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[Silver_DNA]

God of War's last level with the rotating blade walls. It was a pain in the butt to scale those things and if you make one little mistake then it's all the way to the bottom for you. It was far more frustrating than fun and I hated revisiting that part

Spoiler

and the horrid final battle

when I replay it.

Also, there are a few levels in Super Paper Mario that I hated. Namely the space level and one near the end. They were long, confusing, and boring.

 

[eXistor]

This factory monstrosity is bad design. I never played Mother 1, and now I never want to.

Lots of games had design like this. Phantasy Star II was full of them. Thank god it came with a guidebook.

To comment on the Library level from Halo: I love it. It's repetitive, but to me it's the most exhilirating level in the game. I love fighting the flood as it is and the claustrophobic setting made it perfect. You were always on your toes, they could come out from anywhere.

 

[Rhazer Fusion]

Some of Knight's Contracts levels were pretty confusing.

 

[Arthea]

Dungeons of FF12, many of them, chore and bore.
Also Tartar tower (Persona 3), randomly generated dungeons are worst, simply because they are so boring.
Actually most Atlus created dungeons are pretty bad. Then again I don't particularly like dungeon crawlers, may that's why.
DQ9 boss dungeons (randomly generated of course).

 

[Yoshichan]

Dark Souls
Lost Izalith, Tomb of the Giants

 

[Spring-Loaded]

Having played around in level 2 for nearly 500 hours total (it's my top favorite level of all), I discovered many bugs and secrets during all that time. Ever wonder how you can get on top of that rocket? Want to know the very highest point you can stand on or the highest point you can get to? Care for some mountain climbing or some other side challenges? I demonstrate 5 of my 9 main secrets in this video. No cheat codes are required either (the position cheat is used, but even that is not required). The left speaker has me speaking to explain the various secrets along with a few other remarks. The right speaker plays the original sound track.

 

[Cerity]

Probably lost ivalice and it's boss in darksouls.

The boss level - Hey, you know what, lets make a platforming boss in a game that has absolutely shitty mechanics for platforming.

 

[Mr_Zombie]

It could have been better, but the whole point is that it is a gun ping-pong match between players.

Wait, that part can also be played in 4 co-op (well, 2vs2) and you can actually win (i.e. be first to the elevator or be first with hacking the door)? I thought that no matter what it always plays the same way. :O

 

[C4Lukins]

Cortana:Halo 3

This is up there. Just about every Duke Nukem 3d level takes the cake. Just complete nonsense level design. "Blow up this wall, walk into the crack to trigger some ghost door opening up earlier in the level, go back to the begining of the level without any indication that you should do so, and so on."

 

[mephixto]

both from Modern Warfare 2 (Infinity Ward HAS LOST IT!)

Worse than abysmal. I can't find the proper word for these two.

Theres is only one type on fps player that hate those maps. SMG users.

 

[encephalon]

Everything in the original Persona. Needlessly lengthy, deliberately bland dungeons. I'm not sure why I subjected myself to beating the game.

 

[RadioHeadAche]

The conveyor-belt level in Metal Gear: Ghost Babel when you have to change box-types to access specific routes. The worst part in what was otherwise a great Metal Gear.

 

[AppleMIX]

Metro isn't bad, it's just not designed for conquest. It is a great rush map.

 

[Spira]

RE5: the last 45 minutes.

 

[encephalon]

I'm not sure if its the level design or the mechanics, but Burning Rangers levels on the Saturn are actually pretty bad. The game is novel, but ...

 

[many places]

both from Modern Warfare 2 (Infinity Ward HAS LOST IT!)

Worse than abysmal. I can't find the proper word for these two.

They were really fun though. Atleast to me anyway. Well fun if you were doing well, pissed me off soooo much if I was getting destroyed lol.

 

[PepsimanVsJoe]

Theres is only one type on fps player that hate those maps. SMG users.

*Shrug* I had some pretty good streaks camping the office in the center of the snow map with an SMG.

 

[Froschi]

Halo. Library. Awful. Just awful.

Or, if you count the entirety of Daikatana as one level, then Daikatana. What a incredibly stupid waste of time (and not so much talent).

 

[RobbieH]

Sewers in Bloodlines,

Spoiler

Earth

in Darksiders II, Library in Halo, almost the entire second half of Hitman: Absolution.

 

[Fistwell]

This lazy piece of junk

Yeah carrier is pretty shit.

