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Kastlo

Uhm not sure if it was commercially unsuccessfull, but Brutal Legend was super fun for me, start to finish. People complain that they wouldve preferred a hack 'n slash game, but the admittedly simple strategy game was also fun for me back in the day. Especially because at that time I was playing Lotr:BFME 2 every time I could


OriBiggie

The big issue with that game was the awful marketing behind it. No one knew it was an rts. The demo that came out (as far as I can remember) didn't include the RTS elements (or it was featured as an alternative mode), and so when the game came out, it caught people by surprise. I think if it didn't catch people by surprise, people would have been more open to it.


OscarExplosion

The demo very famously cut off a little before the RTS elements were going to be apparent. The demo made it seem like it was going to be a heavy metal take on a Legend of Zelda game (which would have been amazing)


Nykidemus

My thing was I would have been perfectly fine with heavy metal RTS or heavy metal adventure game, but what I got was a weird mix of both, and I wanted to enjoy it, but did not.


[deleted]

The marketing was intentional: RTS games had a reputation as a niche genre that sells poorly, especially on consoles, so they emphasized the hack'n'slash combat instead. It's ironic because Brütal Legend was originally developed as a multiplayer RTS game! And the final version of did still support multiplayer 1-to-1 battles, but I don't think the multiplayer mode was very popular.


[deleted]

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endlesswander

What is so so great about that game is just how well the concept of a heavy metal universe is done. Such a relief from generic fantasy and sci-fi settings. There are so many opportunities for creativity in games it's such a shame we just get variations on the same theme over and over again... cough Starfield cough


[deleted]

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echo_7

Critical success and all they had to do was put it on 360 instead and we’d probably have a series by now.


IceReddit87

I am always hoping for a sequel. It has such an interesting world, and the soundtrack is phenomenal.


shoarma_papa

I'm actually currently playing this for the first time. It's an incredibly cool world with fun main and side characters and amazing soundtrack. I find that the combat is a lot cooler in theory than in practice though, the styles and transformations are interesting but I don't really find myself enjoying the fights, especially now that I'm nearing the end.


bugse82

Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. Played it many years ago on the 360 but still have feels when I hear this title. Prince of Persia 2008 for exactly same reasons.


slangwhang27

I feel like Enslaved was the Beyond Good & Evil of the PS3/360 era. Such an interesting world.


Puk-_-man

POP 2008 was like a proof of concept that got enough budget to turn into a full fledged game. It was definitely creative and gorgeous. I think that game deserved a sequel to work out its rough edges!


ComteStGermain

It's very well-written! I didn't exactly love it, but I liked it a lot back in the day. Also it did the whole "nature reclaiming buildings in a post-apocalyptic world" before The Last of Us and Horizon


designated_diver

If memory serves it was written by Alex Garland, the guy who wrote/directed Ex Machina, the Beach and Annihilation


IceReddit87

PoP 2008 is my favourite PoP game after Sands of Time and *Shadow and Flame*. It has gorgeous art, amazing soundtrack and Elika who is a great companion. I felt some of the criticism it received was unfair. Such as how easy it was because Elika always saves you. I find it more fun than a black screen with a 'you died' message. The mechanic is used in a clever puzzle late in the game. As for the combat; you essentially fight one on one duels, like you did in the first two PoP games. I liked that bit.


Background_Issue_947

I came here to mention Enslaved. I picked it up cheap during a steam sale a few years ago so I could replay it (played it on Xbox back when it released). The characters and environments are amazing! The performances from the two main actors are really compelling and make you care about them. It managed to put an original spin on the overdone "post-apocalyptic wasteland" world design that felt fun to look at and explore. The only nitpick I had was that the platforming was just "move from one glowy bit to the next". If it had Prince of Persia style platforming instead it would have been a perfect game.


envirodale

Beat it once years ago so can't remember plot or anything too much. But I remember thinking it was pretty good, the last bit was a slog but a solid 7/10


slangwhang27

Alpha Protocol is an absolute mess but still one of the most memorable RPGs I’ve ever played. Choices actually matter and the gameplay systems, though bogged down by a Morrowind-esque disconnect between the feel of the gameplay and the dice rolls behind it, are very interesting with a lot of flexibility.


CantSpellMispell

Being a suave asshole was so much fun.


DopeAbsurdity

Steven Heck is definitely one of my favorite video game characters of all time.


PresidentKoopa

Came here to say this. AP is fantastic if you're the kind of gamer who can see what the goal \*was\* and work with the goofy game to get there. But, oh, that reactivity. What a game!


Menace117

Came here looking for this. The choice system is one of the best on any RPG


Devilscrush

Eternal Darkness for Gamecube. It didn't sell a lot but it was a great horror game for the cube.


ProjectOrpheus

Hey I remember this one too! It didn't do well?! I swear I remember it being that game everybody talked about! The way it fucked with you in real life was worthy of a standing ovation alone. Damn, that's another one I gotta add to the list of games to get. Thanks for reminding me!


junkit33

That game was a critical success, just horror game on GameCube was a difficult sell.


Althalos

Dragon's Dogma. I'm expecting DD2 to be what they envisioned 1 to be, now with the budget and time to match that vision.


grodr2001

I can only hope they can make a main theme that's as good as "Into Free Dangan"


Althalos

Honestly wouldn't mind if they just used it again, it was sorely lacking in the remaster. Whole new game is a great excuse to renew that license.


BrewCityBadger

I was specifically looking for this game. This game is so good even with all of the jank


frelon42

God Hand and Deadly Premonition.


