VGCollect Forum
General and Gaming => Classic Video Games => Topic started by: ignition365 on March 15, 2016, 03:14:21 pm
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You can use whatever criteria you want for what hidden gem means; could be that the game didn't sell well, generally low ratings, games that just flew under the radar entirely, whatever you want.
I didn't really play many PS3 or Wii games last generation, and what games I did play were all generally very popular titles, so my list is entirely 360.
5. Fuel (360/PS3/PC)
This game plays like your average off-road racing game. From what I recall of the original advertising from this game, you live in a world where the US has become an uninhabitable wasteland with extreme weather conditions caused by the fallout of global warming. You along with other racers are dropped in to race in various locales in this expanse and open world environment. This game was given a world record for having the largest playable area in a video game. There is a video out there on youtube and many articles that encapsulate just how large this world is in terms of how long it would take to drive from one corner to the opposite corner. The world is 5,560 square miles. I believe I read it can take 2 hours to reach corner to corner of the map. With a world this large there are plenty of places for the developers to hide collectibles and the "Vistas" in the game, which are areas where you park and see beautiful views.
4. Duke Nukem Forever (360/PS3/PC)
I'll probably get shit for this one, but I stand by it. I actually bought this game day one, even bought the special edition, if I could use hindsight and go back and tell myself not to buy it and wait for it to drop like crazy in price like it did, I would have done that. But alas, I can't. Objectively speaking, completely ignoring all of the hype and anti-hype surrounding this game, it's a fairly solid Duke Nukem game. All of that aged Duke Nukem humor is there, though we as people have aged and mostly find the humor disgusting and childish, it very much matches the Duke Nukem character. Some of the aspects of the game are very aged gameplay wise, but you can't play a Duke Nukem game expecting Call of Duty seriousness, you have to take it tongue in cheek, just like Bulletstorm.
3. WET (360/PS3)
When folks talk about wanting a fierce, dominating leading lady in a video game who isn't hindered by her gender, I always think of this game... though I rarely mention it because the game is super dependent on her gymnastic abilities. This game has you playing as a badass mercenary, playing through various levels in very grindhouse settings. Each level is scored, giving the ability to replay over and over arcade style trying to beat your best score. But you can always upgrade your character to have better stats, skills, and weapons. I can't honestly recall the story from this game, but for me, this game sold me for the wacky grindhouse setting and the fun run and gun gameplay.
3 2. Naughty Bear (360/PS3)
You play an angry Teddy Bear who is so upset that he wasn't invited to have any fun that he decides to murder everyone. I really shouldn't have to say more than that, but I will. Each level has different requirements, but it's generally all the same, kill everyone. Tons of environmental ways to kill folks, you can make people so paranoid that they start killing each other, and you can sneak around and pick them off one by one. Kind of Metal Gear meets Hitman, with teddy bears. Honestly, I think this game deserves to be higher up my list... so I will.
1. Bulletstorm (360/PS3/PC)
I won't even pretend this game had a good story or even a unique art style (Looking at you Gears), but what this game lacked in that department it made up in sheer awesome gameplay and dialogue. The gameplay in Bulletstorm has you run through a level absolutely destroying enemies, I wanna say the tagline for this game was "Kill with Skill". Not only do you have the usual badass weaponry that comes from usual Epic games (like Unreal Tournament and Gears of War), but you have the ability to kick enemies with a badass spartan kick and use a wicked whip. You combine all of these things, along with environmental objects, to kill your enemies in different ways to obtain a higher score. The dialogue has a lot of bro jokes, hetero-homo jokes, dick jokes, and my favorite... Waggleton P. Tallylicker. Lots of profanities, but I would definitely say that this is a game for Deadpool fans, the sense of humor and gameplay will probably tickle you in ways that only Wade would consider.
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I love the idea of this thread. I have such nostalgia for the PS2/DS/Gamecube gen but haven't really found anything that I should be looking for amongst last gen now that they're going into clearance bins.
If I think of anything, I'll let you know. But I didn't play much on any of the last gen systems...
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I agree with you on Duke Nukem Forever. That game caught so much crap, not for being what it was as advertised but for not being what everyone expected it to be. It was a decidedly throwback shooter, straight out of the late 90's, early 2K's. The game made me chuckle more than a few times and the Turd Burglar Trophy was priceless. More importantly, it was just plain, goofy fun and I wanted to keep playing it.
So many times these days, the big popular "AAA" titles that are supposed to be so great....don't feel so great to me. They feel like a slog that I have to basically force myself to keep playing. Duke Nukem kept me coming back with it's old school toilet humor and gameplay that made me remember why I loved stuff like Duke Nukem 3D so much.
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I've got a few. :)
- Akai Katana (360) - A really fun shooter/bullet hell developed by CAVE. Still plenty of fun even if you aren't particularly good at other games in the genre.
- Catherine (PS3/360) - A really weird puzzle game that's pretty entertaining. It was developed by Atlus' Persona team, so it's got some pretty great art.
- Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F (PS3/Vita) - While Miku and the other vocaloids may be gaining in popularity in the west, they're still nowhere close to how popular in Asia. A great part of what is easily my favorite rhythm game series of all time.
- Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory (PS3) - The series is a lot more popular now than it used to be, but you could still probably consider this a "hidden gem" as long as you have the patience for somewhat grindy JRPGs. While it's still a little rough around the edges compared to others in its genre, the humor and character interactions are the game's main draw.
- JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle (PS3) - A really awesome 3D fighting game that's even better if you're a fan of the manga/anime. It's pretty impressive how well it captures the art style of the source material.
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(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/86/Bionic_Commando.jpg)
So much fun, and a great update to a great series!
(http://img.game.co.uk/ml2/2/2/4/1/224161_xbx_b.png)
I don't even play the table-top version and know zero about it. But nonetheless an incredible game with lots, and lots of violence! You get a chainsaw for your melee weapon!!!
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Im not sure I can get behind the "hidden gem" thing. I cant imagine there isnt a good game out there that people dont know about. But I have some definite favorites from last gen.
Ni no Kuni - Still the greatest game ever made. Period.
Kingdoms of Amalur - Not talked about nearly as much as Elder Scrolls but this game is much more fun and game play is better
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I think the phrase "Hidden Gem" has started to lose it's original meaning....it's being overused. 95% of what was posted here most people already know as good games and or were big titles at one point. For it to qualify as a hidden gem i think it needs to be a game not many people knew about and was overlooked or underrated at the time to be found later to be a great game.
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I only had a Wii during the last generation, and I only got a PS3 last december. However, the Wii was my first console ever, and I have a ton of nostalgia for it. I don't really have any games that stand out to me as unknown but amazing, but there are a few titles that have gone fairly unnoticed which are actually rather good. These are just the ones I have:
3. Barnyard
(http://media.gamestats.com/gg/image/object/848/848794/BarnyardWIIfrRGB1.jpg)
Based on the Nickelodeon animated movie, Barnyard is one of the best licensed games I've played. Granted, I played it as a kid, so there's some nostalgia here. And it's most definitely for kids. I recently played it again, and there isn't much to find for adults. But as a kid, I absolutely loved it. The overworld is varied and fun to explore, the tasks and things to do are simple but fun, and the minigames, while not super deep, are fun for kids to play. Not to mention, the game has a lot of personality and style to it that perfectly reflect the movie and tv-series, and it also helps it stand out. I still chuckle a little whenever I tease the mailman. It's silly, but it's silly in a good way. Honestly, the licensing is really unfortunate, because I know it'll turn some people away from the game. I, as a gullible kid, bought it because of the licensing however, and I'm so glad that I did. It's definitely not a game to hunt down for yourself, but if you're looking for a game to introduce your kid into the world of open-world mission based gaming, with some amusing minigames and characters to boot, then this game is a certain recommendation. And don't worry, almost no prior knowledge of the license is required to enjoy the game. The only advantage you'll get is that you'll recognise the characters and locations. It's an advantage, but not a requirement.
