Hidden Gems/Underrated games?

[The darn 4th chaos emerald]

Love video games? Out of things to play? Have a 3ds? Well, I want to bring to your attention games that I feel don't get much love that might interest you.

 

Digimon games! Don't kill me. Digimon world ds, dawn and dusk are rpgs that involve you going through dungeons with your digimons and isn't like pokemon at all, really. The digivolution method is pretty good and it's really satisfying getting a strong digimon. They do have problems though. Ds has random battles and dead ends with a kiddy story while Dawn and Dusk are slow paced in the beginning and in my opinion is also too easy in the beginning, but I can recommend them to anyone whos interested. Digimon World Championship, on the other hand, is unique and awesome and definitely the best digimon game. You raise your digimon like pets to prepare them for battle. The battles are ai controlled, but it's about raising your digimon's stats and digivolution is a complex and detailed system. You can simply wait to have your digimon digivolve, have it fight battles, or increase it's elemental ap to get ready for the championship, all the while having ways to increase it's stats. If youre interested, get World Championship first.

 

Harvest Moon/Rune Factory: Underrated series in my opinion. You may or may not have heard of Harvest moon, but basically its a farming sim. You kinda have to play it yourself to see why it's so good (it's really hard to explain), and thats if you like it at all, you might not. Some aren't as good as the others but I'll rate the ds ones first. Tale of Two Towns: 9.5/10 This one is good to start with. I should know, it was my first Harvest Moon game and I couldn't put it down. 1/3 of my 8th grade summer went to this game lol. Reception is mixed, but I think it's good.  Sunshine Islands: 8/10 Basically Island of happiness, the GOOD version. IOH isn't as bad as everyone makes it out to be but SI is way better and is mostly the same. Ds (cute is the girl version) 6.5/10 Do not start with this one. If you get really into the series it's pretty good, but things are super expensive and the game design just isn't well thought out but one can still enjoy it if they get past those problems. For the 3ds: A New Beginning 8/10 SLOOOOOOOOW beginning but if you get past that you got a good game. Story of Seasons 9.9/10 So close to being a perfect Harvest Moon game but small problems hold it back. Stamina drains fast, things are expensive, and the beginning is super slow but great game.

Now lets talk about Rune Factory. This is a spinoff, the tagline is literally "A Fantasy Harvest Moon". Farming is a big part still, but there's combat, forging, mythical creatures and monsters and the like. 4 for the 3ds is amazing and in my opinion one of the best games ever just for the sheer amount of effort put into it but I'll get into that later. (1-3 are for the ds) 1 is a classic. It's simple, which is good, and it really balances the farming and combat well. The characters are ok, but there not really a focus. 2 dropped the ball a bit. It's pretty boring and just isn't as good as the others. 3 completely changed the formula. The mechanics are now more loose (which is good), more effort was put into the supporting cast, good story, better combat, and it still manages to balance farming and combat really well. This is where another 1/3 of my 8th grade summer went. In 4, everything that was good about the first 3 games have been upped to the max. The company could really use the help, too, as they're struggling financially. If you're in Europe, you have to buy it through the eshop, but it's worth it.

 

999: The first part of the Zero Escape trilogy. It's a mystery game with a cool premise. 9 people are kidnapped and stuck in a sinking boat and must play "The Nonary Game". They have 9 hours to escape. They must find door 9, the exit, while following all of Zero's (the mastermind behind this) rules. They all have a number on the watch on their wrist (Junpei, who you play as, is 5) and if they break any rule, the bomb that was planted in their stomach as they were knocked out will detonate. Every character involved is linked to the story and there's a lot of story. Pay attention to every detail. There's past and present elements, amnesia, past friends, murder, and trust in the story and you choose your own path. As you can probably tell, this is not for the faint of heart. Death and blood is pretty common. The rest of the trilogy (Virtues Last Reward and Zero Time Dilemma) is on the 3ds. The series doesn't have that many fans so the budget was limited and the third game had many production difficulties, but great series. This is where the last 1/3 of my 8th grade summer went. I had no life during that period. :/

 

Lock's Quest: A tower defense game with you on the front lines. First you build your defenses and then you fight the robot enemies called clockworks yourself with the help of your walls, cannons, and traps. Good story and game design, and it's criminal how little people know about this game. I will say though, this game gets HARD, you get just enough supplies to last each turn and some bosses are probably gonna take a few tries, so if you can't handle big difficulty, I'd skip it.

