When a new or upcoming game is announced, what, if anything turns you off instantly to it?

Examples - cartoony, keyboard control, topic etc....

Ana

Cartoony or keyboard controlled.

Steam-only

Gore

Whiny voice acting

Motion sickness inducing movement -- 3D movement in a 1st person game usually gives me motion sickness -- especially if the point-of-view is only a foot off the ground. It's no fun playing a game if you feel like you're going to throw up the whole time.

Some cartoony graphics are a turnoff, but not all of them.
For example, Bulb Boy is cartoony, but it's not a turnoff sort of cartoony.

Specs that are way higher than what the game looks like it should need.

Flash-based -- Flash is a big agglomeration of security holes. Even Adobe is abandoning it. Updates mean a game that used to work may not work after the updates.

When developers claim a game is "like Myst" and it's nothing like Myst.

Excessive gassing, especially when combined with unfunny "jokes"

Achievement notifications obfuscating the screen while you're playing, destroying any sense of immersion, and suggesting that the game may be "phoning home" without your permission.

"Choose-your-own-story" style gameplay, especially when it's dependent on QTE's and other dexterity-oriented gameplay

Lack of a manual save

"To be continued" lack of a game ending

Advertisements for Facebook Twitter on the game menu -- I don't want to buy advertisements

As Jenny100 said: "Motion sickness inducing movement -- 3D movement in a 1st person game usually gives me motion sickness -- especially if the point-of-view is only a foot off the ground. It's no fun playing a game if you feel like you're going to throw up the whole time."

Not being able to save those are the two main issues.

It would be good if adventure started implementing an FOV slider. Playing at a higher FOV can alleviate/remove motion sickness for some people. An FOV of 95 or more all but cures it for me. Been playing Fallout 4 for ages and haven't suffered a single bout of nausea with it yet (touch wood) :-)

Only available via Steam AND/OR lack of a "save when I want" facility

Lack of save options is definitely a turnoff but not a "deal breaker".

What kills a game for me is arcade sequences that are too much for my slow reflexes to handle. Unfortunately, unless I learn from reviews or other players comments, I don't often learn of these events until I've already bought the game.

Game programmers really need to put a skip option in games that have these events IMHO.

- exhausting dialogues
- QTE
- illogical puzzles
- bad graphics

Motion sickness
Cant skip action sequences
Subtitles only - no voiceovers

Keyboard control.
Download only.
Cartoony.
Lots of dialogue.
Smut.
No control of "saves".
3rd person play (usually)
Timed puzzles.

Download only, Cartoony, endless dialogue, ability to make my own saves, not a true adventure game.

Timed Action Puzzles, Cartoony, No Manual Saves, and Keyboard Controls.

My worse gaming experience of last year was Ethan Carter and that god awful save system. I can't remember another game that I actually dreaded playing. Gorgeous game with brain dead game design. A real shame.

dialogues used as puzzle
cartoony
dark scenes where you can't see anything, used by developers to lengthen the game and save their work time

1. Waiting around like six or seven years for a game after its release date is announced....coughbrackentorcough....

2. Steam.

no walkthrough
keyboard controls
mild review
3D
unavoidable action scenes
puzzles without skip options

Most of mine have been already mentioned so,
Lack of locations, I like games that move, the more the better.
Poor, repetitious story lines. I’ve lost count of the times’ I’ve saved the world’.
Totally illogical puzzles i.e. Mix the handcuffs with the tooth brush “Are you kidding me?”

Third person games. I hate dialogue, even more so when it is part of the gameplay. Inventory puzzles that are cartoony and nonsensical. Multiple characters that you need to keep trying to talk to or try inventory on.
Anything with stealth, action, combat, conflict. Keyboard controls.
I play games to relax, not get a dose of reality.

I have one more, can't find saves.

It's amazing how similar we are in our pet hates. You'd think the developers would have the message by now, wouldn't you?

Lots mentioned but one more:
lazy puzzles - eg mazes as filler

For me it's games that have a different ending depending on how you played it, like the last Sherlock Holmes game. I'm always wondering if I'm doing the right thing.
Also if it's too cartoony. I noticed that they changed the look of the new Agatha Christie game, I'm not crazy about the new look although I'll probably buy it, I prefer the look of the other Agatha Christie games.
And I hate when I can't save whenever I want to.

Soon as I see it is a Chapter of many Chapters to come...
I like a game to have at least some kind of ending..

I also dislike mass dialog.

I like this thread. Very interesting as a "maker" to read. I won't make all of you happy of course, but I have been thinking about some of the things I've read here.

It's interesting how many of the "turnoffs" are to do with being able to play at all (let alone come close to completing the game) rather than simple preference.