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* ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'', in part due to its very unconventional gameplay for a FightingGame, runs into the problem of conflicted appeal. The game intended to reach casual fans with its appealing characters, variety of modes, hidden lore, wealth of unlockables, and relatively simple controls. The game also wanted to appeal to competitive players with its surprising amount of depth to its combat and customization options. In practice, however, the two intentions came into conflict, as casual fans were overwhelmed by the surprisingly complex gameplay while fighting game fans didn't feel the game was complex enough for them. The game sold modestly well for a new and unorthodox property, but it didn't quite reach the leagues of Creator/{{Nintendo}} EPD's other big names like ''Mario'', ''Splatoon'', or ''Animal Crossing'', and plans to make it an ongoing franchise [[StillbornFranchise were quietly shelved]], though it instead won over a [[CultClassic more low-key following]] that appreciated its unusual gameplay,
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* ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'', in part due to its very unconventional gameplay for a FightingGame, runs into the problem of conflicted appeal. The game intended to reach casual fans with its appealing characters, variety of modes, hidden lore, wealth of unlockables, and relatively simple controls. The game also wanted to appeal to competitive players with its surprising amount of depth to its combat and customization options. In practice, however, the two intentions came into conflict, as casual fans were overwhelmed by the surprisingly complex gameplay while fighting game fans didn't feel the game was complex enough for them. The game sold modestly well for a new and unorthodox property, but it didn't quite reach the leagues of Creator/{{Nintendo}} EPD's other big names like ''Mario'', ''Splatoon'', or ''Animal Crossing'', and plans to make it an ongoing franchise [[StillbornFranchise were quietly shelved]], though it instead won over a [[CultClassic more low-key following]] that appreciated its unusual gameplay, gameplay.
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The first Shantae game came out for the Game Boy Color, not the GBA.
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* The original ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' GBA game sold badly because it was missing a clear target demographic, embodying WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids and WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids at the same time. The creator himself once said that it's "too sexy for a kids' game and too girly for a male gamer game." It's got a cute art style with a bright, primary-color palette, mostly-lighthearted stories, an occasional BlackComedyBurst or dead-serious moment, sexy character designs, and a level of ParentalBonus and raunchy humor that would raise a few eyebrows with parents. As the series has gone on, it's moved to a T-rating, and it has come to target older gamers who'd be the PeripheryDemographic for a more "kiddie" series, but the difficulty of the gameplay has stayed low, leaving it underwhelming for adults. That said, the series has still managed to become one of the biggest indie franchises with a passionate fanbase, so it has managed to find an audience despite this.
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* The original ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' GBA GBC game sold badly because it was missing a clear target demographic, embodying WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids and WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids at the same time. The creator himself once said that it's "too sexy for a kids' game and too girly for a male gamer game." It's got a cute art style with a bright, primary-color palette, mostly-lighthearted stories, an occasional BlackComedyBurst or dead-serious moment, sexy character designs, and a level of ParentalBonus and raunchy humor that would raise a few eyebrows with parents. As the series has gone on, it's moved to a T-rating, and it has come to target older gamers who'd be the PeripheryDemographic for a more "kiddie" series, but the difficulty of the gameplay has stayed low, leaving it underwhelming for adults. That said, the series has still managed to become one of the biggest indie franchises with a passionate fanbase, so it has managed to find an audience despite this.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' is missing a clear target demographic, embodying WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids and WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids at the same time. The creator himself once said that it's "too sexy for a kids' game and too girly for a male gamer game." It's got a cute art style with a bright, primary-color palette, mostly-lighthearted stories, an occasional BlackComedyBurst or dead-serious moment, sexy character designs, and a level of ParentalBonus and raunchy humor that would raise a few eyebrows with parents. As the series has gone on, it's moved to a T-rating, and it has come to target older gamers who'd be the PeripheryDemographic for a more "kiddie" series, but the difficulty of the gameplay has stayed low, leaving it underwhelming for adults. That said, the series has still managed to become one of the biggest indie franchises with a passionate fanbase, so it has managed to find an audience despite this.
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* The original ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' is GBA game sold badly because it was missing a clear target demographic, embodying WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids and WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids at the same time. The creator himself once said that it's "too sexy for a kids' game and too girly for a male gamer game." It's got a cute art style with a bright, primary-color palette, mostly-lighthearted stories, an occasional BlackComedyBurst or dead-serious moment, sexy character designs, and a level of ParentalBonus and raunchy humor that would raise a few eyebrows with parents. As the series has gone on, it's moved to a T-rating, and it has come to target older gamers who'd be the PeripheryDemographic for a more "kiddie" series, but the difficulty of the gameplay has stayed low, leaving it underwhelming for adults. That said, the series has still managed to become one of the biggest indie franchises with a passionate fanbase, so it has managed to find an audience despite this.
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redirect to first sonic rush page
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** The [[EpisodicGame first episode]] of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog4'' particularly suffered from a misguided attempt to cater to opposing groups. To appeal to older fans, Creator/SonicTeam and Creator/{{Dimps}} made the level aesthetics faithful recreations of popular levels from the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis games--but the core gameplay tries to cater to new players by having movement physics reminiscient of ''[[VideoGame/SonicRushSeries Sonic Rush]]'', involving very little downhill momentum and with a focus on the Homing Attack. Because of this, potential new players were put off by the aesthetics while established ''Sonic'' fans heavily criticized the gameplay for being too different from the Genesis games and not very good in its own right. The second episode [[AuthorsSavingThrow managed to resolve both issues]] by having more original level themes and improved physics, but the first episode's reputation caused ''Sonic 4'' as a whole to underperform, leading it to be CutShort. The next attempt at a retro-styled game with modern elements, ''VideoGame/SonicMania'' not only fared significantly better, but effectively acts as a direct sequel to the original games in the AlternateTimeline for Classic Sonic that would be established in ''VideoGame/SonicForces''.
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** The [[EpisodicGame first episode]] of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog4'' particularly suffered from a misguided attempt to cater to opposing groups. To appeal to older fans, Creator/SonicTeam and Creator/{{Dimps}} made the level aesthetics faithful recreations of popular levels from the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis games--but the core gameplay tries to cater to new players by having movement physics reminiscient reminiscent of ''[[VideoGame/SonicRushSeries Sonic Rush]]'', ''VideoGame/SonicRush'', involving very little downhill momentum and with a focus on the Homing Attack. Because of this, potential new players were put off by the aesthetics while established ''Sonic'' fans heavily criticized the gameplay for being too different from the Genesis games and not very good in its own right. The second episode [[AuthorsSavingThrow managed to resolve both issues]] by having more original level themes and improved physics, but the first episode's reputation caused ''Sonic 4'' as a whole to underperform, leading it to be CutShort. The next attempt at a retro-styled game with modern elements, ''VideoGame/SonicMania'' not only fared significantly better, but effectively acts as a direct sequel to the original games in the AlternateTimeline for Classic Sonic that would be established in ''VideoGame/SonicForces''.
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Flows better this way
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* ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'', in part due to its very unconventional gameplay for a FightingGame, runs into the problem of conflicted appeal. The game intended to reach casual fans with its appealing characters, variety of modes, hidden lore, wealth of unlockables, and relatively simple controls. The game also wanted to appeal to competitive players with its surprising amount of depth to its combat and customization options. In practice, however, the two intentions came into conflict, as casual fans were overwhelmed by the surprisingly complex gameplay while fighting game fans didn't feel the game was complex enough for them. The game sold modestly well for a new and unorthodox property, but it didn't quite reach the leagues of Creator/{{Nintendo}} EPD's other big names like ''Mario'', ''Splatoon'', or ''Animal Crossing'', instead winning over a [[CultClassic more low-key following]] that appreciated its unusual gameplay, and plans to make it an ongoing franchise [[StillbornFranchise were quietly shelved]].
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* ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'', in part due to its very unconventional gameplay for a FightingGame, runs into the problem of conflicted appeal. The game intended to reach casual fans with its appealing characters, variety of modes, hidden lore, wealth of unlockables, and relatively simple controls. The game also wanted to appeal to competitive players with its surprising amount of depth to its combat and customization options. In practice, however, the two intentions came into conflict, as casual fans were overwhelmed by the surprisingly complex gameplay while fighting game fans didn't feel the game was complex enough for them. The game sold modestly well for a new and unorthodox property, but it didn't quite reach the leagues of Creator/{{Nintendo}} EPD's other big names like ''Mario'', ''Splatoon'', or ''Animal Crossing'', and plans to make it an ongoing franchise [[StillbornFranchise were quietly shelved]], though it instead winning won over a [[CultClassic more low-key following]] that appreciated its unusual gameplay, and plans to make it an ongoing franchise [[StillbornFranchise were quietly shelved]].
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** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7lGmshXRvM At least one person]] has theorized that indecisive appeal is the reason why ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' is so [[ContestedSequel divisive]] among fans, as it feels like it can't decide whether it was made for newer players brought in with the Wii's success or veteran players who have been following [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda the series]] for a long time. The game is loaded with several mandatory hints (mainly from [[ExpositionFairy Fi]]) that clearly explain where to progress most of the time, frustrating veteran players who want to figure things out on their own. At the same time, many of the puzzles not only require considerable spatial and logical awareness as with previous games in the series, but Fi tends to give little or vague hints on what to do with them, alienating newer players who want a more accessible experience. Regarding the game's overall structure, many longtime ''Zelda'' players were opposed to the game's focus on a [[NoSidepathsNoExplorationNoFreedom more linear structure]], given that previous ''Zelda'' games emphasized relatively free exploration with a focus on finding hidden treasures and rewards, often allowing the player to [[SequenceBreaking do dungeons out of order]]. Unfortunately, players into linear games were against the game's vast-yet-empty Sky area, the long, mandatory quests to access the game's [[DungeonCrawling dungeons]], and especially the high amount of {{Backtracking}} in its second half, given that fans of linear games prefer their games to have a brisker pace free of filler content. Finally, the motion-controlled swordplay didn't endear the game to veteran ''Zelda'' fans who found the button-controlled sword swings much more reliable, while newcomers presumably coming from ''VideoGame/WiiSportsResort'' found much of the combat frustrating due to how enemies actively block your attacks. The UpdatedRerelease for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch addressed some of these issues, such as making most of the hints opt-in and adding a new control scheme without motion controls, but the conflict between the game's linearity and the rather slow pacing remained.
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** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7lGmshXRvM At least one person]] has theorized that indecisive appeal is the reason why ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' is so [[ContestedSequel divisive]] among fans, as it feels like it can't decide whether it was made for newer players brought in with the Wii's success or veteran players who have been following [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda the series]] for a long time. The game is loaded with several mandatory hints (mainly from [[ExpositionFairy Fi]]) that clearly explain where to progress most of the time, frustrating veteran players who want to figure things out on their own. At the same time, many of the puzzles not only require considerable spatial and logical awareness as with previous games in the series, but Fi tends to give little or vague hints on what to do with them, alienating newer players who want a more accessible experience. Regarding the game's overall structure, many longtime ''Zelda'' players were opposed to the game's focus on a [[NoSidepathsNoExplorationNoFreedom more linear structure]], given that previous ''Zelda'' games emphasized relatively free exploration with a focus on finding hidden treasures and rewards, often allowing the player to [[SequenceBreaking do dungeons out of order]]. Unfortunately, players into linear games were against the game's vast-yet-empty Sky area, the long, mandatory quests to access the game's [[DungeonCrawling dungeons]], and especially the high amount of {{Backtracking}} in its second half, given that fans of linear games prefer their games to have a brisker pace free of filler content. Finally, the motion-controlled swordplay didn't endear the game to veteran ''Zelda'' fans who found the button-controlled sword swings much more reliable, while newcomers presumably coming from ''VideoGame/WiiSportsResort'' found much of the combat frustrating due to how enemies actively block your attacks. Tellingly, the game sold less than half as well as the previous ''Zelda'' game on the Wii, the more traditional and non-linear ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', despite releasing at a point when the Wii hardware had sold many more copies. The UpdatedRerelease for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch addressed some of these issues, such as making most of the hints opt-in and adding a new control scheme without motion controls, but the conflict between the game's linearity and the rather slow pacing remained.
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* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' FanGame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'' has remained obscure within the already niche fandom of ExplorerHorror, and many, even its fans, pointed out its inability to decide upon a core target audience as a key reason why: ''Mario'' fans shied away from what they perceived as a ham-fisted attempt to be DarkerAndEdgier than its lighthearted source material and its plot revolving around its own original mythos and characters, alongside seeing it as a cheap imitation of ''VideoGame/LuigisMansionSeries'', explorer horror fans saw the ''Mario'' cast as shoehorned into a game that would be barely changed if they were absent and [[{{Narm}} detracting from its attempts to be taken seriously]], and parodists expecting the idea of [[GenreRefugee the Mario Bros. starring in a outright horror game]] to be PlayedForLaughs were disappointed by the game's heavy focus on disturbing elements and drama at the expense of humor and a general [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks inability to diverge from the clichés of its genre]].
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* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' FanGame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'' has remained obscure within the already niche fandom of ExplorerHorror, and many, even its fans, pointed out its inability to decide upon a core target audience as a key reason why: ''Mario'' fans shied away from what they perceived as a ham-fisted attempt to be DarkerAndEdgier than its lighthearted source material and its plot revolving around its own original mythos and characters, alongside seeing it as a cheap imitation of ''VideoGame/LuigisMansionSeries'', explorer horror fans saw the ''Mario'' cast as shoehorned into a game that would be barely changed if they were absent and [[{{Narm}} detracting from its attempts to be taken seriously]], and parodists expecting the idea of [[GenreRefugee the Mario Bros. starring in a an outright horror game]] to be PlayedForLaughs were disappointed by the game's heavy focus on disturbing elements and drama at the expense of humor and a general [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks inability to diverge from the clichés of its genre]].
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** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' attracts these claims. The fact that it centres on a trio of female characters and has a LighterAndSofter tone than its predecessor (the battle system revolves around changing clothes!) seems to [[GirlShowGhetto turn off male gamers]]. However there's also a massive heaping of {{Fanservice}}, LesYay and {{Stripperiffic}} outfits, which alienate female gamers. Consequently, while the game has fans who are able to look past these issues, it failed to maintain the staying power the previous game had, and was not as financially successfully.
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** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' attracts these claims. The fact that it centres on a trio of female characters and has a LighterAndSofter tone than its predecessor (the battle system revolves around changing clothes!) seems to [[GirlShowGhetto turn off male gamers]]. However there's also a massive heaping of {{Fanservice}}, LesYay and {{Stripperiffic}} outfits, which alienate female gamers. Consequently, while the game has fans who are able to look past these issues, it failed to maintain the staying power the previous game had, and was not as financially successfully.successful.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Battleborn}}'' failed partly because its inability to reconcile its HeroShooter[=/=]{{MOBA}} elements. [=MOBA=] fans were turned off by the game's first person shooter perspective, which they found constraining and ill-suited for [=MOBA=]-like strategies compared to the typical top-down perspective from a [=MOBA=] like ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends''. Conversely, shooter fans were turned off by the [=MOBA=] mechanics, which they felt added unnecessary complexity and placed less emphasis on actual shooting. As a result, the game failed to capture either the shooter or [=MOBA=] fans.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Battleborn}}'' failed partly in part because its inability to reconcile its HeroShooter[=/=]{{MOBA}} elements. it couldn't win over FirstPersonShooter[=/=]{{MOBA}} fans. [=MOBA=] fans were turned off by the game's first person shooter perspective, which they found constraining and ill-suited for executing [=MOBA=]-like strategies compared to the typical top-down perspective from a [=MOBA=] like ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends''. Conversely, shooter fans were turned off by the [=MOBA=] mechanics, which they felt added unnecessary complexity and placed less emphasis on actual shooting. As a result, the game failed to capture either the shooter or [=MOBA=] fans.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' failed because it couldn't sell its blend of FightingGame and BattleRoyaleGame genres. Fans of fighting games disliked the battle royale mode that saw as distracting and unbalanced while battle royale fans found the fighting-inspired combat too difficult and unfamiliar. It also didn't help that the cartoony art style was too similar to ''Fortnite'', making it harder to stand out.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' failed because it couldn't sell its blend of FightingGame and BattleRoyaleGame genres. Fans of fighting games disliked the The main battle royale mode that alienated fighting game fans, who saw it as too distracting and unbalanced while unbalanced. Conversely, the fighting game-inspired combat turned off many battle royale fans who found the fighting-inspired combat too it difficult and unfamiliar. unintuitive compared the straightforward shooting combat in other battle royale games. It also didn't help that the cartoony art style was too similar drew unfavorable comparisons to ''Fortnite'', making it harder to stand out.
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** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' attracts these claims. The fact that it centres on a trio of female characters and has a LighterAndSofter tone than its predecessor (the battle system revolves around changing clothes!) seems to [[GirlShowGhetto turn off male gamers]]. However there's also a massive heaping of {{Fanservice}}, LesYay and {{Stripperiffic}} outfits, which alienate female gamers.
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** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' attracts these claims. The fact that it centres on a trio of female characters and has a LighterAndSofter tone than its predecessor (the battle system revolves around changing clothes!) seems to [[GirlShowGhetto turn off male gamers]]. However there's also a massive heaping of {{Fanservice}}, LesYay and {{Stripperiffic}} outfits, which alienate female gamers. Consequently, while the game has fans who are able to look past these issues, it failed to maintain the staying power the previous game had, and was not as financially successfully.
