Support NeoGAF

[Shadowstar39]

What are some games from steam/psn /eshop etc that arent aaa but you love and think others should try?
(was a comment in other thread but I thought it should have its own post.)

Here are some of my favorites from steam, but I can list tons from the consoles too.

Gnomes.- tower defense style rogue like.

Tiny Rogues - twin stick indy rpg with 15+ character classes and unique runs and 1000s of weapons and items. Super fast paced action all gameplay. Game is great on PC or steam deck.

Gunlocked - auto scrolling ship combat /asteroids type rogue like shmup. Great on the deck.

Farthest Frontier - from the grim dawn devs. Medieval city builder with raider mechanic. Like banished but better

That's just a sampling. Ive found so many great gems that people on here would shit on because (real graphics aren't cinematic or realistic)

Please list some hidden gem games.

 

[BennyBlanco]

turn based survival horror with great art

 

[Hudo]

Not sure if this is something that many don't know about or not (I guess it is somewhat known):

 

[Artistic]

Does South of Midnight fall under this category?

 

[Guilty_AI]

(Also on GOG)

 

[Alexios]

 

[silentstorm]

Sektori- A Twin Stick Shooter made by a former member of Housemarque that did indeed work on Nex Machina, his version of Geometry Wars basically and it's fantastic:

Fantasy Maiden Wars- A Fire Emblem(classic style, no dating sim elements) like retelling of the first Touhou games with the plot expanded a lot, gather a big crew of the girls, two big routes and blast enemies like crazy...i say kinda Fire Emblem, but there isn't an ammo limit to attacks like the classic games:

Tetrachroma- Tetris with Reversi elements, there is still classic mode, excellent variant of Tetris:

The Drifter- Serious adventure game, meaning very little comedy, about...well, you, a homeless drifter, getting accidentally involved in a conspirancy that leads to people absolutely wanting to get rid of the Drifter and having to survive, again, don't worry about cringe comedy or anything like that:

 

[Alexios]

 

[Alexios]

 

[Alexios]

 

[Alexios]

 

[Branded]

turn based survival horror with great art

Had that on the wishlist but looking at it some more and it seems incredibly slow and clunky to control?

 

[Alexios]

 

[drotahorror]

Voin. Cool Melee/spell looter with extraction elements (single player only).

Hell Clock. Great rogue-lite with tons of fun builds and plenty of depth. You can also move faster than anything game I've ever seen. POE1 Cyclone on steroids

I wish gaf could embed webm. Steam uses webm now and I have to convert everything.

 

[El Hee-Ho]

Spoiler

 

[SomeNorseGuy]

turn based survival horror with great art

Well that looks like my cup of tea, thanks!

 

[Kupfer]

 

[calico]

Mauler on youtube is streaming Look Outside right now as it happens. He also has a 17 hour video analysis of Star Wars Outlaws releasing in a couple of days.

 

[SomeNorseGuy]

Added, looks fun

And Silent Storm is such an amazing game, loved blowing up buildings - making baddies into paste and making my PC almost kneel under the strain of calculating all the mayhem.

 

[March Climber]

Played this a few months ago. Don't let it's artstyle fool you. It is essentially someone taking the dungeon designs of a 3D Zelda and the platforming design of Mario 64(including the fluid feel of it) mashed together into one incredible gem of a game.

 

[El Hee-Ho]

Added, looks fun

Knowing you I bet you are going to love that game.

And Silent Storm is such an amazing game, loved blowing up buildings - making baddies into paste and making my PC almost kneel under the strain of calculating all the mayhem.

Hahaha damn, we had a similar experience back then lol. Game's super cool for sure, and every fan of games like X-COM should check it out.

Played this a few months ago. Don't let it's artstyle fool you. It is essentially someone taking the dungeon designs of a 3D Zelda and the platforming design of Mario 64(including the fluid feel of it) mashed together into one incredible gem of a game.

I purchased this eons ago and still haven't touched it. You make it sound real good so I'll try and save some time for it soon.

 

[March Climber]

I purchased this eons ago and still haven't touched it. You make it sound real good so I'll try and save some time for it soon.

It was actually one of the Xbox Games with Gold a year or two ago, which is how I ended up playing it. This year I made it my goal to complete all of my Games for Gold so that I could unsubscribe since I wasn't interested in game pass.

Blue Fire stood out far and above most of the other gold titles that weren't AAA.

Not only do they utilize both design philosophies, but they combine them so that you are using the verticality and platforming to solve multi-level puzzles. It is very smart design that does not waste the combination of the two.

It starts out a bit slow in the first area (sewers) but just keeps getting better and better, especially the more you unlock new abilities and platforming skills, making it worth backtracking because there are entire floors you'll be missing your first time through a dungeon.