Theres is only one type on fps player that hate those maps. SMG users.

Loved running around these maps with suppressed AR or SMG, blind-siding snipers staring at the center of the map through their scopes.

My vote would go to lost izalith in dark souls.

"Hey let's throw a bunch of taurus demons in there, and a bunch of capra, and a bunch of them giant 1/2 chicken asses the intern never actually finished modelling before he got sacked (did you hear he actually asked for money!?! the gall!!), and a bunch of gargoyle things yeah that'll do, and tack on a shitty, arbitrary, bullshit boss at the end cause hey why the fuck not."

 

[Riposte]

Having played around in level 2 for nearly 500 hours total (it's my top favorite level of all), I discovered many bugs and secrets during all that time. Ever wonder how you can get on top of that rocket? Want to know the very highest point you can stand on or the highest point you can get to? Care for some mountain climbing or some other side challenges? I demonstrate 5 of my 9 main secrets in this video. No cheat codes are required either (the position cheat is used, but even that is not required). The left speaker has me speaking to explain the various secrets along with a few other remarks. The right speaker plays the original sound track.

I will always love this video. It is pretty much my favorite on the internet.

Wait, that part can also be played in 4 co-op (well, 2vs2) and you can actually win (i.e. be first to the elevator or be first with hacking the door)? I thought that no matter what it always plays the same way. :O

Yes. That and the laser room before have a reward chest for the team who wins.

 

[nephilimdj]

That first dungeon in eternal sonata, oh my god, I had to watch a 20 minute youtube video, and even then I got lost.. having to hit 7 switches is a certain order, when each switch is about 1-2min traveling distance apart

 

[Lord British]

There's nothing worse than badly designed levels in games that actually feel good to play, and Sonic 2 is chock full of them in my opinion, inspiring some of the most cheap level design ideas that persists into even modern Sonic games. But none of them are as bad as Metropolis Zone, which is a reason enough for me to consider it the worst Classic Sonic game in the entire trilogy.

The entire zone is a clusterfuck of a maze with bad artistic design and awful platforming gimmicks, as well as terrible enemies such as the preying mantis robots, the stars that explode or worst of all the shellcrackers that you can't attack in any area when they have their claws exposed. To add more salt to the wound, it is the ONLY stage in the game that has three acts, as if the designers were deliberately stretching it in order to laugh at the misery. If I don't have Super Sonic by the time I get to this level I pretty much restart the game since I can't be bothered to go through with it.

Also the boss is fucking retarded too.

I agree. I actually wrote a big thing once about how Sonic 2 is one of the worst games ever - obviously I don't actually think that, I'm not mental, but it does have some huge problems.

 

[computers putin']

both from Modern Warfare 2 (Infinity Ward HAS LOST IT!)

Worse than abysmal. I can't find the proper word for these two.

These maps were good, better than most of the maps that followed it in subsequent CoD's.

 

[Moertel]

FF12 had a great map system, which made the Great Crystal all the more hellish. Actually I don't think I've EVER seen a teleporting platforms level pulled off right, they're all universally painful to navigate.

Oh my gosh, yes. I fucking hated Nabreus, too.

 

[Espada]

Ephemeral Fantasia had a pretty lousy layout for everything. The entire game was played on a timer, Majora's Mask style, but the world had a confusing layout and had random encounters inside otherwise "safe" areas such as castle dining rooms.

That game was a horrendous. The goddamn TOWN was setup like a labyrinth, and since you were on a timer you were constantly racing through that piece of crap to get to someone before they were unavailable until the next day. As if that wasn't bad enough, the dungeons were just as bad and as you said you'd get random battles in areas that should be safe. This was never explained in the game itself.

The Great Crystal was a nightmare.

ShingShingShingShingShingShingShingShingShingShingShingShingShingShingShingShing

Hear that? That's the sound of madness. To add insult to injury the map is artwork of the great crystal and nothing more. So not only is this infernal sound gnawing at your sanity while you trudge through clone-rooms, but the map is worthless as well.

ALICE IN WONDERLAND KH1

Just the thought of having to do this stage often kills my desire to replay KH1. My sister loves this game and loves watching me play it, but she'll walk out until Wonderland is done.

Taturus from Persona 3...had a horrible layout and was always a drag to get through. Persona 4 thankfully fixed that.

This is a big reason why I prefer 4 to 3. Tartarus both revealed and exceeded my tolerance for how many floors a dungeon could have. My biggest hope for 5 is that they ditch the whole setup entirely and go for even more dungeon variety.