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* ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'' ends up undergoing conflicting appeal due to its strange combination of gameplay and story. In terms of gameplay, it closely resembles the main ''[[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]]'' platformers due to being an explicit platformer that emphasizes finding power-ups in blocks and jumping on enemies as your main attack. In terms of story and presentation however, it strays far away from the usual ''Mario'' elements, as the game does not take place in the ''Mario'' universe and it emphasizes the more otherworldly original characters and enemies over the ''Mario'' cast. Because of this approach, fans of the ''Mario'' platformers may be turned away by the story focusing away from the ''Mario'' elements, while players uninterested in the ''Mario'' universe may be turned away from the gameplay hewing close to 2D ''Mario''.
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* ''VideoGame/RaidWorldWarII'': The game had one from conception as it was a 4 player co-op game made some of the same people who worked on ''VideoGame/PaydayTheHeist''...and was appealing to that same crowd, it even had a tie-in with ''VideoGame/PAYDAY2'' to give it a canonical connection with it[[note]]one of the rooms in the safe house is designed with World War II-themed paraphernalia, and Creator/JohnCleese portrays both Control in this game, [[UncannyFamilyResemblance and Aldstone]][[/note]]. However, it was clear that after the demo released, it just didn't tickle much interest with that userbase. Players of ''PAYDAY 2'' saw it as a mild reskin, citing that [=RAID=] [[ItsTheSameSoItSucks didn't bring much new to the table to differentiate itself]], so there wasn't much interest in playing [=RAID=] at the time when ''PAYDAY 2'' was still going strong, and actively benefitted from the crossover more than its parent game did, and the rest is history, really. Not helping matters was that the game was criticised for also using the same 13 year old Diesel engine ''PAYDAY 2'' does, and all the issues '''''that''''' entails, with the only real upgrade to the aging engine was the move to a 64-bit platform (which isn't even much of a selling point either, as ''PAYDAY 2'' on Linux is 64-bit anyway).Safe to say, there is a ''reason'' why the upcoming ''PAYDAY 3'' is '''not''' being made in the Diesel engine.
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* ''VideoGame/RaidWorldWarII'': The game had one from conception as it was a 4 player co-op game made some of the same people who worked on ''VideoGame/PaydayTheHeist''...and was appealing to that same crowd, it even had a tie-in with ''VideoGame/PAYDAY2'' to give it a canonical connection with it[[note]]one of the rooms in the safe house is designed with World War II-themed paraphernalia, and Creator/JohnCleese portrays both Control in this game, [[UncannyFamilyResemblance and Aldstone]][[/note]]. However, it was clear that after the demo released, it just didn't tickle much interest with that userbase. Players of ''PAYDAY 2'' saw it as a mild reskin, citing that [=RAID=] [[ItsTheSameSoItSucks didn't bring much new to the table to differentiate itself]], so there wasn't much interest in playing [=RAID=] at the time when ''PAYDAY 2'' was still going strong, and actively benefitted from the crossover more than its parent game did, and the rest is history, really. Not helping matters was that the game was criticised for also using the same 13 year old Diesel engine ''PAYDAY 2'' does, and all the issues '''''that''''' entails, with the only real upgrade to the aging engine was the move to a 64-bit platform (which isn't even much of a selling point either, as ''PAYDAY 2'' on Linux is 64-bit anyway). Safe to say, there is a ''reason'' why the upcoming ''PAYDAY 3'' is '''not''' being made in the Diesel engine.
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Just Audience Alienating Premise (overly niche) as UA needs to explain how the attempted appeals conflicted with each other.
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* ''VideoGame/CodeNameSteam'' fell into the unfortunate position of trying to appeal to numerous wildly different audiences all at once: TurnBasedStrategy game players, fans of {{steampunk}}, people interested in classic literature, comic book readers, and American historians. Needless to say, players actually interested in all of the aforementioned topics were in short supply, and the game underperformed in sales.
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Expanding examples.
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* ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'', in part due to its very unconventional gameplay for a FightingGame, runs into the problem of conflicted appeal. The game intended to reach casual fans with its appealing characters, variety of modes, hidden lore, wealth of unlockables, and relatively simple controls. The game also wanted to appeal to competitive players with its surprising amount of depth to its combat and customization options. In practice, however, the two intentions came into conflict, as casual fans were overwhelmed by the surprisingly complex gameplay while fighting game fans didn't feel the game was complex enough for them. The game sold modestly well for a new and unorthodox property, but it didn't quite reach the leagues of Creator/{{Nintendo}} EPD's other big names like ''Mario'', ''Splatoon'', or ''Animal Crossing'', instead winning over a [[CultClassic more low-key following]] that appreciated its unusual gameplay.
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* ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'', in part due to its very unconventional gameplay for a FightingGame, runs into the problem of conflicted appeal. The game intended to reach casual fans with its appealing characters, variety of modes, hidden lore, wealth of unlockables, and relatively simple controls. The game also wanted to appeal to competitive players with its surprising amount of depth to its combat and customization options. In practice, however, the two intentions came into conflict, as casual fans were overwhelmed by the surprisingly complex gameplay while fighting game fans didn't feel the game was complex enough for them. The game sold modestly well for a new and unorthodox property, but it didn't quite reach the leagues of Creator/{{Nintendo}} EPD's other big names like ''Mario'', ''Splatoon'', or ''Animal Crossing'', instead winning over a [[CultClassic more low-key following]] that appreciated its unusual gameplay.gameplay, and plans to make it an ongoing franchise [[StillbornFranchise were quietly shelved]].
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* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' FanGame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'' has remained obscure within the already niche fandom of ExplorerHorror, and many, even its fans, pointed out its inability to decide upon a core target audience as a key reason why: ''Mario'' fans shied away from what they perceived as a ham-fisted attempt to be DarkerAndEdgier than its lighthearted source material and its plot revolving around its own original mythos and characters, alongside seeing it as a cheap imitation of ''VideoGame/LuigisMansionSeries'', explorer horror fans saw the ''Mario'' cast as shoehorned into a game that would be barely changed if they were absent and [[{{Narm}} detracting from its attempts to be taken seriously]], and parodists expecting the idea of [[GenreRefugee the Mario Bros. starring in a outright horror game]] to be PlayedForLaughs, were disappointed by the game's heavy focus on disturbing elements and drama at the expense of humor and a general [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks inability to diverge from the clichés of its genre]].
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* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' FanGame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'' has remained obscure within the already niche fandom of ExplorerHorror, and many, even its fans, pointed out its inability to decide upon a core target audience as a key reason why: ''Mario'' fans shied away from what they perceived as a ham-fisted attempt to be DarkerAndEdgier than its lighthearted source material and its plot revolving around its own original mythos and characters, alongside seeing it as a cheap imitation of ''VideoGame/LuigisMansionSeries'', explorer horror fans saw the ''Mario'' cast as shoehorned into a game that would be barely changed if they were absent and [[{{Narm}} detracting from its attempts to be taken seriously]], and parodists expecting the idea of [[GenreRefugee the Mario Bros. starring in a outright horror game]] to be PlayedForLaughs, PlayedForLaughs were disappointed by the game's heavy focus on disturbing elements and drama at the expense of humor and a general [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks inability to diverge from the clichés of its genre]].
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* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterXTekken'' kind of gets this from the title, as given the two games are quite different, fans knew immediately [[SpotlightStealingCrossover somebody was going to get favoritism.]] Sure enough, the game turned out to be borrowing ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIV'''s artstyle, 2.5-D gameplay, and general design[[note]]granted, a game called ''Tekken X Street Fighter'' was supposed to be released in order to cater to the ''Tekken'' crowd, but it ended up going nowhere after ''[=SFXT=]'' bombed[[/note]]. If you liked ''Franchise/{{Tekken}}'', it didn't come across as a crossover so much as a ''Street Fighter'' game guest-starring the ''Tekken'' cast, but if you liked ''Street Fighter'', you probably already owned [[CapcomSequelStagnation at least three different versions]] of ''IV'' and didn't see a reason to pick up something so similar when there would probably be yet another version on the horizon to learn. And then there was the gem system, which let you modify fighters with gems found from buyable packs or random drops--the designers claimed the idea was to lure in fans of CCG-style games. But fans of card games want games that favor strategy over [[SomeDexterityRequired complex inputs and tight reactions]], so weren't interested in jumping over the barrier for entry, while fighting game fans dislike anything that removes focus on player skill, ''especially'' BribingYourWayToVictory or randomized elements.
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* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterXTekken'' kind of gets this from the title, as given the two games are quite different, fans knew immediately [[SpotlightStealingCrossover somebody was going to get favoritism.]] Sure enough, the game turned out to be borrowing ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIV'''s artstyle, 2.5-D gameplay, and general design[[note]]granted, a game called ''Tekken X Street Fighter'' was supposed to be released in order to cater to the ''Tekken'' crowd, but [[{{Vaporware}} it ended up going nowhere nowhere]] after ''[=SFXT=]'' bombed[[/note]]. If you liked ''Franchise/{{Tekken}}'', it didn't come across as a crossover so much as a ''Street Fighter'' game guest-starring the ''Tekken'' cast, but if you liked ''Street Fighter'', you probably already owned [[CapcomSequelStagnation at least three different versions]] of ''IV'' and didn't see a reason to pick up something so similar when there would probably be yet another version on the horizon to learn. And then there was the gem system, which let you modify fighters with gems found from buyable packs or random drops--the designers claimed the idea was to lure in fans of CCG-style games. But fans of card games want games that favor strategy over [[SomeDexterityRequired complex inputs and tight reactions]], so weren't interested in jumping over the barrier for entry, while fighting game fans dislike anything that removes focus on player skill, ''especially'' BribingYourWayToVictory or randomized elements.
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Adding an example and expanding another.
* ''VideoGame/CodeNameSteam'' fell into the unfortunate position of trying to appeal to numerous wildly different audiences all at once: TurnBasedStrategy game players, fans of {{steampunk}}, people interested in classic literature, comic book readers, and American historians. Needless to say, players actually interested in all of the aforementioned topics were in short supply, and the game underperformed in sales.
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* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' FanGame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'' has remained obscure within the already niche fandom of ExplorerHorror, and many, even its fans, pointed out its inability to decide upon a core target audience as a key reason why: ''Mario'' fans shied away from what they perceived as a ham-fisted attempt to be DarkerAndEdgier than its lighthearted source material and its plot revolving around its own original mythos and characters, explorer horror fans saw the ''Mario'' cast as shoehorned into a game that would be barely changed if they were absent and [[{{Narm}} detracting from its attempts to be taken seriously]], and parodists expecting the idea of [[GenreRefugee the Mario Bros. starring in a outright horror game]] to be PlayedForLaughs were disappointed by the game's heavy focus on disturbing elements and drama at the expense of humor and a general [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks inability to diverge from the clichés of its genre]].
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* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' FanGame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'' has remained obscure within the already niche fandom of ExplorerHorror, and many, even its fans, pointed out its inability to decide upon a core target audience as a key reason why: ''Mario'' fans shied away from what they perceived as a ham-fisted attempt to be DarkerAndEdgier than its lighthearted source material and its plot revolving around its own original mythos and characters, alongside seeing it as a cheap imitation of ''VideoGame/LuigisMansionSeries'', explorer horror fans saw the ''Mario'' cast as shoehorned into a game that would be barely changed if they were absent and [[{{Narm}} detracting from its attempts to be taken seriously]], and parodists expecting the idea of [[GenreRefugee the Mario Bros. starring in a outright horror game]] to be PlayedForLaughs PlayedForLaughs, were disappointed by the game's heavy focus on disturbing elements and drama at the expense of humor and a general [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks inability to diverge from the clichés of its genre]].
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* ''VideoGame/BattlefieldV'' became such a divisive title in the ''Battlefield'' series because developer DICE struggled to reconcile its gameplay and aesthetics. The more tactical gameplay with reduced ammo capacity and scaled down health regeneration is supposed to appeal to the hardcore gamers. At the same time, it had wacky cosmetics that are supposed to draw in mainstream audiences, specifically the ''Fortnite'' crowd. Likewise, the game had modes like Firestorm and the now-cancelled 5v5 mode, which were attempts to cash in on the Battle Royale and eSports trends, respectively. Unfortunately, the game failed to fully satisfy any demographic with casual audiences frustrated by the high difficulty curve and the grim tone that replicated the somberness of its predecessor ''VideoGame/Battlefield1'' but wihout the exotic Steampunk weaponry and gadgets that set [=BF1=] apart from other generic historical shooters; hardcore gamers alienated by the juvenile cosmetics and PoliticallyCorrectHistory approach that clashed with the serious World War 2 mood; and veteran ''Battlefield'' fans were frustrated by the developers for chasing trends instead of building on the core experience.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Battleborn}}'' failed partly because its inability to reconcile its HeroShooter[=/=]{{MOBA}} elements. [=MOBA=] fans were turned off by the game's first person shooter perspective, which they found constraining and ill-suited for [=MOBA=]-like strategies compared to the typical top-down perspective from a [=MOBA=] like ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends''. Conversely, shooter fans were turned off by the [=MOBA=] mechanics, which they felt added unnecessary complexity and placed less emphasis on actual shooting. As a result, the game failed to capture either the shooter or [=MOBA=] fans.
* ''VideoGame/BattlefieldV'' became such a divisive title in the ''Battlefield'' series because developer DICE struggled to reconcile its gameplay and aesthetics. The more tactical gameplay with reduced ammo capacity and scaled down health regeneration is supposed to appeal to the hardcore gamers. At the same time, it had wacky cosmetics that are supposed to draw in mainstream audiences, specifically the ''Fortnite'' crowd. Likewise, the game had modes like Firestorm and the now-cancelled 5v5 mode, which were attempts to cash in on the Battle Royale and eSports trends, respectively. Unfortunately, the game failed to fully satisfy any demographic with casual audiences frustrated by the high difficulty curve and the grim tone that replicated the somberness of its predecessor ''VideoGame/Battlefield1'' butwihout without the exotic Steampunk weaponry and gadgets that set [=BF1=] apart from other generic historical shooters; hardcore gamers alienated by the juvenile cosmetics and PoliticallyCorrectHistory approach that clashed with the serious World War 2 mood; and veteran ''Battlefield'' fans were frustrated by the developers for chasing trends instead of building on at the core experience.expense of the franchise's traditional gameplay and aesthetics.
* ''VideoGame/BattlefieldV'' became such a divisive title in the ''Battlefield'' series because developer DICE struggled to reconcile its gameplay and aesthetics. The more tactical gameplay with reduced ammo capacity and scaled down health regeneration is supposed to appeal to the hardcore gamers. At the same time, it had wacky cosmetics that are supposed to draw in mainstream audiences, specifically the ''Fortnite'' crowd. Likewise, the game had modes like Firestorm and the now-cancelled 5v5 mode, which were attempts to cash in on the Battle Royale and eSports trends, respectively. Unfortunately, the game failed to fully satisfy any demographic with casual audiences frustrated by the high difficulty curve and the grim tone that replicated the somberness of its predecessor ''VideoGame/Battlefield1'' but
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** ''VideoGame/RiskOfRoblocks'': The game tries to be a ReferenceOverdosed VideoGameRandomizer in the vein of ''VideoGame/ItemAsylum'' and ''VideoGame/{{Allusions}}'' while having hardcore mechanics similar to ''VideoGame/{{Deepwoken}}''. However, casual players find the game way too complex for them to have fun, while the more competitive players are unable to take the game seriously due to being meme-based. The self-contradiction of this meant that it appealed to no one and saw rapidly-plummeting playercounts not long after launch.
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** ''VideoGame/RiskOfRoblocks'': ''VideoGame/RiskOfRoadblocks'': The game tries to be a ReferenceOverdosed VideoGameRandomizer in the vein of ''VideoGame/ItemAsylum'' and ''VideoGame/{{Allusions}}'' while having hardcore mechanics similar to ''VideoGame/{{Deepwoken}}''. However, casual players find the game way too complex for them to have fun, while the more competitive players are unable to take the game seriously due to being meme-based. The self-contradiction of this meant that it appealed to no one and saw rapidly-plummeting playercounts not long after launch.
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** ''VideoGame/RiskOfRoblocks'': The game tries to be a ReferenceOverdosed VideoGameRandomizer in the vein of ''VideoGame/ItemAsylum'' and ''VideoGame/{{Allusions}}'' while having hardcore mechanics similar to ''VideoGame/{{Deepwoken}}''. However, casual players find the game way too complex for them to have fun, while the more competitive players are unable to take the game seriously due to being meme-based. The self-contradiction of this meant that it appealed to no one and saw rapidly-plummeting playercounts not long after launch.
