Your personal biggest underrated game of all time

[Saviordd1]

Exactly what it says on the tin [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin]

What is a game you personally love but the rest of the world seemed to shrug their shoulders at?

Personally mine is Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. Say what you will about it being a cliche storm it is a damn fun game, plus you get to use these bad boys

I mean
FUCKING FLAMING CHAKRAMS

That's just plain old awesome.


How about you? What's your personal underrated game?


Side note
Captcha is trying to teach me!!!

To bad I actually pay attention to science class.

 

[Terminate421]

Pokemon mystery dungeon: explorers of time/darkness/sky

It's gameplay isn't impressive, standard dungeon crawler with a Pokemon twist. But there is one thing that stands perfect, it's story out matches a lot of games. And that is saying something.

On top of that is one of the best final boss battle songs to date:


I am not joking.

And to top it all off, an ending that is completely unforgettable.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

I'm gonna go ahead and say God Hand, even though as of late I've seen a few Escapists highly commending the game. Just one of those games that's popular to mourn for, I guess.

 

[The Wykydtron]

Does Bayonetta count as underrated? Because that game is awesome as hell! I assume people would get put off by the blatantly sexual box art but it's a better DMC than DMC! Best fighting hack and slash type game ever. You know when people try to push things as "ironically" sexy? It's always a contrived excuse for moar bewbs right? Bayonetta somehow actually manages it. I've said it before and i'll say it again. Bayonetta herself is not attractive after the first hour or so. She's merely in-character.

The dodge/Witch Time mechanics are pure genius, the enemies and bosses are awesome, the story is... Interesting. It makes fuck all sense but it's fun nonetheless.

Imma take this opportunity to push Persona 4 again. You should try it even if you despise other JRPGs, it's just that good. Best mystery story ever told, great characters with actual character arcs, super symbolism, well designed dungeons, a well stocked fridge and the list goes on to #101

 

[Sniper Team 4]

I'm going with Alan Wake. It got high praise from critics and even TIME acknowledged it, but I sure couldn't find a single other person who played it besides the friends that I loaned the game to. I wish it had done better among the gaming community, because I'd really like a full sequel. American Nightmare was nice, but I still have so many questions.

 

[AndrewF022]

Mine would probably have to be Dark Messiah Might and Magic... it reviewed ok and has a small but dedicated following of fans but its a game I cannot recommend highly enough. One of, if not, the best example of first person melee combat I have ever played. If only Arkane could team up with Bethesda on the next Elder Scrolls game, with Arkane handling the combat and Bethesda the lore and world building I could die happy haha.

 

[ShinyCharizard]

Does Bayonetta count as underrated? Because that game is awesome as hell! I assume people would get put off by the blatantly sexual box art but it's a better DMC than DMC! Best fighting hack and slash type game ever. You know when people try to push things as "ironically" sexy? It's always a contrived excuse for moar bewbs right? Bayonetta somehow actually manages it. I've said it before and i'll say it again. Bayonetta herself is not attractive after the first hour or so. She's merely in-character.

The dodge/Witch Time mechanics are pure genius, the enemies and bosses are awesome, the story is... Interesting. It makes fuck all sense but it's fun nonetheless.

Yes this!

Bayonetta is by far the best Hack and Slash style game ever. The combat mechanics are so fluid and refined its just insane. Every weapon is fun to use, every boss is insanely epic, every enemy is challenging and fun to fight (except grace and glory, fuck those two). I can't recommend this game enough.

Also Vanquish. By far the best and most fun third person shooter out there. Nothing beats rocket kicking a robot in the face then going in to bullet time and shot gunning 3 more. Also the fight against the two argus robots is easily one of the best moments in a video game ever.

 

[gamernerdtg2]

I have to say that Urban Reign is hands down the best modern console brawler, and it deserves a sequel on the PS3 and 360. That game got mediocre reviews but the combat is seemless. Namco and Capcom people combined to make it, and I've never played anything like it. It gave me hope that brawlers were returning, but alas, people were not ready for it.

Bayonetta was an incredible game, and I think that it got the recognition it deserves. There will be a sequel. God hand pales in comparison to Urban Reign IMO.

 

[scorptatious]

I'm gonna go ahead and say God Hand, even though as of late I've seen a few Escapists highly commending the game. Just one of those games that's popular to mourn for, I guess.

I've actually watched an LP of the game. Looks fun.

Plus anything with a poisonous chihuahua in it has to be good right?

OT: Hmm...

Possibly Metal Arms: Glitch in the System.


Between the vast amounts of powerful and creative weapons, the large enemy variety, the humorous and fun characters, and the decently large amount of levels there are, this game is freaking awesome.

Sadly, this game didn't get very much attention at all. Of course from what I've heard, it was released around the same time as the first Prince of Persia for the PS2. So I imagined that didn't help.

Regardless, if you have an XBOX 360, go the the XBOX original hits and download this game. DO IT NOW!

 

[shrekfan246]

I'll agree on Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. Loved that game, my only issue with it was that it was far too easy, even on the Hard difficulty setting.

If it ever actually gets a PC release, I'm hoping I'd be able to add Epic Mickey 2. I tried the demo on the PS3 when I was at a friend's place, and apart from wacky aiming mechanics it was a ton of fun.

I need to try playing Vanquish again... I ended up ragequitting on it because I got to some robotic spider boss that I couldn't figure out how to beat.

Oh, and Alice: Madness Returns. Loved that game, I ended my first play-through with a 98% completion rating. It does have limited replayability once you've gotten the collectibles though...