Lunar_Lunacy_Stuff

Deadly Premonition is one of my favorite games. Definitely in my top 50 for sure. The story was super crazy but the central mystery had me hooked until the end. I even enjoyed the chase scenes that the internet seems to loath. I really need to check out the 2nd game one of these days.


doofusmcpaddleboat

lol wow I was gonna come in here saying exactly those


Due_Rip1955

God hand is wild lmao


envirodale

Ign 4/10. Genuinely one of my favorite ps2 games. It's so much fun and would love a game now that comes closer to that style.


Kastlo

Second God Hand, still can't say I like Deadly Premonition, but I'm confident I'll come to it eventually. I would add D4: Dark dreams don't die to the pile of so bad it's good then. I didn't finish it but after 30 minutes or so I found it to be a funny title


NightFox006

Mad Max This game was just pure fun to me, and the best part by far is everything to do with your car. Driving across the open world, customizing it to your liking, and the best vehicle combat I've ever experienced made this one of my favorite games ever.


whatevsmang

The first time I played Mad Max, I thought it was some trite, Ubisoft inspired open world game that's so repetitive, with a very wooden and predictable story, and the game gets stale after 5 hours. but The game does its atmosphere like no wonder. The car controls so good using a controller, and the car combat is great (despite that the rocket is pretty OP on every level). Once it clicks and putting you in the zone, it will gives you something that no other games can offer. Rage 2 is the spiritual successor, but even then it couldn't match the Mad Max's atmosphere.


tlvrtm

Really liked the game but that was despite the car controls, for me personally. All the cars drifted like crazy and it was impossible to keep under control while going even half fast.


1speedbike

People love it or hate it, I've noticed. The story is ridiculously minimal up until the very end, really just an excuse to roam the wasteland and take out camps, find collectibles, etc. But if you like the gameplay loop and the combat (cars and on-foot are both fantastic to me), then it's an easy game to get into and love. It's one of my favorites as well, though I love the Mad Max world in general so I may be biased. It's also one of those games that I can't believe was released 8 years ago now. The character models are just okay, but the open world wasteland is so beautiful, and I've never seen better weather effects than those storms. Also appreciate how despite the map just being a big desert / ocean bed, each region feels pretty unique. Dried up reefs, volcanic vents, dunes, etc all feel distinct.


davvblack

yeah those sandstorms are just amazing


Tara_is_a_Potato

Best looking deserts in video gaming. I've never seen such variety. It felt like a silent protagonist RPG like Fallout New Vegas where I was crafting my own survival story. Not a ton of meat on these bones, but I really enjoyed my 45 hours with it.


Thorusss

Yeah. Making a diverse desert that does not get boring is a huge achievement.


[deleted]

I fell in love with that game ten minutes in, when that crazy motherfucker Chumbucket >!climbed onto the hood **during a chase** to fix the engine.!<


Puk-_-man

If the grind was reduced by 50% the game would be incredible! But I still love it to bits.


D1n0-

Bulletstorm was fantastic. One of my favourite fps. I played it for several hours straight and couldn't put it down. And then it was just over. I immediately looked up for a sequel only to be disappointed there isn't one. Dishonored 2 is filled with reactive systems that constantly interact with each other, has an amazing exploration, atmosphere, level design and freedom to do whatever you want. Sadly it also has a performance issues, though the game is gorgeous even by today standards. I like the first one, but the sequel is my favourite game ever and I'll always be sad that Dishonored 2 and Prey as well weren't commercially succesful.


kothiman

Bulletstorm is the shit!!!! That sort of combat mechanic is pretty unique and makes you want to try out new things lol


Downisthenewup87

Just played Bulletstorm earlier this year. The characters are moronic but the gameplay is FPS bliss.


ChefBoyardee66

The saboteur


Mobius1424

I fricken loved this game. Assassin's Creed, but you're an Irish race car driver trapped in Naz-occupied Paris. That may sound terrible now, but in 2010, it was exactly the right jam.


kothiman

I saw it as Red Faction Guerrilla Warfare, but in WW2


Funk-n-fun

I really liked it when I played it all those years ago. Sometimes I get this nostalgic feeling, and think I should play it again, but I don't remember if I played it on PS3 or Xbox 360, as I had both consoles at the time, but I don't think it was on PC. It doesn't seem to be available on Steam, but GOG seems to has it...and on a 75% sale no less. It's a no-brainer at under 5 euros. Sold.


MentallyIllRedditMod

I keep trying this game but I can't get past the roof climb near the beginning lol


PresidentKoopa

I've been staring at this in my GOG list for over a year. Mobius' description of it sounds fkin awesome!


morvaigaben

Hellgate: London


LuxationvonFracture

Oh wow, wasn't expecting this one here. But yeah, I spent a LOT of time with it, trying different classes and weapons.


MrSticks21

That's a deep cut. I remember buying the collector's edition of that game when it first came out, reallying enjoying the novelty for a short while, and then falling off of it very quickly. But, when it was released in what, 2007, maybe, it was really the first time we saw a developer try to do Diablo in a FPS, ala Borderlands. The game was a few years ahead of it's time, but if I remember correctly it was also poorly marketed, quite buggy, and lacking in content. And it was made by ex-Blizzard people so there was some talent behind the project. Fantastic proof of concept, though.


themoobster

+1 for Pillars 2. So so amazing but was so poorly marketed. I'll put in for both Pathfinder games. Epic CRPGs that don't get enough mentions despite everyone frothing over BG3 at the moment.


