Some of my favorites:
Legend of Mana: A PS1 RPG that I found simply amazing, I still play the hell out of it and never seem to fully beat the whole game. The story at first seems a disconnected and shallow bunch of side quests but later on actually turns into not one but three rather epic story campaigns that are in the end all tied together. The combat is a little simple, but still very fun. The game though is beautiful even by today's standards I still love the visuals of this game, the atmosphere, the music, everything about it just is so perfect. My favorite part of the game is the fact that while I wouldn't classify it as open world, it is very much a sandbox game. You can design your own world map, build weapons, armor, magical instruments, build golems, raise pets, grow crops, and learn tons of combo attacks for a large variety of weapon types, there's just so much to do in this game and so many ways you can play it. I'm simply amazed by the game and also amazed how little I ever hear about it. (It's on the PSN, get it!)
Magic of Scheherazade: Back in the NES days there was a top-down action adventure game I loved more than Legend of Zelda, it was called Magic of Scheherazade. It was very well made for it's day, and had many very unusual and interesting gameplay mechanics. There was a traditional Zelda-esque combat system where you fight enemies on an overworld map screen, but there were also turn-based battles you occasionally triggered moving from one screen to the next. There were actual colleges that taught you the tactics to beating the different formations in these turn based battles, you actually had companions and even hired troopers fight with you. Outside of combat you could do basic time travel from the past and present at time doors, and during special eclipses plant trees that would grow special items you could harvest in the future. The story was very basic as were most NES games but the overall setting, characters, and execution of Magic of Scheherazade make it one of my favorite NES games that it seems nobody ever even heard of.
Harvest Moon Magical Melody: Harvest Moon games in general don't get much discussion, but at least the franchise in general gets references here and there. Though even amongst those who do discuss the game, I'm quite shocked to find Magical Melody never mentioned. A GameCube game, Magical Melody came hard on the heels of Animal Crossing's success and incorporated much of those mechanics into Harvest Moon and it worked amazingly well! The level of freedom that Magical Melody gives you really pushes Harvest Moon into full on sandbox mode. You can literally end up owning half the map, build your farm how you want, even place down your furniture how you want. All the classic staples are there from growing crops, raising animals, mining, foraging, fishing, and interacting with villagers but the sheer volume of control the game gives you in pursuing these objectives is amazing. The musical notes you collect act like an integrated achievement trophy system that gives you an overall sense of purpose that isn't limiting (no arbitrary time limit or deadline you can't play past) You could play as a boy or girl and either way have 10 eligible spouses. I could rave about this game for awhile but it's honestly one of the best reasons I have for still owning a GameCube.
