The exact moment Assassin's Creed 3 fell apart.
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00:00Alongside fetch quests, stealth sections and escort missions, chase sequences are another
00:05common type of level that's appeared in countless video games, and a common type of
00:10level that often sucks.
00:12Not every pursuit that's been included in a video game is able to match that edge-of-your-seat
00:16tension that you've got when you're running from the unstoppable enemies in Outlast or
00:21achieve the exhilarating spectacle of the Uncharted series.
00:24For every example of an excellent chase sequence, there are much that fall flat on their face
00:30for an assortment of different reasons.
00:32I'm Jess from WhatCulture, and here are 10 video game chase sequences that made you rage-quit.
00:3710.
00:38Batman Arkham Knight – The Excavator Despite having the slickest combat in the
00:44series and giving players a large and detailed Gotham City to explore, Arkham Knight disappointingly
00:50fell short of being the bombastic conclusion to the trilogy fans wanted it to be.
00:55Alongside a predictable plot, the game was also let down by the overuse of the Batmobile.
01:01As unenjoyable as the Batmobile's combat and puzzle sections were, an even more frustrating
01:06moment came when the Batman entered a tunnel system in search of the eponymous villain.
01:11After the Arkham Knight ambushes the Caped Crusader in a heavily armored excavator, players
01:16must speed through the network of passageways and defeat their pursuer by luring them into
01:21planted explosives.
01:23Driving along the tunnel's walls at high speed may make for an impressive-looking set
01:27piece, however the Batmobile's squirrelly controls quickly turn this section into a
01:32tedious nightmare.
01:34It becomes all too easy to lose control of the vehicle after crashing into the many obstacles
01:38that litter the tunnels.
01:40Navigation, likewise, isn't made any easier with the constant explosions that make it
01:44difficult to see what's ahead.
01:46When one minor slip-up can result in instant failure, this boss fight is another reason
01:51why the Batmobile was such an unpopular addition to the game.
01:559.
01:56The Warriors – Writer's Block
01:59Set before the events of the cult classic film of the same name, Rockstar's The Warriors
02:03showed how the titular Coney Island street gang made their enemies while they made their
02:08mark on the city.
02:10With its gritty atmosphere and exquisite brawling mechanics, there are few games as good as
02:14this one, but even a game as spectacular as this has the occasional misstep.
02:18In The Warriors, this came during the mission Writer's Block, where players must make
02:22their grand escape across the city's rooftops after their ambush by a gang of art-obsessed
02:27mimes known as the Hi-Hats.
02:30As exciting as this sequence sounds, any enjoyment was quickly extinguished from this mission
02:34by a plethora of unexpected drops, which resulted in an instant death.
02:40And with no checkpoints to speak of, getting through this chase became a matter of memorizing
02:44exactly when to jump to make it to the end.
02:46This mission was made even worse when playing in co-op, as one player's death was going
02:50to result in a game over for both players.
02:53Make it through this thankfully short-lived low point, though, and players get a chance
02:57to vent their built-up frustrations by destroying the mime's collection of garish artworks.
03:028.
03:03Assassin's Creed III – Chasing Charles Lee
03:06By revamping the series' combat and parkour alongside being the first Assassin's Creed
03:11game to feature naval missions, Assassin's Creed III was a giant leap forward in the
03:15franchise.
03:16As visually impressive and expansive as this entry was, it nevertheless fell victim to
03:21the same irksome controls that have continued to plague the series.
03:24Nowhere was this problem more evident than during the climactic sequence in which Native
03:29American assassin Connor chased antagonist Charles Lee through a crowded harbor and burning
03:34ship.
03:35With the dramatic stakes raised high, this was the confrontation that players had been
03:39waiting for.
03:41Instead of being a slick sequence in which Connor smoothly parkoured his way over obstacles
03:45as they gave chase, players found themselves fruitlessly wrestling with the controls as
03:50the assassin jumped in the wrong direction or tried to climb a wall they shouldn't.
03:54This section only became more infuriating when attempting the bonus objectives, which
03:58meant players had to stay within 50 metres of Lee, couldn't bump into any of the numerous
04:03NPCs blocking their path, or take any fire damage.
04:07There are a lot of fantastic things about Assassin's Creed III, but as you can probably
04:12tell by the end of this entry, this botched chase sequence was not one of them.