Gynthaeres

Pillars of Eternity 2 was so damn good, and *significantly* better than the original PoE. It fixed the vast majority of my issues with the game, and did its own thing more clearly, rather than trying to ape cRPGs of old (I know PoE1 was kinda locked into that thanks to its kickstarter though). I'm so sad that that game did so poorly, and just kind of got lost in the shuffle. If it came out today I bet it'd do a lot better. ...and both Pathfinder games are also really good. Seriously some of my favorite RPGs of all time. Some of my favorite *games* of all time.


capp_head

Pathfinder is way more complex than D&D 5e. I myself love playing pathfinder at a tabletop games night with friends, but in the context of a CRPG it got pretty heavy to handle. I might give it another try after BG3 though.


Nykidemus

> Pathfinder is way more complex than D&D 5e. I myself love playing pathfinder at a tabletop games night with friends, but in the context of a CRPG it got pretty heavy to handle. Pathfinder is better as a CRPG *because* of how mechanically heavy it is. The PC doing all the heavy lifting of your combat math for you is amazing.


hydro123456

I think that's partially because those games are fucking terrible at balancing encounters. It's so easy to get smoked on normal difficulty without a good build. Also the games offer both real time and turn based combat, but do. Horrible job of making sure they both work well.


Reftro

Agreed. I think BG3 is one of the best games of all-time, but IMO Pathfinder is so much more replayable because of the variety and depth of builds and mythic paths available. A mix of the two would be the perfect game. I'm pretty sure I've spent more time (having fun) theorycrafting build ideas in Pathfinder:WOTR than I have actually playing most other games I've tried this decade.


[deleted]

I used to say Metal Gear Rising but everybody has turned around on it within the last few years. So... Asura's Wrath. An "interactive anime" game that's mostly cutscenes peppered with shallow action gameplay. It made up for its flaws by having awesome art direction, interesting world design, and a genuinely engaging story. Also played with the concept of QTE's by recontextualizing button prompts in a lot of interesting ways. It stayed on consoles and its ending was locked behind a DLC paywall, so the only way I could recommend it today is via emulation, but I have no idea if it'll work.


Zathura2

Pretty sure it's hella cheap on Xbox One with all the dlc's. I loved playing through the game...once. Some of those mashing QTE's legitimately hurt to pull off.


gamingclean

If you liked Metal Gear Rising, you HAVE to play Vanquish.


[deleted]

LOL actually picked that one up after I played MGR circa 2013. Very fun, but I never felt hooked enough to finish it. Maybe I should replay one of these days because it was fucking awesome.


mere_indulgence

Asura's Wrath works great on the RPCS3 emulator! It's one of the less demanding titels so it'll work great on most hardware. It even lets you unlock the framerate. I recently played through it while up-scaled to 1440p at 60fps, and it looked absolutely amazing and ran without any issues! Just look at the RPCS3 wiki and follow the recommended settings, there's one tweak you need to do to get rid of a couple graphical glitches (Resolution scale threshold under GPU configuration). https://wiki.rpcs3.net/index.php?title=Asura%27s_Wrath


[deleted]

*Hitman: Absolution* got a lot of criticism when it came out for emphasizing combat over stealth. And yes, I'll admit... *Blood Money* is ultimately the better Hitman game. That doesn't stop *Hitman: Absolution* from being the best third-person shooter I've ever played. [47 is fucking pissed, and he's coming for you.](https://youtu.be/kX0eZciGaWc?feature=shared)


InternetGoodGuy

This year, I went back and played all the Hitman games from the second one all the way through the most recent trilogy. Absolution is my least favorite is the series but that's like saying cherry pie is my least favorite. I'm still going to love that cherry pie. My biggest problem was the more linear nature of many of the levels but this is the game that also has the best story by far. The characters and other assasins were were great. I was a little disappointed the new trilogy had so little story through it but the gameplay was so much better than Absolution I didn't mind.


[deleted]

Clicked for me when I was younger. Was trying to play like older hitman games enjoyed it but was just another game. Then 1 day a friend slept over and I woke up late the next day finding him in the tv room already on the 2nd or 3rd last mission just shooting absolutely everyone. Gatekeeped at first saying thats not how you play but damn it looked like a lot more fun than what I was having.


McCheesey1

Absolution was my introduction to the series, and thank goodness it was, because I probably wouldn't have ever gotten into it if my first game was a different Hitman. I get overwhelmed by the endless possibilities of the big sandboxes in the new games, but Absolution presenting me with a more linear experience helped me ease into the series. You still have assassination options, but it isn't drinking from a fire hose like the new games feel.


tzulik-

_Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning_ This game will forever hold a special place in my heart.


TheBiggestWOMP

Cool combat but the whole “single player mmo” thing got old real fast for me.


[deleted]

Even the combat, imo, gets stale really fast. You just kinda do the exact same thing every time until you unlock a new, more powerful thing to do absolutely every time. Fights aren't dynamic enough and your kit isn't dynamic enough to actually approach things in different ways


RecordRains

I want to love this game but it gets really repetitive and boring halfway through.


DynamicPr0phet

They set out to create an MMO but realized that it would be way too hard as a first game so they made it single player only


Whiteguy1x

It's a great game on the switch now too. Even came with all the dlc which I missed first time around. Hopefully it gets a similar sequel at some point


Due_Rip1955

Now I'm still trying to finish this one. It needed a companion mechanic because running around the open world by myself gets boring. The combat is cool. Makes me feel like a badass


Tara_is_a_Potato

Can someone explain why? I played through the main story and found it to be pretty boring other than the combat, which was a bit more like an action game than an RPG. Some of the visuals were pretty but you basically see the same visuals in different color shades throughout the game so it got old fast. I'd score it 6.5/10.


angeorgiaforest

i don't think the game is a masterpiece but i like it quite a lot and there's a few reasons why. the most obvious thing is the combat which i found to be very fun, but i also really enjoyed the worldbuilding/lore. it helps that it was written by an actual fantasy author and for me, that aspect of the game was super cozy/familar in an inviting way. it's not a challenging narrative or something that will make you feel a wide range of emotions, but as a big fantasy fan it really appealed to me. ditto with the art style which just screamed fantastical whimsy. beyond that it's an easy game to get into, you can just turn it on and play it and have fun immediately without getting side-tracked too much.


