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As 2007 winds down, it’s time to take a look at some of the missteps made this year. Of course we’ll follow it up with some of the biggest surprises, but it’s always best to get the negatives out of the way first. 2007 is undeniably one of the strong years for videogame growth that we have seen, very likely in this decade. The rapid expansion of the videogame market can easily be placed on the wings of Nintendo’s two huge products. 360 finally hit it stride with a wealth of games, and Sony’s platforms are still kicking, and for the PS3 starting to gain momentum.

So with all the good news, what exactly was disappointing this year?

10. Assassin’s Creed

Here’s a debatable one and hence why it has been relegated to the tenth spot. Despite stellar sales, there was something about Assassin’s Creed that was disappointing for Ubisoft, and that’s the way it was critically received. Despite some strongly trusted individuals in the industry having nothing but praise for the game, like Gabe at Penny Arcade many others were not so receptive of the title.

It’s a trend Ubisoft is familiar with. Several of their big hyped projects have under delivered. A prime example and something that would have earned an even higher spot on last years list was Red Steel. Meant to be the go to title on the Wii, it didn’t wind up as many expected it would. Amongst the most sought after titles, Assassin’s Creed was the one that has received mixed reviews and that earns it the number ten spot.

9. Xbox 360: Three Red Light

It may be an issue that goes back into 2006 as well, but it’s an issue that really reared its ugly head and came to a stand in 2007. One thing we can’t be disappointed as the millions Microsoft dropped to make the situation better, but we can be disappointed that the issue existed at all.

No one is aware of the exact failure rates, but early models are hit the hardest and seem to already be well above 50%. If you haven’t suffered the Three Red Lights in 2007, you likely will. And even though the warranty program is great, nothing will disappoint you more than having to wait a few weeks to receive your system back, for that one title you’ve already been waiting years for.

8. Nintendo’s GDC Conference

Trading laws prohibited the company from discussing any forward-looking plans, and thanks to the unfortunate timing, GDC for Nintendo fans quickly turned into a flop. Nintendo has been riding a high tide of good conferences, but GDC was easily their worst. Despite how much we love Miyamoto, listening to him talk about his wife meter wasn’t quite what we were looking for. Sony meanwhile had a stellar conference, likely their best of the year as they dropped Home and Little Big Planet for the world to see.

7. Nintendo’s Online Strategy

Nothing has caused more grief then Nintendo’s inability to open up its console to online gaming. Heck, Nintendo had an internet browser well before games would finally go online, and when they did, the service was lackluster. Lacking a system like XBLA or PSN, and forcing you to more often then not deal with friend codes, it’s disappointing that Nintendo did not choose to borrow from their competitors, like they already have of the Wii.

Things are getting better, with Everybody’s Nintendo channel and others on the horizon, we are finally starting to see Wii Connect 24 realized. However we had to trudge through the better part of 2007 to start seeing it and for that reasons it’s a disappointment.

6. Major Game Delays

We really had more than we needed this year, but that doesn’t mean some of the largest games were within our grasp and slipped to 2008. You know who you are, Grand Theft Auto 4 and Super Smash Bros Brawl were inevitably among the top five anticipated titles of 2007, and both unfortunately saw delays. 2008 is just around the bend, so the waiting is nearly over.

5. Videogame Censorship

Few other issues were as big as the Manhunt AO rating from the ESRB. Not only did Nintendo and Sony disallow AO rated games from appearing on their platforms, most retailers refuse to even stock the product. It’s not to say that Manhunt 2 didn’t deserve the rating, because it did, but it was unfortunate that in order for the game to even exist, it had to be watered down.

Manhunt 2 isn’t even the greatest game ever, but it just goes to show this industry is still in its infancy and has some growing up to do.

4. Japan Sales

What is up with the Japanese market this year? It would seem at times that the Japanese have abandoned console gaming in favour of consoles. Titles like Mario Galaxy have sold under expectations, while a cash in like Mario Party 8 has easily outstripped it. The Xbox 360 remains an abysmal failure in the region, despite Microsoft’s best efforts, and the PSP still continues to sell, despite having no new software. At least Nintendo is laughing their way to the bank. A new DS colour and a quick casual game is guaranteed for millions in profit.

3. E3

E3 despite its best efforts, disappointed. There were a host of logistical problems with spreading the conference all throughout the city. Even the usually exciting speeches from Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony seemed to have even less to offer as usual. Microsoft had a whole lot going for it this year and unfortunately that meant focusing completely on their products for 2007, and throwing us a few measly table scraps.

The old E3 shall be missed, RIP.

2. E For All

E for what? E for All is scheduled to return again in 2008, the same time as PAX. I will bet you can guess which of the two will be getting the shaft. It wanted very badly to be E3, all the way down to the name, but it just couldn’t replace it, no matter how bad E3 was, E for All wasn’t bad, it just had absolutely nothing going on.

1. Playstation 3

Before you begin typing out nasty messages, it is not the console itself that is the disappointed (although I’m sure some would argue it was), but the way the PS3 has been receipted and sold that has surely left a lot of unhappy faces over at Sony. Whether or not the PS3 continues to underperform or takes the dominant lead, this was not a good year for the console. The problems are far too many to cover, but it mostly boils down to being overpriced, lacking convincing software and the market simply not being ready to leave the Playstation 2. Perhaps there is a reason Nintendo and Microsoft had made their consoles obsolete by the time their system rolled around, because PS3’s one major holdup still might be the PS2 continually overselling it.

Whatever the reason may be, no one could have expected Sony ever being in this position a few years ago, and that’s why how 2007 humbled the company that makes it the number one disappointment of 2007.