2. Excite Truck
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b9/Excite_Truck_Coverart.png)
I don't know how popular this title was when it came out, but I never hear people talk about it, so I think it quickly fell into obscurity. That's a shame though, since it's one of the better racing games on the Wii. As a spin-off to the Excitebike series, this game was clearly meant as a way to show off the capabilities of the WiiMote. It, however, does it really well. The off-road racing feels just right; the turning can be somewhat slippery, but just enough so that it doesn't become frustrating and feels fitting with the style of the game. I also like the varied vehicles with clearly different stats, which really change the way you play and make for a good fit for any player. For example, I prefer cars with more control, while my brother is willing to sacrifice that for more pure speed. I know this seems like standard stuff, but this game pushes the boundaries of what you can do with these stats, and it does it really well. The stages are clever and somewhat varied too, and trying to score extra points by landing right and making awesome boost jumps is a fun extra challenge. I won't deny that the game gets repetitive after playing a little while, but if you have friends around, I highly recommend it.
1. Go Vacation
(https://cdn02.nintendo-europe.com/media/images/05_packshots/games_13/wii_6/PS_Wii_GoVacation_enGB.png)
I believe this game was a moderate success, but again, I never hear people talk about it. And that's really too bad, because Go Vacation is a great game. Go Vacation can be classified in the same category as Barnyard; a family friendly introduction to open-world mission based gaming. However, Go Vacation sacrifices some of Barnyard's personality and variety for HUGE amounts of content. There are four resorts to explore, each with a distinct theme, vehicles, and minigames to find throughout it. The minigames aren't anything special, but they're fun time-wasters. What make this great to me, however, are the resorts. I spent hours just going around these resorts with my little brother, driving along the beach on ATV's, riding horses through the mountains, or skiïng down a mountain. I can't quite put my finger on it, but there's something about these overworlds that just makes them so fun to ride through. It's like the title screen to Scribblenauts; you can spend hours on it and not get bored. I'll admit, it does bore me now, partially because I've grown up, and partially because I now know these resorts like the back of my hand. However, it's still fun to play when someone who isn't as familiar with the game joins in. I highly recommend it, especially if you've got kids around to play it with.
Now, none of these are truly outstanding titles, and I don't think any of them would make a top 10 best Wii games (except maybe Go Vacation as number 10), but they're still really good Wii titles that too many people seem to have overlooked. If you ever see them going cheaply, don't hestitate to pick any of them up, they're really worth it.
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Im not sure I can get behind the "hidden gem" thing. I cant imagine there isnt a good game out there that people dont know about. But I have some definite favorites from last gen.
Ni no Kuni - Still the greatest game ever made. Period.
Kingdoms of Amalur - Not talked about nearly as much as Elder Scrolls but this game is much more fun and game play is better
Kingdoms of Amalur was awesome! It really sucks that the studio shut down right afterwards. I would have LOVED to get an expansion and sequel.
They probably spent all their money on that all-star creative team.
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I think the phrase "Hidden Gem" has started to lose it's original meaning....it's being overused. 95% of what was posted here most people already know as good games and or were big titles at one point. For it to qualify as a hidden gem i think it needs to be a game not many people knew about and was overlooked or underrated at the time to be found later to be a great game.
Im not sure I can get behind the "hidden gem" thing. I cant imagine there isnt a good game out there that people dont know about. But I have some definite favorites from last gen.
Ni no Kuni - Still the greatest game ever made. Period.
Kingdoms of Amalur - Not talked about nearly as much as Elder Scrolls but this game is much more fun and game play is better
I can understand people not caring for the term "hidden gem," especially how easy it is for folks to find out about games these days. But stuff still slips through if it's not Mario, Zelda, or a big FPS game, feels like.
I had a 360 but wasn't really keeping up on games at that time, so it'd be nice to know what I may have missed. It's sad that I only own about 10 games for that console despite owning the console for many years now. I didn't have a PS3 at all so I didn't make a point to keep up with what came out for that system.
I had a Wii for a very short period of time. I just recall really enjoying Little King's Story and Trauma Team, for instance. A lot of folks may already know about those games, but in case they haven't, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked them.
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Drakengard 3- Blood, Crude Humor, Harsh Language and the "censored" parts make me laugh
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure- pretty much what Abe Said
Anarchy Reigns- Sequel to Madworld that's very much a beat em' up without all the stick a tire on an enemy, shove a few Signpost in them, then finally impale them on a wall of spikes
Sakura Wars:So Long My Love- Dating Sim/Tactical RPG that Surprisingly works
Dragonball: Revenge of King Piccolo- It's a Platforming Beat em' up based on Dragonball (not Z) on the Wii that Allows you to use the Classic Controller, or the Gamecube controller and I never hear anyone else talk about this
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe. These aren't in any particular order, except the last one. I like to save the best for last.
Hatsune Miku Project Diva f: Like abe, I'm a huge fan. I've been following this darling piece of singing technology long before PDF was announced for localization. When I heard she was coming over, I was thrilled. It's so much fun and whenever I mention it outside of here, folks are like, "What's a vocaloid?" *sigh*
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
Atelier Ayesha: Alchemist of Dusk While Atelier is becoming more popular, it still doesn't get the recognition in comparison to other RPG juggernauts. Ayesha is a great place for folks to start if people are interested in this series. Obviously, the game is stunning audibly and visually. The clever item crafting system and the relatable characters make the game even more of a favorite. My 300th review was for this game.
Resonance of Fate: As I play through this game a second time, I can't help but to feel annoyed with Sega for releasing it a mere two weeks after Final Fantasy XIII. RoF offers a unique look at the RPG genre and doesn't pull any punches. Vashyron, Zephyr and Leanne make a wonderful trio that players will get to know as though they're long time friends. Once you "get" the battle system, you'll have a hard time going back to something more vanilla. I really wish more folks gave this game a shot, no pun intended.
Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of Dusk Sea My favorite game of 2015 that, like Ayesha, didn't get the love it deserved. Basically, it takes everything I love about the series and cranks it up to 11.
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The original Klonoa Door to Phantomile was a hidden gem. It was a great, great quasi-3D platformer that nobody bought. I guess that's why complete copies command upwards of $100 today.
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The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming
Whoa, whoa, your tone, it's all wrong
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The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming
Whoa, whoa, your tone, it's all wrong
(https://i.ytimg.com/vi/k7KPlMPH6BM/hqdefault.jpg)
"You do it again and I'll stab you in the face with a soldering iron"
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I still haven't moved to the next gen, so the Ps3/360 are still very fresh to me! Lol.
Well, there are a few games i really enjoyed playing on them (and there are a lot i still have to play) but here are my Gems:
Asura's Wrath (Ps3/360)
What a game! A platformer-beat'em-up-space-shooter-interactive-movie game... not kidding! The story is based on hindu mythology and it´s about a very angry god named Asura, who seeks revenge after being betrayed for his other 6 fellow gods. On top of that, his wife was killed and daughter, kidnapped. Think about an ANGRY god. Asura is actually the god of Wrath and the angrier he gets, more powerful he becomes. I think Asura as a mix of SSJ4 Goku + SSJ4 Vegeta. With Vegeta's wrath. And kicked in the nuts. Add to that wonderful scenarios, gigantic bosses e a lot of fighting. UNFORTUNALLY Capcom released the true ending as a DLC. A damn shame. But even so AW is a wonderful game that suprised me so much for its gameplay, story, soundtrack and scenarios. A must-play.