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** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7lGmshXRvM At least one person]] has theorized that indecisive appeal is the reason why ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' is so [[ContestedSequel divisive]] among fans, as it feels like it can't decide whether it was made for newer players brought in with the Wii's success or veteran players who have been following [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda the series]] for a long time. The game is loaded with several mandatory hints (mainly from [[ExpositionFairy Fi]]) that clearly explain where to progress most of the time, frustrating veteran players who want to figure things out on their own. At the same time, many of the puzzles not only require considerable spatial and logical awareness as with previous games in the series, but Fi tends to give little or vague hints on what to do with them, alienating newer players who want a more accessible experience. Regarding the game's overall structure, many longtime ''Zelda'' players were opposed to the game's focus on a [[NoSidepathsNoExplorationNoFreedom more linear structure]], given that previous ''Zelda'' games emphasized relatively free exploration with a focus on finding hidden treasures and rewards, often allowing the player to [[SequenceBreaking do dungeons out of order]]. Unfortunately, players into linear games were against the game's vast-yet-empty Sky area, the long, mandatory quests to access the game's [[DungeonCrawling dungeons]], and especially the high amount of {{Backtracking}} in its second half, given that fans of linear games prefer their games to have a brisker pace free of filler content. Finally, the motion-controlled swordplay didn't endear the game to veteran ''Zelda'' fans who found the button-controlled sword swings much more reliable, while newcomers presumably coming from ''VideoGame/WiiSportsResort'' found much of the combat frustrating due to how enemies actively block your attacks. The UpdatedRerelease for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch addressed some of these issues, such as decreasing the interrupting nature of many of the hints and adding a new control scheme without motion controls, but the conflict between the game's linearity and the rather slow pacing remained.
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** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7lGmshXRvM At least one person]] has theorized that indecisive appeal is the reason why ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' is so [[ContestedSequel divisive]] among fans, as it feels like it can't decide whether it was made for newer players brought in with the Wii's success or veteran players who have been following [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda the series]] for a long time. The game is loaded with several mandatory hints (mainly from [[ExpositionFairy Fi]]) that clearly explain where to progress most of the time, frustrating veteran players who want to figure things out on their own. At the same time, many of the puzzles not only require considerable spatial and logical awareness as with previous games in the series, but Fi tends to give little or vague hints on what to do with them, alienating newer players who want a more accessible experience. Regarding the game's overall structure, many longtime ''Zelda'' players were opposed to the game's focus on a [[NoSidepathsNoExplorationNoFreedom more linear structure]], given that previous ''Zelda'' games emphasized relatively free exploration with a focus on finding hidden treasures and rewards, often allowing the player to [[SequenceBreaking do dungeons out of order]]. Unfortunately, players into linear games were against the game's vast-yet-empty Sky area, the long, mandatory quests to access the game's [[DungeonCrawling dungeons]], and especially the high amount of {{Backtracking}} in its second half, given that fans of linear games prefer their games to have a brisker pace free of filler content. Finally, the motion-controlled swordplay didn't endear the game to veteran ''Zelda'' fans who found the button-controlled sword swings much more reliable, while newcomers presumably coming from ''VideoGame/WiiSportsResort'' found much of the combat frustrating due to how enemies actively block your attacks. The UpdatedRerelease for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch addressed some of these issues, such as decreasing the interrupting nature of many making most of the hints opt-in and adding a new control scheme without motion controls, but the conflict between the game's linearity and the rather slow pacing remained.
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Has been pulled from its YMMV page per the Complaining cleanup thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13327578050A72722200&page=460#comment-11480
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* According to Nintendo Dream, ''VideoGame/FireEmblemEngage'' was announced as an entry point into the series, similar to ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening''. However, the high difficulty and repeated call-backs to past ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' titles made it less than appealing to newcomers, while some veterans were turned off by the story and character designs. These factors may have contributed to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEDjlHoI4Do Engage's sales quickly falling off despite its strong start]].
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** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' attracts these claims. The fact that it centres on a trio of female characters and has a LighterAndSofter tone than its predecessor (the battle system revolves around changing clothes!) seems to [[GirlShowGhetto turn off male gamers]]. However there's also a massive heaping of {{Fanservice}}, LesYay and {{Stripperiffic}} outfits - which alienate female gamers.
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** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' attracts these claims. The fact that it centres on a trio of female characters and has a LighterAndSofter tone than its predecessor (the battle system revolves around changing clothes!) seems to [[GirlShowGhetto turn off male gamers]]. However there's also a massive heaping of {{Fanservice}}, LesYay and {{Stripperiffic}} outfits - outfits, which alienate female gamers.
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* According to Nintendo Dream, ''VideoGame/FireEmblemEngage'' was announced as an entry point into the series, similar to ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening''. However, the high difficulty and repeated call-backs to past ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' titles made it less than appealing to newcomers, while some veterans were turned off by the story and character designs. These factors may have contributed to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEDjlHoI4Do Engage's sales quickly falling off despite its strong start]].
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** A major reason why ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy2015'' ended up being a disappointment financially for ''Square Enix'' was that the game's console port didn't seem clear on who it was designed for; E-Sports fans, or ''Dissidia'' veterans. The game was clearly designed to appeal to the E-Sports crowd with its usage of "classes", removal of the RPG mechanics such as leveling up, the streamlined summoning system and character builds, and 3v3 matches, something that apparently was wanted by ''Square Enix''. At the same time, they wanted to still attract fans of the previous games, so they included a story mode that acted as a follow-up to the previous games story, included some returning characters like Kain, and announced they wanted to bring all of the previously playable characters back, plus they added new characters like Ramza and Noctis. Sadly, the games inability to appeal to either groups backfired: the game never saw any light as an E-Sports due to its technical problems, poor gameplay balance, and the limited customization for characters, failed to appeal to the UsefulNotes/FightingGameCommunity (where it was more likely to get success as an esport) because it required three players per team rather than the traditional 1v1 format, which anyone remotely familiar with tournaments will realize would make it impossible for matches to happen on time even if enough people managed to find teams. Meanwhile long time fans hated the changes since they removed the RPG mechanics, forced those who played for the story and characters to have to grind to unlock more of it, and also hated how barebones the game's content was, especially the barely-there story that, once you removed the forced grinding, was really short. It did not help that the games matchmaking was very laggy, meaning nobody wanted to play online despite being essential to get full enjoyment out of the very multiplayer-focused game. The result was that the game was discontinued only after roughly 1.5 years, and the plans for a larger roster never came to pass.
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** A major reason why ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy2015'' ended up being a disappointment financially for ''Square Enix'' was that the game's console port didn't seem clear on who it was designed for; E-Sports fans, or ''Dissidia'' veterans. The game was clearly designed to appeal to the E-Sports crowd with its usage of "classes", removal of the RPG mechanics such as leveling up, the streamlined summoning system and character builds, and 3v3 matches, something that apparently was wanted by ''Square Enix''. At the same time, they wanted to still attract fans of the previous games, so they included a story mode that acted as a follow-up to the previous games game's story, included some returning characters like Kain, and announced they wanted to bring all of the previously playable characters back, plus they added new characters like Ramza and Noctis. Sadly, the games game's inability to appeal to either groups backfired: the game never saw any light as an E-Sports due to its technical problems, poor gameplay balance, and the limited customization for characters, failed to appeal to the UsefulNotes/FightingGameCommunity (where it was more likely to get success as an esport) because it required three players per team rather than the traditional 1v1 format, which anyone remotely familiar with tournaments will realize would make it impossible for matches to happen on time even if enough people managed to find teams. Meanwhile long time fans hated the changes since they removed the RPG mechanics, forced those who played for the story and characters to have to grind to unlock more of it, and also hated how barebones the game's content was, especially the barely-there story that, once you removed the forced grinding, was really short. It did not help that the games matchmaking was very laggy, meaning nobody wanted to play online despite being essential to get full enjoyment out of the very multiplayer-focused game. The result was that the game was discontinued only after roughly 1.5 years, and the plans for a larger roster never came to pass.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' failed because it couldn't sell its blend of FightingGame and BattleRoyale genres. Fans of fighting games disliked the battle royale mode that saw as distracting and unbalanced while battle royale fans found the fighting-inspired combat too difficult and unfamiliar. It also didn't help that the cartoony art style was too similar to ''Fortnite'', making it harder to stand out.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' failed because it couldn't sell its blend of FightingGame and BattleRoyale BattleRoyaleGame genres. Fans of fighting games disliked the battle royale mode that saw as distracting and unbalanced while battle royale fans found the fighting-inspired combat too difficult and unfamiliar. It also didn't help that the cartoony art style was too similar to ''Fortnite'', making it harder to stand out.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' was abruptly shut down after only 6 months because it couldn't build an audience off its hybrid of fighting and battle royale. Fans of fighting games didn't like the battle royale elements and dismissed the game at face value as ''Fortnite'' clone. At the time, battle royale fans found the fighting-inspired combat too difficult and unfamiliar. It also didn't help that the cartoony art style was too similar to ''Fortnite'', making it harder to stand out.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' was abruptly shut down after only 6 months failed because it couldn't build an audience off sell its hybrid blend of fighting FightingGame and battle royale. BattleRoyale genres. Fans of fighting games didn't like disliked the battle royale elements mode that saw as distracting and dismissed the game at face value as ''Fortnite'' clone. At the time, unbalanced while battle royale fans found the fighting-inspired combat too difficult and unfamiliar. It also didn't help that the cartoony art style was too similar to ''Fortnite'', making it harder to stand out.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' was never able sell its brawler/battle royale to a dedicated audience, leading to its shut down after only 6 months. On paper, the game could've found an audience by offering a battle royale with combat inspired by fighting games and not shooters. However, fans of fighting games were wrote off the title as just another battle royale game with ''Fortnite''-esque aesthetics. At the time, battle royale fans found the fighting game-inspired combat too difficult and unfamiliar.
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* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' was never able sell its brawler/battle royale to a dedicated audience, leading to its abruptly shut down after only 6 months. On paper, the game could've found months because it couldn't build an audience by offering a battle royale with combat inspired by off its hybrid of fighting games and not shooters. However, fans battle royale. Fans of fighting games were wrote off didn't like the title as just another battle royale elements and dismissed the game with ''Fortnite''-esque aesthetics. at face value as ''Fortnite'' clone. At the time, battle royale fans found the fighting game-inspired fighting-inspired combat too difficult and unfamiliar.unfamiliar. It also didn't help that the cartoony art style was too similar to ''Fortnite'', making it harder to stand out.
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* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' FanGame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'' has remained obscure within the already niche fandom of ExplorerHorror, and many pointed out its inability to decide upon a core target audience as a key reason why: ''Mario'' fans shied away from what they perceived as a ham-fisted attempt to be DarkerAndEdgier than its lighthearted source material, explorer horror fans saw the ''Mario'' cast as shoehorned in and [[{{Narm}} detracting from its attempts to be taken seriously]], and parodists expecting the idea of the Mario Bros. starring in a outright horror game to be PlayedForLaughs was disappointed by the game's heavy focus on horror and drama at the expense of humor.
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* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' FanGame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'' has remained obscure within the already niche fandom of ExplorerHorror, and many many, even its fans, pointed out its inability to decide upon a core target audience as a key reason why: ''Mario'' fans shied away from what they perceived as a ham-fisted attempt to be DarkerAndEdgier than its lighthearted source material, material and its plot revolving around its own original mythos and characters, explorer horror fans saw the ''Mario'' cast as shoehorned in into a game that would be barely changed if they were absent and [[{{Narm}} detracting from its attempts to be taken seriously]], and parodists expecting the idea of [[GenreRefugee the Mario Bros. starring in a outright horror game game]] to be PlayedForLaughs was were disappointed by the game's heavy focus on horror disturbing elements and drama at the expense of humor.humor and a general [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks inability to diverge from the clichés of its genre]].
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Adding an example.
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* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' FanGame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'' has remained obscure within the already niche fandom of ExplorerHorror, and many pointed out its inability to decide upon a core target audience as a key reason why: ''Mario'' fans shied away from what they perceived as a ham-fisted attempt to be DarkerAndEdgier than its lighthearted source material, explorer horror fans saw the ''Mario'' cast as shoehorned in and [[{{Narm}} detracting from its attempts to be taken seriously]], and parodists expecting the idea of the Mario Bros. starring in a outright horror game to be PlayedForLaughs was disappointed by the game's heavy focus on horror and drama at the expense of humor.
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* ''VideoGame/StarlinkBattleForAtlas''[='s=] uncertain audience is ultimately what led to it having less than satisfactory sales for Ubisoft. The game's gameplay depth, scope and detailed lore seemed tailor-made for older gamers, but the focus on its toys-to-life spaceship controller gimmick felt more aimed at kids. It didn't help that, by this point, the three biggest games focusing on toys-to-life (''VideoGame/{{Skylanders}}'', ''VideoGame/DisneyInfinity'', and ''VideoGame/LegoDimensions'') had all died out and taken the genre with them. Not even a guest appearance by the ''VideoGame/StarFox'' cast in the Switch version helped to boost the game's appeal, though this did result in the game [[JustHereForGodzilla selling the best on the Nintendo Switch]]. However, it didn't sell well enough, and the second wave of toys was cancelled.
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* ''VideoGame/StarlinkBattleForAtlas''[='s=] uncertain audience is ultimately what led to it having less than satisfactory sales for Ubisoft. The game's gameplay depth, scope and detailed lore seemed tailor-made for older gamers, but the focus on its toys-to-life spaceship controller gimmick felt more aimed at kids. It didn't help that, by this point, the time the game released, the three biggest games focusing on toys-to-life (''VideoGame/{{Skylanders}}'', ''VideoGame/DisneyInfinity'', and ''VideoGame/LegoDimensions'') had all died out and taken the genre with them. Not even a guest appearance by the ''VideoGame/StarFox'' cast in the Switch version helped to boost the game's appeal, though this did result in the game [[JustHereForGodzilla selling the best on the Nintendo Switch]]. However, it didn't sell well enough, and the second wave of toys was cancelled.
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* ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'', in part due to its very unconventional gameplay for a FightingGame, runs into the problem of conflicted appeal. The game intended to reach casual fans with its appealing characters, variety of modes, hidden lore, wealth of unlockables, and relatively simple controls. The game also wanted to appeal to competitive players with its surprising amount of depth to its combat and customization options. In practice, however, the two intentions came into conflict, as casual fans were overwhelmed by the surprisingly complex gameplay while fighting game fans didn't feel the game was complex enough for them. The game sold modestly well for a new and unorthodox property, but it didn't quite reach the leagues of Creator/{{Nintendo}} EPD's other big names like ''Mario'', ''Splatoon'', or ''Animal Crossing'', instead winning over a [[CultClassic more low-key following]] that appreciated its unusual gameplay.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Atelier}}'' franchise attracts these claims. The series initially ran on {{shojo}} tropes, with most of the games have a flowery art style with plenty of pretty boys, and a mostly female fanbase. Yet, starting with the ''Arland'' series of games, the franchise took a 180 and a lot of TheMerch, DLC costumes, and promotional artwork would become heavily MaleGaze-y, and the games have incorporated more and more {{moe}} elements over time, though still keeping many of the shojo tropes, pretty boys and occasional FemaleGaze moments involving said pretty boys that might alienate that audience anyway. The series did go back to its TamerAndChaster more shojo-leaning roots for the ''Dusk'' trilogy only to go full on in back into the fanservicey moe designs in the ''Mysterious'' games. A survey released in 2019 did confirm that even after these changes, the series fanbase remains mostly women, meaning these changes didn't even do a very good job at attracting a male audience to begin with, at least until ''Ryza'' increased the fanservice and caused a NewbieBoom.
* ''VideoGame/BackIn1995'' is a {{Retraux}} SurvivalHorror game in the vein of the original ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil1'' and ''VideoGame/SilentHill1'', so you'd presume it's meant to appeal to players with a fondness for the classic horror gameplay style they represent. Then you learn the big twist, which in a nutshell is [[spoiler:an elaborate TakeThatAudience to exactly these people, insinuating that they're horribly out of touch, overly nostalgic, and unable to move on from outdated stuff in the past]]. People who dislike older survival horror games will obviously not be interested in a GenreThrowback with low-res polygons and TankControls, while those who ''do'' like that sort of thing [[spoiler:likely won't be amused by the insulting message the game is built around]].
* ''VideoGame/BalanWonderworld'' was created with small children as its target audience, with it having incredibly simplistic controls and level design, but its advertising was aimed at attracting the older fanbases of ''VideoGame/NightsIntoDreams'' and ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog''. Likewise, despite being designed to be played by children, the game is notably lacking in its gameplay tutorials and explanation of its story, requiring players to look up guides in order to understand certain features and read the game's tie-in novel to understand its plot. The game ended up a critical and commercial flop as a result.
* The commercial failure of ''VideoGame/BanjoKazooieNutsAndBolts'', which [[FranchiseKiller ended]] the ''VideoGame/BanjoKazooie'' series, can be blamed squarely on uncertain appeal. Established ''Banjo-Kazooie'' fans were incensed at how the long-awaited third installment of the series had thoroughly abandoned its [[CollectAThonPlatformer exploration-based platforming gameplay]] in favor of mission-based vehicle building, seeing it as the franchise abandoning its identity. At the same time, the game was full of call backs and continuity to the original games, with the game starting out on Grunty's disembodied skull escaping and attempting to get revenge eight years after ''[[VideoGame/BanjoTooie Tooie]]''; this left potential newer fans disinterested at best and confused at worst. To add to the uncertainty, the new character L.O.G. explicitly and simultaneously insults both the old style of gameplay and gamers at the time in the prologue, calling the former "painful to watch" and saying the latter "just want to shoot things." The game was fairly well-received by critics, and some players begrudgingly admit the gameplay is fun, but most admit that the game should've been marketed as a new IP at best or a spin-off at the very least.
