A REAL underdog feel in games

[AntiChri5]

Mount and Blade. Start with nothing but a horse and a sword (GET IT? A MOUNT AND A BLADE!) and it doesn't hold your hand at the beginning like Dark Souls. Then you are thrown into a world that straight up does not give a shit. Unlucky enough to have a large group of bandits spawn too close to where you started, before you could recruit troops? Well too fucking bad, now you are their prisoner and they will drag you around for a month.

Whats that? Don't wanna fight 200 hundred guys because you only just managed to recruit twelve? Then you better start runnin.

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

It's an odd request but still- is there a game out there that really FEELS like your rewards are scarce, varied and vital for your survival?

You already mentioned Dead Space 2, but have you tried the Nightmare mode challenge? I assure you it's worth it. Although the enemies themselves aren't the toughest level, the 3-save restriction and no checkpoints (except for disc swap elevator ride on 360 version) really has you fearing for your/Isaac's life. You genuinely have to consider your weapon loadout, node placements, health pack usage and save points. If you die you go back to your last save, or Chapter 1 if you don't have one yet. I was terrified of the power being cut, someone tripping over the leads, my controller running out of power (left it on charge and play in the end, I couldn't handle the stress!). It was very satisfying to complete that.

Morrowind also gives you this same sense of being cast out into the world without anything but what you're wearing. Well worth (re)playing, in spite of its age. There is an Oblivion mod called Morroblivion that recreates TES3 in the Oblivion engine, could also be worth looking into.

 

[SmegInThePants]

tales of maj'eyal

its free, play in roguelike mode (permadeath, 1 life)

http://www.te4.org

 

[illas]

Dark Souls. I'll say it again: "the most important game of this hardware/console generation".

Mercilessly difficult but ultimately fair, and you'll definitely get your desired feeling of being the underdog.

I'd also recommend Ico and Shadow of the Colossus; particularly the latter, which features you in a desolate but beautiful wasteland, tasked with defeating mighty creatures with little more than your sword and horse.

 

[bliebblob]

I second online multiplayer. Doesn't really mater what genre. The key difference is that NPC opponents in single player are usually designed to make you feel challenged, but not to actually kill you. Not unlike the animatrons in a carnival haunted house. You're made to feel like a walking bowlingball in a world populated by walking bowling pins. Opponents in online multiplayer however get equal chances and have at least basic cognitive powers. Ergo: you're gonna get slaughtered at first. A lot. It's extremely discouraging if you're not expecting it. But the upside is that anything you do manage to win will feel sooo much more rewarding because you know you didn't get any unfair advantages. And if you stick with it you'll slowly get better and start winning more and more. Which feels amazing because you know you're not defeating bowlingpins any more but other bowling balls.

 

[MelasZepheos_v1legacy]

Giving yourself a tough character build in Fallout 3 can result in this. I usually pumped a lot of points into things like speech and handgun, which left me only able to fight off radscorpions with my wits and a 10mm pistol that I didn't have nearly enough ammo for. Basically the only way to survive was to grind like crazy until I was at level 20, and even then taking on power-armoured Enclave or Deathclaws was a terrifying experience. I spent most of my time running away from things instead of killing them, which really gave me the 'things are shit' experience of an apocalypse.

 

[DoPo]

tales of maj'eyal

its free, play in roguelike mode (permadeath, 1 life)

http://www.te4.org

Oh, yeah - I forgot about those: roguelikes. When you really want to feel insignificant and powerless. Most of them are free to boot.

Another suggestion: Elona. It's also pretty.

And thanks for that link - I remember somebody suggested that game a while back and I wanted to check it out later. But I forgot to bookmark the website, so I lost it. Until now.

 

[Thoric485]

Legend of Grimrock.

It'll take you quite a few levels just to get the gear types you intend for each of your characters, spells are quite rare and there's also the issue of food.

 

[endnuen]

Playing Madden with the Lions. Every game is an uphill struggle..

 

[Vault101]

Dark Souls for sure...

ninja'd..also Fallout 3..Fallout NV it goes away rather quickly once your character realises "holy shit..I'm carrying the cards here"

ME3 kind of feels like that once the universe starts burning...and there's nothing you can do

 

[Sean Hollyman]

Metro 2033, it always feels good when you find an ammo and health stash

 

[endnuen]

AvP playing as the Marine. Always a feeling of impending death. Sure you might have gun, but really, against those foes..

 

[teqrevisited]

Can't believe XCOM hasn't been said yet. The aliens can see in the dark, their craft are usually faster and more durable than yours until you are able to manufacture advanced fighter craft and when it comes to ground combat they make your poorly-equipped band of unfortunates look like they graduated from the Stormtrooper College of Marksmanship.

 

[dragongit]

shadow of the Colossus. Nothing quite compares to just how small and insignificant you are when up against these gigantic behemoths. You arn't super powered, you don't have a weapon the size of a school bus, you are just an above average warrior. Not to mention the drain upon his life every time he defeats a Colossus, yet still goes on with his quest to save the life of a woman he doesn't even really know.

It's a good game of isolation as well, beyond the voice and your horse, and the corpse of a dead woman, you're all alone in the world until you run into a Colossus. You are like an ant to most of these Colossi, especially the last one. Defeating each one felt like a true victory without perhaps the sheer fustration of Dark/Demon Souls had.

 

[Iwata]

I mentioned this game before, and I'm beginning to think I'm the only person in the Escapist to have played it.

Echo Night: Beyond.

You're alone. On the Moon. With a legion of hostile ghosts out to get you. Unarmed. Inside a bulky spacesuit that takes forever to turn in, let alone run. And you can only see your enemies through the monitors of security cameras. With the naked eye, they are invisible and only show up when they're right in your face, and by then it's usually too late.

If any game ever made feel like the odds are entirely against me, it was that one.

 

[kyogen]

Dragon's Dogma: New Game makes you really earn your level-ups even with the pawns as helpers. You'll have to try things, run if they don't work, and come back when you're stronger. It's not as elaborate as Skyrim, but there are a lot of missions, decent crafting, great combat, good character customization, and nice monster animation.

Demon's Souls
Dark Souls
The Witcher 1 and 2 on harder difficulties