 

Advance Wars: Fire emblem but with an actual army, tanks and guns and that. Seriously, same company too. You probably haven't heard much of it because Nintendo acts like it doesn't exist. The first two for the gba are really good, 2nd one is better, and the 3rd, Dual Strike for the ds is the best. Days of Ruin, which is the fourth one, Is completely different, no returning characters or factions, dark story where 90% of the human population has been killed off by meteor strikes and the sky is covered in dust, making crops near impossible to grow. I could recommend any of them, and if you get into the series, go nag Intelligent systems to make a 5th game because they're putting so much effort into Fire Emblem. FE HAS BEEN SAVED FOR YEARS, NOW SAVE ADVANCE WARS!!!

 

Petz Dolphinz (Yes, I'm serious): I know, I know but hear me out. My sister bought this years and years ago at a flea market and I was bored out of my mind so I decided to play it. I found that it can actually be pretty addictive taking care of the park and it can get pretty challenging as the game goes on. I haven't played any other Petz game, but after playing this one they might be pretty good. Overall, much better game than I expected.

 

Fossil Fighters: POKERMANZ WIT DINOSAURZ 5.874653229/Turnip LEWL-ign. Not really. Some similarities, but it stands on its own. The first 2 are for the ds and are simple and good, but the second one felt REALLY short, like, I beat it in less than a week short, when most of my summer was devoted to Rune Factory 3, Tale of Two Towns, and 999. The third is for the 3ds, but I heard it was pretty bad.

 

Pokemon Conquest: Pokemon and Nobunaga's Ambition. Not the first combo I think of but hey. Decent game and you don't really have to play Nobunaga's Ambition to get it. The big problem I have with it though is that since there is no more ds wi fi, you can't get the post game missions, so most of the game you can't even play.

 

Oh and medabots for the gba, the rpg one. Itz gud :3

 

 

Edited January 31, 2017 by AquaLucario3

[Godot]

Digimon Dawn is the version I played, I enjoyed it and liked the things it did that pokemon doesn't.  The bossfights were a lot more epic than the gym leader battles and gang admin fights.  Cyber Slueth on ps4 and Vita is a fantastic game.

I am going to be playing 999 when it releases on the ps4 soon.

Lastly I miss advanced wars and want it to make a comback on 3DS or Switch.

[Dreamy]

Many of the Pokemon spinoffs are pretty great

I can vouch for mystery dungeon 1, 2 and 4 all being really good (especially 2). haven't played 3 but It doesn't sound as good

all 3 ranger games ended up being pretty enjoyable

conquest is good fun, and I've never had the wi-fi problem mentioned in the OP (I thought there was only 1 or 2 wi-fi stories, and loads of normal ones)

[mde2001]

It isn't exactly underrated, but I see Twilight Princess getting a fair bit of hate recently. It is personally one of my favourite games due to a really solid story, appearance and soundtrack. In addition it has the best selection of dungeons in my opinion and there are only one or two tedious ones. 

 

Paper Mario 64 is often also considered far inferior to The Thousand Year Door, but I personally think it is a better game. The plot was more standard, but it is so full of charm and overall its a really enjoyable experience. 

 

Yokai Watch is obviously not underrated in Japan, but it wasn't a huge hit in the west. The game is far from perfect, and certainly isn't as good as pokemon, but it is good fun as long as you aren't expecting anything too groundbreaking. It has charm, humor and never takes itself very seriously, but I found it to be a really nice experience. 

[Tartar]

I know I'm just arguing semantics here, but many of the games listed have sold many millions of copies and have gotten incredibly positive receptions upon release, and not something I would call underrated... But yes, they are great games, though. 

 

A game I genuinely find underrated is Final Fantasy 13, a game that despite its many virtues is always disregarded as the worst Final Fantasy game. Despite this, I thoroughly enjoyed the game, and while acknowledging that it is quite linear for most of the game, it's got the best Battle System in any Final Fantasy game, period, while having an interesting and thought provoking story the flaws of contemporary culture, Fun and interesting characters... and eye-meltingly gorgeous graphics. 

