Just a few weeks ago I wrote an article about the worst video games of the 90s so it's only right I follow that up with a look at the worst games of the 2000s. Since the turn of the century, the video game world has continued to evolve for the better, with Sony and Microsoft dominating the market with the Playstation 4 and Xbox One respectively. While Nintendo is still trying to corner the kids market with the recently released Nintendo Switch and PC gamers do the best with what they have, it's the consoles that have taken over gaming.

Both the PlayStation and Xbox provide fantastic gaming experiences with a host of added features available for both consoles. Each is primed to offer the best visual and audio home entertainment environment possible and have delivered some of the best video games of all time. Rockstar ruled the roost with their action-adventure-themed games such as Red Dead Redemption and the Grand Theft Auto series, while first-person shooters like Halo, Call Of Duty, and Battlefield, have become multi-million dollar blockbusters. Even PC fans have been spoiled for choice with World Of Warcraft, Fortnite, and the Diablo series, three titles that have provided fun times for gaming fans.

But for every must play game, there are a slew of horrible releases featuring bad graphics, poor gameplay, and dodgy sound effects. The likes of Carmageddon 64, Ride To Hell: Retribution, and Alone In The Dark: Illumination, are just a handful of terrible games that have seen the light of day over the past 18 years. These are games you want to stay away from, and to help make sure you never play them I've written a list of the 20 worst games of the 00s, while also including the 10 best so you've got something to look forward to.

30 Worst: At Least The Name Is Good

The original Carmageddon was a bloodthirsty car game released in 1997 on the PC. Inspired by the 1975 classic Death Race 2000, the game caused controversy for encouraging players to run over pedestrians to earn points and bonuses. Players raced against other competitors and could win races by either finishing first, destroying their opponents' vehicles, or ending all the pedestrians in the game. The game was originally going to be a destruction derby type game but the ability to end pedestrians was added to help Carmageddon standout from standard driving games. The decision proved a success as Carmageddon was a surprise hit, with the game ported to a number of consoles including the Nintendo 64.

Unfortunately for 64 owners, that version of the game has been considered the worst of all time.

The poor conversion was pointed out by the majority of gaming critics, citing terrible graphics and poor controls. The game sucked out all of the fun of the PC version and was considered by some to be even worse than Superman 64, one of the worst Nintendo 64 games ever made. Carmageddon 64 was so bad the Guinness World Records identified it as the lowest rating Nintendo 64 car racing game of all time. If that's not enough warning about how bad this game is then I don't know what will keep you away.

29 Worst: If It Ain't Broke

As a standalone franchise, Mortal Kombat is responsible for helping revolutionize the arcade fighting genre. The first two games in the series are considered classics and although some of the later sequels didn't live up to expectations, 2015's Mortal Kombat X helped rejuvenate the struggling franchise and prove there's still life left in it yet.

Predominately known as a fighting game, there have been a number of detours in the game's history, with Mortal Kombat: Special Forces an absolute shocker. Following on from the disastrous Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero, this was another attempt at an action game featuring Mortal Kombat characters. Released on the PlayStation 1, the game was a sequel to the first Mortal Kombat as players took control of Jax in an action beat-up adventure game.

Special Forces bombed upon release due to a mixture of dull storylines, paint-by-numbers graphics, random camera angles that are insanely frustrating, and way too much button mashing. It was also strange that Jax had his metal arms in this game considering it was supposed to be a sequel, as he didn't receive them until Mortal Kombat 3. It's reported one of the key men behind Mortal Kombat, John Tobias, left Midway during the creation of the game, with his original vision drastically changed. The game performed so badly Midway stopped producing copies so they could concentrate on Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance and get the franchise back on track.

28 Best: Chaotic Perfection

To be honest it was really hard to choose which Grand Theft Auto game to feature on this list. GTA III was a phenomenon that took the top-down driving experience of the first two GTA games and transformed it into an open-world action adventurer. Vice City took the series back to the 80s and infused it with Scarface before San Andreas took things to the streets with a game set in and around the gang culture of early 90s California. Then GTA IV changed the game as players took control of immigrant Niko Bellic and tried to navigate a fictional New York City. But it's hard to look past 2015's GTA V.