Also, there are a few levels in Super Paper Mario that I hated. Namely the space level and one near the end. They were long, confusing, and boring.

Count Bleck? Nastasia? Mr L and Brobot? Etc...? I loved them. The gameplay was a gimmick best suited for 1 stage in a traditional Paper Mario game. But Overthere Stair? That place was awful, and the damn fetch quest the game throws at you only prolongs the time you're there.

I forgot to mention my pick: Meat Circus from Psychonauts. That stage was so awful I stopped playing the game for months because of it. It wasn't fun or well made in the least.

 

[Mogwai]

The middle eastern level of Splinter Cell: Conviction. It was super boring and made no-sense in the context of the gameplay.

 

[Makai]

Kingdom Hearts whale stage

 

[jufonuk]

Dead Space, every part

no just the asteroid section, aaaaaaaaaargh

 

[Anteater]

Having played around in level 2 for nearly 500 hours total (it's my top favorite level of all), I discovered many bugs and secrets during all that time. Ever wonder how you can get on top of that rocket? Want to know the very highest point you can stand on or the highest point you can get to? Care for some mountain climbing or some other side challenges? I demonstrate 5 of my 9 main secrets in this video. No cheat codes are required either (the position cheat is used, but even that is not required). The left speaker has me speaking to explain the various secrets along with a few other remarks. The right speaker plays the original sound track.

Someone should hire the dude, even if it's just to narrate some of their videos, I fucking love his voice.

 

[C4Lukins]

Oh yeah has anyone played Sonic CD? This classic game that we all wanted to experience but, it required a crazy add on to participate. Wow, what an amazing crazy experience that game is now that we can all download and play it. It is a horrifying mess of level design.

 

[mokeyjoe]

The Chasm in Doom 2. Such an annoying level whenever I play it.

 

[Lord British]

Makes me sad to see so many people ragging on Sonic CD. It's the true sequel to Sonic 1 and a staggering achievement in design. Complex and rewarding. Different, yes, but fascinating and intricate.

 

[Zweisy1]

I remember the first Kingdom Hearts having some worthless level design. Pathetic few room "worlds" where you just walk back and fort..

 

[Jb]

Halo 3 - Cortana. Bungie finally managing to outshit the Library. Congrats guys!

 

[iMax]

The end of BioShock Infinite.

Spoiler

...on the airship roof.

 

[Arc Christelle]

Oh yeah has anyone played Sonic CD? This classic game that we all wanted to experience but, it required a crazy add on to participate. Wow, what an amazing crazy experience that game is now that we can all download and play it. It is a horrifying mess of level design.

Yep. Discussing that trainwreck now.

Hey, the UFO stuff is pretty cool! Find it to be one of the easier special stages in the 2D Sonic games.

lol Nope, The UFO's just pissed me off even more. Although strangely addictive and the controls kinda remind me of Sonic R. BUT NO. Get these Aliens outta here!! -points to the door-

Usually there's some method to the madness in Sonic games but the Sonic CD was like they were trying to prove to me how much they really didn't give a fuck. lol They were still using Sonic 1's sprite, the colors and aesthetics didn't have the vibe of the other three (not even Sonic 1), the boss fights were beyond terrible. It was like they were selling shit burgers, with an anime/evil clone/rival slushy. I stayed for the slushy, but I'll be damned if I'm gonna eat that burger. I did the same for 2006, I stayed for the story, then left. The game was ass, but the music was banging.

Although I do feel the same sentiment a lot of Sonic Fans have towards 2006, I hope one day Sega just remakes the whole game and fixes it.

Spoiler

Keep the Elise x Sonic stuff. It's was the most delightfully twisted shit I've ever seen in a video game. Although having to choose between her and Amy served no damn purpose.

..... Don't judge me. >_>

 

[Screaming Meat]

That level in Max Payne where you walk on a trail of blood in a strange dream world...... hate it.

Those aptly named Nightmare sequences? I second that. Glad the follow up got rid of the finicky platforming sections and kept the all that juicy weirdness.

 

[PeakPointMatrix]

This and all of Sonic CD..... Fuck that game.

I actually feel like Sonic CD was the Sonic 06 of the Genesis era. They damn near have the same problems but the sickest soundtracks.

So this. I just don't understand how it is so beloved. The music kicks ass, but the level design is just anti fun, anti Sonic, and a poorly executed premise.

