Introducing my current favorite on how developers can skillfully destroy fun that was probably there.
Borderlands
Borderlands is an ego shooter with comic graphics (aka cell shading) and roleplaying-like character development (the diablo-like rpg ... not the D&D-like type).
The game in itself is your standard half-life experience if it wasn't for details like experience points, weapons of the same type with random bonuses ("enchanted" weapons) and an extensive skill system. It's decent and plays like you might expect from a mix of Diablo 2, Half-Life and (at least flavor wise) Fallout 3.
And how did they screw it up?
It starts with starting the game. You get to enjoy the typical string of vendor trailers no one ever wants to see. Unskippable. Yes, everytime you start that game you wast 2 minutes watching for the umpteenth time that someone made something for some game. And unless you know how to edit a config file, you'll be indoctrinated forever.
Then comes character creation ... or rather selection. You can choose between 4 different classes - each with their different skill set and starting weapons. But since you don't start with any skillpoints whatsoever, character creation is very easy: Select class. Should take about 1 second.
But it doesn't take 1 second. It takes about 5 minutes.
Yes, for every new character you want to make, you have to watch a really really boring intro video (the words "Power Point" come to mind). And that was not fucking necessary. And it was especially not necessary to make it unskippable!! (Note: PC Users: Deleting certain movie files helps. XBOX Users: suck it).
And then - finally - you start the game. Or do you? Nooo, you have to endure the tutorial, of course. The first part of the tutorial essentially explains how to
1. Move (WASD)
2. Shoot (LMB) and aim (RMB)
3. Jump (Space)
4. Crouch (C)
5. Pickup Items and talk to NPCs (E)
6. Reload (R)
7. Melee Attack (V)
And now do ask yourself in all honesty: Do you really need 10 minutes to explain that to anyone over the age of eight? I mentioned the age of eight because that's how old you have to be to appreciate the humor of the "funny little robot" (yeah, that's a quote from the game) that serves as your guide. The tutorial was boring, of course. Even the first time.
And the most interesting part of the game - the unique and extensive skill system which makes even playing the same character worth replaying from scratch (theorhetically) can't even be accessed before you hit level 5 ... which takes quite a while. Maybe 40 minutes or even longer. One has to ask himself: What the hell were the first four levels good for? Apart from wasting time, that is. So what we have here is a mandatory tutorial lasting nearly an hour for every time you want to start a new character.
And get that: The developer even dared to criticize Fallout 3 because it made "mistakes".