* ''VideoGame/BattlefieldV'' became such a divisive title in the ''Battlefield'' series because developer DICE struggled to reconcile its gameplay and aesthetics. The more tactical gameplay with reduced ammo capacity and scaled down health regeneration is supposed to appeal to the hardcore gamers. At the same time, it had wacky cosmetics that are supposed to draw in mainstream audiences, specifically the ''Fortnite'' crowd. Likewise, the game had modes like Firestorm and the now-cancelled 5v5 mode, which were attempts to cash in on the Battle Royale and eSports trends, respectively. Unfortunately, the game failed to fully satisfy any demographic with casual audiences frustrated by the high difficulty curve and the grim tone that replicated the somberness of its predecessor ''VideoGame/Battlefield1'' but wihout the exotic Steampunk weaponry and gadgets that set [=BF1=] apart from other generic historical shooters; hardcore gamers alienated by the juvenile cosmetics and PoliticallyCorrectHistory approach that clashed with the serious World War 2 mood; and veteran ''Battlefield'' fans were frustrated by the developers for chasing trends instead of building on the core experience.
* ''VideoGame/BlazingAries'': On one hand, since it's an HGame, part of its main demographic might be interested in part of the risque scenes. However, the problem with that is most of them are locked after the second part of the first chapter... and the first part of the first chapter is notorious for being EarlyGameHell, thus frustrating those who came for the fanservice and alienating them at worse, and it only gets worse from there, since it's {{Surpris|eDifficulty}}ingly difficult for an eroge even on ''the easiest setting''. And for those came for the gameplay are alienated by the fanservice elements, since its an eroge, and they also complain about the game being unable to decide what kind of ActionRPG it is (for example, the combo-based gameplay system might be inspired from the ''VideoGame/TalesSeries'', but some of the bosses tend to discourage combos) and vice-versa. Notably, the FANZA and Steam versions of it have the normal difficulty ''[[DifficultyByRegion nerfed]]'', particularly due to these complaints, and the [[BleachedUnderpants removal of sex scenes for the international versions, not to mention a family-friendly option]], which would normally attract complaints, is seen as a ''blessing'' since it allows the game to have a more distinct identity.
* ''VideoGame/BleedingEdge'' suffered from Ninja Theory not having a clear vision of what sort of game they wanted to create. ''Bleeding Edge'' originally started off as a fighting game, but during its development, Ninja Theory decided to change it into a MOBA, and then into a hero shooter. As a result, the game incorporated gameplay elements from all three genres, with none of them working well together. The game was simply too unconventional and bloated for a fan of any one of the three game genres to be interested.
* One of the problems with the original ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' was that it didn't seem to be sure whether it was a straight {{Deconstruction}} of [=RPGs=] and first-person shooters, a {{Parody}} of the same, or [[DeconstructiveParody something in-between]]. As such, it came off as a ShallowParody, which limited its appeal. [[VideoGame/Borderlands2 The sequel]] ratcheted the comedy and the parody up, which made it DenserAndWackier, but gave it a much clearer idea of its own identity, and it found its audience that way.
* ''VideoGame/ChibiRobo: Zip Lash'' was part of a franchise that had always been, at best, a CultClassic -- small but devoted fanbase, very little general awareness, the usual. ''Zip Lash'' was intended to save the series by bringing in new fans, by way of a 3DS release and a GenreShift from an explorative 3D platformer with the premise of going around a house and helping out the family there to a sidescrolling 2D platformer with the premise of saving the world by going through fairly standard environments. Longtime fans were angered that the series had so thoroughly abandoned its aesthetic and identity, while general audiences weren't familiar with the character and just saw it as a generic 2D platformer on a handheld that already had a surfeit of well-received games of that type. Unsurprisingly, [[FranchiseKiller the game bombed hard.]]
* The considerable underperformance of ''VideoGame/DayZ'' as a standalone game could be half attributed to its uncertain audience (the other half being [[ObviousBeta its infamously barebones launch]]). Making a standalone version of a beloved, if [[PerpetualBeta technically volatile]] zombie-themed ''VideoGame/{{ARMA}}'' mod seemed like a straightforward path to success, but a significant hurdle came in the form of just how variable the ''[=DayZ=]'' mod had become. Many different servers [[GameplayDerailment added their own variations for different styles of gameplay]] beyond the original SurvivalSandbox, such as communal base-building, fighting enemy hordes, or [[BattleRoyaleGame PVP battle royales]], meaning that a ''[=DayZ=]'' game meant entirely different things to many people. The standalone version -- as a partial consequence of being released too early -- [[MasterOfNone couldn't commit to any one of these visions]], leaving newcomers disappointed while preexisting ''[=DayZ=]'' fans fell into an unholy mix of "ItsTheSameNowItSucks" and "TheyChangedItNowItSucks", causing the game's momentum to drop off like a cliff.
* ''VideoGame/DeadOrAlive6'' tried to market itself as more tournament-friendly and appealing to western sensibilities, doing so by going TamerAndChaster and reducing the amount of {{Fanservice}} in the game, ie going against its core identity, and the reason the series built its fame, in an aspiration to reach [=eSports=] and [[UsefulNotes/FightingGameCommunity EVO]]. Then director Yohei Shimori would [[FlipFlopOfGod flip-flop between statements]], stating that ''nothing'' changed later, only to go back to the old, [[MasterOfTheMixedMessage confusing a lot of people]]. It was controversial, to say the least, and in fact said controversy often [[OvershadowedByControversy overshadowed the game itself]]. Unfortunately, any attempt to reach the big leagues failed, for two reasons: The first was the infamous "Core Values" incident where ''[=DOA6=]'' was taken off-stream in the middle of the tournament at EVO Japan 2019, because it got too sexual with the use of female models shaking their breasts and butts to mimic the game. Then, when the lineup of EVO 2019 in North America, comparable to the Super Bowl of fighters, was announced, ''Dead or Alive 6'' wasn't there. Effectively, all the effort and controversy was [[AllForNothing for nothing]], as it was effectively damned to its niche status, getting passed up for other niche but more respected games like ''VideoGame/UnderNightInBirth'' and ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown'', and its direct competitor ''VideoGame/SoulcaliburVI'', a game that ''didn't'' suffer from this trope as it went about its own way with zero confusion, incidentally a HotterAndSexier one. The fact is, the game tried to appease everyone, but did the polar opposite instead.
* The more divided reception of ''VideoGame/DiabloIII'' overtime can be partially attributed to uncertain appeal. Creator/BlizzardEntertainment wanted the ''VideoGame/{{Diablo}}'' series to return and be as successful as both ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' and ''VideoGame/StarCraftII'' (since the series had been quiet since 2000). To get newcomers, they made a more grandiose story with a deep and complex lore like their other titles and made the gameplay slightly simpler with more emphasis on set-pieces and boss battles, with the horror appeal dialed down compared to the past games, with a “slightly” [[LighterAndSofter more comical tone]] in the game. To get old fans back, Blizzard tried to reference as much of the past games as they could, ranging from bosses (like Leoric and the Butcher), to locations (such as Tristriam), while keeping the game’s loot system and gear progression like the last game to appeal to those who liked gear gathering, and trying to do as many CallBack moments as they could. The result was that over time, the game became criticized for not really knowing who it wants to be for: newer fans might not want to play the third game that tries to make references so often, while long time fans wanted something closer to the previous games with a focus on horror and didn’t like how the game seemed like it was trying to be like Blizzard’s other titles instead of itself. As a result, despite being critically well received at launch, in the years that followed, it is often debated how good it is due to the unclear target audience.
* Unclear audience was a big contributor to ''VideoGame/DMCDevilMayCry'''s divisive reception (more so in terms of plot, tone and characterization than gameplay). ''[=DmC=]'' has a notably DarkerAndEdgier tone and attempts to deal with some much heavier topics than the [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry original continuity]]; while the latter does have some serious and dramatic moments, overall the games tend to be more campy and whimsical. Creator/NinjaTheory were specifically instructed to make a 'different' ''Devil May Cry'' game, but the end result is that ''[=DmC=]'' bears little resemblance to the rest of the franchise and either doesn't use any of the classic characters or radically changes them. Many fans of the original games weren't onboard because it was InNameOnly, while the ''Devil May Cry'' title may have been off-putting to potential players who ''were'' into what ''[=DmC=]'' has to offer, resulting in ''[=DmC=]'' underselling in some markets. To this day, it's common to hear players say stuff like "It's not a bad game ''per se'', just not a good ''Devil May Cry'' game". The game underperforming previous installments in sales prompted Creator/{{Capcom}} to {{Unreboot}} the series with ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5'' in 2019.
* An issue that hit ''VideoGame/EpicMickey'' fairly hard is that it wasn't quite sure if it wanted to be a game for little kids, or a game for older fans of animation. It was certainly that older crowd that was most interested in the possibility of a DarkerAndEdgier Mickey Mouse, which was the game's original pitch, but the game itself turned out to be rather easy and shallow, with most of the creepy imagery and deconstructive elements shown off in those early promotional materials [[NeverTrustATrailer now absent.]] The young children the game now seemed designed towards, however, would likely be put off by the focus on a character whose only particularly memorable showing in years was in ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'', even before the game's plot, which hinges on fans being at least passingly familiar with very old Mickey Mouse shorts and the significance behind the character of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.
* ''VideoGame/FantasyStrike'' is a FightingGame whose main selling point is its accessibility to newcomers thanks to simplified controls and short combos. This is reinforced by its free-to-play business model letting anyone try the game out without having to worry about wasting money. But said [=F2P=] model is unusual in that all characters are unlocked from the start, but the only modes that can be played are training and online fights against random opponents. Anything else, including ''the ability to play against your friends or bots'', [[{{Freemium}} is locked behind the purchase of a "Core Pack" DLC]], so any actual fighting game newcomers who try the game out have a 99% chance of fighting a seasoned veteran who will kick their ass. While ''FS'' does have a niche fandom, the innate contradictions of its business model led to [[https://steamcharts.com/app/390560#All rapidly-dwindling player numbers]] after the game became free.
* Several ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' titles have had this problem.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' attracts these claims. The fact that it centres on a trio of female characters and has a LighterAndSofter tone than its predecessor (the battle system revolves around changing clothes!) seems to [[GirlShowGhetto turn off male gamers]]. However there's also a massive heaping of {{Fanservice}}, LesYay and {{Stripperiffic}} outfits - which alienate female gamers.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTacticsAdvance'' tends to have this issue because of the changes it made to the setting and gameplay. Being a SpiritualSuccessor to ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'', one of the most beloved TurnBasedStrategy out there, it had to deal with the expectations of the fans coming in who loved the original game, while trying to get newcomers into the game. Fans of the original ''Tactics'' hated how the game was more child friendly and low stakes compared to the DarkerAndEdgier story of ''Tactics'', alongside seeing the gameplay as being dumbed down and suffering from FakeDifficulty thanks to the new Law system. Newcomers hoping to get in had to contend with the same L system without any experience in the game type, and the mechanics were more advanced than what newcomers to the genre expected, alongside the name making it seem like a sequel of sorts. The result was that ''Tactics'' fans hated the game for not being like the original, while new fans couldn't get in as easily as the title seemed to want to do, causing it to have a largely negative reputation for a long time.
** A major reason why ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy2015'' ended up being a disappointment financially for ''Square Enix'' was that the game's console port didn't seem clear on who it was designed for; E-Sports fans, or ''Dissidia'' veterans. The game was clearly designed to appeal to the E-Sports crowd with its usage of "classes", removal of the RPG mechanics such as leveling up, the streamlined summoning system and character builds, and 3v3 matches, something that apparently was wanted by ''Square Enix''. At the same time, they wanted to still attract fans of the previous games, so they included a story mode that acted as a follow-up to the previous games story, included some returning characters like Kain, and announced they wanted to bring all of the previously playable characters back, plus they added new characters like Ramza and Noctis. Sadly, the games inability to appeal to either groups backfired: the game never saw any light as an E-Sports due to its technical problems, poor gameplay balance, and the limited customization for characters, failed to appeal to the UsefulNotes/FightingGameCommunity (where it was more likely to get success as an esport) because it required three players per team rather than the traditional 1v1 format, which anyone remotely familiar with tournaments will realize would make it impossible for matches to happen on time even if enough people managed to find teams. Meanwhile long time fans hated the changes since they removed the RPG mechanics, forced those who played for the story and characters to have to grind to unlock more of it, and also hated how barebones the game's content was, especially the barely-there story that, once you removed the forced grinding, was really short. It did not help that the games matchmaking was very laggy, meaning nobody wanted to play online despite being essential to get full enjoyment out of the very multiplayer-focused game. The result was that the game was discontinued only after roughly 1.5 years, and the plans for a larger roster never came to pass.
* ''VideoGame/GhostReconBreakpoint'' suffered from an uncertain audience. It attempted to reinvent the Ghost Recon franchise as a loot-based shooter in the same vein as ''VideoGame/{{Destiny}}'' or ''VideoGame/TheDivision''. Unfortunately, it was a massive failure. Longtime Ghost Recon fans hated the new mechanics for taking away from the realism and verisimilitude that was a major draw of the franchise for them. Meanwhile, the steps that were taken by Ubisoft to try and make those loot and RPG mechanics more palatable to the Ghost Recon fanbase made them unappealing to the players who like them. The loot system was very shallow and could be outright ignored for the majority of the game, as enemies outside of very specific areas on the map scale up or down to the Player's Gearscore, and even when they don't all human enemies can be killed with one headshot (two if they're wearing a helmet). The end result was a game that was rejected by both bases and flopped hard enough that Ubisoft's stock price tanked, and they delayed all forthcoming games to reevaluate the direction that they were headed in.
* Creator/{{Nintendo}} as a whole went through a spell of uncertainty starting in the twilight years of the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} and ending with the release of the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch. During this period, the company was aware of the Wii and DS's greater success with simpler games geared towards casual players and diminished success with more complex games geared towards traditional gamers. At the same time, they were aware that casual players wouldn't become dedicated consumers the way traditional gamers were. This dual concern led to several decisions that would attempt to reconcile casual and hardcore players, mostly to mixed results. Particular highlights of this uncertainty include:
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7lGmshXRvM At least one person]] has theorized that indecisive appeal is the reason why ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' is so [[ContestedSequel divisive]] among fans, as it feels like it can't decide whether it was made for newer players brought in with the Wii's success or veteran players who have been following [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda the series]] for a long time. The game is loaded with several mandatory hints (mainly from [[ExpositionFairy Fi]]) that clearly explain where to progress most of the time, frustrating veteran players who want to figure things out on their own. At the same time, many of the puzzles not only require considerable spatial and logical awareness as with previous games in the series, but Fi tends to give little or vague hints on what to do with them, alienating newer players who want a more accessible experience. Regarding the game's overall structure, many longtime ''Zelda'' players were opposed to the game's focus on a [[NoSidepathsNoExplorationNoFreedom more linear structure]], given that previous ''Zelda'' games emphasized relatively free exploration with a focus on finding hidden treasures and rewards, often allowing the player to [[SequenceBreaking do dungeons out of order]]. Unfortunately, players into linear games were against the game's vast-yet-empty Sky area, the long, mandatory quests to access the game's [[DungeonCrawling dungeons]], and especially the high amount of {{Backtracking}} in its second half, given that fans of linear games prefer their games to have a brisker pace free of filler content. Finally, the motion-controlled swordplay didn't endear the game to veteran ''Zelda'' fans who found the button-controlled sword swings much more reliable, while newcomers presumably coming from ''VideoGame/WiiSportsResort'' found much of the combat frustrating due to how enemies actively block your attacks. The UpdatedRerelease for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch addressed some of these issues, such as decreasing the interrupting nature of many of the hints and adding a new control scheme without motion controls, but the conflict between the game's linearity and the rather slow pacing remained.
** The UsefulNotes/WiiU's disappointing performance is often credited to its uncertain audience. What it attempted to do was recapture the massive casual-audiences success that was the original Wii by using the same branding and a controller-based gimmick that modified the controller to resemble a more familiar device, while recapturing traditional gamers through more advanced hardware, less emphasis on motion controls, and a launch lineup with ports of many seventh-generation games. But to casual consumers who bought Wiis back in the day, its gimmick of a large tablet-style controller with a second screen and a ton of strange features didn't have the instant draw of motion controls, with many being convinced it was a peripheral by the similar name and lack of focus on the console, and its higher price tag made it too expensive to be an impulse purchase. To mainstream gamers who'd felt burned by the Wii, it was an incredibly underpowered system that could really only play Nintendo games or inferior ports and lacked a lot of features, including a very flawed online mode, which made it a companion system at best. Even to core Nintendo fans, it lacked a lot of the usual KillerApp franchises, being focused mostly on lesser lights, {{Updated Rerelease}}s, and spinoffs, and had to compete with the cheaper, better-supported UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS carrying counterparts or outright ports of a lot of its best games. The console's successor, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, addressed all of these issues and managed to outsell its senior within its first year on the market alone.
** ''VideoGame/StarFoxZero'' suffered from being indecisive on whether to appeal to established fans or newer players. The game's story seemed to aim towards winning back ''Franchise/StarFox'' fans who lost interest in the series after ''[[VideoGame/StarFox64 64]]'' by presenting itself as a ContinuityReboot to the series, returning to the original fight against Andross. The core gameplay, on the other hand, aimed to breathe new life into the series by heavily changing the Arwing controls, most notably requiring use of the [=GamePad=] to aim the Arwing's laser shots. As a result, the game was criticized for both [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks changing too much]] and [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks changing too little]] at the same time; potential newer players disliked how the game's presentation seemed to pander to older fans, while established ''Star Fox'' fans disliked the new Arwing gameplay, particularly the clumsy [=GamePad=] integration. Consequently, ''Zero'' underperformed in sales and received mixed reception from fans and critics alike, rendering it as of yet the [[FranchiseKiller last original game in the franchise.]]