04:167.
04:17Amnesia Rebirth – The Maze
04:19The Amnesia games are frequently cited as being some of the most frightening horror
04:23outings ever made.
04:25Although some regard Rebirth to be the weakest entry, this game still delivered plenty of
04:30tension as players descend further down the plot's twisted rabbit hole.
04:34While there are numerous sequences in Rebirth that'll have players' hearts racing, there
04:38are unfortunately some moments that miss the mark and become more annoying than they do
04:43scary.
04:44One such moment came just over halfway into the game when protagonist Tassie finds herself
04:48trapped in a maze with one of the game's monstrous creatures.
04:52Trying to solve the maze while being hunted is already a difficult enough task, but Rebirth
04:56adds to the frustration by including pressure plates that block off corridors.
05:01Since this is an Amnesia game, players also have to play most of the section in darkness
05:06or risk drawing the creature's attention.
05:09Though skulking around in the dark initially makes for a tense encounter, any suspense
05:13soon fizzles out after the first few times players make a wrong turn and get caught by
05:17the creature or after aimlessly wandering around for far too long after getting lost.
05:22Luckily, there's a far better Amnesia game in store for players not long after this section.
05:276.
05:28Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb – Von Beck's Revenge
05:32An underrated gem from the PlayStation 2 and Xbox era, Indiana Jones and the Emperor's
05:36Tomb is a globe-trotting adventure that sees players embark on a quest as the titular archaeologist
05:42to retrieve a powerful artefact before it falls into the wrong hands.
05:47From exploring lost ruins, solving puzzles, and a satisfying combat system, there was
05:51a lot to love about this game.
05:52However, Emperor's Tomb wasn't without its flaws.
05:56Namely, this game had some awkwardly clunky controls, which made tackling the simplest
06:00of jumps a difficult test of skill and patience.
06:04This issue became especially prevalent towards the end of the game, when antagonist Von Beck
06:08arrives in a tank-like drilling machine and gives chase.
06:12With Von Beck only metres behind, players run through a collapsing hallway, avoiding
06:17countless pitfalls and using Indy's signature whip to swing across large gaps.
06:22The already imprecise jumping mechanics meant that players would die more by missing a precise
06:26jump than by being caught by Von Beck's diabolical machine.
06:30Moreover, the vehicle's protruding clamps frequently blocked the player's view of
06:34the screen, consequently making this level much harder than it should have been.
06:38Hearing Indy's triumphant fanfare has never been more satisfying than when players make
06:42it to the end of this section.
06:445.
06:45Silent Hill – The Short Message – The Final Chase
06:48Released during Sony's State of Play in January 2024, Silent Hill – The Short Message
06:53took the long-running survival horror series to modern-day Germany.
06:56In it, players play as the teenager Anita as they wander through a creepy apartment
07:01building in a first-person perspective.
07:03Being a Silent Hill game, the in-game horrors are manifestations of the protagonist's
07:08trauma.
07:09For Anita, this comes in the form of Sakura Head, a humanoid monster covered in cherry
07:13blossoms.
07:14This creature appears regularly throughout the game to pursue players through the building's
07:18labyrinthine hallways.
07:19Although the initial encounters are tense ordeals that task players with finding the
07:23exit, the final chase was nightmarish for the wrong reasons.
07:27Unlike the previous encounters, this one requires players to find five photographs to unchain
07:32the door to the exit.
07:34With this level being much bigger than any of the others, it became far too easy to get
07:38lost within the looping corridors.
07:40And with the monster never far behind, players had no time to get their bearings.
07:45Even more frustrating is that the game never tells players they need to find the photographs.
07:49This means players could spend ages running around without knowing what to do.
07:53This disastrous finale ended this otherwise enthralling spin-off on a very flat note.
07:584.
07:59Close to the Sun – The Grand Theatre
08:01A slow-burn atmospheric horror, Close to the Sun sees players explore a grand ship filled
08:06with Nikola Tesla's creations, in the role of a journalist who's searching for her
08:11sister.
08:12After setting foot on the vessel, it becomes very clear something is really amiss on board.
08:17From here, players make their way through the eerie art deco hallways as they solve
08:21puzzles and uncover more details about the horrors that unfolded before they arrived.
08:27Disappointingly though, this game's suspenseful atmosphere is periodically shattered whenever
08:32one of the poorly designed chase sequences appears.
