Mine has to be Dragon Quest: Rocket Slime, a DS spin off of the Dragon Quest series that sees you playing as a slime operating a tank and rescuing the people from your town. You run around the overworld, collecting items to use as ammunition and saving money to upgrade your tank. The art and music are just as great as you’d expect from the Dragon Quest series. It made fantastic use of the DS’s dual screens. It’s also written for a younger audience, so a lot of it is just really silly and fun! Try it out for sure, I’m so sad there’s no sequel :(
In certain circles it is well known, but Baba Is You is one of the most ingenious games for a long while and should be known even wider.
One of the only puzzle games that made me think I’m dumb and give up. It’s fantastic
Fantastic game. If anyone is interested, you can download the original concept version of the game that the dev made for a Game Jam. It kinda acts like a free 20 min demo for the full version. You can find the download link here.
Every time you solve a puzzle, you feel like you’re cheating and that can’t be the intended solution. It’s such a tough game
I’m not a gamer but I do enjoy Real Civil Engineer’s youtube channel, he’s played Baba Is You a few times.
Played it with some friends on a pass the controller night. Really fun and makes you think.
Initially looks just a simple twist on Sokoban, but the game mechanic just keeps going deeper and deeper and blowing your mind.
I could do that?
I COULD DO THAT?!
Truly a unique game. Super challenging for people who think they “know” puzzle games lol
I really want to finish it but my brain can’t keep up and stops working after a while
Among all the love Bioware gets for KotOR and Mass Effect I’m genuinely surprised more people aren’t talking about Jade Empire.
It’s a full fledged classic Bioware RPG set in an interesting world based on Chinese mythology, has some great characters and a fun (if simple) combat system. Voice acting is mostly good too, especially for a 2005 game and it even has John Cleese doing a part!
I loved it when it came out and am stumped as to why it never became a BioWare mainstay. Maybe releasing as an exclusive for the original Xbox just killed it, but if you enjoy this style of RPG I highly recommend checking it out!
Jade empire was legit. i’m really surprised that there haven’t been any other kung fu type rpgs since.
In parallel universe we would have had Jade Empire (series) written by Bioware at their peak with combat by Platinum games.
Or maybe some could make SF6 story mode X Jade Empire.
In parallel universe we would have had Jade Empire (series) written by Bioware at their peak with combat by Platinum games.
I hadn’t even thought about that but you’re right. What a wonderful thought.
It’s also kind of surprising no effort has been done to remaster Jade Empire since that is such a popular cash grab these days. But maybe the brand strength of the IP is just that low?
Any love for the Monkey Island series here?
Planetside 2 - someone else already mentioned it here, but it’s the only game in it’s genre and nothing else really comes close to what it offers (persistent 1v1v1 +300 player battles across infantry, land, air, and sea). It’s been kicking for over a decade now and I’m not sure what could replace it if or when it finally kicks it. It’s truly singular, and responsible for some of my fondest memories in gaming. It’s also free!
Return of the Obra Dinn is an amazing game that I wish I could play again for the first time. The art style is super unique and the attention to detail in every aspect of the game is incredible.
Highly recommend.
I agree, I really wish I could erase it from my memory and play it again. It’s not an obscure game but I think it’s hard for it to stay relevant on social media and in the zeitgeist since it’s both short and not a game you really replay.
I’ve tried to recapture the feeling of playing it by watching others play but most people approach it poorly and impatiently and just end up guessing too much.
If anyone else is in the same boat the best one I’ve found by far is MangledPork.
Lucas Pope is an incredible game designer. I’m very excited to see what he comes up with next
Black and White, it was a god simulator on PC in 2001. You interact with your villagers and the world as a floating hand, casting spells to raise faith in villages or throwing rocks to smite as necessary. You also got a giant pet that you could train to do your bidding.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_%26_White_(video_game)
Crimson Skies for OG Xbox. It’s pirates in planes dogfighting, we need a remake badly.
The prequel that only came out on PC was really good, too. But the Xbox version was better for sure.
Always been more of a console guy so I didn’t even know there was a prequel!
Mine is definitely Freelancer. The game by Chris Roberts that actually got finished by firing him.
I love that game, the story is engaging and the characters are likeable.
I’m probably just seeing it with nostalgia but I like to play it until this day. I installed it on my Steam Deck and gave it a go. It was awesome.
American McGee’s Alice and the much later sequel which is my favourite game of all time - Alice: Madness Returns.
The aesthetic, the puzzles, the sound design, the voice acting, the political statements underlying the narrative, Alice’s outfits, the collectibles hidden in obscure places, the different art styles for each world level. I just love it! I mean sure, the combat mechanics are not as complex as some games but they fit nicely into Alice in Wonderland lore and if you up the difficulty settings it can be more challenging.
I’m also really enjoying Inscryption at the moment. A puzzle/card game interweaved with an escape the room horror story.
I cannot believe these games aren’t talked about, madness returns was so dark and good. Loved both these games.
Sooooo dark. Especially the reveal for the final boss. Agh, gonna have to do a replay now 😂
Both are great games! Inscryption was the only game I’ve ever bought on launch after seeing gameplay videos and I had no regrets. Hope you enjoy it too!
Deeper cut—the same dev has a game called a the Hex and I can never get anyone to play it, but it’s fucking brilliant. I rate it higher than Inscryption. People see preview and nope out because of the graphics. I went in blind and the graphics are explained after like 30 minutes. It’s genius and amazing and the least appreciated game I’ve rated higher than an 8/10.
I was definitely a bit put off by the graphics from the Hex, and didn’t really get the references to it in Inscryption. I might give it a try since you’re recommending it.
Pony Island was a hell of a game, though. I remember watching the gameplay videos and being impressed at how innovative Daniel Mullins games were.