* ''VideoGame/PlayStationAllStarsBattleRoyale'', [[Creator/SonyInteractiveEntertainment Sony]]'s ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' equivalent, didn't do very well because of its uncertain audience. The gameplay in particular ended up being very divisive due to the confused design: the game's focus on traditional fighting game {{Combos}} alienates the casual crowd who wants a simple party game, while the bizarre and unconventional mechanics of using [[LimitBreak supers]] only as a method to kill and being the only method to score kills alienates the hardcore crowd. The roster by itself also suffers from this problem: about half the franchises involved are gritty M-rated ones, but the game itself is a cartoony PlatformFighter with tons of wacky concepts. While ''Smash'' is [[DemographicDissonantCrossover no stranger to representing M-rated franchises]], they make up a very small portion of the roster and tend to have their seriousness toned down to compensate. ''[=PlayStation All-Stars=]'' on the other hand plays the seriousness of the characters in question rather straight, making it jarring to see a [[VideoGame/{{Killzone}} space Nazi]] slap his enemies silly with a fish. Even as a pure celebration of [=PlayStation=] history, the roster was largely reliant on {{Guest Fighter}}s from non-Sony games, ironically making it seem like Sony didn't have much of their own history, while what third-parties ''were'' there were mostly promotions for upcoming games, such as [[VideoGame/DMCDevilMayCry Reboot Dante]] and [[VideoGame/BioShock Big Daddy]] (with most of his accompanying material coming from the then-upcoming ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite''), instead of more historically significant characters known for being on [=PlayStation=] consoles, like VideoGame/CrashBandicoot and [[Franchise/TombRaider Lara Croft]], making it look like Sony barely had any third-party history either. The game [[StillbornFranchise failed to birth an ongoing competitor]] to ''Smash'' as a result.
* ''VideoGame/QuakeChampions'' ended up awkwardly sandwiched between a signature style of [[VideoGame/{{Quake}} its beloved franchise]] and [[FollowTheLeader the new hotness it was trying to replicate]], and didn't quite grab fans of either. ''Quake'' multiplayer is known for its fast-paced, highly technical arena shooter gameplay beloved by its fans in large part ''because'' of [[SomeDexterityRequired its steep learning curve]], with ''Champions''' inclusion of HeroShooter elements driving some of the old guard off, with many fans seeing it as [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks a dumbing down player expression and making the challenges less rewarding]]. Meanwhile, expected newcomers were reluctant to join due to ''Champions'' still being more mechanically daunting when compared to more-accessible contemporaries like ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Paladins}}'', as well as having an identity largely based around ''Quake'' and other Creator/IdSoftware properties, which doesn't carry as much star power to modern audiences.
* ''VideoGame/RaidWorldWarII'': The game had one from conception as it was a 4 player co-op game made some of the same people who worked on ''VideoGame/PaydayTheHeist''...and was appealing to that same crowd, it even had a tie-in with ''VideoGame/PAYDAY2'' to give it a canonical connection with it[[note]]one of the rooms in the safe house is designed with World War II-themed paraphernalia, and Creator/JohnCleese portrays both Control in this game, [[UncannyFamilyResemblance and Aldstone]][[/note]]. However, it was clear that after the demo released, it just didn't tickle much interest with that userbase. Players of ''PAYDAY 2'' saw it as a mild reskin, citing that [=RAID=] [[ItsTheSameSoItSucks didn't bring much new to the table to differentiate itself]], so there wasn't much interest in playing [=RAID=] at the time when ''PAYDAY 2'' was still going strong, and actively benefitted from the crossover more than its parent game did, and the rest is history, really. Not helping matters was that the game was criticised for also using the same 13 year old Diesel engine ''PAYDAY 2'' does, and all the issues '''''that''''' entails, with the only real upgrade to the aging engine was the move to a 64-bit platform (which isn't even much of a selling point either, as ''PAYDAY 2'' on Linux is 64-bit anyway).Safe to say, there is a ''reason'' why the upcoming ''PAYDAY 3'' is '''not''' being made in the Diesel engine.
* ''VideoGame/{{Roblox}}'' is a platform intended for younger audiences, but it also has a massive PeripheryDemographic in no thanks to the potential to "Be Anything, Build Anything!", with major successes like ''VideoGame/PhantomForces'', ''VideoGame/JailbreakRoblox'', etc. However, there are times where MultipleDemographicAppeal or appealing to an certain audience fails:
** The remake of ''Defend The Statue'' is one of the [[OvershadowedByControversy most notorious cases]], as a cautionary tale of what happens when [[OldGuardVersusNewBlood veteran users are completely unable to agree with new users]]. The veteran ''Roblox'' users hate the remake for [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks changing almost everything about the original game]] and thus making it too complex for them. The new users, on the other hand, hate the game for its [[ScrappyMechanic mechanics that are incredibly punishing for them]], such as items being unable to save upon leaving the game or the notorious Anti-Greed system which booted players out if they hogged a certain amount of a boss's HP too many times. The massive controversy over this, combined with the game's creator [=xKenis=] suffering a CreatorBreakdown, caused [[StillbornFranchise all plans for additional games based on the remake to go into a grinding halt]]. While the game is still active, it suffers from very low player counts as a result.
** The first two games that Archeximus made, ''Survival Of The Fittest'' and ''Untitled Melee Game'' are based on ''The Culling'', an obscure BattleRoyaleGame with an emphasis on melee combat. However, unlike ''The Culling'', since it was hosted on a platform geared towards younger audiences, the games get harder flak because they tend to be gravitated towards the more popular Battle Royale Game like ''VideoGame/{{Fortnite}}'', and the older members find the melee combat ''way too complex'' as [[GuideDangIt the lack of an tutorial]] on how to fight means that they are likely to go up against players who will devastate them and finding the guns to be incredibly underpowered, not to mention that teaming is absolutely encouraged, in contrast with other games who downright forbade it or limit it to two players at best. To add insult to injury, the game that it's based on, is controversial due to the [[{{Sequelitis}} negative reception of its sequel]] and statements from its developers met with backlash. As a result, both games have an incredibly low playercounts, with ''Untitled Melee Game'' holding a rare ''49%'' like-to-dislike ratio, which is only likely to be obtained by games that are considered scams at best, and it was only through ''VideoGame/DecayingWinter'' with some tweaks towards its melee and ranged combat system that it finally became a breakthrough hit for her.
* ''VideoGame/RWBYGrimmEclipse'' is already [[TheProblemWithLicensedGames a game that is considered okay at best, awful at worst]], but the one issue everyone brings up is the multitude of conflicting gameplay styles haphazardly tossed together under the misguided belief that "more means better", having [=MOBA=], team-based co-op, ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'', ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'', and ''[[Franchise/BatmanArkhamSeries Arkham]]''-styled elements under one game that fails to understand what made them individually good and why mixing them all together at once is a bad idea.
* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' was never able sell its brawler/battle royale to a dedicated audience, leading to its shut down after only 6 months. On paper, the game could've found an audience by offering a battle royale with combat inspired by fighting games and not shooters. However, fans of fighting games were wrote off the title as just another battle royale game with ''Fortnite''-esque aesthetics. At the time, battle royale fans found the fighting game-inspired combat too difficult and unfamiliar.
* ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' is missing a clear target demographic, embodying WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids and WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids at the same time. The creator himself once said that it's "too sexy for a kids' game and too girly for a male gamer game." It's got a cute art style with a bright, primary-color palette, mostly-lighthearted stories, an occasional BlackComedyBurst or dead-serious moment, sexy character designs, and a level of ParentalBonus and raunchy humor that would raise a few eyebrows with parents. As the series has gone on, it's moved to a T-rating, and it has come to target older gamers who'd be the PeripheryDemographic for a more "kiddie" series, but the difficulty of the gameplay has stayed low, leaving it underwhelming for adults. That said, the series has still managed to become one of the biggest indie franchises with a passionate fanbase, so it has managed to find an audience despite this.
* ''Franchise/SilentHill'':
** ''VideoGame/SilentHillDownpour'' is often seen as the absolute weakest entry in the series owing a lot to its uncertain audience, as they attempted an open world sort of affair. Fans of open world games were turned off by it as the world isn't nearly "open" enough and still fairly linear and restrictive, and with only about 3 characters and every location being a dreary foggy delapidated vaguely American town it lacks the interesting [=NPCs=] and locations and sidequests they're used to. Fans of the franchise meanwhile were turned off by the negative aspects of open-world games that were introduced, like BreakableWeapons, monotonous {{Fetch Quest}}s, and it taking way too long to get anywhere as the game expected you to devote considerable time to unlocking a FastTravel system to get anywhere.
** ''VideoGame/SilentHillBookOfMemories'' failed in part because it was uncertain of who it wanted to appeal to, and in part thanks to a good dose of TheyChangedItNowItSucks, as it was a dungeon crawler in a franchise known for its SurvivalHorror and [[SolvetheSoupCans puzzle-solving aspects]]. According to Creator/WayForwardTechnologies who developed it, they sought to simplify the aspects of both the new genre it had entered as well as the old genre it came in a hope of attracting fans of both genres, which ultimately pleased nobody: fans of dungeon crawlers weren't interested in it as the gameplay was far too simplistic and [[LevelGrinding grindy]] as compared to the other entries in the genre they were used to, while fans of the ''Franchise/SilentHill'' franchise weren't interested in it as the puzzles were far too simplified and it lacked the deeper horror or psychological aspects they were used to.
* ''VideoGame/TheSnackWorld'', another Creator/Level5 property; also ran into this problem in the west: the series featured a lot of cute visuals and gags that wouldn't be out of place in ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'' (one of the leads is even a CaptainErsatz of Finn); but the dungeon crawler gameplay loop and other jokes (such as the more risqué humor and poking fun at role-playing game conventions) would appeal more to older players. The fact the game was given an all-ages rating in Japan while getting slapped with older age ratings elsewhere has furthered this uncertainty.
* This has become a huge point of contention for the ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' franchise after its [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles third game]]. Fans can be generally divided into two camps, ones who grew up pre-Dreamcast on the 2D games, and ones who grew up post-Dreamcast with the 3D games. Fans of the former accuse the 3D games of relying on [[GameplayRoulette gimmicky features]] and spectacle to make up for their lack of substantial gameplay compared to the 2D titles as well as increasingly [[MoodWhiplash tonally dissonant]] plotlines. Fans of the latter accuse the 2D games of relying too much on TrialAndErrorGameplay, as well having nothing but an ExcusePlot to serve as narrative motivation. Creator/{{Sega}} trying to reconcile these two camps, especially since TheNewTens, has led to some of the games being accused of being uncertain who their target audiences are and serves as a huge contribution to the franchise's notorious BrokenBase.
** ''VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog'' marketed itself heavily as a DarkerAndEdgier entry in the series, with characters using mild swears, Shadow being able to drive vehicles and wield firearms, and the primary enemies having a more "demonic" appearance. On the other hand, it retains the cartoony graphics, cheesy dialogue, and child-friendly characters of the rest of the franchise. Fans who enjoyed the darker aesthetic thought it wasn't dark ''enough'', while fans who enjoyed the rest of the series thought its attempts at being dark came across as edgy and juvenile. In the end, it's regarded as an overall mediocre entry in the franchise, and even its [[CultClassic fanbase]] admit they love it ''because'' of its [[{{Bathos}} tone-deaf attempt to mash serious and cartoony together]] rather than in spite of it.
** The [[EpisodicGame first episode]] of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog4'' particularly suffered from a misguided attempt to cater to opposing groups. To appeal to older fans, Creator/SonicTeam and Creator/{{Dimps}} made the level aesthetics faithful recreations of popular levels from the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis games--but the core gameplay tries to cater to new players by having movement physics reminiscient of ''[[VideoGame/SonicRushSeries Sonic Rush]]'', involving very little downhill momentum and with a focus on the Homing Attack. Because of this, potential new players were put off by the aesthetics while established ''Sonic'' fans heavily criticized the gameplay for being too different from the Genesis games and not very good in its own right. The second episode [[AuthorsSavingThrow managed to resolve both issues]] by having more original level themes and improved physics, but the first episode's reputation caused ''Sonic 4'' as a whole to underperform, leading it to be CutShort. The next attempt at a retro-styled game with modern elements, ''VideoGame/SonicMania'' not only fared significantly better, but effectively acts as a direct sequel to the original games in the AlternateTimeline for Classic Sonic that would be established in ''VideoGame/SonicForces''.
** The growing criticism towards GameplayRoulette in the series caused ''VideoGame/SonicUnleashed'' to be accused of having an uncertain audience. The game consisted of two diametrically oppposed gameplay styles: the speedy, combat-light daytime gameplay and the slower, combat-heavy Werehog gameplay. Due to the opposing appeal, the game was criticized for not knowing who it was made for on release. While the two gameplay styles are well-done individually, many fans tended to prefer only one of the playstyles while disliking the other as an obstacle to playing the part they liked. In response, Creator/SonicTeam has either downplayed the GameplayRoulette in future mainline ''Sonic'' games or eliminated it altogether. The next game, ''VideoGame/SonicColors'' focused more on the gameplay style of daytime stages in ''Unleashed'' and ended up faring much better.
* ''VideoGame/SoulHackers2'' suffers from the fact that it desperately tries to appeal to fans of both the mainline ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' series as well as the MorePopularSpinOff ''Franchise/{{Persona}}''. However due to how near polar opposites the two series are both in the approach to gameplay and narrative, the game ended up appealing to neither with what the game offered coming across as little more than watered down versions than what was found in its inspirations. Making matters worse was that the game pretty much only payed lip service to the original ''VideoGame/SoulHackers'', being at the end of the day a sequel in name only and as such not appealing to that fanbase either. To add on top of all of this was also the games character designs and marketing aimed at yet another crowd, this time being the Vtuber one, further mudding the waters on who they were truly aiming for. This all compounded on top of some of the games own issues to cause it to not leave much of a mark on any of the fandoms or birthing any new ones.
* ''VideoGame/{{Spore}}'' was notorious for its uncertain audience, especially when it was first released. The original trailer made it out to be a realistic, scientifically grounded, complex evolution simulator, but the end result was significantly simplified and [[ArtisticLicenseBiology cartoonish]], seemingly to cater to children and more artistic, creative players. This naturally pissed off hardcore gamers and the more scientifically-minded fans. While the artistic-minded players were not as vitriolic, the end result still contained a lot of {{Scrappy Mechanic}}s, most of all the notorious biodisasters, that impeded players' ability to simply wander around freely for the sake of having more traditional video game challenges (one of the more common mod requests is to remove biodisasters and similarly annoying events). This has calmed down over the years as the original trailer became a distant memory to the younger players who grew up with the game, but the bitter divide still remains in some circles.
* ''VideoGame/StarlinkBattleForAtlas''[='s=] uncertain audience is ultimately what led to it having less than satisfactory sales for Ubisoft. The game's gameplay depth, scope and detailed lore seemed tailor-made for older gamers, but the focus on its toys-to-life spaceship controller gimmick felt more aimed at kids. It didn't help that, by this point, the three biggest games focusing on toys-to-life (''VideoGame/{{Skylanders}}'', ''VideoGame/DisneyInfinity'', and ''VideoGame/LegoDimensions'') had all died out and taken the genre with them. Not even a guest appearance by the ''VideoGame/StarFox'' cast in the Switch version helped to boost the game's appeal, though this did result in the game [[JustHereForGodzilla selling the best on the Nintendo Switch]]. However, it didn't sell well enough, and the second wave of toys was cancelled.
* The [[UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} Steam Machine]] ended up being an oddity of video game hardware as it was unclear who exactly {{Creator/Valve|Corporation}} was intending to market it to. Fully released in 2015, their very concept was of pre-built gaming [=PCs=] loaded with [=SteamOS=] (a Linux-based operating system reminiscent of and integrated with their signature {{UsefulNotes/Steam}} platform) with the accessibility found in console systems. The issue lies with how [=PC=] gamers weren't exactly up for getting a pre-built extension of a platform they're already familiar with just to be suitable for their living room, and console gamers were alienated by the many, many models to have to choose from, confused by its intended purpose, and overall distracted by the mainstream options at the time of release: the UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 and the UsefulNotes/XboxOne. Not helping matters was the lack of compatible games due to running Linux (with Linux compatibility not always clearly marked), as UsefulNotes/{{Wine}} (as Proton) had not been integrated into Steam yet. In 2018, they realized it was underperforming and stopped offering Steam Machines through the Steam platform, and in 2020, Valve president Gabe Newell admitted that even after their production delays, the hardware they were pushing for was still [[ObviousBeta "super-incomplete"]] and they were too impatient to get the product out before convincing consumers why they needed it. Valve's next attempt at a Steam "console", the handheld Steam Deck, was much more successful.
* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterXTekken'' kind of gets this from the title, as given the two games are quite different, fans knew immediately [[SpotlightStealingCrossover somebody was going to get favoritism.]] Sure enough, the game turned out to be borrowing ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIV'''s artstyle, 2.5-D gameplay, and general design[[note]]granted, a game called ''Tekken X Street Fighter'' was supposed to be released in order to cater to the ''Tekken'' crowd, but it ended up going nowhere after ''[=SFXT=]'' bombed[[/note]]. If you liked ''Franchise/{{Tekken}}'', it didn't come across as a crossover so much as a ''Street Fighter'' game guest-starring the ''Tekken'' cast, but if you liked ''Street Fighter'', you probably already owned [[CapcomSequelStagnation at least three different versions]] of ''IV'' and didn't see a reason to pick up something so similar when there would probably be yet another version on the horizon to learn. And then there was the gem system, which let you modify fighters with gems found from buyable packs or random drops--the designers claimed the idea was to lure in fans of CCG-style games. But fans of card games want games that favor strategy over [[SomeDexterityRequired complex inputs and tight reactions]], so weren't interested in jumping over the barrier for entry, while fighting game fans dislike anything that removes focus on player skill, ''especially'' BribingYourWayToVictory or randomized elements.
* ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'' ends up undergoing conflicting appeal due to its strange combination of gameplay and story. In terms of gameplay, it closely resembles the main ''[[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]]'' platformers due to being an explicit platformer that emphasizes finding power-ups in blocks and jumping on enemies as your main attack. In terms of story and presentation however, it strays far away from the usual ''Mario'' elements, as the game does not take place in the ''Mario'' universe and it emphasizes the more otherworldly original characters and enemies over the ''Mario'' cast. Because of this approach, fans of the ''Mario'' platformers may be turned away by the story focusing away from the ''Mario'' elements, while players uninterested in the ''Mario'' universe may be turned away from the gameplay hewing close to 2D ''Mario''.
* According to an interview in ''Magazine/NintendoPower'' Issue 269, this is what Hiroshi Matsuyama believes to be a killing blow against ''VideoGame/TailConcerto'''s sales expectations. On one hand, it's a colorful platformer taking place in a fantasy sky world [[WorldOfFunnyAnimals populated by anthropomorphic cats and dogs]] piloting all different kinds of mechas, [[AnimationAgeGhetto so a lot of the older playerbase couldn't take it seriously]]. On the other hand, it preaches the dangers of blind faith and misguided racism on top of having a rather complicated control scheme, so a lot of younger players had a hard time getting into the game at all.
* ''VideoGame/TokyoMirageSessionsFE'' suffered this on account of trying to appease both the ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' fans, and ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' fans, on top of alienating those who found themselves in the middle. It attempted to be a blend of the two series by having SMT like gameplay using Fire Emblem characters, all dressed up in an idol themed RPG. ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' fans were turned off by the heavily ''Franchise/{{Persona}}''-like characters, gameplay, and story, and the game was seen as a waste of the core mechanics of the SMT series thanks to none of the story or gameplay elements that make the SMT franchise beloved being present. ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' fans were put off by the lack of TurnBasedStrategy and usage of characters from only two games in the series as the Mirages, alongside finding the story and characters too "anime" for their tastes. The result was that ''SMT'' fans felt it was a dumbed down SMT game and didn't want to get it, while ''FE'' fans felt it was too radically different to be worth playing. Worse, the idol theme of the game caused this ''again'', because the idol elements are mostly used for ExcusePlot reasons, making it effectively downplayed and not very interesting for people who enjoy idol stuff compared to other games, but is also still a present and major part of the game's presentation, meaning people who aren't into idol themed content were immediately put off by it being focused are idols. While the game was critically well received, it was a major flop sales wise, with many citing the fact the game had no target audience in mind. Its Switch rerelease did better, but still unperformed, only selling [[https://nintendoeverything.com/japans-best-selling-games-of-january-2020/ a mere 40k copies]] in its launch month in Japan.
* ''VideoGame/ATotalWarSagaTROY'' had to deal with two very different expectations from the ''VideoGame/TotalWar'' fandom as to what the game should be. One faction wanted the game to be a simulation of Mycenaean Greek warfare, living out the battles of an iconic yet relatively undepicted era as if one were there, and the other wanted the game to be a showcase of the miracles and monsters of Myth/ClassicalMythology in all its splendor. The game tried to split the difference by going for a "truth behind the myth" approach, depicting many of the characters and monsters of mythology but in a more realistic form that could plausibly inspire their stories: for instance, the minotaur exists, but is depicted as a buff man with a skull helmet. Unfortunately, this failed to marry the two groups: the former group didn't want a minotaur unit in the game at all, and the latter group wanted the ''real'' minotaur, not a guy poorly dressed up as him. And for people who liked the {{Demythification}} conceit, there was also the presence of god powers and hero units, leading to the situation where Achilles slaughtering a phalanx singlehandedly before magically healing his wounds through divine intercession was considered perfectly sensible, but a man with a bull head was too far. The first major DLC for the game realized this, and decided to essentially split up the game in accordance to the fandom; while "truth behind the myth" remained a mode, two extra modes were added, with one cutting out the mythically-inspired units completely and significantly changing the mechanics of heroes and divine powers, and the other remodeling all the mythical units into actual monsters and adding some truly fantastical beasts into the mix.
* ''VideoGame/VivaPinata'' had the teens and adults turned off as it looked too kiddy, while many kids were turned off because the micromanagement was too complicated. Thus, while it got moderate success and an animated series, it failed Microsoft's intent of become their equivalent to ''Pokémon''.
* This is one of the reasons ''VideoGame/TheWonderful101'' became an AcclaimedFlop. The bright, colorful, big headed toy figure-esque art style and the surface premise about color-themed superheroes who form giant weapons to fight aliens seems like something aimed for a younger audience. Yet it covers mature themes of revenge and loss, has a steep learning curve, and to AvoidTheDreadedGRating there's a small handful of swears and sexual jokes sprinkled in. Older players were turned off by the visual presentation, while children likely wouldn't be allowed to play or would be turned off by the complexity of the combat.
* A major reason for why ''VideoGame/YIIKAPostModernRPG'' earned such an infamous reputation can partially be attributed to its uncertain audience; half of it being designed as an old school RPG like ''VideoGame/EarthBound1994'', while also trying to be a deep analysis of the RPG genre with a modern angle (hence the "Post Modern"). This attempt to be a modern analysis of the genre using both an older artistic style and gameplay meant few players enjoyed it, as the gameplay was not particularly deep or interesting enough to satisfy fans, on top of being cartoony in design, while people interested in the story were frustrated with how overly complex and confusing the story ended up being, on top of how unlikeable the main cast was. This failed attempt at mixing the two ended causing it to be universally disliked among consumers.
* This is among the reasons why the ''Franchise/YokaiWatch'' series was a CashCowFranchise in Japan but didn't catch on in the west: it tried to target both the casual audience of ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' and hardcore fans of Japanese culture. The latter group was put off by the ThinlyVeiledDubCountryChange made to appease the former group, who wouldn't be interested regardless due to {{youkai}} being an intrinsically Japanese concept. Within the series, content released after the third game has also faced this problem; ''VideoGame/YokaiWatch4'' has a completely different action-oriented gameplay style and shifted its tone to be DarkerAndEdgier, with tie-ins such as ''Anime/YokaiWatchShadowside'' and ''Anime/YokaiWatchForeverFriends'' following suit. Existing fans were split on the shift away from the established tone and gameplay, while potential new ones still weren't interested and didn't find the new elements compelling enough.
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* The ''VideoGame/{{Atelier}}'' franchise attracts these claims. The series initially ran on {{shojo}} tropes, with most of the games have a flowery art style with plenty of pretty boys, and a mostly female fanbase. Yet, starting with the ''Arland'' series of games, the franchise took a 180 and a lot of TheMerch, DLC costumes, and promotional artwork would become heavily MaleGaze-y, and the games have incorporated more and more {{moe}} elements over time, though still keeping many of the shojo tropes, pretty boys and occasional FemaleGaze moments involving said pretty boys that might alienate that audience anyway. The series did go back to its TamerAndChaster more shojo-leaning roots for the ''Dusk'' trilogy only to go full on in back into the fanservicey moe designs in the ''Mysterious'' games. A survey released in 2019 did confirm that even after these changes, the series fanbase remains mostly women, meaning these changes didn't even do a very good job at attracting a male audience to begin with, at least until ''Ryza'' increased the fanservice and caused a NewbieBoom.
* ''VideoGame/BackIn1995'' is a {{Retraux}} SurvivalHorror game in the vein of the original ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil1'' and ''VideoGame/SilentHill1'', so you'd presume it's meant to appeal to players with a fondness for the classic horror gameplay style they represent. Then you learn the big twist, which in a nutshell is [[spoiler:an elaborate TakeThatAudience to exactly these people, insinuating that they're horribly out of touch, overly nostalgic, and unable to move on from outdated stuff in the past]]. People who dislike older survival horror games will obviously not be interested in a GenreThrowback with low-res polygons and TankControls, while those who ''do'' like that sort of thing [[spoiler:likely won't be amused by the insulting message the game is built around]].
* ''VideoGame/BalanWonderworld'' was created with small children as its target audience, with it having incredibly simplistic controls and level design, but its advertising was aimed at attracting the older fanbases of ''VideoGame/NightsIntoDreams'' and ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog''. Likewise, despite being designed to be played by children, the game is notably lacking in its gameplay tutorials and explanation of its story, requiring players to look up guides in order to understand certain features and read the game's tie-in novel to understand its plot. The game ended up a critical and commercial flop as a result.
* The commercial failure of ''VideoGame/BanjoKazooieNutsAndBolts'', which [[FranchiseKiller ended]] the ''VideoGame/BanjoKazooie'' series, can be blamed squarely on uncertain appeal. Established ''Banjo-Kazooie'' fans were incensed at how the long-awaited third installment of the series had thoroughly abandoned its [[CollectAThonPlatformer exploration-based platforming gameplay]] in favor of mission-based vehicle building, seeing it as the franchise abandoning its identity. At the same time, the game was full of call backs and continuity to the original games, with the game starting out on Grunty's disembodied skull escaping and attempting to get revenge eight years after ''[[VideoGame/BanjoTooie Tooie]]''; this left potential newer fans disinterested at best and confused at worst. To add to the uncertainty, the new character L.O.G. explicitly and simultaneously insults both the old style of gameplay and gamers at the time in the prologue, calling the former "painful to watch" and saying the latter "just want to shoot things." The game was fairly well-received by critics, and some players begrudgingly admit the gameplay is fun, but most admit that the game should've been marketed as a new IP at best or a spin-off at the very least.
* ''VideoGame/BattlefieldV'' became such a divisive title in the ''Battlefield'' series because developer DICE struggled to reconcile its gameplay and aesthetics. The more tactical gameplay with reduced ammo capacity and scaled down health regeneration is supposed to appeal to the hardcore gamers. At the same time, it had wacky cosmetics that are supposed to draw in mainstream audiences, specifically the ''Fortnite'' crowd. Likewise, the game had modes like Firestorm and the now-cancelled 5v5 mode, which were attempts to cash in on the Battle Royale and eSports trends, respectively. Unfortunately, the game failed to fully satisfy any demographic with casual audiences frustrated by the high difficulty curve and the grim tone that replicated the somberness of its predecessor ''VideoGame/Battlefield1'' but wihout the exotic Steampunk weaponry and gadgets that set [=BF1=] apart from other generic historical shooters; hardcore gamers alienated by the juvenile cosmetics and PoliticallyCorrectHistory approach that clashed with the serious World War 2 mood; and veteran ''Battlefield'' fans were frustrated by the developers for chasing trends instead of building on the core experience.
* ''VideoGame/BlazingAries'': On one hand, since it's an HGame, part of its main demographic might be interested in part of the risque scenes. However, the problem with that is most of them are locked after the second part of the first chapter... and the first part of the first chapter is notorious for being EarlyGameHell, thus frustrating those who came for the fanservice and alienating them at worse, and it only gets worse from there, since it's {{Surpris|eDifficulty}}ingly difficult for an eroge even on ''the easiest setting''. And for those came for the gameplay are alienated by the fanservice elements, since its an eroge, and they also complain about the game being unable to decide what kind of ActionRPG it is (for example, the combo-based gameplay system might be inspired from the ''VideoGame/TalesSeries'', but some of the bosses tend to discourage combos) and vice-versa. Notably, the FANZA and Steam versions of it have the normal difficulty ''[[DifficultyByRegion nerfed]]'', particularly due to these complaints, and the [[BleachedUnderpants removal of sex scenes for the international versions, not to mention a family-friendly option]], which would normally attract complaints, is seen as a ''blessing'' since it allows the game to have a more distinct identity.
* ''VideoGame/BleedingEdge'' suffered from Ninja Theory not having a clear vision of what sort of game they wanted to create. ''Bleeding Edge'' originally started off as a fighting game, but during its development, Ninja Theory decided to change it into a MOBA, and then into a hero shooter. As a result, the game incorporated gameplay elements from all three genres, with none of them working well together. The game was simply too unconventional and bloated for a fan of any one of the three game genres to be interested.
* One of the problems with the original ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' was that it didn't seem to be sure whether it was a straight {{Deconstruction}} of [=RPGs=] and first-person shooters, a {{Parody}} of the same, or [[DeconstructiveParody something in-between]]. As such, it came off as a ShallowParody, which limited its appeal. [[VideoGame/Borderlands2 The sequel]] ratcheted the comedy and the parody up, which made it DenserAndWackier, but gave it a much clearer idea of its own identity, and it found its audience that way.
* ''VideoGame/ChibiRobo: Zip Lash'' was part of a franchise that had always been, at best, a CultClassic -- small but devoted fanbase, very little general awareness, the usual. ''Zip Lash'' was intended to save the series by bringing in new fans, by way of a 3DS release and a GenreShift from an explorative 3D platformer with the premise of going around a house and helping out the family there to a sidescrolling 2D platformer with the premise of saving the world by going through fairly standard environments. Longtime fans were angered that the series had so thoroughly abandoned its aesthetic and identity, while general audiences weren't familiar with the character and just saw it as a generic 2D platformer on a handheld that already had a surfeit of well-received games of that type. Unsurprisingly, [[FranchiseKiller the game bombed hard.]]
* The considerable underperformance of ''VideoGame/DayZ'' as a standalone game could be half attributed to its uncertain audience (the other half being [[ObviousBeta its infamously barebones launch]]). Making a standalone version of a beloved, if [[PerpetualBeta technically volatile]] zombie-themed ''VideoGame/{{ARMA}}'' mod seemed like a straightforward path to success, but a significant hurdle came in the form of just how variable the ''[=DayZ=]'' mod had become. Many different servers [[GameplayDerailment added their own variations for different styles of gameplay]] beyond the original SurvivalSandbox, such as communal base-building, fighting enemy hordes, or [[BattleRoyaleGame PVP battle royales]], meaning that a ''[=DayZ=]'' game meant entirely different things to many people. The standalone version -- as a partial consequence of being released too early -- [[MasterOfNone couldn't commit to any one of these visions]], leaving newcomers disappointed while preexisting ''[=DayZ=]'' fans fell into an unholy mix of "ItsTheSameNowItSucks" and "TheyChangedItNowItSucks", causing the game's momentum to drop off like a cliff.
* ''VideoGame/DeadOrAlive6'' tried to market itself as more tournament-friendly and appealing to western sensibilities, doing so by going TamerAndChaster and reducing the amount of {{Fanservice}} in the game, ie going against its core identity, and the reason the series built its fame, in an aspiration to reach [=eSports=] and [[UsefulNotes/FightingGameCommunity EVO]]. Then director Yohei Shimori would [[FlipFlopOfGod flip-flop between statements]], stating that ''nothing'' changed later, only to go back to the old, [[MasterOfTheMixedMessage confusing a lot of people]]. It was controversial, to say the least, and in fact said controversy often [[OvershadowedByControversy overshadowed the game itself]]. Unfortunately, any attempt to reach the big leagues failed, for two reasons: The first was the infamous "Core Values" incident where ''[=DOA6=]'' was taken off-stream in the middle of the tournament at EVO Japan 2019, because it got too sexual with the use of female models shaking their breasts and butts to mimic the game. Then, when the lineup of EVO 2019 in North America, comparable to the Super Bowl of fighters, was announced, ''Dead or Alive 6'' wasn't there. Effectively, all the effort and controversy was [[AllForNothing for nothing]], as it was effectively damned to its niche status, getting passed up for other niche but more respected games like ''VideoGame/UnderNightInBirth'' and ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown'', and its direct competitor ''VideoGame/SoulcaliburVI'', a game that ''didn't'' suffer from this trope as it went about its own way with zero confusion, incidentally a HotterAndSexier one. The fact is, the game tried to appease everyone, but did the polar opposite instead.
* The more divided reception of ''VideoGame/DiabloIII'' overtime can be partially attributed to uncertain appeal. Creator/BlizzardEntertainment wanted the ''VideoGame/{{Diablo}}'' series to return and be as successful as both ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' and ''VideoGame/StarCraftII'' (since the series had been quiet since 2000). To get newcomers, they made a more grandiose story with a deep and complex lore like their other titles and made the gameplay slightly simpler with more emphasis on set-pieces and boss battles, with the horror appeal dialed down compared to the past games, with a “slightly” [[LighterAndSofter more comical tone]] in the game. To get old fans back, Blizzard tried to reference as much of the past games as they could, ranging from bosses (like Leoric and the Butcher), to locations (such as Tristriam), while keeping the game’s loot system and gear progression like the last game to appeal to those who liked gear gathering, and trying to do as many CallBack moments as they could. The result was that over time, the game became criticized for not really knowing who it wants to be for: newer fans might not want to play the third game that tries to make references so often, while long time fans wanted something closer to the previous games with a focus on horror and didn’t like how the game seemed like it was trying to be like Blizzard’s other titles instead of itself. As a result, despite being critically well received at launch, in the years that followed, it is often debated how good it is due to the unclear target audience.