08:35Requiring players to frantically run through maze-like levels, it only takes making one
08:40wrong turn or not jumping over an obstacle at the exact right moment for the enemy to
08:44catch up to players.
08:46Not only do these sequences become a tedious game of trial and error to figure out where
08:50to go, but failure is made worse by being forced to endure a lengthy, unskippable death
08:55animation every time you get caught.
08:58Although all the chases within the game are frustrating, the worst occurs in the Grand
09:02Theatre, where, on top of everything else, the dimly lit environment makes it difficult
09:06for players to see where they're supposed to go.
09:09Despite these rage-inducing chases, Close to the Sun is still an excellent horror outing.
09:143.
09:15Grand Theft Auto San Andreas – Wrong Side of the Tracks
09:18From taking part in action-packed robberies, high-speed car chases and massive shootouts,
09:23the Grand Theft Auto series is brimming with some of the most exhilarating set pieces and
09:27unforgettable moments in gaming history.
09:30As incredible as these games are, they're not without their handful of aggravating low
09:34points, with one of the worst offenders being the infamous mission Wrong Side of the Tracks
09:39from San Andreas.
09:41After arriving at a train station with Big Smoke to interrupt a meeting between rival
09:45gangs, a group of the gangsters escape by jumping on the roof of a train.
09:49Players are then tasked with giving chase on a motorbike, while Big Smoke shoots the
09:53escapees.
09:54Although all players had to do was follow the damn train, anybody who's played this
09:58mission knows the hours of pain and despair it caused.
10:03Not only was maintaining a steady speed for Big Smoke to shoot the enemies a near-impossible
10:07feat, but the terrible driving physics would see CJ and Smoke thrown from the bike at the
10:12slightest collision.
10:14It was easier for players to get on top of the train and kill the enemies themselves
10:18rather than trying to complete the mission the way it was intended to be played.
10:212.
10:22Alone in the Dark – 2008 59th Street
10:26Although the 2008 reboot of Alone in the Dark featured an impressive fire system and a collection
10:32of intriguing gameplay ideas, this title is nevertheless considered to be the low point
10:37of this influencer horror franchise for a bunch of reasons.
10:41Alongside some incredibly corny dialogue and cumbersome inventory management, this game
10:46had some of the worst driving mechanics in a video game.
10:49Like, ever.
10:50The most egregious example of this comes at the end of the second chapter, when the small
10:54group of heroes race to Central Park after escaping a crumbling skyscraper.
10:59However, whatever evil force was in the building has also made its way outside and then proceeds
11:05to go after them.
11:06What follows is a high-speed car chase that sees players tear down the streets as the
11:10unseen force destroys the road behind them and causes widespread chaos.
11:14However, this section was rendered almost unplayable thanks to the car's twitchy and
11:19weightless controls, where the slightest error would send the car veering off course.
11:24After constantly replaying this level, the only way to succeed was to memorize the best
11:29route to take.
11:30Mercifully, this game's unique DVD-like menu meant that players could simply skip this
11:35mission, which you'd probably want to.
11:381.
11:39Jak 2 Renegade – Security Tank
11:42The follow-up to adored platformer Jak and Daxter, Jak 2 Renegade, was a different kind
11:47of beast.
11:48Beginning with Jak and his friends being sucked into a dystopian world before Jak is imprisoned
11:53and tortured, the sequel's tone was much darker than its predecessor.
11:57Likewise, the game had garnered a reputation for its fiendish difficulty, and it doesn't
12:01take long for the tougher challenge to become evident.
12:04Only a few missions after the exhilarating prison escape at the start of the game, the
12:08dynamic duo are tasked with entering a fortress to destroy an ammo cache.
12:13Defending the fortress is a security tank which will chase the heroes at points during
12:17the level.
12:18Quickly running through a series of narrow and twisting pathways littered with bottomless
12:22pits is already a difficult enough ask, but what makes this encounter especially horrendous
12:27is that players also need to execute tricky manoeuvres to avoid gunfire from the tank's
12:32turret.
12:33Coming at such an early point in the game, players won't have a firm enough grasp on
12:36the controls to make the difficult jumps that lie between them and success.
12:40Players consequently had to learn fast to avoid falling into this level's many pits.
12:45This level was a trial by fire in the least fun way.