Tatsunoko vs. Capcom (Wii)
I really like fighting games, specially when it comes to Capcom. Tatsunoko vs. Capcom only wasn't as great as the other crossover fighting games because he was on Wii and didn't have much controller options suitable to its system. TvC has solid gameplay, decent graphics and it's a fun game to play. The characters from Tatsunoko are very different and little known compared to the most popular franchises, but they add depth to the gameplay due to their unique style. It was a good blend and unfortunally the Wii is still the only place where you can play this game. A reboot or sequel for new generation consoles (and with proper controllers and public) would make this series skyrocketing popular. Very good game and worth wasting some sleep hours training combos.
3D Dot Game Hero (Ps3)
A game compromised to the old classics, to the core. Boxy and 3d-pixelated, 3DDGH is an ode to great classic adventure games such as Zelda and Dragon Quest, but it has its own shine. Not only it keeps the simple inventory and item systems from ages past, as it keeps the same easy and straight-to-action gameplay old games had. It has a beautiful world made out of 3d pixels (sometimes it seems like a lego game) with good visual effects and the same level of exploration needed on classic adventures. It's fun, it's cute, it's easy to play and if you like Zelda games, you'll love it.
De Blob (Wii)
A huge splash of creativity. That´s what i thought when i first saw and played this game. De Blob might seem too simple and off-standards for a platform game, but it has fun to the core. What i really like about this game are the small details. The color blending, the splashing ink on the streets, the small people being liberated from the black-and-white tyranny... De Blob seems to me as a Dreamcast game, from a time when game producers still had the guts to try something new and intense. The controls feels a bit confusing at first (since you have to play with both nunchaku and wiimote) but you get it fast. Splashing color in a gray city is so much fun (it reminds me a lot of Jet Grind Radio sometimes) and the enemy characters are very funny too, specially on the interludes between stages. It's a great game to play for a relaxing time, just to see colors splashing everywhere and also listen to a great pop-jazz soundtrack. Simple, colorful and fun.
I could add a lot more to this list but i think it's enough for now... or i'll waste my day and night posting here, lol.
HarvestDude™
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe. These aren't in any particular order, except the last one. I like to save the best for last.
Hatsune Miku Project Diva f: Like abe, I'm a huge fan. I've been following this darling piece of singing technology long before PDF was announced for localization. When I heard she was coming over, I was thrilled. It's so much fun and whenever I mention it outside of here, folks are like, "What's a vocaloid?" *sigh*
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
Atelier Ayesha: Alchemist of Dusk While Atelier is becoming more popular, it still doesn't get the recognition in comparison to other RPG juggernauts. Ayesha is a great place for folks to start if people are interested in this series. Obviously, the game is stunning audibly and visually. The clever item crafting system and the relatable characters make the game even more of a favorite. My 300th review was for this game.
Resonance of Fate: As I play through this game a second time, I can't help but to feel annoyed with Sega for releasing it a mere two weeks after Final Fantasy XIII. RoF offers a unique look at the RPG genre and doesn't pull any punches. Vashyron, Zephyr and Leanne make a wonderful trio that players will get to know as though they're long time friends. Once you "get" the battle system, you'll have a hard time going back to something more vanilla. I really wish more folks gave this game a shot, no pun intended.
Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of Dusk Sea My favorite game of 2015 that, like Ayesha, didn't get the love it deserved. Basically, it takes everything I love about the series and cranks it up to 11.
So much all of this. Except ROF I didn't play but damn I need to find a space-time folding device so I can play everything I want. :(
I platted Project Diva on Vita and even if I couldn't find the time to clear the 2nd I'm looking forward to play the X on PS4, those are indeed awesome. BTW do you know any shop where I can import easilly CDs from Japan? I'd like to get myself a copy of 39D album from Vocaloid producer Mitchie M but I can't find it anywhere that ships to Europe, I had no issue finding the Greatest Idol album on Amazon but I got no luck with the latest.
Back on topic the deserve-to-be-more-famous games I can think of on these consoles I would add Vanquish, Dragon's Dogma and Dragon's Crown.
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I platted Project Diva on Vita and even if I couldn't find the time to clear the 2nd I'm looking forward to play the X on PS4, those are indeed awesome. BTW do you know any shop where I can import easilly CDs from Japan? I'd like to get myself a copy of 39D album from Vocaloid producer Mitchie M but I can't find it anywhere that ships to Europe, I had no issue finding the Greatest Idol album on Amazon but I got no luck with the latest.
I was going to suggest CDJapan, but I couldn't find it there. :( I couldn't even find it on Amazon Japan either. :o
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The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming
Whoa, whoa, your tone, it's all wrong
My tone is that of an angel. I'm America's Sweetheart, after all.
I platted Project Diva on Vita and even if I couldn't find the time to clear the 2nd I'm looking forward to play the X on PS4, those are indeed awesome. BTW do you know any shop where I can import easilly CDs from Japan? I'd like to get myself a copy of 39D album from Vocaloid producer Mitchie M but I can't find it anywhere that ships to Europe, I had no issue finding the Greatest Idol album on Amazon but I got no luck with the latest.
I was going to suggest CDJapan, but I couldn't find it there. :( I couldn't even find it on Amazon Japan either. :o
I can't access it now since I'm on my work computer, but maybe Play-Asia would have something? I would also suggest Renchi, but they don't seem to be around anymore. ;__;
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I platted Project Diva on Vita and even if I couldn't find the time to clear the 2nd I'm looking forward to play the X on PS4, those are indeed awesome. BTW do you know any shop where I can import easilly CDs from Japan? I'd like to get myself a copy of 39D album from Vocaloid producer Mitchie M but I can't find it anywhere that ships to Europe, I had no issue finding the Greatest Idol album on Amazon but I got no luck with the latest.
I was going to suggest CDJapan, but I couldn't find it there. :( I couldn't even find it on Amazon Japan either. :o
I can't access it now since I'm on my work computer, but maybe Play-Asia would have something? I would also suggest Renchi, but they don't seem to be around anymore. ;__;
Just checked. Couldn't find it there either. I also checked AmiAmi, Jbox, Nin-Nin Game, and Solaris Japan and couldn't find it there either. :'( I must be doing something wrong. Surely it must be somewhere on one of those sites. :-\
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Vanquished
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1. King of Fighters XIII (PS3)
2. Sonic's All Stars Racing Transformed (PS3)
3. Elebits (Wii)
4. Geometry Wars Galaxies (Wii)
5. Katamari Forever (PS3)
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I can't access it now since I'm on my work computer, but maybe Play-Asia would have something? I would also suggest Renchi, but they don't seem to be around anymore. ;__;
Just checked. Couldn't find it there either. I also checked AmiAmi, Jbox, Nin-Nin Game, and Solaris Japan and couldn't find it there either. :'( I must be doing something wrong. Surely it must be somewhere on one of those sites. :-\
Thanks for checking guys :D
After a bit of research this morning I found out that the album was sold only by the composer in person on a booth at the Winter Comiket 89 event in Tokyo, so there's no physical copies to be found anywhere. Even the people in Japan that didn't attend to the event couldn't get their copy. I guess I have no choice but to go digital for this one..
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4. Duke Nukem Forever (360/PS3/PC)
I'll probably get shit for this one, but I stand by it. I actually bought this game day one, even bought the special edition, if I could use hindsight and go back and tell myself not to buy it and wait for it to drop like crazy in price like it did, I would have done that. But alas, I can't. Objectively speaking, completely ignoring all of the hype and anti-hype surrounding this game, it's a fairly solid Duke Nukem game. All of that aged Duke Nukem humor is there, though we as people have aged and mostly find the humor disgusting and childish, it very much matches the Duke Nukem character. Some of the aspects of the game are very aged gameplay wise, but you can't play a Duke Nukem game expecting Call of Duty seriousness, you have to take it tongue in cheek, just like Bulletstorm.