* Unclear audience was a big contributor to ''VideoGame/DMCDevilMayCry'''s divisive reception (more so in terms of plot, tone and characterization than gameplay). ''[=DmC=]'' has a notably DarkerAndEdgier tone and attempts to deal with some much heavier topics than the [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry original continuity]]; while the latter does have some serious and dramatic moments, overall the games tend to be more campy and whimsical. Creator/NinjaTheory were specifically instructed to make a 'different' ''Devil May Cry'' game, but the end result is that ''[=DmC=]'' bears little resemblance to the rest of the franchise and either doesn't use any of the classic characters or radically changes them. Many fans of the original games weren't onboard because it was InNameOnly, while the ''Devil May Cry'' title may have been off-putting to potential players who ''were'' into what ''[=DmC=]'' has to offer, resulting in ''[=DmC=]'' underselling in some markets. To this day, it's common to hear players say stuff like "It's not a bad game ''per se'', just not a good ''Devil May Cry'' game". The game underperforming previous installments in sales prompted Creator/{{Capcom}} to {{Unreboot}} the series with ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5'' in 2019.
* An issue that hit ''VideoGame/EpicMickey'' fairly hard is that it wasn't quite sure if it wanted to be a game for little kids, or a game for older fans of animation. It was certainly that older crowd that was most interested in the possibility of a DarkerAndEdgier Mickey Mouse, which was the game's original pitch, but the game itself turned out to be rather easy and shallow, with most of the creepy imagery and deconstructive elements shown off in those early promotional materials [[NeverTrustATrailer now absent.]] The young children the game now seemed designed towards, however, would likely be put off by the focus on a character whose only particularly memorable showing in years was in ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'', even before the game's plot, which hinges on fans being at least passingly familiar with very old Mickey Mouse shorts and the significance behind the character of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.
* ''VideoGame/FantasyStrike'' is a FightingGame whose main selling point is its accessibility to newcomers thanks to simplified controls and short combos. This is reinforced by its free-to-play business model letting anyone try the game out without having to worry about wasting money. But said [=F2P=] model is unusual in that all characters are unlocked from the start, but the only modes that can be played are training and online fights against random opponents. Anything else, including ''the ability to play against your friends or bots'', [[{{Freemium}} is locked behind the purchase of a "Core Pack" DLC]], so any actual fighting game newcomers who try the game out have a 99% chance of fighting a seasoned veteran who will kick their ass. While ''FS'' does have a niche fandom, the innate contradictions of its business model led to [[https://steamcharts.com/app/390560#All rapidly-dwindling player numbers]] after the game became free.
* Several ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' titles have had this problem.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'' attracts these claims. The fact that it centres on a trio of female characters and has a LighterAndSofter tone than its predecessor (the battle system revolves around changing clothes!) seems to [[GirlShowGhetto turn off male gamers]]. However there's also a massive heaping of {{Fanservice}}, LesYay and {{Stripperiffic}} outfits - which alienate female gamers.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTacticsAdvance'' tends to have this issue because of the changes it made to the setting and gameplay. Being a SpiritualSuccessor to ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'', one of the most beloved TurnBasedStrategy out there, it had to deal with the expectations of the fans coming in who loved the original game, while trying to get newcomers into the game. Fans of the original ''Tactics'' hated how the game was more child friendly and low stakes compared to the DarkerAndEdgier story of ''Tactics'', alongside seeing the gameplay as being dumbed down and suffering from FakeDifficulty thanks to the new Law system. Newcomers hoping to get in had to contend with the same L system without any experience in the game type, and the mechanics were more advanced than what newcomers to the genre expected, alongside the name making it seem like a sequel of sorts. The result was that ''Tactics'' fans hated the game for not being like the original, while new fans couldn't get in as easily as the title seemed to want to do, causing it to have a largely negative reputation for a long time.
** A major reason why ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy2015'' ended up being a disappointment financially for ''Square Enix'' was that the game's console port didn't seem clear on who it was designed for; E-Sports fans, or ''Dissidia'' veterans. The game was clearly designed to appeal to the E-Sports crowd with its usage of "classes", removal of the RPG mechanics such as leveling up, the streamlined summoning system and character builds, and 3v3 matches, something that apparently was wanted by ''Square Enix''. At the same time, they wanted to still attract fans of the previous games, so they included a story mode that acted as a follow-up to the previous games story, included some returning characters like Kain, and announced they wanted to bring all of the previously playable characters back, plus they added new characters like Ramza and Noctis. Sadly, the games inability to appeal to either groups backfired: the game never saw any light as an E-Sports due to its technical problems, poor gameplay balance, and the limited customization for characters, failed to appeal to the UsefulNotes/FightingGameCommunity (where it was more likely to get success as an esport) because it required three players per team rather than the traditional 1v1 format, which anyone remotely familiar with tournaments will realize would make it impossible for matches to happen on time even if enough people managed to find teams. Meanwhile long time fans hated the changes since they removed the RPG mechanics, forced those who played for the story and characters to have to grind to unlock more of it, and also hated how barebones the game's content was, especially the barely-there story that, once you removed the forced grinding, was really short. It did not help that the games matchmaking was very laggy, meaning nobody wanted to play online despite being essential to get full enjoyment out of the very multiplayer-focused game. The result was that the game was discontinued only after roughly 1.5 years, and the plans for a larger roster never came to pass.
* ''VideoGame/GhostReconBreakpoint'' suffered from an uncertain audience. It attempted to reinvent the Ghost Recon franchise as a loot-based shooter in the same vein as ''VideoGame/{{Destiny}}'' or ''VideoGame/TheDivision''. Unfortunately, it was a massive failure. Longtime Ghost Recon fans hated the new mechanics for taking away from the realism and verisimilitude that was a major draw of the franchise for them. Meanwhile, the steps that were taken by Ubisoft to try and make those loot and RPG mechanics more palatable to the Ghost Recon fanbase made them unappealing to the players who like them. The loot system was very shallow and could be outright ignored for the majority of the game, as enemies outside of very specific areas on the map scale up or down to the Player's Gearscore, and even when they don't all human enemies can be killed with one headshot (two if they're wearing a helmet). The end result was a game that was rejected by both bases and flopped hard enough that Ubisoft's stock price tanked, and they delayed all forthcoming games to reevaluate the direction that they were headed in.
* Creator/{{Nintendo}} as a whole went through a spell of uncertainty starting in the twilight years of the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} and ending with the release of the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch. During this period, the company was aware of the Wii and DS's greater success with simpler games geared towards casual players and diminished success with more complex games geared towards traditional gamers. At the same time, they were aware that casual players wouldn't become dedicated consumers the way traditional gamers were. This dual concern led to several decisions that would attempt to reconcile casual and hardcore players, mostly to mixed results. Particular highlights of this uncertainty include:
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7lGmshXRvM At least one person]] has theorized that indecisive appeal is the reason why ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' is so [[ContestedSequel divisive]] among fans, as it feels like it can't decide whether it was made for newer players brought in with the Wii's success or veteran players who have been following [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda the series]] for a long time. The game is loaded with several mandatory hints (mainly from [[ExpositionFairy Fi]]) that clearly explain where to progress most of the time, frustrating veteran players who want to figure things out on their own. At the same time, many of the puzzles not only require considerable spatial and logical awareness as with previous games in the series, but Fi tends to give little or vague hints on what to do with them, alienating newer players who want a more accessible experience. Regarding the game's overall structure, many longtime ''Zelda'' players were opposed to the game's focus on a [[NoSidepathsNoExplorationNoFreedom more linear structure]], given that previous ''Zelda'' games emphasized relatively free exploration with a focus on finding hidden treasures and rewards, often allowing the player to [[SequenceBreaking do dungeons out of order]]. Unfortunately, players into linear games were against the game's vast-yet-empty Sky area, the long, mandatory quests to access the game's [[DungeonCrawling dungeons]], and especially the high amount of {{Backtracking}} in its second half, given that fans of linear games prefer their games to have a brisker pace free of filler content. Finally, the motion-controlled swordplay didn't endear the game to veteran ''Zelda'' fans who found the button-controlled sword swings much more reliable, while newcomers presumably coming from ''VideoGame/WiiSportsResort'' found much of the combat frustrating due to how enemies actively block your attacks. The UpdatedRerelease for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch addressed some of these issues, such as decreasing the interrupting nature of many of the hints and adding a new control scheme without motion controls, but the conflict between the game's linearity and the rather slow pacing remained.
** The UsefulNotes/WiiU's disappointing performance is often credited to its uncertain audience. What it attempted to do was recapture the massive casual-audiences success that was the original Wii by using the same branding and a controller-based gimmick that modified the controller to resemble a more familiar device, while recapturing traditional gamers through more advanced hardware, less emphasis on motion controls, and a launch lineup with ports of many seventh-generation games. But to casual consumers who bought Wiis back in the day, its gimmick of a large tablet-style controller with a second screen and a ton of strange features didn't have the instant draw of motion controls, with many being convinced it was a peripheral by the similar name and lack of focus on the console, and its higher price tag made it too expensive to be an impulse purchase. To mainstream gamers who'd felt burned by the Wii, it was an incredibly underpowered system that could really only play Nintendo games or inferior ports and lacked a lot of features, including a very flawed online mode, which made it a companion system at best. Even to core Nintendo fans, it lacked a lot of the usual KillerApp franchises, being focused mostly on lesser lights, {{Updated Rerelease}}s, and spinoffs, and had to compete with the cheaper, better-supported UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS carrying counterparts or outright ports of a lot of its best games. The console's successor, the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, addressed all of these issues and managed to outsell its senior within its first year on the market alone.
** ''VideoGame/StarFoxZero'' suffered from being indecisive on whether to appeal to established fans or newer players. The game's story seemed to aim towards winning back ''Franchise/StarFox'' fans who lost interest in the series after ''[[VideoGame/StarFox64 64]]'' by presenting itself as a ContinuityReboot to the series, returning to the original fight against Andross. The core gameplay, on the other hand, aimed to breathe new life into the series by heavily changing the Arwing controls, most notably requiring use of the [=GamePad=] to aim the Arwing's laser shots. As a result, the game was criticized for both [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks changing too much]] and [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks changing too little]] at the same time; potential newer players disliked how the game's presentation seemed to pander to older fans, while established ''Star Fox'' fans disliked the new Arwing gameplay, particularly the clumsy [=GamePad=] integration. Consequently, ''Zero'' underperformed in sales and received mixed reception from fans and critics alike, rendering it as of yet the [[FranchiseKiller last original game in the franchise.]]
* ''VideoGame/PlayStationAllStarsBattleRoyale'', [[Creator/SonyInteractiveEntertainment Sony]]'s ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' equivalent, didn't do very well because of its uncertain audience. The gameplay in particular ended up being very divisive due to the confused design: the game's focus on traditional fighting game {{Combos}} alienates the casual crowd who wants a simple party game, while the bizarre and unconventional mechanics of using [[LimitBreak supers]] only as a method to kill and being the only method to score kills alienates the hardcore crowd. The roster by itself also suffers from this problem: about half the franchises involved are gritty M-rated ones, but the game itself is a cartoony PlatformFighter with tons of wacky concepts. While ''Smash'' is [[DemographicDissonantCrossover no stranger to representing M-rated franchises]], they make up a very small portion of the roster and tend to have their seriousness toned down to compensate. ''[=PlayStation All-Stars=]'' on the other hand plays the seriousness of the characters in question rather straight, making it jarring to see a [[VideoGame/{{Killzone}} space Nazi]] slap his enemies silly with a fish. Even as a pure celebration of [=PlayStation=] history, the roster was largely reliant on {{Guest Fighter}}s from non-Sony games, ironically making it seem like Sony didn't have much of their own history, while what third-parties ''were'' there were mostly promotions for upcoming games, such as [[VideoGame/DMCDevilMayCry Reboot Dante]] and [[VideoGame/BioShock Big Daddy]] (with most of his accompanying material coming from the then-upcoming ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite''), instead of more historically significant characters known for being on [=PlayStation=] consoles, like VideoGame/CrashBandicoot and [[Franchise/TombRaider Lara Croft]], making it look like Sony barely had any third-party history either. The game [[StillbornFranchise failed to birth an ongoing competitor]] to ''Smash'' as a result.
* ''VideoGame/QuakeChampions'' ended up awkwardly sandwiched between a signature style of [[VideoGame/{{Quake}} its beloved franchise]] and [[FollowTheLeader the new hotness it was trying to replicate]], and didn't quite grab fans of either. ''Quake'' multiplayer is known for its fast-paced, highly technical arena shooter gameplay beloved by its fans in large part ''because'' of [[SomeDexterityRequired its steep learning curve]], with ''Champions''' inclusion of HeroShooter elements driving some of the old guard off, with many fans seeing it as [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks a dumbing down player expression and making the challenges less rewarding]]. Meanwhile, expected newcomers were reluctant to join due to ''Champions'' still being more mechanically daunting when compared to more-accessible contemporaries like ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Paladins}}'', as well as having an identity largely based around ''Quake'' and other Creator/IdSoftware properties, which doesn't carry as much star power to modern audiences.
* ''VideoGame/RaidWorldWarII'': The game had one from conception as it was a 4 player co-op game made some of the same people who worked on ''VideoGame/PaydayTheHeist''...and was appealing to that same crowd, it even had a tie-in with ''VideoGame/PAYDAY2'' to give it a canonical connection with it[[note]]one of the rooms in the safe house is designed with World War II-themed paraphernalia, and Creator/JohnCleese portrays both Control in this game, [[UncannyFamilyResemblance and Aldstone]][[/note]]. However, it was clear that after the demo released, it just didn't tickle much interest with that userbase. Players of ''PAYDAY 2'' saw it as a mild reskin, citing that [=RAID=] [[ItsTheSameSoItSucks didn't bring much new to the table to differentiate itself]], so there wasn't much interest in playing [=RAID=] at the time when ''PAYDAY 2'' was still going strong, and actively benefitted from the crossover more than its parent game did, and the rest is history, really. Not helping matters was that the game was criticised for also using the same 13 year old Diesel engine ''PAYDAY 2'' does, and all the issues '''''that''''' entails, with the only real upgrade to the aging engine was the move to a 64-bit platform (which isn't even much of a selling point either, as ''PAYDAY 2'' on Linux is 64-bit anyway).Safe to say, there is a ''reason'' why the upcoming ''PAYDAY 3'' is '''not''' being made in the Diesel engine.
* ''VideoGame/{{Roblox}}'' is a platform intended for younger audiences, but it also has a massive PeripheryDemographic in no thanks to the potential to "Be Anything, Build Anything!", with major successes like ''VideoGame/PhantomForces'', ''VideoGame/JailbreakRoblox'', etc. However, there are times where MultipleDemographicAppeal or appealing to an certain audience fails:
** The remake of ''Defend The Statue'' is one of the [[OvershadowedByControversy most notorious cases]], as a cautionary tale of what happens when [[OldGuardVersusNewBlood veteran users are completely unable to agree with new users]]. The veteran ''Roblox'' users hate the remake for [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks changing almost everything about the original game]] and thus making it too complex for them. The new users, on the other hand, hate the game for its [[ScrappyMechanic mechanics that are incredibly punishing for them]], such as items being unable to save upon leaving the game or the notorious Anti-Greed system which booted players out if they hogged a certain amount of a boss's HP too many times. The massive controversy over this, combined with the game's creator [=xKenis=] suffering a CreatorBreakdown, caused [[StillbornFranchise all plans for additional games based on the remake to go into a grinding halt]]. While the game is still active, it suffers from very low player counts as a result.
** The first two games that Archeximus made, ''Survival Of The Fittest'' and ''Untitled Melee Game'' are based on ''The Culling'', an obscure BattleRoyaleGame with an emphasis on melee combat. However, unlike ''The Culling'', since it was hosted on a platform geared towards younger audiences, the games get harder flak because they tend to be gravitated towards the more popular Battle Royale Game like ''VideoGame/{{Fortnite}}'', and the older members find the melee combat ''way too complex'' as [[GuideDangIt the lack of an tutorial]] on how to fight means that they are likely to go up against players who will devastate them and finding the guns to be incredibly underpowered, not to mention that teaming is absolutely encouraged, in contrast with other games who downright forbade it or limit it to two players at best. To add insult to injury, the game that it's based on, is controversial due to the [[{{Sequelitis}} negative reception of its sequel]] and statements from its developers met with backlash. As a result, both games have an incredibly low playercounts, with ''Untitled Melee Game'' holding a rare ''49%'' like-to-dislike ratio, which is only likely to be obtained by games that are considered scams at best, and it was only through ''VideoGame/DecayingWinter'' with some tweaks towards its melee and ranged combat system that it finally became a breakthrough hit for her.
* ''VideoGame/RWBYGrimmEclipse'' is already [[TheProblemWithLicensedGames a game that is considered okay at best, awful at worst]], but the one issue everyone brings up is the multitude of conflicting gameplay styles haphazardly tossed together under the misguided belief that "more means better", having [=MOBA=], team-based co-op, ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'', ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'', and ''[[Franchise/BatmanArkhamSeries Arkham]]''-styled elements under one game that fails to understand what made them individually good and why mixing them all together at once is a bad idea.