In truth the game is likely mostly criticised for being different from past entries into the FF series. 

[lifesapity]

Okami - Zelda-esque game crossed with a Japanese ink illustration
Shadow Hearts: Covenant - The predecessor of the current final fantasy non turn based battle system, but done right.
Dominions 4 - THE most in depth fantasy RTS ever made, exchanges graphics for in super in depth game play
Age of Wonders 3 - A mix of Fantasy, Civ 4 and Final Fantasy Tactics

Edited January 31, 2017 by lifesapity

[Tartar]

17 minutes ago, lifesapity said:

Dominions 4 - THE most in depth fantasy RTS ever made, exchanges graphics for in super in depth game play

 

 

Heck yeah, Dominions is awesome. In which other game can you play...

- A race of Jaguar Priests that Turn into Werewolves upon death all the while using blood magic on their slave pygmies? 

- A Christian roman'esque empire that tried to revive their analogue of Jesus through undead magic, and accidentally turned their whole empire undead, so now they spawn ceaseless hordes of zombies and whatnot while spreading plague and disease across the land to spread the religion of their now revived undead messiah who's mind controlling their empire...

- A Magocracy of Divine Eagles created by God, who live isolated in the mountains while studying magic to try and to hold onto their waning divine nature. And did I mention that all their weapons are made out of ice and not metal? pretty rad...

 

And that's just 3 of the 75'ish races in the game, each as creative as the three mentioned. Simply an awesome strategy game, though sadly quite niche. 

Edited January 31, 2017 by Tartar

[lifesapity]

5 minutes ago, Tartar said:

 

 

Heck yeah, Dominions is awesome. In which other game can you play...

- A race of Jaguar Priests that Turn to into Werewolves upon death all the while using blood magic on their slave pygmies? 

- A Christian roman'esque empire that tried to revive their analogue of Jesus through undead magic, and accidentally turned their whole empire undead, so now they spawn ceaseless hordes of zombies and whatnot while spreading plague and disease across the land to spread the religion of their now revived undead messiah who's mind controlling their empire...

- A Magocracy of Divine Eagle created by God, who live isolated in the mountains while studying magic to try and to hold onto their waning divine nature. And did I mention that all their weapons are made out of ice and not metal? pretty rad...

 

And that's just 3 of the 75'ish races in the game, each as creative as the three mentioned. Simply an awesome strategy game, though sadly quite niche. 

Well said, I have fond memories of playing via email vs my friends

[Godot]

1 hour ago, mde2001 said:

It isn't exactly underrated, but I see Twilight Princess getting a fair bit of hate recently. It is personally one of my favourite games due to a really solid story, appearance and soundtrack. In addition it has the best selection of dungeons in my opinion and there are only one or two tedious ones. 

 

Paper Mario 64 is often also considered far inferior to The Thousand Year Door, but I personally think it is a better game. The plot was more standard, but it is so full of charm and overall its a really enjoyable experience. 

 

Yokai Watch is obviously not underrated in Japan, but it wasn't a huge hit in the west. The game is far from perfect, and certainly isn't as good as pokemon, but it is good fun as long as you aren't expecting anything too groundbreaking. It has charm, humor and never takes itself very seriously, but I found it to be a really nice experience. 

 

I appreciate TP for being one of the entries with some of the strongest ties to the lore of the Zelda Universe. The game makes references to Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and Skyward Sword.

[FairFamily]

6 hours ago, Tartar said:

I know I'm just arguing semantics here, but many of the games listed have sold many millions of copies and have gotten incredibly positive receptions upon release, and not something I would call underrated... But yes, they are great games, though. 

 

A game I genuinely find underrated is Final Fantasy 13, a game that despite its many virtues is always disregarded as the worst Final Fantasy game. Despite this, I thoroughly enjoyed the game, and while acknowledging that it is quite linear for most of the game, it's got the best Battle System in any Final Fantasy game, period, while having an interesting and thought provoking story the flaws of contemporary culture, Fun and interesting characters... and eye-meltingly gorgeous graphics. 