 

[Inskipp]

That level in Max Payne where you walk on a trail of blood in a strange dream world...... hate it.

Yeah I always kept slipping from those due to the loose movement during that part. Thematically it was awesome though (those screams when you reached a dead-end... still gives me chills)

 

[Myriadis]

Everything from Final Fantasy XIII.

Final Fantasy XIII easy...it's just a line!

Don't forget Final Fantasy X. Also nothing but straight lines. Then there's one area that looks a bit more open, but is absolutely empty and just serves as a way to get from Point A to B (and the arena, but even that is just one optional room).

------------------
Mark of Kri has the sixth and final level. The first quarter is alright, with some nice variation in level design. Then after that, you go from room to room which all look competely identical and slaughter hundres of enemies. This in a game where stealth is normally well done and rewarded. It was like a different game. And the boss fight consists of nothing but waves of enemies.

 

[nan0]

The later levels in Star Ocean 3 were just bullshit. Especially Firewall and Spiral tower. Shrine of Kaddan was also horrible. Just look at this mess:

And then imagine randomly moving spheres filling the entire width of the path that block your way and teleporting you back to the beginning upon touching them.


Persona 4's dungeons were also boring as hell. Just randomly generated rooms connected with hallways that look all the same. In dungeons that are 9 or more levels deep.

 

[Earthpainting]

While Mega Man X7 is a far worse game due to being boring and mechanically sloppy, Mega Man X6 really pushes what I was willing to put up with in level design. The foundation of the mechanics feel and are great. No surprise since it builds on Mega Man X4 and X5. X6 is just a frustrating and annoying mess entirely due to the enemy and level design.

One of the prime reasons what ruins X6 is those flying virus enemies that seem to infinitely respawn at times in every single stage. These virus ghosts clip through the stages, slowly homing in on you and also somehow have projectile attacks. X6 has enough stage hazards to make it hard enough, but having to deal with these guys ontop of that, makes you want to pull your hair out.

The stages are all pretty bafflingly poor, but Blaze Heatnix' stage in particular is probably the worst one. It uses a certain miniboss so often that even Okami would start blushing.

 

[2+2=5]

Almost every single scrolling level in life of a pixel, it should be exposed in every single book about level design as an example of how to NOT make levels.

 

[Jawmuncher]

Everything in the original Persona. Needlessly lengthy, deliberately bland dungeons. I'm not sure why I subjected myself to beating the game.

I know that pain all to well.

 

[BudokaiMR2]

I absolutely hated the Tarzan jungle in Kingdom Hearts.
Not many things can call that sort of base anger from me but that shit ass design did.
I basically swore off the entire series because of it. lol

 

[elektrixx]

Halo Combat Evolved's Library comes to mind. I suppose it's unfair because I'm not thinking of bad games but instead great games with a comparatively (?) bad level.

Because of the controls, the toy helicopter level in GTA Vice City was a shocker.

 

[raven777]

I absolutely hated the Tarzan jungle in Kingdom Hearts.
Not many things can call that sort of base anger from me but that shit ass design did.
I basically swore off the entire series because of it. lol

This. I was just recently replaying KH with KH HD1.5 and I still hated this stage after all those years.

 

[Roto13]

I never knew Gran Pulse was a straight line.

I don't think a lot of GAF ever really made it to Gran Pulse. Or if they did, they just wanted the game to be over by then.

I can't really blame them either way. Gran Pulse was really good, and I wish it had been the whole game, but the giant straight line leading up to it is a bad decision that you shouldn't have to suffer through.

Taturus from Persona 3...had a horrible layout and was always a drag to get through. Persona 4 thankfully fixed that.

Persona 4's layouts were pretty much the same as Persona 3's. One-space-wide corridors connecting 2x2 rooms. They're both boring and terrible. Persona 4 has more interesting wallpaper and background music (because Persona 3 uses different versions of the same song all the way through Tartarus) but that's about it. Dungeons are definitely Persona 3 and 4's major flaw.

I absolutely hated the Tarzan jungle in Kingdom Hearts.
Not many things can call that sort of base anger from me but that shit ass design did.
I basically swore off the entire series because of it. lol

You know, with Tarzan's jungle, and the Wonderland level, and the terrible Cerberus boss that you can't see because of the shitty camera, it's amazing anyone didn't just do what I did and quit a few levels in.

 

[Ushae]

Guys, guys I got this one.

Spoiler

Dragon Age 2

.. all of it