Even though it's been three years since the game was released, GTA V's massive online multiplayer world has extended its longevity, with Rockstar continually updating the world for fans. Not only was the game a huge improvement in terms of graphics and gameplay but the use of three interchangeable main characters gave players three unique personalities to control throughout the game. The ability to alternate between former mafia associate Michael De Santa, gangbanger Franklin Clinton, and the unhinged Trevor Philips, meant you never knew what was going to happen with each mission and allowed players to use the characters different skills throughout the game.

The involved storyline really grips you and the fact there are multiple endings and a massive city to explore means you'll never get bored. The heist missions, in particular, were fantastic and if you're a fan of finding easter eggs and hidden objects this one will keep you amused for hours on end. Here's hoping the next installment isn't too far away.

27 Worst: Still Better Than Some WWE Games

The Simpsons hasn't been funny for about a decade now, something it has in common with a string of Simpsons-related games during the mid-00s. Of all the releases, The Simpsons Wrestling takes the cake as the worst. As the title suggests, the game is a wrestling simulation set in the Simpsons world. The game features 20 playable characters from The Simpsons world (including Homer, Moe, Krusty, Marge, and Grounds Keeper Willie) who indulge in a wrestling meets beat-em-up style game. The matches take place in 10 well-known locations from the show (including the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, Moe's Tavern, and the Simpson's home) as you battle to become champion of Springfield.

It might sound like fun but this game was actually pretty horrendous. The animation was worse than watching a Simpsons episode and it's less about performing wrestling moves and more about button mashing until you beat your opponent senseless. It's a pretty silly and simple game that might keep kids occupied for a few hours but that's about it. It's best summed up by IGN, with their review culminating with a paragraph that included the lines, "It's just too bad that there is not one redeemable aspect in this...thing. I feel sorry for anyone who buys this..." Enough said.

26 Worst: Going Postal Over Postal

The original Postal was a mediocre top-down shooter about a man who went "Postal" after the pressures of life got him down. Think Micheal Douglas in Falling Down but with more demise and destruction. The first person follow-up, Postal 2, was released a few years later and hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons. The game was crucified for its use of violence, with the game banned in Australia. The game was meant to be a satire on the modern world and even featured Gary Coleman (Different Strokes), but not even that was enough to win over most critics. For some reason, a third game went into production and put the franchise to bed for good.

Postal III once again followed the adventures of the Postal Dude from the previous games as players must choose to lead him down the path of good or evil. No matter which way you choose the game is another violent third-person shooter and includes a number of celebrity cameos from the likes of Ron Jeremy, Jennifer Walcott, and director Uwe Boll. The game failed to make an impact upon release, with developer Running With Scissors admitting they rushed the release of the game, causing it to be full of bugs and blocky visuals. The plot is also pretty weak and the dialogue is often crass and doesn't push the game forward. You're better off grabbing Farcry 5 and forgetting Postal III even exists.

25 Best: Under The Sea

BioShock is one of those games that nobody expected too much from and then when released became a huge success and a fan favorite. Set in the 1960s in the underwater city of Rapture, the game incorporates ideas of a utopian future where a class war resulted in a massive battle in Rapture and contact being lost with the outside world. Taking on the role of Jack, the only survivor of a plane crash near Rapture, you must navigate the underwater metropolis where you are enlisted by the leader of the uprising, Atlas, to help them take back control of the city.

The plot of BioShock is in-depth and well thought out and takes ideas from the likes of dystopian and utopian thinkers George Orwell and Aldous Huxley. From the moment you arrive at Rapture, you're completely immersed in the Bioshock world and the wonderfully created universe. The game is visually spectacular and the controls are easy to master. Many have claimed the game as the best intelligent first-person shooter on the market, and it's hard to disagree. The game was followed by two sequels, BioShock 2 and BioShock Infinite, with both receiving critical acclaim, making the BioShock franchise one of the most complete gaming experiences you could ever have.

24 Worst: The Downfall Of An Icon

It's hard to fathom how the greatest SEGA character of all time could end up in a game as appalling as the Sonic The Hedgehog remake for the PlayStation and Xbox in 2006. A reboot of the first Sonic it was released to coincide with the 15th anniversary of the original. After initial previews made the game look like it was going to be a hit, this turned out to be far from the truth when it was eventually released and savaged by the critics.