 

[mèx]

Another thread in which I can shill UNSIGHTED, hell yeah. It's a mix of Zelda and Metroidvania with an excellently design map that is actually fun to figure out. By far one the best games of 2021, it's criminal that it's not more well known.

This one has a campaign mode reminiscent of Half Life and a more open game mode that has some STALKER vibes. The dev is developing his next game, Project Silverfish, which takes inspiration from STALKER.

One of the best 2D platformers ever made. I have played the pre-DX version only though.

Hardcore platforming oriented Metroidvania. Don't mind the reviews, the majority of them are complaining about the platforming being too hard. Just git gud.

Ok, this is not niche at all since it has 36k reviews, but I never see it mentioned here on NeoGAF weirdly enough. It's a story heavy action platformer, it's recommended to play with M&K. Great stuff.

 

[El Hee-Ho]

It was actually one of the Xbox Games with Gold a year or two ago, which is how I ended up playing it. This year I made it my goal to complete all of my Games for Gold so that I could unsubscribe since I wasn't interested in game pass.

Funny you say that because the first game I recommended, Furi, is an absolute gem that I discovered only because it came out on PS+ back then, and it's probably the best thing they ever gave while I was subscribed for sure.

Not only do they utilize both design philosophies, but they combine them so that you are using the verticality and platforming to solve multi-level puzzles. It is very smart design that does not waste the combination of the two.

It starts out a bit slow in the first area (sewers) but just keeps getting better and better, especially the more you unlock new abilities and platforming skills, making it worth backtracking because there are entire floors you'll be missing your first time through a dungeon.

Well, not really since I already have it but you get me right.

 

[calico]

Maybe not that hidden, but I rate all of them. Bottom three will depend if you like the niche, but I think many would enjoy the top one.

 

[March Climber]

Funny you say that because the first game I recommended, Furi, is an absolute gem that I discovered only because it came out on PS+ back then, and it's probably the best thing they ever gave while I was subscribed for sure.

Well, not really since I already have it but you get me right.

Here's one more cool thing to sell you: In order to get a new heart for your life bar, you have to find these statues that warp you to a platforming challenge level (think of the star worlds/extra zones in 3D Mario games where the background is usually just space).

They have difficulty ratings but they are all fun, challenging, but doable with good skill. You can also come back to them later if you feel you just need a bit extra platforming skills unlocked to make things easier.

 

[El Hee-Ho]

Here's one more cool thing to sell you: In order to get a new heart for your life bar, you have to find these statues that warp you to a platforming challenge level (think of the star worlds/extra zones in 3D Mario games where the background is usually just space).

They have difficulty ratings but they are all fun, challenging, but doable with good skill. You can also come back to them later if you feel you just need a bit extra platforming skills unlocked to make things easier.

Did I ever tell you that those were my favorite parts of Mario Sunshine? Difficult and self-contained platforming challenges are rarely not fun.

 

[SomeNorseGuy]

Maybe not that hidden, but I rate all of them. Bottom three will depend if you like the niche, but I think many would enjoy the top one.

Sweet list, great taste. The enlargening of my game library continues.

 

[Labadal]

I usually always recommend the same games, but today, I will recommend:

 

[Shadowstar39]

Like descent. Awesome. Overload is another like it. I wish these were on console though. As the only game similar on console is forsaken64 on n64 nso emulator.

 

[Merkades]

If you like turn based jrpgs in an open world, FF5 type class system with platforming and metroidvania then try

It also has an extensive mod database through steam workshop as well as a free built in mod editor. The game is quite lengthy and on the harder side imo. It also has a few full conversion mods making it into a different game (like a fan FF game), a ton of value for 14 dollars. Ah, yeah, the game is built using squares, like minecraft but much better looking, minus the characters and monsters, they are normal sprites. It has no real hand holding though, so it can be difficult to know what to do next.

Actually, I think I will add some more

 

[Shadowstar39]

I usually always recommend the same games, but today, I will recommend:

Awesome more to the wishlist. So many good ones in this thread I never knew or forgot I wish listed.

Here is another similar in the 80s /early 90s crpg vein:

 

[drotahorror]

Fun fact. In the mid 90's when I was a mallrat, I used to bullshit with an employee at EB Games/ Walden Software. He ended up working on that game, now works for Sony, and now he's gay apparently.

 

[AJUMP23]

Cool thread guys.