 

[XX Y XY]

Star Control 2 / Ur-Quan Masters. I'd be surprised if many people on here have even heard of it. But the Mass Effect series ripped off so much from this series it's almost criminal. The combat is extremely well balanced, the story is rich and full of humor, the alien races are unique and memorable. Nothing has come close to it to date. Best game I've ever played, hands down, period, /end.

 

[The_Echo]

I mean
FUCKING FLAMING CHAKRAMS

[small]Probably memorized that from somewhere...[/small]​

OT: Uh. Hm. Kingdom Hearts. I know it's not underrated. But shit, I love that series.

Also, Finny the Fish and the Seven Waters. Such a... such a nice game.

EDIT: OH. Kid Icarus: Uprising. I thought that game was a lot better than it seemed to be received. I also didn't find the controls too terrible, either.

 

[PhunkyPhazon]

While I could probably think of an overall better example, I'm gonna have to go with the excellent Rune Factory: Frontier on the Wii. I kind of want to extend this into saying "Harvest Moon games in general" (for those who don't know, Rune Factory is a Harvest Moon spin-off) but I can understand why a farming sim wouldn't garner a massive audience.

But the thing about RF:F in particular is that even when I'm among other Harvest Moon fans (which admittedly isn't often) this game is rarely mentioned. Not because they think it's bad or anything, it just seems like very few people have played it. Supposedly it sold alright for what it was, but as far as I'm concerned this is one of the better third party Wii games. And considering how shallow that pool has always been, this really deserves more recognition.

I will admit, if you don't care for Harvest Moon then RF:F won't change your mind. But if you are a fan, this NEEDS to be in your gaming library. Even if you played the original DS game and didn't care for it-like me-give this a chance. I had a plethora of problems with that game and I feel Frontier fixed and expanded upon just about everything I had problems with. Shallow, boring, forgettable townsfolk and bachellorettes? Frontier does the exact opposite, and it's helped by surprisingly good voice acting and witty writing. Did the original game's crafting system feel poorly implemented and easy to exploit? Frontier pretty much reworks it from the ground up, and also gives you access to it much earlier on. Were the dungeons too easy, bland, or repetitive? While they're still a little on the bland side here, they are now huge whopping labyrinths that require a bit more leveling up. Some of the boss fights are particularly challenging...maybe a little TOO challenging in some cases.

Okay, the short version? RF:F is the best Harvest Moon game to come out since Friends of Mineral Town. Personally, I even feel like it might be better than HM64. It's certainly not a perfect game, and it would be rather unfair of me to not mention that the game's 'Runey system' completely ruined it for some people (just Google it, I promise you'll have to anyways since the game itself barely makes note of it). But if you're willing to do some micro-managing, there is an incredibly rewarding game to be played.

 

[Mauler]

Anachronox Would be my best game of the year That year but nobody I've talked about IT would say they liked it it had soo many strong points and I am still waiting for the second part... Dont say it wont because Duke nuke 'em came so I was right... Nobody believed me ...

 

[MeChaNiZ3D]

Monster Hunter games tend to be a bit underrated in the west, I find them really great, Armored Core games are the same. But these share a common theme which sort of explained their underrating - the gameplay is basically all that there is to them. Monster Hunter has the absolute poorest characterisation I've ever seen, a story that consists of "kill the things, then the bigger things, then the biggest thing", nothing you can relate to, nothing that gives you pause for thought, missions try to be different but are so inane you often cringe when reading them, you never see the effects of your efforts, there is no sense of urgency, there is just NO STORY. But the monster AI is interesting and challenging, the game itself requires a lot of comprehension to play, accomodates various playstyles seamlessly, allows you to switch styles whenever you want, has awesome weapon development trees and armour skills are good to balance (although there is bias towards whole sets because of course all their skills stack, some weapons are recoloured versions of others which annoys me, and resource collecting via the farm is tedious as all fuck).

Armored Core (for Answer in this case, V has a lot of problems of its own which aren't indicative) also has only up to a handful of characters that are remotely interesting, basically no connection between you and the consequences of your actions ("Vun hundret meelion dead" - I just shot some stuff, I'll take your word for it), but if the missions descriptions and intercompany relations were just a little more intriguing, just a little, it would be a hidden story rather than an absence of story. But the main thing about Armored Core games is customising giant robots and saving their schematics, and GOD DAMN I LOVE THAT. But if you don't, that's all the game offers, you would not play it for any other reason because none of the rest is as interesting.

tl;dr - learning curves and lack of story.

 

[Shoggoth2588]

Easy.

Puzzle-RPG with some of the best music in the franchise. The characters are blank slates and 100% is actually possible for most players. As you fight monsters and bosses, their sprites show damage as the HP lowers. Here's some music...

 

[Fat Hippo]

I'm surprised noone has mentioned Alpha Protocol yet, it usually pops up in these threads a lot.

Mass Effect can go home, no game has done choices and consequences better, since or after, than Alpha Protocol. Sure, the combat and sneaking were both quite wonky, and I've heard it was quite buggy at release, but it's a damned unique game that was also tons of fun.

 

[TehCookie]

Every P*/Clover game. Okami, Godhand, Vanquish, Bayonetta, Anarchy Reigns. At least Okami is finally getting some recognition. Anarchy Reigns comes out today and I haven't heard a single thing about it on here.

 

[gamernerdtg2]

Oh and I forgot Amalur. The only problem with that game was the level cap at 40 or 41 and the general blandness of the experience after playing for about a month straight. It's a super fun game and the great moments really shine. The Kollosae story is something that everyone should def play. I think Dragon's Dogma is better than Amalur though.