The game hit problems during production when Sonic creator Yuji Naka quit midday through the creation of the game to strike out on his own. This left the production team to finish the game and rush it for release by the holiday season. This had a massive impact on the game with many finding it full of bugs with slow loading screens and jittery animation. The plot is convoluted and not worth mentioning and the camera angles used during play in the 3D world are often disorientating. The other major issue is that the game just isn't fun and does nothing to add to the legacy of the franchise. Even SEGA understood this and ceased production of the game in 2010 to minimize the damage the game had on the franchise. Sadly, it was too little too late in my opinion.

23 Worst: Some Movies Should Stay Movies

Films based on video games don't have a great track record of turning out well and the same could also be said of the opposite. While games such as The Chronicles Of Riddick: Assault On Dark Athena and Jurassic Park: Operation Genesis are exceptions to the rule, generally films to games are failed attempts at recreating what fans have seen on the big screen, such as the woeful Charlie's Angels.

Why anyone thought a game based on this film was needed in the first place is baffling.

Released on the PlayStation 2 and GameCube and based on both Charlie's Angels films, the game involved players solving mysterious and finding objects while fighting a number of foes. The game was universally panned upon release, with many reviews stating the game was even worse than Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, the terrible sequel to the first flick. It plays like the game developers wanted to finish off in a hurry, with the graphics, sound, gameplay, and control system, all rubbish. Although the actresses provided their own voice for the game, they sound like they'd rather be somewhere else, a feeling I also got while playing.

22 Best: The Best Superhero Game Ever?

While not based on a movie like Charlie's Angels, Batman: Arkham Asylum does feature a major comic book character who's starred in films and tv shows. It should be used as the blueprint on how to successfully create a video game adaptation of a film or television show. The 2009 action adventure game relies on Batman's stealth and combat skills as you take control of the costumed superhero and come up against a raft of villains inside Arkham Asylum.

Widely praised as the best superhero game of all time, Batman: Arkham Asylum manages to capture the spirit of the character and create an interactive and involving environment for players to explore as they track down The Joker and his cronies. Visually the game is gorgeous and the voice over work from Mark Hamill as The Joker and Kevin Conroy as Batman superb. The setting of Arkham Asylum provides the game with a creepy atmosphere with the engaging plot well written. The ability to use stealth tactics over all-out attack added another dimension to the game, with Batman never looking better. Subsequent sequels followed but it's hard to beat this game as the definitive comic book video game adaptation.

21 Worst: The Worst Superhero Game Ever?

While I've just sung the praises of Batman: Arkham Asylum it's now time to highlight the worst Batman game of all time, Batman: Dark Tomorrow. Released in 2003, this Batman title was meant to be an open world game faithful to the mythology of the Batman universe. There was going to be a focus on combat and the opportunity for players to drive an assortment of vehicles including the Batmobile, Batplane, and Batboat. Instead, fans got a linear stealth game littered with bugs and poor visuals. Originally meant to be released on multiple consoles the game was eventually scaled down in size, only finding its way onto the Xbox and GameCube. The game was in development for around four years so that gives you an idea of how things managed to go wrong.

The game suffered from a hard to decipher control system, strange camera angles, and repetitive missions. There's only so many times you can solve the same problems and face the same looking bad guys before it all gets a bit too old. Even the impressive cinematic cut scenes don't add any value to the game, with Batman: Dark Tomorrow best left on the shelf.

20 Worst: We Can't Even Say The Name

After finding success with Dave Mirra endorsed Freestyle BMX, developers Z-Axis decided to take the same game engine and incorporate a more raunchy style of BMX video game. The result was BMX [Redacted], a lewd and rude BMX game that gained notoriety for the abundance of bareness, foul language, and grown-up humor. It's believed the game was at first going to be a standard BMX simulation but when publisher Acclaim saw it wouldn't be as good as they'd hoped, they decided to fill the game with unclothed women to help increase sales and create publicity.

They certainly got the public's attention but it was more negative due to the racy nature of the game. Players could create female characters that appeared fully bare-chested and could watch live-action clips of dancers. The game is also full of crude humor and language and offended Dave Mirra so much he filed a lawsuit against Acclaim to have his name removed from the game. He was successful and BMX [Redacted] was released around the world and failed miserably, selling under 100,000 copies. Many big American retailers refused to sell the game until the bareness was removed, with the game initially denied classification in Australia. Getting past the controversy the game is abysmal, with the gameplay failing to live up to the previous effort Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX.