In truth the game is likely mostly criticised for being different from past entries into the FF series. 

 

Oh I hated the combat system of final fantasy 13 with a passion. I found the speed and menu combat system not incompatible completely ruining the experience. Final fantasy XII did way better for a menu style combat system in that regard even though I hate the combination of the buyig of spells and license a bit too much.  And dissadia did the fast and dynamic gameplay a lot more justice who knew final fantasy would be a fantastic fighting game? Mind you I liked the idea of paradigms but it was not meant to be.

 

For underrated gems, I would say grandia 2 and dark cloud. Grandia 2 has of this day one of the best combat systems I have ever experienced. Timing and positioning were very important and resulted in very fluent anf exciting combat. Story was as cliche as it could get, but not unlikeable. Dark cloud is a game about dungeon crawling and world building. It has the bare amount in terms of story and combat system but it was a very enjoyable game due to a good character progression/costimisation, pacing and simplicity. The best part is that the game managed to combine its aspects in one coherent experience: all the elements where intertwined beautifully in a simple way. If you are worldbuilding, you were also working on your character costimisation, progressing the plot and preparing for your next round of dungeon crawling without being obnoxious about it. 

[The Grinch]

Blinx - The time sweeper and Scaler. They are both platformers on the old Xbox (Tho you can also get Scaler on Gamecube)

and Ty - The tasmanian tiger I guess? I haven't seen a lot of it so (Also a platformer btw)

[Monochrome_Complex]

^I used to play Binx a lot when I was younger but that game is extremely rage inducing in how difficult it can be. It's not exactly good difficulty either, but more like jank, bad hitboxes and poor level design(you shouldn't have to find yourself in an unwinnable situation yet it's happened several times playing it). Despite this the game has its merits and the time system is legit cool. I still liked it even though it nearly brought me to tears a couple of times lol.

 

I'd say the Panzer Dragoon games which are some of the best games among Sega's roster(particularly Zwei/Saga/Orta), although they're not as appealing to today'd gamers I'd imagine as on rail shooters aren't too appreciated these days(Starfox being like the only exception and it's seen better days). While they're very solid gameplay wise I really want to note just how beautifully this series is crafted artistically, with a world quite unlike any other game.  It's abstract, bleak, yet somehow enchanting as well, and despite the limited resources of its time manages to convey the work and soul the devs put into it  quite nicely to the audience. The game even had a language written for it and has two beautiful songs sung in it as well(for the end credits of Saga and Orta). Speaking of which, the music for this series is great(well I think Zwei onwards is nice, the first game's ost I'm not crazy about myself) with one of my favorite final boss themes  that's notable for being actually pretty chill yet still possessing an appropriate feel of power and wonder. In fact, Zwei's final boss is pretty rad and even now is pretty impressive  despite its primitive(by today's standards) graphics.  It's kind of trippy yet intense and the second phase in particular is epic.

 

I actually shouldn't say Saga is underrated because it's literally one of the most sought-out games and regularly gets sold at outrageous prices online(easily more than an actual modern console). It's also considered among the best RPGs of its era, though I've never played it. Orta has aged the best in gameplay I feel out of the typical Panzer Dragoon games and is the easiest to get a hold of, also it has a nice amount of content. Overall I feel this beautiful series has too much soul put into it to be forgotten and deserves to remembered by all gamers.

[Godot]

I don't really have the time or willingness ATM to explain these games but...

Golden Sun (GBA) <JRPG>

The World Ends With You (DS) <Action JRPG>

Odin Sphere (originally a PS2 game but play the remastered version on PS3, PS4, and Vita) <Dungeon Crawler Action JRPG>

Rouge Galaxy (PS2) <JRPG>

Infamous (PS3) <Open World Action>

Folklore (PS3) <Dungeon Crawler Action JRPG>

Catherine (PS3 and Xbox 360) <Puzzle/Dating Sim>

Guacamelee (PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Vita, Wii U, and Steam) <Beat-em-up Metroidvania>