* ''VideoGame/{{Rumbleverse}}'' was never able sell its brawler/battle royale to a dedicated audience, leading to its shut down after only 6 months. On paper, the game could've found an audience by offering a battle royale with combat inspired by fighting games and not shooters. However, fans of fighting games were wrote off the title as just another battle royale game with ''Fortnite''-esque aesthetics. At the time, battle royale fans found the fighting game-inspired combat too difficult and unfamiliar.
* ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' is missing a clear target demographic, embodying WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids and WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids at the same time. The creator himself once said that it's "too sexy for a kids' game and too girly for a male gamer game." It's got a cute art style with a bright, primary-color palette, mostly-lighthearted stories, an occasional BlackComedyBurst or dead-serious moment, sexy character designs, and a level of ParentalBonus and raunchy humor that would raise a few eyebrows with parents. As the series has gone on, it's moved to a T-rating, and it has come to target older gamers who'd be the PeripheryDemographic for a more "kiddie" series, but the difficulty of the gameplay has stayed low, leaving it underwhelming for adults. That said, the series has still managed to become one of the biggest indie franchises with a passionate fanbase, so it has managed to find an audience despite this.
* ''Franchise/SilentHill'':
** ''VideoGame/SilentHillDownpour'' is often seen as the absolute weakest entry in the series owing a lot to its uncertain audience, as they attempted an open world sort of affair. Fans of open world games were turned off by it as the world isn't nearly "open" enough and still fairly linear and restrictive, and with only about 3 characters and every location being a dreary foggy delapidated vaguely American town it lacks the interesting [=NPCs=] and locations and sidequests they're used to. Fans of the franchise meanwhile were turned off by the negative aspects of open-world games that were introduced, like BreakableWeapons, monotonous {{Fetch Quest}}s, and it taking way too long to get anywhere as the game expected you to devote considerable time to unlocking a FastTravel system to get anywhere.
** ''VideoGame/SilentHillBookOfMemories'' failed in part because it was uncertain of who it wanted to appeal to, and in part thanks to a good dose of TheyChangedItNowItSucks, as it was a dungeon crawler in a franchise known for its SurvivalHorror and [[SolvetheSoupCans puzzle-solving aspects]]. According to Creator/WayForwardTechnologies who developed it, they sought to simplify the aspects of both the new genre it had entered as well as the old genre it came in a hope of attracting fans of both genres, which ultimately pleased nobody: fans of dungeon crawlers weren't interested in it as the gameplay was far too simplistic and [[LevelGrinding grindy]] as compared to the other entries in the genre they were used to, while fans of the ''Franchise/SilentHill'' franchise weren't interested in it as the puzzles were far too simplified and it lacked the deeper horror or psychological aspects they were used to.
* ''VideoGame/TheSnackWorld'', another Creator/Level5 property; also ran into this problem in the west: the series featured a lot of cute visuals and gags that wouldn't be out of place in ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'' (one of the leads is even a CaptainErsatz of Finn); but the dungeon crawler gameplay loop and other jokes (such as the more risqué humor and poking fun at role-playing game conventions) would appeal more to older players. The fact the game was given an all-ages rating in Japan while getting slapped with older age ratings elsewhere has furthered this uncertainty.
* This has become a huge point of contention for the ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' franchise after its [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles third game]]. Fans can be generally divided into two camps, ones who grew up pre-Dreamcast on the 2D games, and ones who grew up post-Dreamcast with the 3D games. Fans of the former accuse the 3D games of relying on [[GameplayRoulette gimmicky features]] and spectacle to make up for their lack of substantial gameplay compared to the 2D titles as well as increasingly [[MoodWhiplash tonally dissonant]] plotlines. Fans of the latter accuse the 2D games of relying too much on TrialAndErrorGameplay, as well having nothing but an ExcusePlot to serve as narrative motivation. Creator/{{Sega}} trying to reconcile these two camps, especially since TheNewTens, has led to some of the games being accused of being uncertain who their target audiences are and serves as a huge contribution to the franchise's notorious BrokenBase.
** ''VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog'' marketed itself heavily as a DarkerAndEdgier entry in the series, with characters using mild swears, Shadow being able to drive vehicles and wield firearms, and the primary enemies having a more "demonic" appearance. On the other hand, it retains the cartoony graphics, cheesy dialogue, and child-friendly characters of the rest of the franchise. Fans who enjoyed the darker aesthetic thought it wasn't dark ''enough'', while fans who enjoyed the rest of the series thought its attempts at being dark came across as edgy and juvenile. In the end, it's regarded as an overall mediocre entry in the franchise, and even its [[CultClassic fanbase]] admit they love it ''because'' of its [[{{Bathos}} tone-deaf attempt to mash serious and cartoony together]] rather than in spite of it.
** The [[EpisodicGame first episode]] of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog4'' particularly suffered from a misguided attempt to cater to opposing groups. To appeal to older fans, Creator/SonicTeam and Creator/{{Dimps}} made the level aesthetics faithful recreations of popular levels from the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis games--but the core gameplay tries to cater to new players by having movement physics reminiscient of ''[[VideoGame/SonicRushSeries Sonic Rush]]'', involving very little downhill momentum and with a focus on the Homing Attack. Because of this, potential new players were put off by the aesthetics while established ''Sonic'' fans heavily criticized the gameplay for being too different from the Genesis games and not very good in its own right. The second episode [[AuthorsSavingThrow managed to resolve both issues]] by having more original level themes and improved physics, but the first episode's reputation caused ''Sonic 4'' as a whole to underperform, leading it to be CutShort. The next attempt at a retro-styled game with modern elements, ''VideoGame/SonicMania'' not only fared significantly better, but effectively acts as a direct sequel to the original games in the AlternateTimeline for Classic Sonic that would be established in ''VideoGame/SonicForces''.
** The growing criticism towards GameplayRoulette in the series caused ''VideoGame/SonicUnleashed'' to be accused of having an uncertain audience. The game consisted of two diametrically oppposed gameplay styles: the speedy, combat-light daytime gameplay and the slower, combat-heavy Werehog gameplay. Due to the opposing appeal, the game was criticized for not knowing who it was made for on release. While the two gameplay styles are well-done individually, many fans tended to prefer only one of the playstyles while disliking the other as an obstacle to playing the part they liked. In response, Creator/SonicTeam has either downplayed the GameplayRoulette in future mainline ''Sonic'' games or eliminated it altogether. The next game, ''VideoGame/SonicColors'' focused more on the gameplay style of daytime stages in ''Unleashed'' and ended up faring much better.
* ''VideoGame/SoulHackers2'' suffers from the fact that it desperately tries to appeal to fans of both the mainline ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' series as well as the MorePopularSpinOff ''Franchise/{{Persona}}''. However due to how near polar opposites the two series are both in the approach to gameplay and narrative, the game ended up appealing to neither with what the game offered coming across as little more than watered down versions than what was found in its inspirations. Making matters worse was that the game pretty much only payed lip service to the original ''VideoGame/SoulHackers'', being at the end of the day a sequel in name only and as such not appealing to that fanbase either. To add on top of all of this was also the games character designs and marketing aimed at yet another crowd, this time being the Vtuber one, further mudding the waters on who they were truly aiming for. This all compounded on top of some of the games own issues to cause it to not leave much of a mark on any of the fandoms or birthing any new ones.
* ''VideoGame/{{Spore}}'' was notorious for its uncertain audience, especially when it was first released. The original trailer made it out to be a realistic, scientifically grounded, complex evolution simulator, but the end result was significantly simplified and [[ArtisticLicenseBiology cartoonish]], seemingly to cater to children and more artistic, creative players. This naturally pissed off hardcore gamers and the more scientifically-minded fans. While the artistic-minded players were not as vitriolic, the end result still contained a lot of {{Scrappy Mechanic}}s, most of all the notorious biodisasters, that impeded players' ability to simply wander around freely for the sake of having more traditional video game challenges (one of the more common mod requests is to remove biodisasters and similarly annoying events). This has calmed down over the years as the original trailer became a distant memory to the younger players who grew up with the game, but the bitter divide still remains in some circles.
* ''VideoGame/StarlinkBattleForAtlas''[='s=] uncertain audience is ultimately what led to it having less than satisfactory sales for Ubisoft. The game's gameplay depth, scope and detailed lore seemed tailor-made for older gamers, but the focus on its toys-to-life spaceship controller gimmick felt more aimed at kids. It didn't help that, by this point, the three biggest games focusing on toys-to-life (''VideoGame/{{Skylanders}}'', ''VideoGame/DisneyInfinity'', and ''VideoGame/LegoDimensions'') had all died out and taken the genre with them. Not even a guest appearance by the ''VideoGame/StarFox'' cast in the Switch version helped to boost the game's appeal, though this did result in the game [[JustHereForGodzilla selling the best on the Nintendo Switch]]. However, it didn't sell well enough, and the second wave of toys was cancelled.
* The [[UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} Steam Machine]] ended up being an oddity of video game hardware as it was unclear who exactly {{Creator/Valve|Corporation}} was intending to market it to. Fully released in 2015, their very concept was of pre-built gaming [=PCs=] loaded with [=SteamOS=] (a Linux-based operating system reminiscent of and integrated with their signature {{UsefulNotes/Steam}} platform) with the accessibility found in console systems. The issue lies with how [=PC=] gamers weren't exactly up for getting a pre-built extension of a platform they're already familiar with just to be suitable for their living room, and console gamers were alienated by the many, many models to have to choose from, confused by its intended purpose, and overall distracted by the mainstream options at the time of release: the UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 and the UsefulNotes/XboxOne. Not helping matters was the lack of compatible games due to running Linux (with Linux compatibility not always clearly marked), as UsefulNotes/{{Wine}} (as Proton) had not been integrated into Steam yet. In 2018, they realized it was underperforming and stopped offering Steam Machines through the Steam platform, and in 2020, Valve president Gabe Newell admitted that even after their production delays, the hardware they were pushing for was still [[ObviousBeta "super-incomplete"]] and they were too impatient to get the product out before convincing consumers why they needed it. Valve's next attempt at a Steam "console", the handheld Steam Deck, was much more successful.
* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterXTekken'' kind of gets this from the title, as given the two games are quite different, fans knew immediately [[SpotlightStealingCrossover somebody was going to get favoritism.]] Sure enough, the game turned out to be borrowing ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIV'''s artstyle, 2.5-D gameplay, and general design[[note]]granted, a game called ''Tekken X Street Fighter'' was supposed to be released in order to cater to the ''Tekken'' crowd, but it ended up going nowhere after ''[=SFXT=]'' bombed[[/note]]. If you liked ''Franchise/{{Tekken}}'', it didn't come across as a crossover so much as a ''Street Fighter'' game guest-starring the ''Tekken'' cast, but if you liked ''Street Fighter'', you probably already owned [[CapcomSequelStagnation at least three different versions]] of ''IV'' and didn't see a reason to pick up something so similar when there would probably be yet another version on the horizon to learn. And then there was the gem system, which let you modify fighters with gems found from buyable packs or random drops--the designers claimed the idea was to lure in fans of CCG-style games. But fans of card games want games that favor strategy over [[SomeDexterityRequired complex inputs and tight reactions]], so weren't interested in jumping over the barrier for entry, while fighting game fans dislike anything that removes focus on player skill, ''especially'' BribingYourWayToVictory or randomized elements.
* ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'' ends up undergoing conflicting appeal due to its strange combination of gameplay and story. In terms of gameplay, it closely resembles the main ''[[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]]'' platformers due to being an explicit platformer that emphasizes finding power-ups in blocks and jumping on enemies as your main attack. In terms of story and presentation however, it strays far away from the usual ''Mario'' elements, as the game does not take place in the ''Mario'' universe and it emphasizes the more otherworldly original characters and enemies over the ''Mario'' cast. Because of this approach, fans of the ''Mario'' platformers may be turned away by the story focusing away from the ''Mario'' elements, while players uninterested in the ''Mario'' universe may be turned away from the gameplay hewing close to 2D ''Mario''.
* According to an interview in ''Magazine/NintendoPower'' Issue 269, this is what Hiroshi Matsuyama believes to be a killing blow against ''VideoGame/TailConcerto'''s sales expectations. On one hand, it's a colorful platformer taking place in a fantasy sky world [[WorldOfFunnyAnimals populated by anthropomorphic cats and dogs]] piloting all different kinds of mechas, [[AnimationAgeGhetto so a lot of the older playerbase couldn't take it seriously]]. On the other hand, it preaches the dangers of blind faith and misguided racism on top of having a rather complicated control scheme, so a lot of younger players had a hard time getting into the game at all.
* ''VideoGame/TokyoMirageSessionsFE'' suffered this on account of trying to appease both the ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' fans, and ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' fans, on top of alienating those who found themselves in the middle. It attempted to be a blend of the two series by having SMT like gameplay using Fire Emblem characters, all dressed up in an idol themed RPG. ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' fans were turned off by the heavily ''Franchise/{{Persona}}''-like characters, gameplay, and story, and the game was seen as a waste of the core mechanics of the SMT series thanks to none of the story or gameplay elements that make the SMT franchise beloved being present. ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' fans were put off by the lack of TurnBasedStrategy and usage of characters from only two games in the series as the Mirages, alongside finding the story and characters too "anime" for their tastes. The result was that ''SMT'' fans felt it was a dumbed down SMT game and didn't want to get it, while ''FE'' fans felt it was too radically different to be worth playing. Worse, the idol theme of the game caused this ''again'', because the idol elements are mostly used for ExcusePlot reasons, making it effectively downplayed and not very interesting for people who enjoy idol stuff compared to other games, but is also still a present and major part of the game's presentation, meaning people who aren't into idol themed content were immediately put off by it being focused are idols. While the game was critically well received, it was a major flop sales wise, with many citing the fact the game had no target audience in mind. Its Switch rerelease did better, but still unperformed, only selling [[https://nintendoeverything.com/japans-best-selling-games-of-january-2020/ a mere 40k copies]] in its launch month in Japan.
* ''VideoGame/ATotalWarSagaTROY'' had to deal with two very different expectations from the ''VideoGame/TotalWar'' fandom as to what the game should be. One faction wanted the game to be a simulation of Mycenaean Greek warfare, living out the battles of an iconic yet relatively undepicted era as if one were there, and the other wanted the game to be a showcase of the miracles and monsters of Myth/ClassicalMythology in all its splendor. The game tried to split the difference by going for a "truth behind the myth" approach, depicting many of the characters and monsters of mythology but in a more realistic form that could plausibly inspire their stories: for instance, the minotaur exists, but is depicted as a buff man with a skull helmet. Unfortunately, this failed to marry the two groups: the former group didn't want a minotaur unit in the game at all, and the latter group wanted the ''real'' minotaur, not a guy poorly dressed up as him. And for people who liked the {{Demythification}} conceit, there was also the presence of god powers and hero units, leading to the situation where Achilles slaughtering a phalanx singlehandedly before magically healing his wounds through divine intercession was considered perfectly sensible, but a man with a bull head was too far. The first major DLC for the game realized this, and decided to essentially split up the game in accordance to the fandom; while "truth behind the myth" remained a mode, two extra modes were added, with one cutting out the mythically-inspired units completely and significantly changing the mechanics of heroes and divine powers, and the other remodeling all the mythical units into actual monsters and adding some truly fantastical beasts into the mix.
* ''VideoGame/VivaPinata'' had the teens and adults turned off as it looked too kiddy, while many kids were turned off because the micromanagement was too complicated. Thus, while it got moderate success and an animated series, it failed Microsoft's intent of become their equivalent to ''Pokémon''.
* This is one of the reasons ''VideoGame/TheWonderful101'' became an AcclaimedFlop. The bright, colorful, big headed toy figure-esque art style and the surface premise about color-themed superheroes who form giant weapons to fight aliens seems like something aimed for a younger audience. Yet it covers mature themes of revenge and loss, has a steep learning curve, and to AvoidTheDreadedGRating there's a small handful of swears and sexual jokes sprinkled in. Older players were turned off by the visual presentation, while children likely wouldn't be allowed to play or would be turned off by the complexity of the combat.
* A major reason for why ''VideoGame/YIIKAPostModernRPG'' earned such an infamous reputation can partially be attributed to its uncertain audience; half of it being designed as an old school RPG like ''VideoGame/EarthBound1994'', while also trying to be a deep analysis of the RPG genre with a modern angle (hence the "Post Modern"). This attempt to be a modern analysis of the genre using both an older artistic style and gameplay meant few players enjoyed it, as the gameplay was not particularly deep or interesting enough to satisfy fans, on top of being cartoony in design, while people interested in the story were frustrated with how overly complex and confusing the story ended up being, on top of how unlikeable the main cast was. This failed attempt at mixing the two ended causing it to be universally disliked among consumers.
* This is among the reasons why the ''Franchise/YokaiWatch'' series was a CashCowFranchise in Japan but didn't catch on in the west: it tried to target both the casual audience of ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' and hardcore fans of Japanese culture. The latter group was put off by the ThinlyVeiledDubCountryChange made to appease the former group, who wouldn't be interested regardless due to {{youkai}} being an intrinsically Japanese concept. Within the series, content released after the third game has also faced this problem; ''VideoGame/YokaiWatch4'' has a completely different action-oriented gameplay style and shifted its tone to be DarkerAndEdgier, with tie-ins such as ''Anime/YokaiWatchShadowside'' and ''Anime/YokaiWatchForeverFriends'' following suit. Existing fans were split on the shift away from the established tone and gameplay, while potential new ones still weren't interested and didn't find the new elements compelling enough.
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