Tim Cain created Fallout, so he knows what it takes to make a good game that influences artists, developers, and players for decades. That means Cain also knows what a bad game is like. He says as much in a recent YouTube video.
“I’m going to talk about what I would consider to be […] the worst RPG you could possibly make,” Cain says. It involves beautiful, but unskippable, cutscenes, an unexplained stats system with too many numbers, and minigames.
“Pretty much, if you do it out of combat, there’s a minigame for it,” Cain says, vindicating minigame haters (me) worldwide.
Cain abhors limited combat styles, too, along with linear storylines, and generally anything that prevents a player from forming a unique, personal bond with a game. But even though Cain began his video with the assertion that this mythically awful RPG is something he invented in his head, many gleeful commenters tried guessing what real game or developer Cain might be referencing.
“Square Enix corporate watching this: ‘WRITE THIS ALL DOWN! WRITE IT DOWN NOW!!!'” one popular comment says.
“Sounds like Tim played [Dragon Age: The] Veilguard last night,” says another reply, which echoes many other commenters’ belief that Cain is undoubtedly talking about the newest Dragon Age title.
Cain resists these comments, and comments like them, in a follow-up video posted on YouTube Shorts.
“Many, many people left comments saying, ‘Oh, I know! You’re talking about this RPG!'” Cain says. “So, if you’re asking me [if you were] right, is this the game I was thinking of? Well, if it helps you make a better game: you’re right.”
“I KNEW you were talking about Madden 2008!” says a top reply.
Be sure to check out our Dragon Age: The Veilguard review to find out why it’s one of 2024’s best RPGs.