at the Winter Olympics. Of all his awful incarnations, the portrayal in a realistic world is by far the worst. Human characters are introduced in a game riddled with technical issues but one lady in particular, Elise, is most controversial. She inexplicably falls in love with Sonic and to bring him back to life, plants a big kiss on the Hedgehog’s spiny head. I think we need say no more.

Before we reveal our top pick, here are a few dishonorable mentions.

Suddenly a Celebrity
“Saints Row: The Third” (2011)

Platforming Sections
“Ultima VIII: Pagan” (1994)

The early games in the series defined the survival-horror genre as the lack of ammo and movement created a genuine sense of desperation. The series has since wholeheartedly embraced action-driven gameplay in a universe where it is possible to punch a boulder out of your way. In a moment ripped straight out of a cheesy action b-movie, Chris Redfield lays a series of uppercuts on the rock to make a path for Sheva. Y’ever tried pushing a car out of the mud or snow? Do you think punching it would have helped…?

So lets make it official, since Jump the Shark is a TV saying, any moment in a videogame where the story takes veers off past the point of no return – it will be henceforth known as “punching the boulder”.

Do you agree with our list? Which terrible moment signalled the decline of your favorite franchise? For more Top 10's that don't punch above their weight published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.