The Fifteen Worst Quicktime Events Ever Made
Want to give gamers serious flashbacks? All it takes is to whisper “quicktime events.” Once upon a time, quicktime events were all the...
Published 4 years ago in Funny
Once upon a time, quicktime events were all the rage in game design. While some events were cool, most were trash. And this is our roundup of the absolute worst offenders.
1
Batman: Arkham Origins: Deathstroke Fight
Arkham Origins is the redheaded stepchild of the Arkham series, and for good reason. Among other things, it transforms an epic fight against Deathstroke into a complete joke.
Instead of the inventive boss fights of Arkham Asylum or Arkham City, this Deathstroke battle is just a matter of hitting a few buttons. Considering he is supposed to be one of the biggest badasses in the entire DC universe, this whole fight is doubly disappointing.2
Gears of War 2: Skorge Fight
As annoying as quick time events can be, they are usually contained to their own sequences. But in Gears of War 2, the fight against Skorge blends the fun “shoot and cover” gameplay you love with an awful QTE.
It’s really the best of both worlds. The quick-time event is boring unto itself, and its presence detracts from what might have otherwise been a fun boss fight.3
Resident Evil 6: Climbing Rope
Nothing is quite as humiliating as failing a seemingly-simple task. But Resident Evil 6 makes sure you have a hard time simply climbing a rope!
In fact, rope climbing becomes a cumbersome QTE sequence where one false move means you’ll fall. And while it’s simple enough once you get the hang of it, this game doesn’t exactly tell you what to do!4
Metal Gear Solid: Torture Sequence
You might not think a quick time event could be that annoying if it only involves one button. But the game that proves this wrong is definitely Metal Gear Solid.
When Snake is captured, he is tortured by Revolver Ocelot. If you die, you die, and there are no continues (though the game gives you the chance to save right after capture). You must tap a single button to stay alive, but if you give in to torture, you forfeit Meryl’s life.
In other words, a major plot point is tied to a blister-inducing QTE sequence. Thanks a lot, Konami!5
Uncharted: Final Fight
What makes a quick time event bad? It’s not always that the QTE was poorly designed. Sometimes, it’s simply out of place!
That’s certainly how the boss fight of the first Uncharted game feels. Most of the game was a perfect blend of exploration, platforming, and fighting. Trading all of that in for a bland QTE fight makes the end of the game feel really lackluster.6
Halo 4: Didact Showdown
Even to major fans of the franchise, Halo 4 was pretty disappointing. And in that respect, the fight against the Didact was no different.
While the series is known for its run and gun gameplay, the final battle is just an uninspired quick-time event. And given how boring the story was, adding boring battles to this game makes you really wonder where the money was spent.7
Bayonetta: Fortudido Fireball
The Bayonetta games are usually light and fun, having inherited the mantle of Devil May Cry. But the Fortudido fireball sequence is likely to leave players crying instead.
The QTE is different from previous ones and requires lightning-quick reflexes. Should you get hit, you die, making this a frustrating moment in an otherwise awesome game.8
Final Fantasy VIII: Valve Hatch
What’s worse than an annoying quick-time event? A completely useless one, of course!
In Final Fantasy VIII, there is a point where Squall must try to open a valve. Doing so is nearly impossible, and you’ll quickly blister your thumb trying to hit the button 12 times per second.
Worst of all, when you fail, one of your teammates will take care of it for you. But this begs the question: why waste player time on a useless event?9
Resident Evil 4: Krauser Knife Fight
Resident Evil 4 tried to change things up with different boss fights. And when you take on Krauser, the game turns into a full-on QTE battle.
The idea is interesting, but it’s easy to mess up. And every time you mess up, you’re forced to watch the preceding cutscene again. After this happens a few times, you’ll be ready for Krauser to kill you in real life!10
Tomb Raider: Surviving Strangulation
What’s worse than playing an annoying QTE? Dying because you don’t even know it’s a QTE!
In the 2013 Tomb Raider, there is an event where your character is getting strangled. This is actually a quick time event, but the game doesn’t make it clear what buttons you need to press or in what order.
It won’t take long before you start planning to choke whoever designed this sequence.11
Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor: Final Fight
While it is damning the game with faint praise, Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor was one of the best Lord of the Rings games ever made. The only problem involved the crappy fight at the end.
While most of the game involves sneaky around and strangling orcs, the end is a boring button-mashing event. It’s basically so boring that the Sauron fight in the Bright Lord DLC is like an apology to players.12
Mirror’s Edge: Fighting Ropeburn
Believe it or not, there are actual bosses in Mirror’s Edge. And fighting Ropeburn brings out the worst of this game’s love for dumb QTEs.
Basically, the game doesn’t spell out that you are playing in a quick time event, making this whole sequence very confusing. And that disruption to gameplay is even worse in a game that is otherwise about fast and fluid fun.13
Star Wars Force Unleashed: Fighting the Star Destroyer
Part of the gimmick in Force Unleashed is that you are seeing the Force like never before. And this includes a memorable sequence where you bring down a Star Destroyer with your mind.
Sounds cool, right? Except that you had to deal with Tie Fighters interrupting you and forcing (no pun intended) for you to start this sequence again and again. If you wanted such a frustrating Star Wars experience, you could just rewatch Rise of Skywalker and call it a day.14
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare: Paying Respects
Quick-time events don’t have to involve many buttons to be bad. And sometimes the worst QTEs transcend bad design and become the stuff of meme legend.
The best example of this is when you are asked to pay your respects to a fallen soldier in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. Now, “press f to pay respects” or “can we get an f in the chat” have become the enduring legacy of this otherwise good game.15
Mercenaries 2: Final Fight
Mercenaries 2 is one of the most inventive games ever created. It gives players seemingly limitless options to destroy everything in their path.
And that’s what makes the final boss battle against Solano so disappointing. You just hit a few buttons and he’s defeated. It’s pretty much the worst part of the entire game!
Most Popular
