Hidden Gems of the Seventh Console Generation

[Calshot]

What are some hidden gems or games that you thought were underrated or overlooked from the PS3/360/Wii/DS/PSP era?

I'll kick the thread off with Alpha Protocol.

It got crucified for bugs on release, but I played it after all the bugs had been ironed out. It was a solid action RPG with a great spy setting and story (that didn't get too convoluted as seems common with other spy stories regardless of medium). In the generation that was chock full of games saying "your choices matter!" when really they didn't matter very much, Alpha Protocol was one of the games that actually used your choices in a meaningful way.

 

[Mr. OL]

I was gonna mention this in the favorite games topic, but Dead to Rights: Retribution is still way up there for me. It seemed to be dismissed when it first came out as just another dumb "me too" shooter, but it deserves way more credit than that. I still haven't played anything else that combines cover shooting and beat-em-up mechanics so seamlessly and solidly.

Plus Shadow is the single most badass dog in the history of gaming. His kill animations are brutal as hell, and always mega-satisfying, whether he's tearing into an enemy's throat, scratching at their chests like he's trying to dig a hole, or chomping at their crotches. Motherfucker is hardcore.
And even beyond the violence of it all, his AI, however it's been programmed, is surprisingly lifelike every now and then. I made a video about the game a long ways back and made mention of this there, and maybe I'm just crazy, but the way he behaves is almost like he's actually trying to protect the protagonist. It makes him all the more lovable once you notice it. I love this little guy.

Just a truly badass game. I wish to hell it was on PC, so I didn't have to dig out my PS3 just to play it. It's situations like these where I really lament the lack of success some of my favorites have. There's almost no chance DTR is ever coming back, much less that this particular game will ever get a PC port. Such a damn shame.

 

[Vivi-gamer]

I would have said NieR, but since the recent release of Automata it's actually becoming more known - which is a bonus in my book.

So I thought I would talk about another game which was simply a joy from start to finish - Majin and the Forksaken Kingdom:

A wonderfully charming Adventure/Puzzle Platfomer/Combat Action game in which you play as a thief exploring a castle only to get involved in freing the loveable dopey creature seen above. The game has yuo exploring a vast amount of environments filled with engaging puzzles and beasties to beat, as you utlise you sacred beast companions skills to vanquish evil acros the land.

What I loved about the game was how it was a very open game but not a sandbox game persay. It was made by the creator of Resident Evil and has a very similar map layout. You'd often backtrack past many environments but it never felt tedious as you'd have an item which would help you progress in another area and I found my curiosity compelled to see where it would lead.

The game also had a great sense of combat and even an Alert system - You could do stealth kills if unseen but soon as your spotted the enemies within the area will hone in on you. A lot of the combat is mixed between your spear attacks and chaining combos to activate stronger attacks with your companion - Whom you can find upgrades hidden across the areas to learn new skills and increase their value.

My favourite feature of this game is immensely simple... You'd see these special trees along your adventure and the characters would just sit down and chill. In these moments they'd talk to one another and you'd learn more about them. It was used to expand the plot but also just made the character so much more endearing and I always was delighted every time I found one of these trees.

I'd say if you enjoyed The Last Guardian you most definitely should give this a shot.

 

[Vyse Hazuky]

My hidden gem would be Deadly Premonition but I don't think that is as obscure a reference (even if for the wrong reasons). That being said, I'm going to suggest a few:

SIREN: Blood Curse - it's a shame this series seems to have died after this as it was a great, original stealth-based survival horror with lots of characters. I'm glad the team is still together (they made Gravity's Rush) but I'd love to see what they could do on the PS4.

Rocktar's Table Tennis - this was a very fun game. I'm a huge Virtua Tennis 2 fan and this a highly original take on table tennis. The gameplay was tremendous and addictive. I wish they released it on a Sony console so I could play it again.

Attack of the Friday Monsters - I was lucky enough to play Boku no Natsuyasumi 3 on the PS3, a game that still makes me think of it every summer, even though I can't understand a lick of japanese. The west never got a proper release but Attack of the Friday Monsters on the 3DS was the next best thing. A light and humourous take (moreso) on the BnN series and also part of the very interesting Guild project that Level 5 put together.

Afterburner Climax - Outrun 2 was a fantastic sequel to one of the best arcade games of all time and Afterburner Climax is the equivalent to the original Afterburner. It was an incredible arcade experience, and I wish Sega got back to making more of these, an Outrun 3 or a Panzer Dragoon Orta 2. It's what Sega used to be all about and it was a sort of its last dance.

I'll finish with these two: PixelJunk Eden and Space Invaders Infinity Gene which are similar in their concept of synesthesia. Also two games I heavily associate with the summer, I remember the sweaty nights watching myself just blanking into space and getting into the zone as music, visuals and gameplay come together perfectly.

