10 worst ways to spend your time in a game

5. Sewer levels

They crop up so often. Games are a chance for players to fulfil their ambitions, to experience things they would never do in reality, to see the world, to be a hero, albeit safely within the confines of a game.

So with that in mind where does chasing baddies through rivers of sewage feature? If it just happened in one game it'd be an interesting twist, but no, sewers are a top choice for a level setting.

Sewers are added for plot reasons. of course - it's nothing to do with the fact you can use a small amount of textures to pad a whole lot of game time. Oh no.

Sewer level

GOING UNDERGROUND: Typical examples of sewer dwellers: dead people

4. Playing the bass

Insult and injury combine for one member of a Guitar Hero co-op team.

3. Rare spawn collecting

This practice dates back to the golden age of Ultima Online. Every day the server reset at about six in the morning and when it did several rare items would spawn that would not spawn again until the next day.

Players would set their alarms, and soon as the server would come up players would pile in to collect the items. Fun on a bun.

2. Mining asteroids

If you want something in EVE Online it has to be built and this means that somebody has to build it, and for that to happen somebody with a big spaceship has to zoom out to an asteroid field and dig some minerals out of a rock.

Combat with non-player enemies in EVE is not very exciting; combat with large pieces of floating rock is even less exciting.

Eve online

ROCKING: Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to work we go

1. Working

Released on the PSP, Work Time Fun is a collection of minigames which offers a nightmarish insight into exactly what gamers are willing to put up with.

Each minigame is based around some menial job, from picking up golf balls to putting on pen caps, you complete them, earn money, buy meaningless rewards. That's it.

As a game it ranks on the fun scale alongside punching yourself repeatedly in the crotch.

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Liked this? Then check out The past, present and future of RTS gaming

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