Solidarity brother. I don't know why but I enjoyed this game. It was just mindless fun. When Duke says "I'm gonna piss in your eye." And then literally follows through on that promise. Nothing better :D
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I don't think there is much I could mention that would be a hidden gem to folks on here. So I will simply list off my five favorites that aren't Call of Duty or Final Fantasy kind of thing.
Vanquish - If I was to simply say 3rd person cover based shooter....... you'd probably think "omg such an over saturated sub-genre last gen, another Gears of War clone." That's what I first thought when someone recommended it to me. However that couldn't be more wrong; this game is fast paced action; it's like if Zone of the Enders, Devil May Cry and Gears of War had some unnatural orgy; and this game miraculously popped out (charming image I know). The cheesy narrative is bonus too.
Lost Odyssey - The true Final Fantasy XIII in my eyes. Beautiful visuals, a compelling story (some tear jerkers in there) and a simple but rewarding battle system. It served as an example of what could have been had Sakaguchi stayed with Square and continued to work on Final Fantasy. Anyone who says J-RPGs were weak last gen; I urge you to play this if you havn't already, it might change your mind.
The Last Story - Another Mistwalker title; this time on Wii so I imagine it got even less attention. Nobody really used their Wii for much outside Mario Kart, Smash Bros Brawl and Wii Sports; so considering Xenoblade Chronicles came out in the same window (at least in my region); I'd imagine this game didn't get noticed much at all. The game isn't without faults; I personally hate having to play it with the wiimote and nunchuk and there's not much in terms of exploration which is a bit disappointing. However I love the art style, the story is compelling and the battle system is fun and action packed. It's different as far as J-RPGs go and I guess that's what I like about it.
Shadowrun - This is probably one I'll get stick for but I'll stick to my guns on it ;) I didn't play the original Shadowrun so for that reason it didn't bother me that this wasn't an RPG. This game came out at a period in which I was just getting into online shooters; I'd had my 360 for a few months, spending my time with Rainbow Six Vegas and Gears of War; but we wanted something new. A friend read a preview of the game online and he sold it to us, so half our clan went out and bought it We didn't regret it, we were hooked instantly. It was just a bizarre concept; the Counter Strike weapon system but with magic and weird classes, it was simply like nothing else out there. Most people I come across hate this game but I can't help loving it.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning - Shame we'll never get another one as this game came closer to being the ultimate Fable game than any Fable title ever did. I always wanted a Fable game that was open world, with proper side quests and a better combat system; and that's exactly what this is.
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe.
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
The last story cannot be considered a hidden gem.
It's actually pretty popular, one of the best rpg's for the wii, sure it was I believe 1 year after xenoblade and people were dissapointed that it wasn't as good but still plenty known to all with high reviews.
Pandora's tower could be a hidden gem since it was at the end of the wii life span and way less people bought this game compared to the former operation rainfall releases. It was also slightly worse than the last story wich didn't help for the sales and the 3 coin set.
Still though I wouldn't even consider pandora's tower to be a hidden gem, way to well known since it is part of the operation rainfall rpg wii series.
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe.
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
The last story cannot be considered a hidden gem.
It's actually pretty popular, one of the best rpg's for the wii, sure it was I believe 1 year after xenoblade and people were dissapointed that it wasn't as good but still plenty known to all with high reviews.
Pandora's tower could be a hidden gem since it was at the end of the wii life span and way less people bought this game compared to the former operation rainfall releases. It was also slightly worse than the last story wich didn't help for the sales and the 3 coin set.
Still though I wouldn't even consider pandora's tower to be a hidden gem, way to well known since it is part of the operation rainfall rpg wii series.
You could make the argument that all games aren't hidden gems. Especially on a forum like this where some people own 2000 games :D
The term 'hidden gem' is stupid really. Among hardcore gamers none of these games are really hidden. they may be surprises when they first come out but they're not really hidden.
This thread is pretty much about games that don't belong to a well established series/franchise or aren't a Last of Us kind of blockbuster title.
Also depends on your region. The Last Story and Pandora's Tower both came out in a similar window in Europe. And both of them released in low quantities and were largely ignored as the console was dead to most.
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe.
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
The last story cannot be considered a hidden gem.
It's actually pretty popular, one of the best rpg's for the wii, sure it was I believe 1 year after xenoblade and people were dissapointed that it wasn't as good but still plenty known to all with high reviews.
Pandora's tower could be a hidden gem since it was at the end of the wii life span and way less people bought this game compared to the former operation rainfall releases. It was also slightly worse than the last story wich didn't help for the sales and the 3 coin set.
Still though I wouldn't even consider pandora's tower to be a hidden gem, way to well known since it is part of the operation rainfall rpg wii series.
You could make the argument that all games aren't hidden gems. Especially on a forum like this where some people own 2000 games :D
The term 'hidden gem' is stupid really. Among hardcore gamers none of these games are really hidden. they may be surprises when they first come out but they're not really hidden.
This thread is pretty much about games that don't belong to a well established series/franchise or aren't a Last of Us kind of blockbuster title.
Also depends on your region. The Last Story and Pandora's Tower both came out in a similar window in Europe. And both of them released in low quantities and were largely ignored as the console was dead to most.
Yea sure and chrono trigger is a hidden gem 8)
Operation rainfall titles are not hidden gems I stand by my point even casual collectors know about those titles. You don't need to be a hardcore collector to know about the 3 operation rainfall wii games.
For example all suikoden games are not hidden gems the series is just to popular same goes for the last story It's way to well known. Other examples are grandia series, breath of firem fire emblem etc.
Overboard or azure dreams for ps1 could be considered hidden gems. Even hardcore collectors could agree that no one talks about such games but they do know about them those could be considered hidden gems.
Evolution for gamecube or dreamcast are games that no one talks about. Allot of people do not even know about this rpg series , It's pretty good though. Way less known wich probably means many casual gamer have likely never heard about. Heck probably even allot of rpg gamers don't know this series. Maybe even you don't know about this series.
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe.
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
The last story cannot be considered a hidden gem.
It's actually pretty popular, one of the best rpg's for the wii, sure it was I believe 1 year after xenoblade and people were dissapointed that it wasn't as good but still plenty known to all with high reviews.
Pandora's tower could be a hidden gem since it was at the end of the wii life span and way less people bought this game compared to the former operation rainfall releases. It was also slightly worse than the last story wich didn't help for the sales and the 3 coin set.
Still though I wouldn't even consider pandora's tower to be a hidden gem, way to well known since it is part of the operation rainfall rpg wii series.
You could make the argument that all games aren't hidden gems. Especially on a forum like this where some people own 2000 games :D
The term 'hidden gem' is stupid really. Among hardcore gamers none of these games are really hidden. they may be surprises when they first come out but they're not really hidden.
This thread is pretty much about games that don't belong to a well established series/franchise or aren't a Last of Us kind of blockbuster title.
Also depends on your region. The Last Story and Pandora's Tower both came out in a similar window in Europe. And both of them released in low quantities and were largely ignored as the console was dead to most.
Yea sure and chrono trigger is a hidden gem 8)
Operation rainfall titles are not hidden gems I stand by my point even casual collectors know about those titles. You don't need to be a hardcore collector to know about the 3 operation rainfall wii games.
All suikoden games are not hidden gems the series is just to well known same goes for the last story It's way to well known.
Overboard or azure dreams for ps1 could be considered hidden gems. Even hardcore collectors could agree that no one talks about such games but they do know about them those could be considered hidden gems.
Chrono Trigger was never a hidden gem as it was made by the same people as Final Fantasy so it was always going to have hype.
I'd say back when they came out, in particular the first Suikoden was a hidden gem. Word of mouth over time has made the title infamous but the price of the first two games shows how hidden a gem they once where. However now there has been six games in the series, it's very much an established franchise, what with having been re-published on the PSN.