 

[Mr. OL]

SIREN: Blood Curse - it's a shame this series seems to have died after this as it was a great, original stealth-based survival horror with lots of characters. I'm glad the team is still together (they made Gravity's Rush) but I'd love to see what they could do on the PS4.

Oooh, good mention. I'm a massive Siren fan. One of my biggest disappointments in all of gaming is the fact that Siren 2 for the PS2 never made it Stateside, even though the UK got it.
But I wouldn't necessarily say the series has died; it's one of those series that seems to only move forward if the original creator does something with it, and last I heard Keiichiro Toyama actually is interested in returning to the horror genre at some point. So it could happen (or he could do something entirely new, which would likely be just as good; the guy has made nothing but gold so far).

Also kudos for mentioning Attack of the Friday Monsters.

 

[Riku Rose]

Gone Home

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It is now on the PS4 and Xbox One but originally came out for PC at the end of the 360/PS3 generation. You play a girl who comes home from collage to the new house her family moved into while she was away to find it completely empty. That's all you need to know, anything else would spoil the experience.

To The Moon

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A seriously beautiful game. It's close too being a visual novel and only has a few sections where you actually control anything. You play two scientists who work for a company which can implant memories into dying peoples minds so they can experience something they always wanted too before they die. As you explore this guy's mind you see his entire life and it starts to unfold why he has these dreams. It's a crime this game hasn't left PC and gone to consoles, it's also a crime that I love it so much and still haven't played the sequel. Also the soundtrack is one of the best in a game that I can remember recently.

Binary Domain

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I got this game as it's by the Yakuza team and I love those games but it's quite a neat TPS which really got overshadowed by stuff like Gears of War at the time. I'm a sucker for any kind of story which explores what it means to be human and the moral behind what to do when robots gain emotions.

 

[red]

/\ Binary Domain was a good game.

 

[Henry Spencer]

Alpha Protocol, Siren: Blood Curse and Dead to Rights: Retribution were some of my favourite games of last gen. Enjoyed Binary Domain but not as much as others on here did, I think.

Here's a couple of my favourites from last gen:

Sin & Punishment 2:
The last original game from Treasure released in the West. Shame they've pretty much disappeared without a trace since this game released (they released some obscure anime game for Capcom which bombed and stayed in Japan). Treasure always puts gameplay first and this rail shooter is one of the finest games in the genre, up there with the likes of Star Fox 64 and the Panzer Dragoon series. So many bosses and weird enemies you get to fight in this game. Treasure went all out with it, Nintendo obviously gave them a good budget here. The music is great too and has such a weird plot, just like the first game. If you have a Wii and never played this, you really missed out.

The Way of the Samurai 4

Continuing on the series in the same janky but charming fashion, this game from underrated developer Acquire (who are now known for developing the recently released Octopath Traveller and the original two Tenchu games back on the PS1) this game is so overlooked and a real shame. I feel the Shenmue and Yakuza fans would really enjoy this game. Has such a wacky sense of humour and a really fun sandbox to play around in. There's nothing quite like pissing off rival samurai, going on a killing spree, annoy the police to no end (receive weird punishment in the process) and stealing from everybody dressing like a tramp whilst doing it. Such a fun game.

 

[Robfozz]

I haven't really taken a deeper look back into that gen since it ended, but I remember feeling alone in thinking that Metal Gear Rising was fucking awesome. It got wrote off by critics and fans before it even came out because it wasn't a stealth game and because you play as Raiden(still don't understand the Raiden hate, he's cool) and just weeks later it was in the bargain bin for a couple bucks.

Every level is crazy as hell, the boss fights are intense and huge in scale, the dynamic cutting system is impressive and fun to play with, and that god damn soundtrack is amazing. It may not have had a great story and it may not have been what MGS fans want but its honestly fantastic and imo Platinums best game

 

[Vyse Hazuky]

The Way of the Samurai 4

Continuing on the series in the same janky but charming fashion, this game from underrated developer Acquire (who are now known for developing the recently released Octopath Traveller and the original two Tenchu games back on the PS1) this game is so overlooked and a real shame. I feel the Shenmue and Yakuza fans would really enjoy this game. Has such a wacky sense of humour and a really fun sandbox to play around in. There's nothing quite like pissing off rival samurai, going on a killing spree, annoy the police to no end (receive weird punishment in the process) and stealing from everybody dressing like a tramp whilst doing it. Such a fun game.

Man, while I was a fan of the series, I don't know what happened with 4 but I disliked it a lot. For some reason it irritated me to no end. I felt it got way too silly. But old dojo member Juanfran also devoured this game so maybe my head was not in the right mindset when I played it. I should give it another go sometime.
... That being said the structure of the games themselves was great, and I miss it. I didn't know they were envolved with Octopath although I'm not much into RPGs. Its success is well deserved though.