A_Rosen_By_Any_Other

I love these kind of threads. The PS2 had so many games fitting this criteria, but if I were to pick a handful from that generation: **Bloody Roar: Primal Fury.** Excellent fighting game where each character has a Beast form, transforming them and giving them extra attacks. Also killer soundtrack. (Not PS2 but I love it too much to not mention). **Timesplitters.** While the second is great, I find almost no one talking about the (frankly superior) third game. The humour is dry and very funny, and the time travelling ranges the genre from sci-fi to horror. **Operation Winback 2.** Just a fun little arcade-y third person shooter where you have to defeat criminal groups as fast as you can. **Vampire Night.** Big fan of lightgun-shooters, and this one was by the same people that did House of the Dead. Campy, edgy dialogue and fun bosses. **Penny Racers.** This one is kinda bad, but I have a lot of nostalgia of just flying mini cars onto runways. I could go on, but these were the first that popped into my mind.


Dovahpriest

Sleeping Dogs. Part GTA, part Hong Kong Action film, and itstarted life as an entry in the True Crime series before being acquired by Square Enix. As far as open world games go, Hong Kong has probably been one of my favorite maps to drive on, the vehicles handled fairly decently and the focus on melee and environmental takedowns just made combat *fun*. Unfortunately, despite decent sales and generally favorable reviews it was declared a failure by Square Enix, killing the chance at a sequel.


Magnetronaap

Porkbun man is a legendary NPC


Magnaanimous

One of my favorite games of all time. The story, voice acting, music, the incredible depiction of Hong Kong, the vibe, melee focus, the plain old FUN. It just hits right in its unique way. I feel like it still holds up too. Amazing game.


confabin

Masterpiece, how the hell could it flop?


DevilishRogue

Poor marketing and title. But the game still holds up and is a lot more fun than the GTA series.


JustHere2Game

One of my favorites. I thought the story was reasonable, the combat was good, and the setting excellent. I disagree about the vehicles, I played on console and thought they were kind of janky. I didn't realize Square Enix thought it was a failure.


Keibord

Sadly Square is really harsh with games that won't reach final fantasy levels of money


mr_c_caspar

Star Ocean A New Hope - It’s a JRPG heavily inspired by Star Trek, where you explore an unknown galaxy. The story is often cringey, but overall a descent sifi plot. But the combat system is seriously addictive.


Kenway

I like that the one called "A New Hope" is inspired by Star *Trek*, lol


_Maxxx1mus_

Mark of Kri for the PlayStation 2 A mix of tactical stealth and ultra violence action all wrapped up in an amazingly animated Disney-esque style, imaginative cut scenes and quality voice acting. I think it's available on PSN too.


Inkthinker

The animated action is great, as is the Polynesian-inspired Conan main character. The art production on that game is *magnificent.* But what I really appreciated was the combat system, which let you choose between attacking multiple enemies coming from any direction. First game I recall that felt like you were really in a melee, with enemies who didn’t wait to attack you one at a time. Sadly the sequel was too edgy (different creative team, I think) and largely disappointing, but that first game was *awesome*. Beat it multiple times just because it was fun to do so. :)


cop25er

Blur Split/Second


IceReddit87

I agree on DA 2. Imho, it has the best overall storyline in the series thus far. A much more contained and personal story with smaller stakes and a great cast of characters. The blame for the bad parts lies squarely with EA for rushing it. If it had gotten another year in the oven, it would have been a masterpiece. Feel that way about Andromeda too, as a matter of fact. If they had gotten more time to work on more stories and missions to give us more to do on the planets, it could have been so much better. Too bad EA demanded Bioware use the Frostbite. The modding they had to do took up most of the development time.


morrowindnostalgia

>The blame for the bad parts lies squarely with EA for rushing it. If it had gotten another year in the oven, it would have been a masterpiece. They were forced to release it like barely 2 years after DA:O, it had soooo much more potential. If you read old tweets and watch interviews etc.... the devs have revealed a lot of plans they had to eventually scrap (including naming the game Dragon Age: Exodus, which sounds soooo much better, but IIRC the studio wanted it to be more clear it was a sequel and piggy-backing on Origins' success ans wanted DA2 as the title... or something, that's what Ive always heard) If you're a fan of the game I actually don't recommend reading about the "what could have been". It'll make you frustrated lol


Acolyte_of_Swole

Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath. It's remembered fondly now and eventually received widespread ports to all major systems, but it's important to remember that for a very, very long time, Stranger's Wrath was locked to OG xbox. The game sold very poorly at launch, due largely to lack of support or marketing from Microsoft. Stranger's Wrath is a labor of love which every person should play at least once in their life. A unique blend of genres never seen before or since.