I'm an RPG fan so I own both Suikoden and Azure Dreams and played both games at a friend's a long time ago when I was a kid. However outside my circle of fellow RPG fans or fellow collectors; I don't think most people I know who play games will have played either title tbh. They may have noticed Suikoden on the PSN store but doubt they ever bought it.
Again among people like ourselves none of these games are truly hidden gems. We simply breath this stuff.
Also again you ignore regions. We didn't have Operation Rainfall. These games were just released for Wii. Kind of like sleeper releases. I stumbled upon a sole copy of The Last Story in a Virgin Megastores; noticed it was made by Mistwalker. Honestly at the time I paid little attention to the Wii as Nintendo first party titles aside it was generally motion control shovel ware. I went home read up on it, then went back to the store and bought it. Much the same happened with Pandora's Tower, only I decided against buying it as it wasn't for me.
And yes I'm aware of the Evolution series. I once made a list of all the J-RPGs available in the PAL region. Read into each, watching gameplay and such. And had ambitions of buying them all. But I gave up on that endeavor. Far too expensive and wouldn't have the time to play them all anyways. A pipe dream :D
Perhaps a stipulation should have been the game has to have sold less than 1 million copies worldwide via VG Chartz. But then plenty of games listed above, including by me wouldn't be 'hidden gems'.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning - 2.04 million
Duke Nukem Forever - 2 million
Resonance of Fate - 1.07 million
Vanquish - 1.04 million
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe.
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
The last story cannot be considered a hidden gem.
It's actually pretty popular, one of the best rpg's for the wii, sure it was I believe 1 year after xenoblade and people were dissapointed that it wasn't as good but still plenty known to all with high reviews.
Pandora's tower could be a hidden gem since it was at the end of the wii life span and way less people bought this game compared to the former operation rainfall releases. It was also slightly worse than the last story wich didn't help for the sales and the 3 coin set.
Still though I wouldn't even consider pandora's tower to be a hidden gem, way to well known since it is part of the operation rainfall rpg wii series.
You could make the argument that all games aren't hidden gems. Especially on a forum like this where some people own 2000 games :D
The term 'hidden gem' is stupid really. Among hardcore gamers none of these games are really hidden. they may be surprises when they first come out but they're not really hidden.
This thread is pretty much about games that don't belong to a well established series/franchise or aren't a Last of Us kind of blockbuster title.
Also depends on your region. The Last Story and Pandora's Tower both came out in a similar window in Europe. And both of them released in low quantities and were largely ignored as the console was dead to most.
Yea sure and chrono trigger is a hidden gem 8)
Operation rainfall titles are not hidden gems I stand by my point even casual collectors know about those titles. You don't need to be a hardcore collector to know about the 3 operation rainfall wii games.
All suikoden games are not hidden gems the series is just to well known same goes for the last story It's way to well known.
Overboard or azure dreams for ps1 could be considered hidden gems. Even hardcore collectors could agree that no one talks about such games but they do know about them those could be considered hidden gems.
Chrono Trigger was never a hidden gem as it was made by the same people as Final Fantasy so it was always going to have hype.
I'd say back when they came out, in particular the first Suikoden was a hidden gem. Word of mouth over time has made the title infamous but the price of the first two games shows how hidden a gem they once where. However now there has been six games in the series, it's very much an established franchise, what with having been re-published on the PSN.
I'm an RPG fan so I own both Suikoden and Azure Dreams and played both games at a friend's a long time ago when I was a kid. However outside my circle of fellow RPG fans or fellow collectors; I don't think most people I know who play games will have played either title tbh. They may have noticed Suikoden on the PSN store but doubt they ever bought it.
Again among people like ourselves none of these games are truly hidden gems. We simply breath this stuff.
Also again you ignore regions. We didn't have Operation Rainfall. These games were just released for Wii. Kind of like sleeper releases. I stumbled upon a sole copy of The Last Story in a Virgin Megastores; noticed it was made by Mistwalker. Honestly at the time I paid little attention to the Wii as Nintendo first party titles aside it was generally motion control shovel ware. I went home read up on it, then went back to the store and bought it. Much the same happened with Pandora's Tower, only I decided against buying it as it wasn't for me.
And yes I'm aware of the Evolution series. I once made a list of all the J-RPGs available in the PAL region. Read into each, watching gameplay and such. And had ambitions of buying them all. But I gave up on that endeavor. Far too expensive and wouldn't have the time to play them all anyways. A pipe dream :D
Perhaps a stipulation should have been the game has to have sold less than 1 million copies worldwide via VG Chartz. But then plenty of games listed above, including by me wouldn't be 'hidden gems'.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning - 2.04 million
Duke Nukem Forever - 2 million
Resonance of Fate - 1.07 million
Vanquish - 1.04 million
Games wich have sold over 1million copies could be considered a hidden gem if they are pretty much forgotten or under rated.
However this is an example of the wii rpg trilogy it's to popular to be a hidden gem
Suikoden 1 was a hidden gem however over time it has gotten popular and lost it's hidden gem status with a high fanbase.
Were talking about the present not about the past.
Lost odyssey for xbox 360 is a nice hidden gem. Sold pretty well but pretty much forgotten in the present.
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe.
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
The last story cannot be considered a hidden gem.
It's actually pretty popular, one of the best rpg's for the wii, sure it was I believe 1 year after xenoblade and people were dissapointed that it wasn't as good but still plenty known to all with high reviews.
Pandora's tower could be a hidden gem since it was at the end of the wii life span and way less people bought this game compared to the former operation rainfall releases. It was also slightly worse than the last story wich didn't help for the sales and the 3 coin set.
Still though I wouldn't even consider pandora's tower to be a hidden gem, way to well known since it is part of the operation rainfall rpg wii series.
You could make the argument that all games aren't hidden gems. Especially on a forum like this where some people own 2000 games :D
The term 'hidden gem' is stupid really. Among hardcore gamers none of these games are really hidden. they may be surprises when they first come out but they're not really hidden.
This thread is pretty much about games that don't belong to a well established series/franchise or aren't a Last of Us kind of blockbuster title.
Also depends on your region. The Last Story and Pandora's Tower both came out in a similar window in Europe. And both of them released in low quantities and were largely ignored as the console was dead to most.
Yea sure and chrono trigger is a hidden gem 8)
Operation rainfall titles are not hidden gems I stand by my point even casual collectors know about those titles. You don't need to be a hardcore collector to know about the 3 operation rainfall wii games.
All suikoden games are not hidden gems the series is just to well known same goes for the last story It's way to well known.
Overboard or azure dreams for ps1 could be considered hidden gems. Even hardcore collectors could agree that no one talks about such games but they do know about them those could be considered hidden gems.
Chrono Trigger was never a hidden gem as it was made by the same people as Final Fantasy so it was always going to have hype.
I'd say back when they came out, in particular the first Suikoden was a hidden gem. Word of mouth over time has made the title infamous but the price of the first two games shows how hidden a gem they once where. However now there has been six games in the series, it's very much an established franchise, what with having been re-published on the PSN.
I'm an RPG fan so I own both Suikoden and Azure Dreams and played both games at a friend's a long time ago when I was a kid. However outside my circle of fellow RPG fans or fellow collectors; I don't think most people I know who play games will have played either title tbh. They may have noticed Suikoden on the PSN store but doubt they ever bought it.
Again among people like ourselves none of these games are truly hidden gems. We simply breath this stuff.
Also again you ignore regions. We didn't have Operation Rainfall. These games were just released for Wii. Kind of like sleeper releases. I stumbled upon a sole copy of The Last Story in a Virgin Megastores; noticed it was made by Mistwalker. Honestly at the time I paid little attention to the Wii as Nintendo first party titles aside it was generally motion control shovel ware. I went home read up on it, then went back to the store and bought it. Much the same happened with Pandora's Tower, only I decided against buying it as it wasn't for me.