Soul Sacrifice (Vita) <Co-op Action JRPG>

Battleborn (PS4, Xbox One, and Steam) <FPS MOBA>

God Hand (PS2) <Beat-Em-Up>

Asura's Wrath (PS3 and Xbox 360) <Action>

Playstation Allstars (PS3 and Vita) <Arena Brawler>

Dragon's Dogma (PS3 and Xbox 360) <Western RPG>

Gex 3: Enter the Gecko (PS1 and N64) <Platformer>

Dragon Quest Monsters [anyone] (GB, GBC, DS) <Creature Collecting JRPG>

Final Fantasy: Crystal Cronicals (GameCube) <Co-Op Dungeon Crawling JRPG>

Viewtiful Joe (GameCube and PS2) <Beat Em Up Platformer>

Psychonauts (PS2) <Platformer>

Shantae [any one] (GBC, DSi, 3DS, Wii U, Vita, PS4, and iOS) <Metroidvania>

[HughJ]

Don't forget Spectrobes

Where you can harness the power of lime green porcupines and fly an entire pyramid complex

 

[Another Felix]

Psychonauts is an extremely fun and interesting platformer

 

And it may be old, but NiGHTS Into Dreams on Steam is one of my favorite games. No matter how bad I'm feeling, this game never fails to put me in a good mood.

[The Grinch]

9 minutes ago, Monochrome_Complex said:

^I used to play Binx a lot when I was younger but that game is extremely rage inducing in how difficult it can be. It's not exactly good difficulty either, but more like jank, bad hitboxes and poor level design(you shouldn't have to find yourself in an unwinnable situation yet it's happened several times playing it). Despite this the game has its merits and the time system is legit cool. I still liked it even though it nearly brought me to tears a couple of times lol.

 

I'd say the Panzer Dragoon games which are some of the best games among Sega's roster(particularly Zwei/Saga/Orta), although they're not as appealing to today'd gamers I'd imagine as on rail shooters aren't too appreciated these days(Starfox being like the only exception and it's seen better days). While they're very solid gameplay wise I really want to note just how beautifully this series is crafted artistically, with a world quite unlike any other game.  It's abstract, bleak, yet somehow enchanting as well, and despite the limited resources of its time manages to convey the work and soul the devs put into it  quite nicely to the audience. The game even had a language written for it and has two beautiful songs sung in it as well(for the end credits of Saga and Orta). Speaking of which, the music for this series is great(well I think Zwei onwards is nice, the first game's ost I'm not crazy about myself) with one of my favorite final boss themes  that's notable for being actually pretty chill yet still possessing an appropriate feel of power and wonder. In fact, Zwei's final boss is pretty rad and even now is pretty impressive  despite its primitive(by today's standards) graphics.  It's kind of trippy yet intense and the second phase in particular is epic.

 

I actually shouldn't say Saga is underrated because it's literally one of the most sought-out games and regularly gets sold at outrageous prices online(easily more than an actual modern console). It's also considered among the best RPGs of its era, though I've never played it. Orta has aged the best in gameplay I feel out of the typical Panzer Dragoon games and is the easiest to get a hold of, also it has a nice amount of content. Overall I feel this beautiful series has too much soul put into it to be forgotten and deserves to remembered by all gamers.

Yeah, perhaps ''hidden gem'' isn't exactly the right word but moreso Underrated, hehe. I have mostly good memories playing that game as a kid, so I'm curious as to what experience you had with it. I remember having difficulty in finding the monsters at times tho (I didn't get further than Hourglass caves)

Actually, Panzer Dragoon sounds a bit familiar. I might just check that series later

[Godot]

Sorry for disorginizing my post, but it's updated

[Tartar]

I would please like to inform everyone that underrated means " underestimated in extent, value, or importance"  ie. people think something is worse than it actually is.  

Most games mentioned are widely acknowledged as being great, and most have sold incredibly well and are by now cult-classics if not widely popular. 

 

Let's try not to dilute this thread with too many games that are actually popular and where the consensus is that they're amazing games. 