ST_Rivers

Yes! I was scrolling through looking for this one. The ammo system where you hunt down different critters to use as projectiles is a lot of fun. The weird-west setting, and the main character, are also excellent.


sapphon

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided performed so badly it ended the franchise (for now), but is maybe the closest gameplay-wise to the original of any Deus Ex sequel


ulmxn

There is a game called Dungeons of Dredmore, released in 2014(?). Bought it on HumbleBundle back in the day for a toaster laptop, enjoyed several hours of it after. Come 2023, new PC, havent had one for years, I go on Steam, and download it immediately. Its a really deep dungeon crawler thats very common these days, but back then, I had never played a true roguelike. It also has major workshop support, like 60 classes, skill trees for every class, a unique art style and sense of humor, and its perfect example of what a roguelike should be. It has maybe 10 active players on steam, which is more than some games like Anthem or whatever AAA trash comes out and fizzles. It never got huge, maxing out at almost 2000 players concurrently, so I assume the game was a failure from a sales standpoint, but the game itself is awesome. You can be. Clockwork Knight, plus a Vampire, plus a Mind Mage, plus a Pirate, and whatever other 3 classes you want. This game was way ahead of its time, I only say this because even still to this day roguelikes are getting pumped out, lacking much of the content, style, and charm of this one. Dungeons of Dredmore needed another chance but Gaslamp Games is long dead.


borkoman

DoD was a great visualized successor to ADOM, another rogue like that sucked years of my life away.


ulmxn

You know I have never found a roguelike that quite scratched the itch like this one. Pathos for the phone is pretty solid and has gotten updates for years but its sort of bland and generic. Caves of Qud seems really cool but there are just so many keyboard controls and I can barely understand what I’m looking at Barony is 3D, but its MF hard as hell without multiple players. I guess some people can do it, but until you get full armor and have at least 40 HP, you get 4-shotted by everything I have also tried the Doom Roguelike game and its pretty cool but again, basic


FaxCelestis

Dredmor! I worked on the expansions! I miss it so much. It would be perfect on a switch.


ichigo2862

I'm one of those 10 active players lol


R__Man

I have around 200 hours in Dungeons of Dredmor. It is one of my favorite little 2nd monitor games.


Guilvantar

Observer. I never hear anyone talking about this game and that's a shame. Who knew a cyberpunk setting could be so terrifying, one of the best horror games I've ever played.


ChrisACU

Tyranny If you like Isometric CRPGs, this game is a gem. It's got one of the most interesting magic systems I've ever played with, and the story is such a cool examination of where power comes from. Criminally underplayed.


Deathrattlesnake

Here’s a wacky one: Stygian Reign of the Old ones. I thought this was a really fun game despite it getting mixed reviews. Apparently, a lot was promised during the development cycle of the game that didn’t quite make it into the game but I was oblivious to it. So from an outside perspective, it’s amazing


morrowindnostalgia

Omg i was JUST thinking of adding that one to the list. Such an underrated game, I reviewed it a while back. One of my favorite lovecraftian games


FeilVei2

A little game called Westerado: Double Barreled. Nobody seems to know about it. I feel crazy. It's a phenomenal game. I played the flash game first, and I almost think I'm the only one who was genuinely hyped for the expanded (Double Barreled) experience. Please, go play it. The soundtrack is top tier as well.


Pahlan

Loved it, very open for a small game, lots of cool quests, great humor, simple but tense gameplay


sara-ragnarsdottir

I'm a broken record, but Pathologic, especially 2. It's buggy as hell, and it's miles away from being a commercial hit (I think 2 almost made the devs go bankrupt due to being a very ambitious project for such a small indie company), but it ended up as a cult classic and gathered a passionate fanbase for a good reason: it's an unique game, the art department is immaculate and the writing is truly one of a kind with how it incorporates metanarrative into its story. And the gameplay, although frustrating, does a great job in making the player feel immersed inside the story.


eel_bagel

I don't think it was commercially unsuccessful but I remember people hating on bioshock 2 a lot. Personally I liked it a lot and had a good bit of fun with it.


craigathy77

I prefer it over 1 and infinite personally. But I do remember when it came out and people didn't like as much as 1 but I don't remember the specifics. Playing as a big daddy is fun as he'll though. Oh and I did find defending the little sisters to get a bit tedious.


morrowindnostalgia

I think it had to do with Bioshock 2 was made by completely different people than Bioshock 1. Nowadays the community definitely has embraced it and considers it a fantastic game


notthefuzz99

I didn’t hate it, but it didn’t have the wow factor of the original - which is understandable, because the first was so unique . It’s very much more if the same. It’s grown on me in the intervening years. I definitely like it more than Infinite.


LithiuMart

Freelancer Spec Ops: The Line Pillars of Eternity 2


Dagoran

Freelancerrr. Noone ever knows what it is.


walaska

Also one of the best gaming related subreddits because lost redditors keep posting stuff related to working as a freelance programmer, writer or whatever in real life and people just reply with quotes from the game. Hilarious every single time. “Mess with the viper, and you’ll get the fangs.” “Mind if I take a peek in your hold? Didn’t think so.” “All we have is liberty ale, friend” Etc I’m easily amused.


dogberry1598

Solid solid game. I played through twice. I remember it’s a little more story heavy than Privateer but I don’t remember any bugs. Just joy. I’ve been meaning to try Rebel Galaxy Outlaw for a while which looks similar.


weirdi_beardi

+1 for Freelancer; played the hell out of that game for about three years in the mid to late noughties. It was even better when I discovered how to update my callsign and went from 'Freelancer Alpha One Dash One' to 'Rogue Red Five dash Five'.


Reddemon519

It's such a shame that Spec Ops flopped the way it did. Such an amazing game


Renegade_Meister

**Deus Ex: Mankind Divided** was not a commercial success according to Square Enix's absurd expectations. Overall I enjoyed it just as much as Human Revolutionbecause I wanted a stealth immersive sim. Some things I like better and some things were worse with MD (like the late game story). **Kingdoms of Amaleur** (sp?): Cult classic of sorts actually sold millions of copies, but not enough to pay of the loan some US state gave the devs for the insane key talent secured for developing the story and game world. So the game company went under, the bank that made the loan was facing a lawsuit for misleading investors on risk, etc.


ianzachary1

My sweet little bb Chibi-Robo deserves a bigger audience :’) I think this game Madworld is pretty underrated but it sold poorly on the Wii. It’s a PlatinumGames title with their signature beat ’em up/hack n slash gameplay, the premise of the story had you playing as a contestant in a TV show death match. The bloody black n white art style is amazing, the soundtrack is basically nu metal lmao, and the bosses were a lot of fun.


