Most underrated games

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Enslaved: Odyssey to the West is a terrific action platformer that doesn't get nearly enough shine. Nice art direction, decent gameplay, good story and excellent characterisation, the game is well worth a punt at current prices for those who have yet to play. Shame it didn't sell well enough to warrant a sequel - it would have been nice to see Trip and Monkey again!
 
Tzar: The Burden of the Crown - fantastic RTS from 2000, maybe it wasn't anything groundbreaking, but it could hold massive battles, had a unit level up system, (first ever) and overally played really well. Still holds up to this day, because of it's 2D artstyle.
 
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Tzar: The Burden of the Crown - fantastic RTS from 2000, maybe it wasn't anything groundbreaking, but it could hold massive battles, had a unit level up system, (first ever) and overally played really well. Still holds up to this day, because of it's 2D artstyle.

Yeah, this is a great game. I really enjoyed it back then. It´s available in GOG for those interested!
 
Psychonauts = very underrated masterpiece.



And also:

Ico
Marc Ecko's Getting Up
Jade Empire
Beyond Good & Evil
The Saboteur
 
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I know a big part of the "underrated" is subjective but having recently played part of Jade Empire I really cannot say it's actually worth much.

Sure, it's like the missing link between old and new Bioware, but it doesn't have much to show beyond the setting. Dialogues are ridden with cliches and fan service, there's clunky, meaningless combat around every corner, ... Anyway. It's fun like a Saturday morning cartoon made game, not necessarily a terrible thing, but considering I only play for limited amounts of time, I felt like I was wasting my game time with it. It may not be as popular as other Bioware games but that's it, I don't think it should be.

It's like R.A.Salvatore: some ideas are kind of good but not good enough to tolerate his writing.

If there's something I'm missing or if it gets good halfway through then please let me know :)
 
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For me Jade Empire started off kinda meh, then it became more interesting, but the end was so cheesy.

Got that threesome though, so I can't complain.
 
Oh, for me Spec Ops: The Line is so underrated!
I mean, it didn't get much attention, the gameplay is simple, pretty normal (someone says it's clunky and I do not agree) but the story and the atmosphere... wow! And the ending... well I didn't see that coming. :D
 
System Shock. Out at around the same time as Doom, Wolfenstein, but a completely different experience. Creepy story, a tactical element to the game play, with management of energy/health/ammunition, and the ability to look in one direction while aiming off centre, to lean/stretch/crouch.

The sprite based graphics haven't aged as well as some games (and weren't exceptional at the time (though they were better quality than *some*)), but the gameplay and pacing are still engaging.

Also laid the foundation for the spooky and creepy System Shock 2, though that had a more conventional feel to it.
 
I would say the Bloodlines was underrated, yeah. Company died, after all. Later it became sort of a cult classic, but even now, nearly the entire console population and plenty of people I've played WoW with, for example, remain unaware of it. Saddens me that outside my kids, thousand of new gamers will never get to really -relish- the Ocean House. If yo check top whatever lists by IGN, for example, you won't see Bloodlines.

Clive Barker's Undying also, even smaller audience.

I liked Omikron: Nomad Soul a lot. Deeply flawed, but also so ahead of it's time.

If we weren't on these forums, I'd say Witcher - it really doesn't receive the praise it deserves for what it accomplished at the time. Post the prettier Witcher 2, interest went up, but it still remains largely unplayed and underappreciated for, to my mind, it's more ambitious story than Witcher 2 or anything else out at the time.

Gothic 1 and 2. Like Bloodlines, the hardcore know of and have played this. Most gamers have not. Too bad. Grim, fun and tight, one of my favourite pair of games.
 
It's like R.A.Salvatore: some ideas are kind of good but not good enough to tolerate his writing

What fun it is to read through Drizzt's adventures--with another book on top to hide my guilty pleasures of course :ice:

Were I any good at art I summon my inner fan girl and paint lovely pictures of the Black Panther and White Wolf cross swords or fighting side by side.

 
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While system shock is great, underrated? I'm not sure.

Critically acclaimed ~ possibly more than it merits (at least when used in oblique reference as the inspiration to Shock 2, or Bioshock et al)... but quite underplayed. I know no one else who played it through ~ while dozens who played Doom or any one of a hundred other "shooter" games. Even one or two who dabble in adventures.

Perhaps 'obscure'/'limited awareness' rather than under-rated then, but often the other choices here are made using similar criteria.
 


First rpg with choice and consequence I ever played. I liked how you can freely explore areas and you can stumble into story events depending on the date and time of day. It's very non-linear.
 
"Mars: War Logs" and "Bound by Flame" both RPGs, both developed by french "indi" company Spiders.

Both very underrated games on my opinion, who have received a lot of bad reviews from critics, but from my point of view they both deserve much more credit than that, specially considering the low budget for both games and the small team behind them. I would at the very least give them a 6.5/7 out of 10, as they are in my opinion good, but with a lot of space for improvements!

The crafting and weapon/armour customization on both games is very good, and the combat shares a lot of similitudes to that of The Witcher 2, so it is actually one of the strongest selling points for both games.

Only real negative points for both games would be the "not top of the line writing", and the "not top of the line" voice acting and lip syncronisation. But again, this are 2 low budget games developed by an indi company, so we cant really demand too much! Overall i strongly recomend them to everyone here.

Also to keep in mind is the fact, that they are not very expensive games; Mars War Logs cost $20(at launch), now you can probably get it for half that price, and Bound By Flame cost 40$ at release, now you can get it at 25% discount on Steam.
 
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