 

[silentstorm]

CometStriker DX- Shooter where you fight enemies on static screens and there are various routes to pick, never hear anyone mention this game but i find it fun:

Dropsy- I mentioned The Drifter, a serious dark adventure game...so now a comedic light hearted game where you play as a scary looking fat mute clown who has been framed for starting a fire that killed people...Dropsy's solution is of course to befriend and hug as many people as he can, really charming game:

Chrono Gear:Warden Of Time- This one is odd...from the creators of Freedom Planet 1 and 2, some of the best 16-Bit Sonic clones or inspired games comes...a Hololive fan game...it's a 2D platformer, and much like Freedom Planet, it's a good platformer, don't know as much about Hololive as some others, but i guess lore is crazy considering what you fight in this game:

Jupiter Hell- Roguelike(Actual roguelike, not roguelite) with 3D graphics based on DOOM...like, they don't try to hide it, this game is basically a developer taking classic DOOM, the first two games and lore, and adapting it to roguelike gameplay and changing some names and stuff to not get cancelled, so demons are now on Jupiter instead of Mars...they are also doing a new game called Jupiter Hell Classic which is a what-if demake that turns the game into a 2D one and...i haven't played it so i can't tell you if it's good, i just know that Jupiter Hell itself is great:

House Of Necrosis- May as well go for another roguelike, this one is a Mystery Dungeon like game that tries to look like a PS1 game and is basically what if PS1 Survival Horror game but roguelike:

...Okay, i lied, it's not completely roguelike, there is one roguelite element in a way in that you can permanently unlock new stuff for your main character that will be in every future run...spells:

Because if you try to make PS1 Resident Evil into a roguelike, may as well put Final Fantasy in too, though you can only use spells once per run, they are pretty damn useful, but aside from this, it's a good horror themed roguelike.

 

[Vaquilla]

Turbo Overkill is an absolutely amazing shooter that's hardly talked about at all outside of niche circles.

13 Sentinels is also a brilliant game that deserves far more recognition.

 

[willothedog]

Old but gold

 

[EverydayBeast]

Really enjoyed Biomutant.

The collecting, upgrading, powering up trends are all here.

The game has a distinctive narration named David Shaw Parker one of the most successful narrators and actor who had done more than a dozen video games.

 

[TheGreatMusashi]

I have been obsessed with this game since it came out. I love how fast new squads and equipment unlock. It's a great time.

 

[TheGreatMusashi]

Another great game, kind of like Oblivion mixed with Diablo. I finished it a couple weeks ago and am still going back to play more. Wish there were more looter shooters like this one.

 

[drotahorror]

Anyone up in this thread should follow this thread too:

https://www.neogaf.com/threads/upco...d-to-that-not-many-people-know-about.1681345/

 

[Durin]

Not sure if hidden gem, but a lesser known compared to the likes of Hades. Good platformer rogue-lite, 4 unique characters with different abilities.

Top down shooter, from on the ground with your character to on your customizable ship in a Steampunk world.

Basically My Hero Academia, but you're in a sports RPG where you're going to a dodgeball school to be the best at dodgeball.

Similar to Tiny Glade, where you have a chill art diorama game, but gives you a bit more control to build your own environments, and pretty easy to learn.

PS2-era hidden gem, Egyptian-themed 3d action platformer remastered, and even includes an entire engine mod editor.

 

[adamsapple]

One of the better indie horror games I've played, also on consoles too.

The basic gist is that it's a game inside a game scenario. You (the player) are given an executable to play a cursed horror game (which you also fully control) and things from that start bleeding into the "real" world.

Really fun.

 

[dreamstation]

Everything by THE BROTHERHOOD in fact.

 

[Plague Doctor]

An almost perfect game. Like 9.5/10 because the dev wanted to piss off some people late into development with dumb ass choices which are inconsequential to the game in character creation, and the friendly npcs are cutesy, quirky tonal whiplash to the entire vibe/plot.

Other than that, the gameplay, the soundtrack, everything is perfect.

I cannot stress how amazing this game is inspite of its small flaws.

 

[NanaMiku]

 

[kpopSuperstar]

 

[poppabk]

Game is old and maybe isn't unknown but I feel like it got little attention while Braid (which has a very similar feel) got massive amounts of kudos and awards. Thought this was a much better game.

 

[Neolombax]

Absolum. I consider it to be a smaller title, and it got nominated in TGA, so there's that too. One of the better games I've played this year.

 

[KimDongHwan]

An almost perfect game. Like 9.5/10 because the dev wanted to piss off some people late into development with dumb ass choices which are inconsequential to the game in character creation, and the friendly npcs are cutesy, quirky tonal whiplash to the entire vibe/plot.

Other than that, the gameplay, the soundtrack, everything is perfect.

I cannot stress how amazing this game is inspite of its small flaws.

Didn't get what was the choice or flaw with it? Or is it a spoiler ?