Topic: Hidden Gems / Underappreciated Games

This is a thread for discussing and recommending great games that don't get the attention they deserve. (They can be games on any platform, old or new, Nintendo or otherwise.)

The first game I want to recommend is one I just finished playing, called Kathy Rain. It's a point-and-click adventure game on PC that came out in 2016, but I hadn't heard of it until I got it in a Humble Bundle earlier this year. The story follows a young woman who, after visiting her grandfather's funeral, learns of some mysterious events that affected him prior to his death, so she sets out to investigate the truth behind them. It may sound a bit clichéd but it's very engaging and at times spooky and dark, but there's enough colour and humour to stop the darkness becoming too overbearing. The puzzles are satisfying to solve and the pixel art, soundtrack and voice acting (every line of dialogue is voice acted) are all top-notch. The game is currently 75% off on Steam until the summer sale ends tomorrow, so I'd recommend checking it out if it sounds like your cup of tea.

Anyway, I'd be interested to hear what other hidden gems you've played!

Mm, I think I'll put One Shot here. It's a Steam game: https://store.steampowered.com/app/420530/OneShot/

It's a puzzle-adventure game (With a lot of meta elements, and you'll need to check your files as well. That kind of game), where you'll control Niko to put back the sun back to the world.

The story feels really gripping, and I love how it feels. Especially with that Solstice update :')

I don't know if it counts, as it is somewhat well known enough to get some minor merchandise, but Rivals of Aether is an amazing Smash Bros clone. It plays almost exactly the same, but what sets it apart is its roster, which is all animal based. It has some of the best designed characters in modern gaming, like a teleporting cat orca hybrid, and a racoon that can ensnare others with vines once you throw a seed at them. To top it all off, it has amazing pixel art and a great soundtrack that is listenable even out of the game. in all, I would recommend it, as it makes a great Smash alternative on both X Box and PC. It's gonna come into the Switch too.

More people need to try the Trails of Cold Steel series. Really quite impressive JRPGs that just never got that much exposure. Available on Vita, PS3 and Steam.

@Snaplocket

Well I much prefer full 3D environments so Cold Steel is preferable. They manage really impressive huge environments on a tiny budget which is very impressive.

I think Kalimba deserves a mention here too. It's a puzzle platformer on Steam and Xbox One where you play as two characters at once and can instantly swap their positions with the press of a button. There are power-ups that do things such as reversing the gravity or enabling one of your characters to fly, but most of the time only one character can get the power-up, so part of the challenge comes from controlling both characters while one has an ability that the other doesn't. It's short but very cheap, and there's also a separate co-op campaign.

Detective Pikachu. I know it's new and on a 7 year old platform, but it has only sold 0.25 million units worldwide.

I Loved Fe, not just the visuals but the storyline which is very subtle (until near the end when it becomes very obvious). Yes the controls took a bit of time to get used to, but the gameplay itself I thought was pretty good with slow upgrades, shame it's download only, but i had some gold coins to spend.

Another vote for the Cold Steel games, although I'm a longtime Legend of Heroes fan owning even the first 3 PSP titles. The Klonoa games are adored by the fans but not that well known. Jet Set Radio seems to have disappeared but hopefully we'll get an Ages including Future. Skies of Arcadia and Baten Katos, again adored by fans, but lack of further sequels mean not as generally well known, even though they are are arguably the best games on the GameCube. Baten Katos Origins wasn't even released in Europe. And, despite the haters, the Blinx games are incredible and, whisper it, much better than Mario Sunshine which was around at the same time. Silent Scope needs to make a return too. And nobody knows about Phantom Crash, the best menu of any game (trust me the menu is better than 99% of full games) with quite possibly the greatest soundtrack ever made for a videogame. Accessing the music is the equivalent of finding an awesome vinyl record store and buying an item just 'cos the sleeve looks cool. The music selection, and the way it's presented is that good.

StarFox Zero is the most underated game for the past decade.

I understand easily why but it's a bad reason. When I say "bad reason" I should say more "a stupid reason".

A lot of people explained that the controls are horrible, that the graphics are disgusting, that the game is garbage etc...etc...
The reality is that the gamers level dropped so low that they cannot succeed to play a game like SF0.
The game offer something so new that the majority of the people can't enjoy the asymetric gameplay.