[Monochrome_Complex]

28 minutes ago, Isa.phoria said:

Yeah, perhaps ''hidden gem'' isn't exactly the right word but moreso Underrated, hehe. I have mostly good memories playing that game as a kid, so I'm curious as to what experience you had with it. I remember having difficulty in finding the monsters at times tho (I didn't get further than Hourglass caves)

Actually, Panzer Dragoon sounds a bit familiar. I might just check that series later

Haha see you never got to the later stages which is where the game started getting brutal. Hourglass caves was actually one of my favorite levels(dat music, in fact the game had a pretty cool soundtrack) from from Forgotten City onwards there was some degree of BS in every level. Also the freakin water spirits which took like 8-10 hits to kill unless you used the fire sweeper. The first 3 levels are actually really fun.

[Godot]

12 minutes ago, Tartar said:

I would please like to inform everyone that underrated means " underestimated in extent, value, or importance"  ie. people think something is worse than it actually is.  

Most games mentioned are widely acknowledged as being great, and most have sold incredibly well and are by now cult-classics if not widely popular. 

 

Let's try not to dilute this thread with too many games that are actually popular and where the consensus is that they're amazing games. 

 

Or games that were great that no one bought/played/or were well known about.  I will agree though. I saw some games that were mentioned that were highly purchased and critically/fan praised.  Hence why I didn't mention any games that I liked that others didn't. I also skipped games people know about and hear good things about, but never played.

[The Grinch]

4 minutes ago, Monochrome_Complex said:

Haha see you never got to the later stages which is where the game started getting brutal. Hourglass caves was actually one of my favorite levels(dat music, in fact the game had a pretty cool soundtrack) from from Forgotten City onwards there was some degree of BS in every level. Also the freakin water spirits which took like 8-10 hits to kill unless you used the fire sweeper. The first 3 levels are actually really fun.

Perhaps that's a good thing, then my happy memories of it wouldn't turn to bad ones haha. My favorite level at that time was Town square, probably mostly because of the banging soundtrack for it. Funny, I replayed this game some time ago but eventually got fed up with how slow it was running (Could have been the TV)... And the issue with hitboxes you mentioned earlier. Did you reach the final boss?

 

Also, if we're being too OT for this thread I might just PM you, cause I don't think I've ever talked to anyone else that has a past with this game lol

[The Grinch]

Oh, I guess I could also list Primal for the PS2\PS4 as another underrated game. I haven't seen a lot of it on the internet, especially the PS2 version, but it's an action adventure type game where you play as a female character with a stumpy little Danny Devito-ish demon that helps you

[Monochrome_Complex]

3 hours ago, Isa.phoria said:

Perhaps that's a good thing, then my happy memories of it wouldn't turn to bad ones haha. My favorite level at that time was Town square, probably mostly because of the banging soundtrack for it. Funny, I replayed this game some time ago but eventually got fed up with how slow it was running (Could have been the TV)... And the issue with hitboxes you mentioned earlier. Did you reach the final boss?

 

Also, if we're being too OT for this thread I might just PM you, cause I don't think I've ever talked to anyone else that has a past with this game lol

I reached the final stage but the last level, momentopolis, is basically a boss rush(5 bosses I think) and a pretty difficult one at that. I never made it to the actual final boss himself but I did look it up on Youtube and he's actually kind of badass haha. He can use time powers as well and shoots out a bunch of bombs, it's actually a well designed  fight. Funnily enough he's not even the hardest boss in the game, though he's probably the most interesting. I think the hardest one was the Everwinter one. By the end of that fight you're surrounded by death and he hardly turns vulnerable, plus he has a lot of health. 

[The Grinch]

4 minutes ago, Monochrome_Complex said:

I reached the final stage but the last level, momentopolis, is basically a boss rush(5 bosses I think) and a pretty difficult one at that. I never made it to the actual final boss himself but I did look it up on Youtube and he's actually kind of badass haha. He can use time powers as well and shoots out a bunch of bombs, it's actually a well designed  fight. Funnily enough he's not even the hardest boss in the game, though he's probably the most interesting. I think the hardest one was the Everwinter one. By the end of that fight you're surrounded by death and he hardly turns vulnerable, plus he has a lot of health. 

What I find really interesting about him is that there's these phases you have to attack him with specific time power, making use of all of them (Correct me if I'm bugging, long time I've seen a playthrough of the game). Hydrosaur did look tricky, and by the end of it a lot of those ice platforms has sunk so it could be difficult reaching the exit. That could be rage inducing haha