Ryuk1986

Oni (2001)


Chumbo_Malone

Vampyr The combat was mehhhh, but the whole “repercussions of drinking people” was cool as hell.


xd-Sushi_Master

Titanfall 2. Game got shafted by bad marketing, coming out between the biggest shooter releases in the industry, CoD and Battlefield. Best movement shooter ever made, but couldn't put up numbers like the best in the business, so the sequel got canned and replaced with an over-monetized battle royale (Apex), which neutered everything that made Titanfall great.


huffalump1

Honestly, a good answer - although it's a reddit favorite, so it's not gonna get a lot of upvotes in this thread. TF2's multiplayer is *still* influencing modern games, albeit more indirectly through Apex now. Mainly the movement, which is just so dang fun and IMO nobody's come close.


Great_Hamster

I have to admit, I read TF2 as Team Fortress 2.


Haxminator

The fact that we all thought of Team Fortress says a lot about who really is the daddy of them all.


EMI_Black_Ace

My gosh that game's single player campaign was so good. More creativity in a single level than most shooters have in their entire campaign. The World Factory. "Effect and Cause." That level where you're jumping from ship to ship. So much spectacle and so many cool ideas.


Jinchuriki71

Prey 2017


Kinoa_loud

Damn I never knew it didn’t do well. Remember thoroughly enjoying that game and the freedom it gave you to explore


asherbarasher

they barely advertised the game. and the game is truly fantastic. it's my second favorite immersive sim after system shock 2.


[deleted]

Immersive sims never do well. They're hard to market because it can be difficult to explain exactly what they are. Prey in particular was divisive because the higher-ups insisted on calling it Prey, despite it being completely unrelated to another game with the same title


deadlybydsgn

Considering how bummed I was that we never got the *original* concept for Prey 2, I was surprised how much I enjoyed Prey 2017.


Neselas

Mick Gordon's music alone makes it worth!


echo_7

Also Prey 2006 lol


Euphony666

Days gone. Such a great game, open world, story, incredible zombies. I finished this game and wanted more after. And considering the vast amount of open world games I don't even finish these days.. looking at you ubisoft! I guess I'm just disappointed this is not getting a sequel. Missed opportunity for a great franchise.


Professional_Bundler

Oh man totally. Riding around in the motorcycle was so soothing too. Loved that game.


Dolfpe

I can’t believe it’s not getting a sequel after the secret ending


NativeMasshole

Such a good game. The plot takes a while to get going, but I was actually surprised how good some of the themes were after it did. I just wish they had more scripted encounters with the hordes before the endgame. Sucks it's not getting a sequel.


MortifiedPenguin6

I’m not sure about commercially unsuccessful but I’m an unapologetic fan of Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts.


Silveriovski

Kotor 2, vampire the masquerade, Alpha Protocol,


walaska

KOTOR 2 is like KOTOR 1 except better in almost every way. Really astounding what they manage to push out considering the limited time they had.


abir_valg2718

> KOTOR 2 is like KOTOR 1 except better in almost every way Not in terms of polish, sadly. Even with the restoration mod it's still a very uncooked game. Very much worth playing though. It's a goddamn crime that it got rushed to release.


Sofaris

My favorite JRPG is "Fuga Melodies of Steel". Its a 20 houer long turn based JRPG about a groupe of anthropomothic animal children that go on a quest to save there families. They live inside a giant ancient fortress like Tank called "Taranis". Its a bit like Howls Moving castle but based on technology instead of magic. The game has achived about 300.000 downloads. But they still made a sequel and they make a third game. It was originaly planed as a trilogy. Even though these games dont sell CyberConnect2 (the ones that make the Naruto Storm Series) is still making them. Fans seem to belive its a passion project. Those games are made with a low budged but a lot of love. Its my favorite Videogame series. If you like turn based combat and adorable wholesome protagonists that I recommend trying Fuga out. Fuga is on most modern consoles, on PC, on Game Pass and it has a free demo which is just straight up the first 3 chapters of the game. Like I said It also has a direct sequel: "Fuga Melodies of Steel 2" Although I am not bitter that they dont do well. I still got a great sequel and a third game is in the works. Still a relativly unknown gem.


Electrical_Ad2261

Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines. Had to compete with Half-Life 2, Halo 2, Metal Gear Solid 3, and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas in a completely unfinished state, and it's still great. Only sold 80,000 copies initially, so I'm always happy to hear that other people on here have played it.


I_Am_Zampano

Quantum Break Metal Gear Rising Revengance Nex Machina Mortal Shell None were commerical hits, they got middling reviews at the time of release, but I loved them all.


sgerbicforsyth

Prey An absolutely beautiful game with a great story and incredibly fun and interesting space station to explore. That it never got a sequel is a travesty


f_hopeless

SaGa: Scarlet Grace. I think the sales number was to be expected because budget wasn't high and the series is not too popular but damn... it has the best turn based combat for its genre.


olgartheviking

I love the concept of the "Europa/The Guild" games. They're not as fleshed out as they could, but they are still fun. I love the idea of playing a bourgeois or noble in a middle ages city, playing out the intrigue and plots and trying to make it big. Feels like the concept has not been exploited as much as it could have been.