And yes I'm aware of the Evolution series. I once made a list of all the J-RPGs available in the PAL region. Read into each, watching gameplay and such. And had ambitions of buying them all. But I gave up on that endeavor. Far too expensive and wouldn't have the time to play them all anyways. A pipe dream :D
Perhaps a stipulation should have been the game has to have sold less than 1 million copies worldwide via VG Chartz. But then plenty of games listed above, including by me wouldn't be 'hidden gems'.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning - 2.04 million
Duke Nukem Forever - 2 million
Resonance of Fate - 1.07 million
Vanquish - 1.04 million
Games wich have sold over 1million copies could be considered a hidden gem if they are pretty much forgotten or under rated.
However this is an example of the wii rpg trilogy it's to popular to be a hidden gem
Suikoden 1 was a hidden gem however over time it has gotten popular and lost it's hidden gem status with a high fanbase.
Were talking about the present not about the past.
Lost odyssey for xbox 360 is a nice hidden gem. Sold pretty well but pretty much forgotten in the present.
Again it depends who you are talking to. You imply Lost Odyssey is less known than The Last Story but among RPG fans I know it would be vice versa.
To a non-RPG fan neither game would be well known, whereas games like Final Fantasy or Persona would be.
You say because The Last Story was an Operation Rainfall title it can't possibly be hidden. However as you say these games can be forgotten over time, so clearly Operation Rainfall can be too. I read plenty about that campaign at the time but I'll be honest other than Xenoblade Chronicles I couldn't remember for the life of me what the other titles were until you mentioned them tonight :) Operation Rainfall sticks in your head but perhaps overtime others have forgotten the details.
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe.
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
The last story cannot be considered a hidden gem.
It's actually pretty popular, one of the best rpg's for the wii, sure it was I believe 1 year after xenoblade and people were dissapointed that it wasn't as good but still plenty known to all with high reviews.
Pandora's tower could be a hidden gem since it was at the end of the wii life span and way less people bought this game compared to the former operation rainfall releases. It was also slightly worse than the last story wich didn't help for the sales and the 3 coin set.
Still though I wouldn't even consider pandora's tower to be a hidden gem, way to well known since it is part of the operation rainfall rpg wii series.
You could make the argument that all games aren't hidden gems. Especially on a forum like this where some people own 2000 games :D
The term 'hidden gem' is stupid really. Among hardcore gamers none of these games are really hidden. they may be surprises when they first come out but they're not really hidden.
This thread is pretty much about games that don't belong to a well established series/franchise or aren't a Last of Us kind of blockbuster title.
Also depends on your region. The Last Story and Pandora's Tower both came out in a similar window in Europe. And both of them released in low quantities and were largely ignored as the console was dead to most.
Yea sure and chrono trigger is a hidden gem 8)
Operation rainfall titles are not hidden gems I stand by my point even casual collectors know about those titles. You don't need to be a hardcore collector to know about the 3 operation rainfall wii games.
All suikoden games are not hidden gems the series is just to well known same goes for the last story It's way to well known.
Overboard or azure dreams for ps1 could be considered hidden gems. Even hardcore collectors could agree that no one talks about such games but they do know about them those could be considered hidden gems.
Chrono Trigger was never a hidden gem as it was made by the same people as Final Fantasy so it was always going to have hype.
I'd say back when they came out, in particular the first Suikoden was a hidden gem. Word of mouth over time has made the title infamous but the price of the first two games shows how hidden a gem they once where. However now there has been six games in the series, it's very much an established franchise, what with having been re-published on the PSN.
I'm an RPG fan so I own both Suikoden and Azure Dreams and played both games at a friend's a long time ago when I was a kid. However outside my circle of fellow RPG fans or fellow collectors; I don't think most people I know who play games will have played either title tbh. They may have noticed Suikoden on the PSN store but doubt they ever bought it.
Again among people like ourselves none of these games are truly hidden gems. We simply breath this stuff.
Also again you ignore regions. We didn't have Operation Rainfall. These games were just released for Wii. Kind of like sleeper releases. I stumbled upon a sole copy of The Last Story in a Virgin Megastores; noticed it was made by Mistwalker. Honestly at the time I paid little attention to the Wii as Nintendo first party titles aside it was generally motion control shovel ware. I went home read up on it, then went back to the store and bought it. Much the same happened with Pandora's Tower, only I decided against buying it as it wasn't for me.
And yes I'm aware of the Evolution series. I once made a list of all the J-RPGs available in the PAL region. Read into each, watching gameplay and such. And had ambitions of buying them all. But I gave up on that endeavor. Far too expensive and wouldn't have the time to play them all anyways. A pipe dream :D
Perhaps a stipulation should have been the game has to have sold less than 1 million copies worldwide via VG Chartz. But then plenty of games listed above, including by me wouldn't be 'hidden gems'.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning - 2.04 million
Duke Nukem Forever - 2 million
Resonance of Fate - 1.07 million
Vanquish - 1.04 million
Games wich have sold over 1million copies could be considered a hidden gem if they are pretty much forgotten or under rated.
However this is an example of the wii rpg trilogy it's to popular to be a hidden gem
Suikoden 1 was a hidden gem however over time it has gotten popular and lost it's hidden gem status with a high fanbase.
Were talking about the present not about the past.
Lost odyssey for xbox 360 is a nice hidden gem. Sold pretty well but pretty much forgotten in the present.
Even if you make the argument about the present, Pandora's Tower's still is a hidden gem. It wasn't really talked about that much in comparision to the Last Story/Xenoblade on its release; and most people didn't really know too much about it since the amount of Wii software from third parties dropped pretty significantly after 2010. You still don't really hear about it being talked too much nowadays in general gaming circles.
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Hidden gems seems pretty accurate for the games I'm about to describe.
The Last Story: While basic bitches were playing Xenoblade and tweeting about it on their iPhones, I was not acting like a Lemming and playing this gorgeous game. A fun battle system coupled with some of the best characters written in an RPG, The Last Story was a brilliant game. Also, 'DAT ARTBOOK!
The last story cannot be considered a hidden gem.
It's actually pretty popular, one of the best rpg's for the wii, sure it was I believe 1 year after xenoblade and people were dissapointed that it wasn't as good but still plenty known to all with high reviews.
Pandora's tower could be a hidden gem since it was at the end of the wii life span and way less people bought this game compared to the former operation rainfall releases. It was also slightly worse than the last story wich didn't help for the sales and the 3 coin set.
Still though I wouldn't even consider pandora's tower to be a hidden gem, way to well known since it is part of the operation rainfall rpg wii series.
You could make the argument that all games aren't hidden gems. Especially on a forum like this where some people own 2000 games :D
The term 'hidden gem' is stupid really. Among hardcore gamers none of these games are really hidden. they may be surprises when they first come out but they're not really hidden.
This thread is pretty much about games that don't belong to a well established series/franchise or aren't a Last of Us kind of blockbuster title.
Also depends on your region. The Last Story and Pandora's Tower both came out in a similar window in Europe. And both of them released in low quantities and were largely ignored as the console was dead to most.
Yea sure and chrono trigger is a hidden gem 8)
Operation rainfall titles are not hidden gems I stand by my point even casual collectors know about those titles. You don't need to be a hardcore collector to know about the 3 operation rainfall wii games.
All suikoden games are not hidden gems the series is just to well known same goes for the last story It's way to well known.
Overboard or azure dreams for ps1 could be considered hidden gems. Even hardcore collectors could agree that no one talks about such games but they do know about them those could be considered hidden gems.
Chrono Trigger was never a hidden gem as it was made by the same people as Final Fantasy so it was always going to have hype.
I'd say back when they came out, in particular the first Suikoden was a hidden gem. Word of mouth over time has made the title infamous but the price of the first two games shows how hidden a gem they once where. However now there has been six games in the series, it's very much an established franchise, what with having been re-published on the PSN.