I personnaly had to adapt for 15/20 minutes and then I could enjoy the game like crazy.

So yeah, StarFox Zero is an amazing game totally destroyed by the mediocrity of several gamers/reviewers...

For me some very underrated games on their platforms:

1. Clive Barker's Undying - PC
2. Singularity - PC, PS3, Xbox 360
3. Sanitarium - PC
4. Castlevania Harmony of Dissonance - GBA
5. Sacred 2 Ice & Blood - PC
6. Castlevania Lords of Shadow Mirror of Fate - 3DS

Those are my picks.

@Cobalt By the time I was comfortable with SF0's controls, the game was over.

Just kidding, I didn't even finish the game.

1. Animal Boxing NDS
2. K-1 series PS2
3. K-1 Pocket GP series GBA
4. My Sims series
5. Dance Dance Revolution series
6. Go Vacation

• Big Bang Mini (DS)
• Hotel Dusk (DS)
• Monster Tale (DS)
• Last Window (DS)
• The Legendary Starfy (DS)
• Disaster: Day of Crisis (Wii)
• Soul Sacrifice/Delta (PS Vita)
• Pilotwings Resort (3DS)

I've posted this quite a few times, but Pilotwings Resort was a big surprise to me.
It originally was a 3DS release title in 2011, when there weren't a lot of titles and it didn't receive a lot of attention.
I've played it six years later after it released, 2017.
It doesn't have a lot of content, but let me tell you: It's extremely relaxing and the 3D effect is amazing. It looks like some sort of diorama with the little trees and houses.
The combination of the visuals and the relaxing music is just sublime. To me it's one of those games that stays in your memory.

Who knows what great titles are out there, just waiting to be discovered

Iron Commando on the SNES. If you like side scrolling beat em ups, play this. No, seriously: play it.

@ReaderRagfish

My favorite track from resort which is remixed from 64 if I'm not mistaken. Still haven't got around to playing the original or 64. There haven't been any new titles since resort, so it's probably in the freezer where Nintendo stores its inactive franchises

@Knighty_IX

Disaster is about a former US Marine and member of the International Rescue Team, who has a rough life.
Basically, there's disasters happening everywhere, all the time. Earthquakes, typhoons, tornados, tsunamis,
you name it. You are always involved and it and you gotta save people.
Also you have to fight terrorists.

The gameplay is very varied, there's many light gun sections, some platforming, swimming, driving (found this one kinda frustrating because the controls were a tad too sensitive). Many of them involve the Wiimote and there are many minigame sections.

The title is not super polished or anything, but the concept of the game itself is what makes it so interesting.

@ThanosReXXX

Developed by Arcade Zone, a really really really small developer, only two persons :

Christophe Gayraud
Jean-Christophe Alessandri

They did "Legend" on the SNES too.
There is another one "Nightmare Busters" but it was never officially released ...

From my perspective, Iron Commando is not a good game, but for a two developers game, respect !

Replying to your post again (since I edited the previous one with a reply but it's now in the previous page), but this time for a more complete reply.

Not a lot of people played Big Bang Mini, it's seriously a very creative title. You can barely find anything about it on google except for 2009 articles (back when this game came out). Rarely seen it on a "remember this game?" thread on any gaming forum either.

Last Window has some great moments. Love the part where Kyle is talking about his childhood in Manhattan.

The GBA Starfy games are way more challenging, specially in terms of bosses.

I beat Trace Memory back in June. Still gotta play the Wii title.

I found about this game at the time thanks to the NGamer magazine, which reviewed a considerable amount of Wii/DS era games considered hidden gems now.

Fragile Dreams Farewell Ruins of the Moon on the Wii. Totally unique game. Slightly wonky controls. And graphics that go from shoddy (usually inside) to stunning (usually outside). So why bother? Well it uses colour better than any other videogame. The story is charming, both meta and logical (!), with a clearly defined progression. But the absolute winner is the characters. Again unique, diverse, interesting. Even the NPCs, no scrap that especially the NPCs, have astonishing backstories. Try to pick up on the cheap and you'll fail miserably. For a Wii game it's price is starting to nudge Klonoa territory (another must have Wii game even if you own the original). Despite the faults (you actually will the developers on while playing the game) simply breathtaking. Hard to find now as owners hold on to their copy as there simply isn't a comparable game. And second only to Skies of Arcadia in deserving a sequel.