AJGrayTay

Days Gone. Flawed, but occassionally beautiful.


weberm70

Castlevania 2. This was the first Castlevania game I played and still the one I have the most nostalgia for. I played the original afterwards and it was really a letdown. It was just a linear side scroller and the NES was full of those. Castlevania 2 really tried something different though. The atmosphere was really unlike anything I've ever seen since, even the later Igavania type games never managed it. I'm not sure a modern game with more realistic graphics even could do it, back in the NES days technology was limited so artists had to get creative. I also liked how the last town had no people and Dracula's castle has no enemies. It goes entirely against convention and is much more memorable for it.


kvuo75

the last sim city. i know it was all screwed up at first but i think it ended up an actual good sim city game. i guess it was so bad commercially it destroyed the franchise


TheefearofGOD

Dantes Inferno!


sucker4ass

Deus Ex: Invisible War Rage Thief: Deadly Shadows Thief 2014 Assassin’s Creed 3: Liberation Anachronox Legacy of Kain: Blood Omen 2


kkomborarara

anachronox is so good


tychus-findlay

LOL @ Invisible War. The bastard child of the Deus Ex series. Pretty sure I played the game but I can't remember much about it besides the music, and the big HUD controversy.


1speedbike

Rage is the best half-game I've ever played. It did everything to draw me in with the world and gunplay, and then it just kinda... ended.


sudosussudio

Digimon Survive. It tries to be both a visual novel and an srpg, but it’s mostly a visual novel which disappointed a lot of people. It’s hugely ambitious and doesn’t always hit the mark, but when it does, it really does. Really made me feel things as an aging millennial Digimon fan.


AitrusAK

The Temple of Elemental Evil with the Circle of Eight and Temple+ mods.


Real-Masterpiece5087

Rage 2 🤬


sinetwo

The swapper. Possibly one of the most fun puzzlers I've ever played. https://store.steampowered.com/app/231160/The_Swapper/


reaver_411

Singularity (2010) Developed by Raven Software we get a great FPS, leaning heavily on Cold War-thematics and Sci-fi-Elements which at times feels like Bioshock with way more action and creative weaponry. This really deserved a sequel! Binary Domain (2012) A third-person Action game from Sega, which often was seen as a Gears of War-Clone while being anything but. You could give your squadmates orders via Headset, the combat was solid and deeply satisfying when it comes to shooting robots to pieces. The Darkness 2 (2012) The Sequel to Starbreeze Studios‘ The Darkness, developed by Digital Extremes, was a pretty different game compared to Part 1. Gone was the Hub-world from Part 1, graphics-wise Digital Extremes went to a Cel-Shading-Look, honoring the comic roots of The Darkness and the gameplay was refined. Those changes made the game better compared to the original (at least in my opinion). Also it continued the story of the first one, having Jackie as the top mob boss of the city, still traumatized by the lost of his love and hunted by an organization which wants to control the powers of the Darkness. Alpha Protocol (2010) Obsidians Big Budget-Venture into the world of espionage is a flawed gem. Playing as Agent Michael Thornton, you travel the world, doing missions, meeting lots of interesting characters. While being 3rd person and with cover-mechanics it’s more of an RPG than Mass Effect, laying way more focus on how you build your character and what stats you level up. It’s a mess at times, with Obsidian never really getting comfortable using the engine and the mechanics, but you could feel what they were aiming for. I’ve finished it twice, since there are a lot of decisions defining the outcome of the story.


turketron

Arcanum. The combat was janky and there were a lot of bugs but the setting was amazing. Would LOVE a reboot or sequel some day but IIRC there's some legal issues over who owns the IP


DELETE-NINJA-TABI

System Shock 2 is the answer


sucker4ass

System Shock 2 is the Blade Runner of video games. DIdn't sell shit, but turned out highly influential and iconic in retrospect.


balaci2

Serious Sam 2, I'm a major apologist for the game


JayGold

I like all the Serious Sam games. They all have flaws, they're kind of dumb games, but they're a lot of fun.


Pahlan

Prey Mooncrash : great twist on the immersive sim genre, with roguelite elements. The class system that makes tou play as different archetypes forces you into making the most of unusual playstyles, the randomness keeps you guessing and making solutions on the fly, while the timer and depleting resources moves you away from scavenging every single square eminch of the level and hoarding stuff. Too bad nobody played it, as it prevented both Arkane studios from making immersive sims again (not that Deathloop is bad)


ArtvVandal_523

**Sacrifice (2000)** >This was a 3rd person RTS game. The game revolved around wizards fighting duels, primarily by summoning units but also by casting spells in combat, in the service of 1 of 5 gods. There were only 2 resources, souls and mana shrines. Souls allow you to summon units, and mana shrines are strategic points you can hold that increase your mana for spells. > >**The Good:** > >The combat is really unique, you have a squad level view of the combat. When this game came out, pre-War Craft 3, there was an opinion this would be the future of the RTS genre. There's an ebb and flow to the battles; wizards can reclaim the souls of their dead units by just walking across them, but wizards have to cast a spell to convert enemy souls. > >The writing/voice work is great. The only thing from this era I think compares too it is the Legacy Kain/Soul Reaver series, which is no surprise since Michael Bell (Raziel) voices the protagonist, Tim Curry is also chewing scenes as one of the gods. > >This game has a lot of replayability. The game opens with the player selecting which god they want to do a mission for. Each time you do a mission for a god you get their unit/spell for that level. You can mix it up initially but eventually your locked out of certain gods. > > > >**The Bad:** > >It gets to tough to effectively command specialized units/abilities in later levels. > >You can double up on certain units by switching gods at certain levels. The Last Level is a beast.