I'm an RPG fan so I own both Suikoden and Azure Dreams and played both games at a friend's a long time ago when I was a kid. However outside my circle of fellow RPG fans or fellow collectors; I don't think most people I know who play games will have played either title tbh. They may have noticed Suikoden on the PSN store but doubt they ever bought it.
Again among people like ourselves none of these games are truly hidden gems. We simply breath this stuff.
Also again you ignore regions. We didn't have Operation Rainfall. These games were just released for Wii. Kind of like sleeper releases. I stumbled upon a sole copy of The Last Story in a Virgin Megastores; noticed it was made by Mistwalker. Honestly at the time I paid little attention to the Wii as Nintendo first party titles aside it was generally motion control shovel ware. I went home read up on it, then went back to the store and bought it. Much the same happened with Pandora's Tower, only I decided against buying it as it wasn't for me.
And yes I'm aware of the Evolution series. I once made a list of all the J-RPGs available in the PAL region. Read into each, watching gameplay and such. And had ambitions of buying them all. But I gave up on that endeavor. Far too expensive and wouldn't have the time to play them all anyways. A pipe dream :D
Perhaps a stipulation should have been the game has to have sold less than 1 million copies worldwide via VG Chartz. But then plenty of games listed above, including by me wouldn't be 'hidden gems'.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning - 2.04 million
Duke Nukem Forever - 2 million
Resonance of Fate - 1.07 million
Vanquish - 1.04 million
Games wich have sold over 1million copies could be considered a hidden gem if they are pretty much forgotten or under rated.
However this is an example of the wii rpg trilogy it's to popular to be a hidden gem
Suikoden 1 was a hidden gem however over time it has gotten popular and lost it's hidden gem status with a high fanbase.
Were talking about the present not about the past.
Lost odyssey for xbox 360 is a nice hidden gem. Sold pretty well but pretty much forgotten in the present.
Even if you make the argument about the present, Pandora's Tower's still is a hidden gem. It wasn't really talked about that much in comparision to the Last Story/Xenoblade on its release; and most people didn't really know too much about it since the amount of Wii software from third parties dropped pretty significantly after 2010. You still don't really hear about it being talked too much nowadays in general gaming circles.
Aye honestly the only two exclusive third party titles I hear mentioned regularly for Wii are Mad World and Xenoblade Chronicles, Everything else gets buries under the weight of Mario Galaxy and Super Smash Bros Brawl
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The Wii in particular is ripe with hidden gems considering how many dismissed it as having no decent games ???
1) The Munchables (Wii)
The multicoloured, caffeine-soaked offspring of a basic 3D platformer and Katamari. You have to scoff space pirates who are all composed of food while rushing around big lush levels. An absolute treat with a cracking soundtrack.
2) Eledees (Wii)
A weird mix of physics game, shoot em up and hide and seek. Thrown on the casual-crap pile by almost everyone (myself included), later levels require a strategy and time management in order to gain access to the little sods before the time limit ends. Everything in Eledees has a weight, so you can't throw heavy objects to check them for varmints before levelling up. In later levels you start with small items of furniture but end up chucking small buildings around. It's a hoot, with a touching story too.
3) Banjo Kazooie Nuts & Bolts (360)
The game nobody wanted, yet locked under the vehicle tinkering is the same Rare platforming magic that's always been there. A truly quality game in a sea of third-person open-world shooter greyness.
4) Bladestorm: The Hundred Year War (360/PS3)
Though re-released and added-to under the title Bladestorm: Nightmare on newer systems, this remains a slightly flawed but fun sprawling battlefield game ready to kick your butt at a moment's notice.
5) Dante's Inferno (360/PS3)
A full-priced title and certainly not a hidden one by any means, nor a terrible seller, but nonetheless now seemingly out of mind. Wasn't perfect, not enough enemy varieties for my liking, but epic bosses, not least Satan's wobbling Johnson, a terrifying battle.
6) Project Sylpheed (360)
Early release from Squaresoft, X-Wing meets anime, fun game which gets even better with New Game +.
7) Sacred 3 (360/PS3)
Another one which nobody wanted and sank without a trace, but it's actually a fun combat-centred Diablo 3-alike. A little repetitive, but a perfectly fun game.
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Aye honestly the only two exclusive third party titles I hear mentioned regularly for Wii are Mad World and Xenoblade Chronicles, Everything else gets buries under the weight of Mario Galaxy and Super Smash Bros Brawl
Yeah, there are ton of great hidden gems on the Wii that got missed due to being niche titles. There's a ton of them mentioned here: http://vgcollect.com/forum/index.php/topic,4398.msg59944.html#msg59944
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Just wanted to chime it to say that I've been playing RPGs for most of my life and had never heard of Operation Rainfall until a few years ago when I first started hearing about Xenoblade Chronicles being difficult to find. I didn't pay much attention to the game because I 1) didn't have a Wii and 2) had never heard of the game in general (didn't recognize it).
Only after looking into Operation Rainfall did I then learn about Pandora's Tower and The Last Story. Wouldn't have known about either of those had I not looked into it.
I never played the Suikoden games (never heard of it until a friend mentioned letting me borrow Suikoden II), and I would've easily missed Persona 3 had I not seen a quick blurb about it in a magazine. None of my friends had ever heard of the game at that time.
Now, does this make me any less of a serious gamer or collector? Some might say yes, but does it really matter? The OP acknowledges that the term "hidden gems" is too contested, so it was just a nice thread about some games that some of us might have glossed over or missed.
For instance, I would've passed over some of the names mentioned in this thread because I hadn't heard anything positive (or negative) about them really, so it now gives me a reason to give something a proper look :)
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Just wanted to chime it to say that I've been playing RPGs for most of my life and had never heard of Operation Rainfall until a few years ago when I first started hearing about Xenoblade Chronicles being difficult to find. I didn't pay much attention to the game because I 1) didn't have a Wii and 2) had never heard of the game in general (didn't recognize it).
Only after looking into Operation Rainfall did I then learn about Pandora's Tower and The Last Story. Wouldn't have known about either of those had I not looked into it.
I never played the Suikoden games (never heard of it until a friend mentioned letting me borrow Suikoden II), and I would've easily missed Persona 3 had I not seen a quick blurb about it in a magazine. None of my friends had ever heard of the game at that time.
Now, does this make me any less of a serious gamer or collector? Some might say yes, but does it really matter? The OP acknowledges that the term "hidden gems" is too contested, so it was just a nice thread about some games that some of us might have glossed over or missed.
For instance, I would've passed over some of the names mentioned in this thread because I hadn't heard anything positive (or negative) about them really, so it now gives me a reason to give something a proper look :)
Yea sure maybe during the release but after the xenoblade hype one cannot simply consider an operation rainfall title to be a hidden gem. You said so yourselves that you heard about it during that hype, same thing happened to me with the xenoblade hype.
Sure during release not many have heard about it but things have chanced. If one knows xenoblade it is likely that they have heard about the other 2 wii rpg's as well. These are the rpg's to go to on the wii console It's not that hidden these days for the average gamer. These are the titles that people want when they start collecting for wii. Hell no that it can be even considered a hidden gem if that's the case.
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Blah-blah-blah.
The Last Story is absolutely a hidden gem. Especially if you listen to what TC discussed in his initial post.
You can use whatever criteria you want for what hidden gem means; could be that the game didn't sell well, generally low ratings, games that just flew under the radar entirely, whatever you want.
Check your lipstick before you start coming for people.
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Blah-blah-blah.
The Last Story is absolutely a hidden gem. Especially if you listen to what TC discussed in his initial post.
"You can use whatever criteria you want for what hidden gem means; could be that the game didn't sell well, generally low ratings, games that just flew under the radar entirely, whatever you want."
Check your lipstick before you start coming for people.
