Video Games you love that nobody else has heard of

[Squigsquasher]

So, yeah. Games that you are very fond of that no-one else remembers or has even heard of.

For me, it's Phantom Crash. A high-speed mecha combat game with similar mechanics to racing games, it's set in a not-too-distant future where Tokyo is a polluted, abandoned ruin. With nothing better to do with it, people decide to set up a popular new sport in the area called Rumbling; non-lethal gladitorial robot combat.

The game is the exact opposite of "hurr manliness hardcore durr" with a very relaxed and silly attitude to it. Rumbling is a sport and is treated as such in-universe, with loads of characters and opponents, a great deal of whom will converse and joke with you before and after matches. You have Screw, a 13-year-old who just wanted to get on TV, Pepper, the short-tempered manager of the Wire Heads (the local Rumbling association), Milch, a psychotic 12-year-old who enjoys Rumbling just a little too much, and plenty of others.

The actual gameplay is a load of fun too. You can build, customise and upgrade your Scoobee (mech) in more or less any way you please. Want to give it a drill? You can! Racks of shoulder-mounted missiles? No problem! Pink paint? You betcha! On top of that, you can choose your CHIP (the AI partner that makes your Scoobee work), tune up parts to make them more resilint, lighter etc, and even the soundtrack you listen to in matches!

And the combat...Oh lord, the combat!

Despite being a third-person shooter, the main focus is on mobility, stealth and surprise attacks rather than sitting behind a rock and then jumping out to get a headshot- a lot of the Scoobees don't have heads for one thing. Aiming is fairly easy, as auto-aim is built into the Scoobee by default (in fact you can actually upgrade the lock-on), however you will have to keep moving if you want to avoid getting shot down. You can purchase optic camo for your Scoobee, which briefly turns you invisble- this is a must for most matches.

TL,DR: Third-person relaxed Quake with mechs and funny characters and backstory.

So, your favourites?

[Ornette]

Angband. I still have the newest fork, Zangband, installed on my laptop. And its predecessor Omega.

[CJD]

Kingdom Under Fire: The Crusaders for original Xbox. It's like Dynasty Warriors crossed with an RTS and an RPG. Heroes, the prequel, is ok but Circle of Doom, the sequel, is shit. KuF2's been in development since 2008 but still no reliable word on any release.

[Squigsquasher]

Kingdom Under Fire: The Crusaders for original Xbox. It's like Dynasty Warriors crossed with an RTS and an RPG. Heroes, the prequel, is ok but Circle of Doom, the sequel, is shit. KuF2's been in development since 2008 but still no reliable word on any release.

I played that game! It was really good, but pretty difficult- I got stuck on the level where you first encounter Reignier (or whatever his name was). It's been a long time since I've played it, I may have to pick it back up.

[Shinoyami65]

Um, let's see...

*Gone Home(PC)- An exploration game (similar to Dear Esther in some ways, but with fewer abstract elements) with a suprisingly touching story and a detailed, immersive environment.
*Flower, Sun and Rain(PS2/DS)-The only successful attempt to port part of Suda51's Kill the Past game series to Western shores. I enjoyed the story but the game is virtually unknown because of its poor graphics and the fact that the plot becomes very confusing if you don't know anything about the other Kill the Past games, which were only ever released in Japan. killer7 also deserves a mention here, but it is quite well-known these days.
*Dark Seed (DOS)- Horror point-and-click adventure with awesome/gruesome art by H.R. Giger. Very difficult in some places, and not very well known outside of horror circles.
*The Stanley Parable(PC): Trippy mindfuck game, which begins like an ordinary game but soon descends into all sorts of madness that questions existence and reality itself. I found the game extremely well-written; every scenario was surprising and there are many, many unexpected twists in the story.

[CJD]

I played that game! It was really good, but pretty difficult- I got stuck on the level where you first encounter Reignier (or whatever his name was). It's been a long time since I've played it, I may have to pick it back up.

Regnier was fucking broken.

[The Eva Monkey]

Ranger-X for Sega Genesis.

[Agentomega]

*The Stanley Parable(PC)

That one is actually more common than you'd expect.

Lessee...

Another Code: Two Memories (Trace Memory) and Another Code: R. I can only presume it was better received (and/or better licensed) in Europe, as the sequel was only released there.

Logical Journey of the Zoombinis. I've only met one person IRL outside my family who has ever heard of this game. I played this as a kid and it was totally the best thing ever.

[Squigsquasher]

Logical Journey of the Zoombinis. I've only met one person IRL outside my family who has ever heard of this game. I played this as a kid and it was totally the best thing ever.

We did that at our school. Well, everybody else did. I was never allowed.

A shame, it was fun, from what little I got to play of it.

[Violet Shadow]

Darksiders perhaps... is it underrated enough?

[Redtophat]

Nier, which you all should play.

[Kaminoyouni]

Legend of Legaia for PS1, and it's pseudo sequel Legaia 2: duel saga (though story wise Legaia 1 is much much better.)

[Princess Asuka]

The Harvest Moon series.
I can't be the only person who enjoys playing this game.

[Violet Shadow]

Remember Me and Mirror's Edge.

[Reichu]

Not enough people outside of Japan play the Monster Hunter games.

[gatotsu911]

*Flower, Sun and Rain(PS2/DS)-The only successful attempt to port part of Suda51's Kill the Past game series to Western shores. I enjoyed the story but the game is virtually unknown because of its poor graphics and the fact that the plot becomes very confusing if you don't know anything about the other Kill the Past games, which were only ever released in Japan. killer7 also deserves a mention here, but it is quite well-known these days.

I endorse these and every other game made by Suda 51 up to No More Heroes.

I guess I'll also plug Riviera: The Promised Land (a fun, oddball little RPG for the GBA/PSP with really unique mechanics and light dating sim elements) and The Darkness (a shooter for 360/PS3 with some really incredibly atmosphere, voice acting, etc.).

[Alaska Slim]

Not enough people outside of Japan play the Monster Hunter games.

I watched the series, does that count? ... No wait, I'm thinking of something else.




Crimsonland

IMPOSSIBLE CREATURES (Reichu, stay away.)

Earth & Beyond

Iridion 3D

Mech Commander 2

Pokémon Conquest*

*the Closest you'll ever come to fielding a Pokémon Army, unless playing IC.

[MassiveInvader]

Nier, which you all should play.

Definettly one of the more original Square games nowadays.Indigo Prophecy, has anybody seen Two Best Friends play this game yet? Is it worth watching?

[Shinoyami65]

Mirror's Edge.

I think Mirror's Edge is pretty well known. FYI there's also a sequel planned for the PS4, Xbox 1 and PC.

I liked Indigo Prophecy quite a bit, although I did find some sections frustraing (I just couldn't nail the colour wheel prompts during conversations, for example).

A little-known fact is that Suda51 was also behind Fatal Frame 4: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, which is an awesome horror game but never really got a lot of praise because it never made it out of Japan (unless you're willing to find a Japanese copy and use a fan English patch on it, which is what I did).

[SimplyMason0]

Jurassic Park
Toy Story 2
A Bugs Life
Chrono Cross
Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue

All on the PS2. Those were the games I played as a kid but I don't think I see them anywhere else except for Chrono Cross which isn't much. I would so love Chrono Break but its canceled.