We all have those games that stick out to us, like a blister on our palms from playing the N64; noticeable only to ourselves and whomever we show. These types of games either get a tiny amount of marketing or overshadowed by similar games that release around the same time. More often than not we tend to latch onto some of them more than the most popular games at the time.
The current generation of games will bring an exponentially increased amount of titles available by the end of its run, but let's take a look at some of the more overlooked games from the past generation and why they may have been overlooked.
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1. "Binary Domain"
Let's be honest here. "Binary Domain" looks like a typical bro shooter à la "Gears of War". What sets this game apart from this impression is the self-awareness and surprisingly engaging romance story. There are many moments in the game where I thought to myself "This is so cliche." Almost all those moments were followed by an event or piece of dialogue that completely throws that cliche out the window. I personally loved every minute of the game and wonder why it didn't even sell over 30,000 copies.
2. "NieR"
I don't know of any other game on this list that deserves more praise than "NieR". A spin-off of the "Drakengard" series, it stands on its own just fine. With possibly one of the most unique stories told in a video game with characters you'll actually be emotionally invested in. While the voice acting and music is flawless, the "muddy" visuals and textures are one of its few downfalls, along with very little marketing. Thankfully there will be another "NieR" game, "NieR: Automata" set to release sometime in 2017.
3. "Dragon's Crown"
"Dragon's Crown" received positive critical acclaim and had solid sales nearing 1 million units shipped worldwide. With a beautiful art style and super tight controls, there is no wonder why it was rated so high. Overall, "Dragon's Crown" is considered a success but there is one glaring thing that comes up every time I mention it; barely anyone has heard of it. Most of the sales numbers came from Japan and being a Playstation 3 and Playstation Vita exclusive limited the exposure needed to become and even bigger success.
4. "Shadows of the Damned"
I won't go into detail with this one so I'll just list the selling points of this one. 1) B movie feel 2) Trippy visual sequences. 3) Penis jokes.
5. "Spec Ops: The Line"
"Spec Ops: The Line" went where few games have gone before; tackling the difficult subject of the horrors of war. Most military shooters lightly touch on such tragic events while "Spec Ops: The Line" dove straight in. As a 3rd person cover shooter it got comparisons to "Gears of War" without doing anything too different. The story had one of the best multiple endings sequences in recent memory. Unfortunately the military shooter game market was over-saturated in 2012 and "Spec Ops: The Line" was largely overlooked.
6. "Asura's Wrath"
"Asura's Wrath" is one of the most epic games I've ever played. Memorable voice acting and insanely over the top boss battles propel this game as one of my personal favorites. It's like a perfect mixture of "God of War" meets "Dragonball Z" with each battle growing in scale throughout the game. But how did this game get overlooked? It was full of QTEs, also known as quick time events in which a button prompt or sequence appears on the screen and the player must press that same button or buttons on their controller within a given time. Many gamers were turned off from this and decided to skip this gem. That's too bad. The ending to "Asura's Wrath" is one of the most satisfying endings I've ever experienced.
Are there any games that deserve to be on this list? Drop a comment below and I might just include some in the inevitable second part!