(https://i.imgflip.com/5yxbm.jpg)
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Cute.
Funny that you cared enough to post a meme.
<3
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Just wanted to chime it to say that I've been playing RPGs for most of my life and had never heard of Operation Rainfall until a few years ago when I first started hearing about Xenoblade Chronicles being difficult to find. I didn't pay much attention to the game because I 1) didn't have a Wii and 2) had never heard of the game in general (didn't recognize it).
Only after looking into Operation Rainfall did I then learn about Pandora's Tower and The Last Story. Wouldn't have known about either of those had I not looked into it.
I never played the Suikoden games (never heard of it until a friend mentioned letting me borrow Suikoden II), and I would've easily missed Persona 3 had I not seen a quick blurb about it in a magazine. None of my friends had ever heard of the game at that time.
Now, does this make me any less of a serious gamer or collector? Some might say yes, but does it really matter? The OP acknowledges that the term "hidden gems" is too contested, so it was just a nice thread about some games that some of us might have glossed over or missed.
For instance, I would've passed over some of the names mentioned in this thread because I hadn't heard anything positive (or negative) about them really, so it now gives me a reason to give something a proper look :)
Yea sure maybe during the release but after the xenoblade hype one cannot simply consider an operation rainfall title to be a hidden gem. You said so yourselves that you heard about it during that hype, same thing happened to me with the xenoblade hype.
Sure during release not many have heard about it but things have chanced. If one knows xenoblade it is likely that they have heard about the other 2 wii rpg's as well. These are the rpg's to go to on the wii console It's not that hidden these days for the average gamer. These are the titles that people want when they start collecting for wii. Hell no that it can be even considered a hidden gem if that's the case.
I am OP and I approve calling Last Story and Pandora's Tower hidden gems.
Why? Because I said that I don't care what your reason is for calling it a hidden gem.
Also any good game on Wii that isn't one of the big Nintendo IPs is a hidden gem in my book. That library is so overlooked the same way Gamecube was overlooked in its time.
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Not sure if they're hidden gems but I got these super cheap a few summers ago and loved them:
Batman: The Brave and the Bold: The Videogame
Secret Files: Tunguska
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Secret Files: Tunguska
I've been meaning to dive into this one :) Which platform did you get it on? I saw that it was on a few platforms, including PC.
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· Nier.
(http://oi64.tinypic.com/elcuft.jpg)
· El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron.
(http://oi65.tinypic.com/21v1vp.jpg)
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Opoona for Wii
Mamorukun Curse! for X360
Macross 30: The Voice that Connects the Galaxy for PS3
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Ok, a little big list, but here we go.
I classify all these as Hidden Gems mostly because I see no one talking about these. No media coverage, no friend chat, etc.
PS3
3D Dot Game hero
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/13780/medium_cover.png)
Zelda meets Minecraft, on a good way. Basicaly it’s a classic action RPG that pays homage to such games and have a nice voxel art graphic with phenomenal light and camera effects, as well as an interesting crafting system and character creation tool.
Asura's Wrath
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/877/medium_cover.png)
Extreme badass quick time event plus hack n’ slash game. The downside is that the last chapter is a DLC. Speaking of, you can fight Street Fighter Ryu and Akuma on two of these extra contents.
Catherine
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/925/medium_cover.png)
Sude 51, which means craziness at its best. Half the time you are on real life trying to survive a conturbed relationship, and on the other half you’re on a hellish puzzle nightmare.
Dead Nation
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/22371/medium_cover.png)
2D Co-op Top-Down Twin Stick Shooter with lots of zombies. Pretty hard and fun.
Enslaved
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/976/medium_cover.png)
Journey to the West all over again, but on a Sci-Fi scenario. Solid Hack N’ Slash with great story and a well-made companion mechanic.
Ibb & Obb
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/34550/medium_cover.png)
A simple 2D Co-op platform that will increase the bonds with your friends or will break then.
Outland
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/1104/medium_cover.png)
Metroidvania with the Ikaruga color mechanic.
Pac-Man Championship Edition DX
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/1106/medium_cover.png)
It’s Pac-man on steroids!
Puppetear
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/28947/medium_cover.png)
I love this game. It’s a 2D platform were you control a headless puppet on a theater kind world. The main mechanics are your head, which you can swift with other enemies, if I remember correct, and your scissor. Mostly of the BK and enemies can be cut like silk.
Also the story is really nice, giving a Studio Ghibli vibe, and was fantastic dub. Se você for de um país que fale português sugiro jogar dublado em PT-BR.
Tokyo Jungle
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/23735/medium_cover.png)
Strange Japanese survivor with animals. Really hard to describe, but… it’s a semi-random generated world were you need to spend your days as a pub, or a t-rex, trying to get food, breed and fight other creatures.
Valkyria Chronicles
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/14118/medium_cover.png)
One of the best tactical games I have played. Really nice cell shading, no tile movement limitation and so much more. This was so complete that I can’t possible say every feature. Just play already.
Vanquish
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/4/1248/medium_cover.png)
For me the best shooter on PS3. It’s really fast passed and the weapons have a immense variety. Super fun.
Wii
A Boy and His Blob
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/3/24076/medium_cover.png)
Remake of the NES title A Boy and His Blob: Trouble on Blobolonia. Solid platform combined with cleaver puzzle mechanics. Remember a little Heart of Darkness, although more light hearted a forgivable.
Boom Blox / Boom Blox Bash Party
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/3/14208/medium_cover.png)(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/3/454/medium_cover.png)
Puzzle party games “directed” by Steven Spielberg. Some modes are poor made, such as the castle battle, others you could play through other means, such as Jenga, but in the end the package justifies the price as there tons of variety. For me the best was the rail shooter like one.
Cars 2
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/3/472/medium_cover.png)
Disney game? Yep! I found through the years that games based in Disney movies somehow are very good, and this one is no exception. Arcade racing as it’s best with power-ups and a battle mod that will put Mario Kart on it’s knees.
Ivy the Kiwi?
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/3/14372/medium_cover.png)
Cellphone games selling on physical media? That’s something you don’t see every day. This cute IOS game come to Wii, and I think NDS, quite unnoticeable and even I was skeptical after seen the cover, but in the end it was a very good time waster with gameplay similar, but not quite identical, to Kirby’s Canvas Course. How would know?
Lost in Shadow
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/3/602/medium_cover.png)
My second choice on this console right after Mario Galaxy, believe or not. I was on the vibe of Limbo so a game were you control a shadow was very appellative to me. This is a light hack n’ slash 2D puzzle platform with really intriguing mechanics and an history like Ico.
Muramasa: The Demon Blade
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/3/14450/medium_cover.png)
The best game on the console, side by side with Punch Out and Super Mario Galaxy 2, and the best metroidvania hack n’ slash. The art is also something unique.
Pandora's Tower
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/3/670/medium_cover.png)
Oh boy, how I was wrong about this one. At first I was like “time limit and no save unless on the main hub? I won’t play this shit”. That was my after tutorial impression. Then I played a bit more… last week. Lol And this is actually a pretty fun Hack n’ Slash with RPG mechanics.
Phantom Brave: We Meet Again
(http://media.alvanista.com/uploads/game/3/14507/medium_cover.png)
First, play on your PSP. If you don’t have one than go for the Wii. Not that the game is bad, just that this is a port with the PSP resolution! Putting that aside, another solid Atlus tactical RPG that plays much like Disgaea.
The only ones I didn’t mention were indie games, as normally these are mostly unknown to public and I have almost 500 of these titles.
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Very nice picks! Boom Blox was super popular when it came out and then just faded. Glad to see it rise from the ashes again :) Also, I got Boy and His Blob in a bundle recently and am looking forward to trying it out for the first time.
Welcome to the site!
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Thanks for the wealcome. ^^ I hope you enjoy the game.