Our Six Worst Video Game Glitches
Every gamer has faced those maddening moments when a glitch derails their carefully laid plans and painstaking progress. Whether it's getting locked out of the final boss battle or losing hours of gameplay, these glitches can make you want to throw your controller out the window. We dive into some of our most memorable (and infuriating) glitches we've encountered over the years. Brace yourselves for tales of heartache, frustration, and the occasional laugh as we recount these digital nightmares.
1. Torchlight 3 – The Door That Wouldn't Open
Imagine spending 30 hours on a game, only to be locked out of the final boss battle. That’s what happened to Lord in Torchlight 3. Despite clearing the entire area, the door to the final boss refused to open. After scouring the map for any missed enemies or levers, it became clear that this glitch was insurmountable, forcing a heartbreaking end to an otherwise enjoyable co-op experience.
2. Starfield – The Endless Autosave Loop
During a mission in Starfield, the last enemy needed to progress spawned underneath the environment. After multiple attempts to reset spawn, autosaves had overwritten the original save, leaving no option but for Maulding to restart from a save point two and a half hours earlier. While the glitch did not repeat, the frustration of losing significant progress almost led to abandoning the game.
3. Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones – The Fatal Fountain
Dan encountered a notorious glitch in the GameCube port of Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones involved a fountain before the final boss battle. Drinking from it would save the game but also break it, preventing any further progress. With no other save options available, the game became unfinishable, resulting in a complete loss of progress and a very dissatisfied gamer.
4. Super Metroid – The Flying SNES Disaster
This was a physical glitch caused by a sibling's friend jumping over and pulling the SNES console led to a complete reset of Super Metroid, erasing a save file that contained the final energy tank. The emotional toll of losing such significant progress was immense, showcasing how even the hardware can sometimes conspire against gamers.
5. Ark: Survival Evolved – The Vanishing Backpack
In Ark: Survival Evolved, dying means losing all your equipment, which falls into a backpack at the site of your death. However, a glitch caused the backpack to clip through the environment and disappear, resulting in the loss of hours' worth of collected items. While cheats allowed for recovery, relying on them highlighted a significant flaw in the game’s design and it wouldnt have been possible in an official server.
6. GTA Online – The Black Screen of Death
During the launch of GTA Online, our friend Brendan (friend of the Pod!) was trapped in a black screen after trying to enter the garage. This glitch rendered the game unplayable for him while Dan and Maulding enjoyed their gameplay. Despite attempts to reload, the issue persisted until a patch was released weeks later. The irony of friends reveling in the game while one couldn’t join made the situation all the more bitter.
These glitches remind us of the unpredictability and sometimes infuriating nature of video games. Yet, despite the frustrations, they also create memorable (if not fond) experiences that we, as gamers, often look back on with a mix of humor and exasperation.