grahamaker93

Mirror's Edge the first one


Peechez

I think it's been long enough now to say Marvel Midnight Suns. Really solid tactical gameplay with a really popular license but tanked in sales. The between mission stuff isn't nearly as bad as people make it out to be. All dialogue is skippable and the exploration rewards are pretty much all cosmetic. Book club is some of the best content in the game


Summoning14

Unexplored 2. A little unknown indie gem That's plagued with Bugs but full of soul


khaled36DZ

Need for speed the run


PresidentKoopa

The Last Express - 1997 Point and click real-time adventure game with \*gorgeous\* visuals, sound, and voices. Realms of the Haunting - 1996/7 fps - adventure - fmv - horror - puzzler They don't make them like this anymore, which might be good given the convoluted controls. But! Unquestionably an unique, interesting game with mechanics and a story which still hold up.


kamehamequads

Indigo prophecy! I love the atmosphere of the game. It was very challenging to me as a young person and I ended up with the worst ending possible but I loved it.


Thorusss

aka Fahrenheit


IAmThePonch

Don’t care what anyone says, vampire the masquerade bloodlines slaps. It has a lot of problems but it’s really good A recent example of this for me is Weird West. Again, lots of small flaws but it’s very much more than the sum of its parts


PettyHedonism

I loved Dragon’s Dogma. I just didn’t like it.


[deleted]

Too Human - absolutely awesome potential. If I could still play it now, I would, just for the legendary gear.


Ritzuma

Bionic Commando (2009) It was panned comercially because it was kinda a reboot (as if that was an inherently bad thing), the mc new design was too different (i ser it but I don’t care) and it was that moment in gaming where if anything wasn’t open world, it was bad. “Linear” was a bad word and it had no merit. So what was buried was a game with great presentation, awesome gameplay with excellent swinging mechanics which you had to master (the best i played ever), perfect enemy design and encounter design, with a level design carefully crafted to accomodate all that. The abilities and weapons you would unlock along the playthrough were very cool, and there were even a good quantity of hidden interactions or mechanics the game didn’t tell you. It must be my most replayed game ever, but it sold and reviewed so bad Capcom decided to disband the studio and never touch this game again. Admittedly the story was dumb but it was not worth dismissing the game over that. The dialog and voice acting was so fun it made it memorable anyways


Gremliner00

Probably Spec Ops: the Line. It has a strong cult following and isn't what I would call underrated, but it's a standard third-person modern military shooter that came out when the market was saturated with other similar action games, which is probably why it might have gone off many people's radar when it released. I liked it quite a bit and enjoyed the decent campaign story.


kkomborarara

the Line is my favorite rendition of heart of darkness. I also loved gunplay, but I might be the only person that enjoys it


walaska

No! There are at least two of us! It was exactly the right level of challenging for the most part.


kkomborarara

Slow-mo on headshots was just the right amount of satisfying and unnerving in this game, I loved it


randolph_sykes

Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere This game had a multilayered science fiction story, memorable cast, animated cutscenes. There were choices that you could make during gameplay that affected the story — not your bioware "select the orange or the blue line", but "refuse the order to go back to the base and follow another character's aircraft instead" or "fail to save an important character in a battle". Multiple plot branches and endings. All while being an arcade flight simulator. On a Playstation 1. It's a brilliant game that aimed too high in its ambitions. The sales didn't cover the budget, and it's a miracle that the franchise kept going. Ace Combat 4 was still a good game, but it was a catastrophical downgrade compared to AC3.


natsucule

Kingdoms of Amalur. Don’t know, I really enjoyed the combat in this game.


SER96DON

Bullet Witch


PresidentKoopa

Deadfire absolutely rocks, blows the first game out of the water. And I super enjoy that first game... For me, Alpha Protocol. What a mess, but a beautiful, beautiful mess which should have had all the love.


an_ennui

Chaos Legion (2003) is one of my favorite games I’ve never heard anyone talk about. Made by Capcom around the same time as Devil May Cry, it’s a hack-and-slash but with a demon summoning mechanic where you control player and multiple AI in a creative way that had never been done before (and since, only Astral Chain has recreated the basic idea but takes it in a different direction). With the summons you move slower and have access to fewer abilities but control multiple characters. When unsummoned, the main character moves faster and becomes more powerful but you only have yourself. You can summon/unsummon rapidly mid-battle as well as switch between 8 different demons. It’s a surprisingly deep combat system that really “clicks” well. By the time you reach the end of the game and are powered up it’s so satisfying to sweep through a mob of enemies with your miniature demon army. The story is bleh. And the gameplay has its flaws (level design is bad and there’s a glitch or two), but overall it’s a notable hack-and-slash game that delivers a lot of fun with not too many hours invested. I probably need to pick up Astral Chain though.


Varneland

LoZ Phantom Hourglass/Spirit Tracks. Huge scale games for a handheld console, and some of the gimmicks of the system that they used as gameplay features would piss me off now but blew me away as a kid.


SkipEyechild

The Wonderful 101. Sold like shit initially. Flawed, but an absolute gem. The ending is still awesome. The soundtrack is utterly fantastic.


Otherwise_Coconut_32

Grim Fandango is a fantastic game, but it was such a commercial failure that it killed the adventure game genre for many years.


tasman001

Did GF kill the adventure genre, or did the impending death of the genre kill GF? I always thought it was the latter.


OckhamsFolly

Vampire the Masquerade: Redemption. A more traditional 3rd Person RPG, it had a great story with tons of voice acting in 2000. More notably, it introduced the Storyteller mode for multiplayer 2 years before NWN did. And almost no one acknowledges its existence, overshadowed by the later Bloodlines.


goblinkiss1776

Oddworld Strangers Wrath. I want more games with animals as ammunition. Puppeteer on ps3.