Pleeeeeeease try the hex, and go in blind. I ended up liking it MORE than Inscryption, and I LOVE Inscryption. The Hex is a fucking masterpiece and I think the “graphics” you see in previews really held back lots of people (including me) from playing it.
But Yahtzee mentioned it as one of the best games he’s played in a review and refused to elaborate, and usually when he does that it means I should just pick it up and go in blind (see: The forgotten city)
Incredible experience, if you even kinda enjoyed Pony Island… oh man, PLEASE get The Hex and if you do, please come back here and let me know how you felt at certain points. It would make me so happy, it’s soooo difficult to get anyone to experience that amazing game. And it’s like NO MONEY hahaha
I keep trying to upload an image but I think lemmy.world is having a bit of a brain fart atm.
I’ll try linking it instead 😂
Oh man Alice! I actually never played it, but I have great memories of the game. One of the first graphics cards I ever got had an Alice graphic printed super big on the box for Madness Returns release. Think it was around the GTX 500 series.
Please go play it and experience the epicness! :D
My Summer Car. It’s probably still #1 for play time on Steam for me. I bought a whole-ass racing wheel setup just for that game.
Looks like Mon Bazou - though probably with less maple syrup power ups 😂 https://store.steampowered.com/app/1520370/Mon_Bazou/
It’s exactly where the inspiration for Mon Bazou came from. People been asking for My Winter Car for years
I used to watch a streamer play My Summer Car whenever I could. I love the games that are just their own thing.
I concur, hell I am so tempted to buy a Datsun 100A irl just because of that game…
If I had a legitimate opportunity to buy one I would seriously consider it
I’ve been to Finland back in 2000s and must say that game is 100% realistic!
Hard to settle on just one. In no order:
- ChuChu Rocket (Dreamcast): insanely fun and manic couch multiplayer game
- A10 Tank Killer II: Silent Thunder (PC): the soundtrack alone justifies the time to play this aging flight sim
- Virtual On (Arcade): this was ported to Saturn and the port is good, but the giant arcade machine is where it’s really at with dual twin stick cockpits
- Mario Paint (SNES): Really fun non-game from a time when non-games were uncommon on home consoles. I have hundreds of hours into this
- Dungeon Keeper (PC): darkly comedic evil dungeon lord management sim. I will never forgive EA for what they did to Bullfrog and subsequently the DK franchise. There have been many attempted homages and clones but none have captured the magic.
- Super Tennis (SNES): an actually fun tennis game
- Super Play Action Football (SNES): football game with a unique isometric view
- Hank Parker’s Super Black Bass 2 (SNES): super fun fishing sim. I wish there were games like this today that took fishing more seriously and less arcadey. Brain Age (DS): a genuine sensation in its heyday and largely forgotten now. Really showed off the potential of the DS
Mine would be tunic , It feels like top down old school Zelda but puzzles that will blow your mind when you get the context. If you haven’t played tunic before don’t watch any review just buy the game and play it.
This is a 10/10 game where I wish to forget about it to play this again.
CrossCode. It’s an SNES-style action RPG with very fun combat, 2D-Zelda-like puzzles, and a genuinely charming well-written story that was made in HTML5 and JavaScript for some reason. It is genuinely my favorite game of all time. I habitually proselyte this game to friends, but check it out for the love of God
Rise of Nations. It’s like Civilization but as a real-time strategy game and I really enjoy it. Microsoft actually released an updated edition in 2014 which was good of them but I basically never hear anyone actually talk about it which sucks because it’s such a cool game. The single-player Conquer the World campaigns are also cool, and have some elements reminiscent of the classic Risk board game.
There’s also Star Trek: Bridge Commander, which is often mentioned in discussions of “what Star Trek games were good?” but not much outside of that context. It strikes a perfect balance between having starship combat that really feels like you’re commanding a ship with a lot of mass behind it and actually being fun and easy for an average person to pick up and play (which is where stuff like the X Universe games fall down). There are tons of “space fighter” games out there but I’ve never really seen anything that captures space capital ship combat as well as Bridge Commander.
I was a Bridge Commander fanatic, picked it up at launch, played way too much of it, modded til it broke dozens of times, participated in the forums, even wrote a GeoCities page where I put out tips for the more challenging campaign missions and did write-ups on every playable ship in the game. Good times.
RoN is also awesome, and is on sale on Steam! Purchased!
Bridge Commander’s modding scene is something else. So many cool ships, graphics overhauls, and even mods that added new mechanics like saucer/multi-vector separation. Truly amazing how much you can mod that game, even if it does get pretty unstable.
And glad you could take advantage of the Steam sale to pick up Rise of Nations: Extended Edition!
I saw an ad video for bridge commander on my armada 2 cd, I wanted to play that game so badly, but by the time sales had stopped.
Years later I “found” it online and had a blast playing it.
Is it available anywhere now?
https://www.gog.com/en/game/star_trek_bridge_commander
They should have Armada as well.
Thanks, seems like I finally get to play it officially 😃
God, I loved RoN! It was like a better version of Empire Earth which, to me, was already like a better version of Age of Empires.
I mostly enjoyed the era changing, my favourite being the Napoleonic era. And I remember it having a good choice of campaigns/scenarios to play.
I thought RoN would spawn a series of titles but I think they just had Rise of Legends which was interesting but definitely not the same.
Still have my Rise of Nations CD somewhere. I loved games like Civilization, don’t even remember how I stumbled upon RoN, a really great game.
Rise of Nations was one of the best games ever. I spent so many hours playing.
The legend of dragoon has to be one of my favorite jrpgs and I would love for it to get a remake/remaster. Sadly it seems like Sony doesn’t care about it tho so I’m not hopeful
