I laughed at the analogy, but I don't think it's appropriate. DNF didn't fail because the coding was subpar. Far from it: every time they released demos, jaws dropped over the extremely high quality of the graphics and game play. Rather, it failed because the project management had no endgame.
In your analogy, the Titanic would have to be the most technologically advanced ship never to, well, ship.
The Titanic didn't fail because of bad welding either, so I think the analogy holds. It set sail auspiciously enough but never made it to port, and hubris and bad management certainly played a role in both cases.
Someone with a better knowledge of nautical history could probably come up with a better example. Or aviation - the Spruce Goose maybe?
In your analogy, the Titanic would have to be the most technologically advanced ship never to, well, ship.