19 Best: Food For The Mind

Sometimes it's the simplest ideas that work best, case in point Portal. The puzzle platform game was released in 2007 and quickly became one of the best rated games of the year. Players solved puzzles by teleporting between objects and places using the Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device. Although rather short, the game was heaps of fun and combines tricky puzzles with a dark sense of humor from the artificial intelligence named GLaDOS who controlled the environment you play in.

What's so great about Portal is the original yet basic plot and structure of the levels. It might not have eye-popping visuals or technical gameplay but it gets you thinking and having fun. While the game can be completed in a few hours it will feel like minutes, with the ending well worth it. The game won several awards and spawned a dedicated fan base, with the sequel Portal 2 released to even more fanfare and better reviews. Although the sequel has more longevity and updates everything great about the first game, it's hard not to have a soft spot for Portal and what the game helped achieve.

18 Worst: Solid Title, Terrible Everything Else

Ninjabread Man was first developed as a reimagining of the Commodore Amiga classic Zool: Ninja Of The 9th Dimension, but when Zoo Digital Publishing, who had commissioned the remake, saw how terrible the game was they backtracked and cut ties with designers Data Design Interactive. Deciding to keep on working with what they had, DDI finished the game and released it as Ninjabread Man. In hindsight, I think they might have been better off scratching the game altogether after it failed to capture anyone's attention.

The action-adventure platform game featured only three levels where players could guide their gingerbread ninja through, avoiding enemies and trying to collect power rods. The game is a mess and looks like it was designed by an eight-year-old. Everything from the graphics to the sound to the gameplay are awful and the game was littered with bugs. Aside from the concept - a gingerbread man that's a ninja is great - there isn't anything worthwhile with this one. Despite the terrible reviews a sequel called Ninjabread Man II: Blades of Fury was announced, but after DDI went out of business in 2012 we have been saved from ever having to live in a world where another Ninjabread game exists.

17 Worst: Bulletproof But Not Failureproof

When it comes to entrepreneurs, you can't knock the hustle of rapper turned global star 50 Cent. Beginning life slinging narcotics on corners in New York, the Queens representative survived being shot nine times and went on to become one of the biggest rap artists of the 00s. Not only did he become a rap star but branched out into other areas including acting, producing, boxing promotion, mining and shares, drinks, and mineral water, and video games. Of all the investments he's been involved with, video games was not one of his best decisions.

In the game, you play 50 Cent, who is dragged back into the streets after being shot nine times by an unknown assailant. Seeking revenge, you team up with G-Unit members Lloyd Banks, Tony Yayo, and Young Buck, and attempt to track down the men responsible for the attempted life-ending, along the way uncovering an international conspiracy. The attraction of 50 Cent and his cohorts helped the game in the publicity stakes but couldn't save it from being a pedestrian action game with poor gameplay and stilted graphics. The music is great as you can imagine, but this one is best left to dedicated 50 fans, with a string of similar shooters available that are much more enjoyable to play.

16 Best: Survival Horror At Its Best

Ever since The Walking Dead hit screens in 2010, zombies have been back in fashion. Along with a number of zombie-related television shows and films, the undead have had a resurgence in the gaming world. Of all the zombie-centric games of the 2000s, it's hard to go past The Last Of Us. A gripping and tense game revolving around smuggler Joe escorting young teenage girl Ellie across a post-apocalyptic America, The Last Of Us is up there with the best games of not only the 00s but of all time.

The narrative of the game was book quality with the game playing out like an interactive film.

It's hard to find a single fault, with the lush graphics, exceptional sound quality, and gameplay all top notch. The characterization is immense, with all the main protagonists fleshed out, particularly Ellie who is represented as a strong female lead. The relationship between Joel and Ellie is fantastic and there's a real sense of realism when playing the game. Of course, there are zombies too, and at times they can be frightening when jumping out of nowhere and attacking. The combat system was effective and the pace of the game near perfect. The Last Of Us was a master class in the horror-survival genre and fans can only hope the sequel gets a release date sooner rather than later.

15 Worst: Like Tekken But Terrible

It wouldn't be a worst games list without some form of fighting game making the list. The unlucky video game to make it is the Xbox exclusive title Kabuki Warriors. One of the first games to come out when the Xbox first hit the shelves, Kabuki Warriors was a Tekken style ripoff with few redeeming features. You picked three fighters and traveled from city to city, winning fights to earn more money to travel, with the aim to make it to the final city.

If it all sounds a bit strange, it was, with coins being thrown at you by the audience when you performed certain moves or combos.