 

[Guppy]

Capcom is not exactly known for shooters, but Lost Planet 2 is probably the best straight coop campaign shooter of all. This is a game you can't succeed without human or AI partners because it was designed that way and it's brilliant. And I'm not talking about needing more players just to contain hordes of enemies or the "I take the left and you take the right" kind of tactical approach either. Each player can take charge of specific roles other than gunplay but still crucial to the success of entire mission. Pure team play game.

 

[Mr. OL]

Puppeteer

Easily among the most inventive, highly-polished games I know of that no one ever talks about. Seriously, even on the Dojo, where we tend to have a lot of people who dabble in the obscure, I don't think I've ever heard anyone else mention having played it.
It's been a while since I played it myself, but it was a sidescroller that was set up to look like a puppet show, and when you'd pass over into a new area the stage would spin, pieces would drop out, and new ones would drop in, giving it one of the most interesting aesthetic styles I think I've ever seen. Just so much personality and charm.

 

[Raiden]

EX Troopers. Lost Planet 2 is great but it's not even the best Lost Planet game released last gen. That belongs to a Japan exclusive game to PS3 and 3DS. I have only played and finished the PS3 version. It's Lost Planet but way more anime and you are in a school academy. It has a lot of humor and not taken too seriously. It's so damn dun as a TPS. Fast paced. Really nice OST. Best part? It's cheap and it's super import friendly. I don't speak Japanese and finished this game without any trouble. The game points you where to go so you can never be lost. The game doe shave some costumes like Monster Hunter armore. If you have a PS3 this is worth importing. In fact.



I was going to mention Majin but thankfully someone else has. Intead I will mention a game from Sony that is similar to the Team Ico games. This game wa snot as successful as Ico or Journey. I do adore it. It's called Lost in Rain or sometimes just Rain. You play a boy who is invisible but can only see him in the rain. Trying to save a girl. Thing is there is a monster chasing both of you. Your only chance to survive is to find areas where the rain can't reach. It's a charming game. It's on PS3.

 

[Mittens2317]

Hotel Dusk: Room 101. But you lot are the ones who put me onto it, so it's less of a hidden gem and more of a gem in the hidden area in which we inhabit.

Papers, Please was top too, but again a lot of people know about that. One game I didn't know existed til a year or so back was Sam & Max: Season 3. It'll probably be a little bland gameplay-wise, but it's all worth it just to unlock lines of Max' dialogue.

 

[Revan]

Prince of Persia (2008). I know a lot hated that game for making it impossible to die, but I thought the environments, artistic design and music were breathtaking. Also, Elika and The Prince had some great banter - probably my favourite couple in gaming.

 

[Vivi-gamer]

Puppeteer

Easily among the most inventive, highly-polished games I know of that no one ever talks about. Seriously, even on the Dojo, where we tend to have a lot of people who dabble in the obscure, I don't think I've ever heard anyone else mention having played it.
It's been a while since I played it myself, but it was a sidescroller that was set up to look like a puppet show, and when you'd pass over into a new area the stage would spin, pieces would drop out, and new ones would drop in, giving it one of the most interesting aesthetic styles I think I've ever seen. Just so much personality and charm.

Puppeteer is one of the many gamse on my backlog, I think what puts me off is how the perspective and look of the game reminds me heavily of Little Big Planet - A game I never found fulfilling to actually play. I really need to get around to this one as it looks mega-fun!

 

[DigitalDuck]

Prince of Persia (2008). I know a lot hated that game for making it impossible to die, but I thought the environments, artistic design and music were breathtaking. Also, Elika and The Prince had some great banter - probably my favourite couple in gaming.

Gotta agree on this one, and I never understood the argument of "it's impossible to die". Is that not true of most games nowadays?

In Shenmue: you get beaten up? You just have to do the fight again. You don't make it to the harbour in time? You have to do it again. Fall ten stories down a building? Ryo has legs of steel and can just land and walk back up again.

In Halo: you die? You go back in time 30 seconds and have to try again. The guy you're supposed to be protecting dies? You go back in time 30 seconds and have to try again.

In Prince of Persia (2008): you fall while platforming? You get whisked away by Elika and have to try again. You get hurt too much in combat? You get whisked away by Elika and have to try again.

It's exactly the same thing. They just added a narrative reason for the retry rather than "but that's not how it happened".

But yeah, I love how generally chill the game is. It's definitely my favourite PoP game, although I'd probably like it more if it introduced some more new ideas over the course of the game.

 

[Sonoshee]

Without a doubt, ALICE: MADNESS RETURNS.
This quickly became one of my all time favourite platformers.

 

[James Brown]

That game was great! One of the few recent games i've played that I sat through in a couple of nights, some of the stages had such great themes, thank you again for recommending me this game a while back :)