The game also looked horrible and the fighters weren't depicted well. The gameplay required you to mash buttons in the hope you'll pull off a combo and defeat your opponent. The sound effects were also below par, with Kabuki Warriors a massive fail on all fronts. Gamespot best describe the game in their review, stating, "suffice to say that Kabuki Warriors is one of the worst games to be released this year or any year, on the Xbox or any other platform." Other reviews of the game follow a similar theme, with Kabuki Warriors the definition of a bomb.

14 Worst: In Space, No One Can Hear Your Disappointment

Developed as a third person shooter to bridge the gap between the events of the 2009 Star Trek film and its sequel, the 2013 flick Star Trek Into Darkness, this was another poor film to video game conversion slaughtered by critics and Star Trek fans alike. The game took three years to create and was the first in-house video game development by Paramount Studios, and likely the reason it turned out so bad.

The game allowed you to play as either Captain Kirk or Spock as you investigated the theft of a terraforming device. The two-player co-operative mode was a big seller for many gamers but it turned out to be a nightmare, beset by bugs and failing to match up to the test footage version of the game mode. The animation was poor with badly lip-synched dialog and boring missions. The introduction of mini-games was meant to provide players with something fun and different but instead became monotonous. Even Star Trek director J. J. Abrahams was upset with the end result, stating in an interview, "The last game, which was obviously a big disappointment to me, was something that we were actually involved in at the very beginning...and then we sort of realised that it was not going in a place that we were going to get what we wanted."

13 Best: The Perfect RPG

Few fantasy role-playing games have been as successful over the journey as Final Fantasy. There have been 15 installments in the series with countless spin0ffs and remakes, but it's hard to look past the tenth edition of the game as the best. Final Fantasy X was the first game in the series to use voice acting and introduced a new "Conditional Turn-Based Battle" system alongside a new leveling up system called the "Sphere Grid," with both being keys to the game's success.

You take control of Tidus and go on an adventure to defeat a monster terrorizing the world of Spira. As with all Final Fantasy games, the world you play in is extremely detailed and the storylines in-depth and engaging on all levels. Both the new combat and leveling up systems were praised for revolutionizing the series, giving it an edge over its competitors. As expected, the game is visually stunning as you traverse the world of Spira, with the character development also a big plus. Critics loved Final Fantasy X, with the game winning a slew of awards, while fans were just as hyped, with the game being in the top 10 best selling games on the PlayStation 2 and making almost $100 million in America alone.

12 Worst: Confusing And Bland

Similar to first-person shooters like Quake and Doom, Diakatana got off to a rough start when it was delayed multiple times, eventually being released in 2000, almost three years after it was initially announced. By the time it was out, the game engine was already outdated and the problems just kept on coming after that.

The plot is somewhat complex to explain but involves a number of levels divided into four episodes taking place in 25th century Japan in the year 2455 AD, Ancient Greece in the year 1200 BC, the Dark Ages in Norway in the year 560 AD, and near-future San Francisco in the year 2030 AD. That all sounds great on paper but didn't translate when playing the game, with each episode featuring shoddy graphics, a limited number of saves, and terrible A.I. Players were also accompanied by computer-controlled characters who were meant to help with the mission but usually got in the way and made the entire experience forgettable.

The game was also remembered for the infamous "John Romero's about to make you his [Redacted]" advertisement. The designer received a heap of flack from fans for the advertisement with many fans boycotting the game. Despite apologizing for his actions, Daikatana failed to sell and was relegated to the list of woeful 00s games.

11 Worst: Trucks Don't Make Everything Better

Everybody loves a good racing game and game companies are always looking for a different way to present things to get gamers excited. Developer Stellar Stone decided creating a driving game where players race semi-trucks against the clock to deliver illegal cargo while outrunning the cops was the perfect way to get audiences keen. It actually sounded like a good idea until you played the game. There were no trailers attached to the trucks and an absence of police. The game turned out to be a standard racing game with the big rigs being the only thing differentiating it from other racers.

The game was an unmitigated disaster and looked like the developers hadn't had time to finish it.

Along with the poor gameplay, rubbish graphics, and the lack of trucks to choose from, Big Rigs became a massive failure. The game was received so badly it holds a score of 8/100 on Metacritic, which is an achievement in itself, and was scored 1/10 by GameSpot, the only release ever to score a rating so low. Despite all this, the game has somehow gained a cult following with a small community of players praising the end result.