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One of the best aspects of gaming as a hobby is that there’s an incredible amount of excellent games out there just waiting to be played. Seriously, all it takes to get one’s hands on something good is just a little bit of time on the ol’ internet machine. That said, though, this also means that just about everything save for legendary gamesThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild,Elden Ringor even Skyrim winds up getting buried and forgotten under the ever-flowing deluge of new releases. It’s a shame too, because even games that release to great acclaim and commercial success can’t resist it. So here are a few games both recent and ancient that don’t deserve that fate.
Ghost of Tsushima
In the months following Ghost of Tsushima’s release in 2020, the game was practically everywhereand for good reason.It’s a fantastic open-world historical fantasy with beautiful presentation, great music, interesting characters and satisfying gameplay. It even snagged the top spot on more than a fewGame of the Year lists. Yet, here we are three years later, and it’s as if it had never happened.
True, fans of the open-world format now have Elden Ring andHorizon: Forbidden Westto occupy their time, and both of those games are fantastic in their own rights. Still, Ghost of Tsushima’s beauty and atmosphere have yet to be overshadowed, so there’s an argument to be made for keeping it in the conversation. Also, this likely goes without saying, but those who haven’t played it yet are missing out.
System Shock
At this point, System Shock 2 has more or less been cemented as the single greatest sci-fi games ever made, a reputation it deserves. Its systems, themes, aesthetic and its villain all served as inspiration for many a game that followed, and it could very well be considered the game that launched the immersive sim genre. As the “2” in the title indicates, though, System Shock 2 didn’t come out of nowhere. There was indeed a System Shock 1 and it too was excellent for the time.
While its sequel ironed some aspects out, System Shock still offers a lot in terms of freedom and gameplay variety. Players aren’t led by the nose, but are instead just kind of loosed into the setting (Citadel Station) and subtly guided to initial gear and points of interest. From there its entirely up to each player to decide which of the many weapons, powers and approaches work best for them as S.H.O.D.A.N. (a rogue AI that’s effective the station itself) does its utmost to make the environment as hostile and inhospitable as possible. This along with some good level design and (mostly) good music makes for a game that didn’t deserve to be blotted out by its successor’s shadow.
Fortunately for both old fans and newcomers, Nightdive Studios hasalmost completed work on a remake.So if development concludes smoothly, System Shock will finally get its time in the sun after it releases on May 30.
Observation
In a year that saw the releases of games likeResident Evil 2andFire Emblem: Three Houses,it’s not that surprising that No Code’s Observation was on manyG.O.T.Y. lists.It is nevertheless a shame though, because it offers an excellent sci-fi story told through a different lens. See, Observation is the story of Dr. Emma Fisher and the strange events she goes through on a scientific outpost orbiting Saturn. So far so normal, but here’s the catch: Dr. Fisher isn’t the player character. Instead, players observe (and eventually) participate as the station’s AI: S.A.M.
SAM is little more than a glorified interactive operating system at first, but it doesn’t stay that way. What it becomes and how things play out, well, that’s the hook, isn’t it?Observationtakes its players on a fascinating journey, that while not entirely unpredictable, pulls of many good surprises and leaves one with many interesting questions to ponder. It’s in many ways unique when it comes to video game storytelling, so gaming would benefit if it’s more present in the industry’s collective consciousness.
The Forgotten City
Having started its life as a mod forThe Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim,The Forgotten City could be considered an unlikely success story. Mods being spun-off into successful games wasn’t unheard of before it came around (see also: Counter Strike), but it’s one of the few to see success and critical acclaim as both a mod and then later as a full-fledged game.
Despite the setting being changed from a Dwemer city to ancient Rome and the necessary plot reworks that came with it, The Forgotten City still managed to wow its players with a complex tale about the relationship between man and his laws. As a modern day outsider, players find themselves thrown back to a time when the city was still alive and thriving. So far so great, but the trick is that the city is about to be destroyed by its protector gods because someone is about to violate its laws. Its destruction is only the beginning, though, as players are looped back again and again until they can get to the bottom of what’s going on.
The Forgotten Citytasks players with getting to know the inhabitants and making decisions that won’t always yield a purely positive result. Fans of peeling back a story’s narrative layers and working their way to the core of things probably won’t find a better game out there, but that’s not the only reason why this game shouldn’t be left behind. It’s proof-positive that there’s still a huge amount of untapped potential in the modding scene that desperately needs to be explored. Who know how many incredible experiences are just waiting to break out of it?
Journey to the Savage Planet
If there’s one thing that’s difficult to do well in games, it’s comedy. Sure, games often have jokes and other qualities that can tease a chuckle or two out of their players, but that’s about it most of the time. It’s not that game humor tends to be bad, but rather that the sheer amount of time players spend in a game tends to grind it down until becomes either white noise or even annoying. It’s why comedy-oriented games are so few and far between and why even games that try their utmost to be funny often wind up falling flat before long. There are games though that have, against all odds, managed to keep the laughs going throughout andJourney to the Savage Planetis one of the best.
While it is a mechanically competent first-person adventure game at its core, Journey to the Savage Planet’s gameplay experience nevertheless hinges on its comedy. This is a downright silly universe, one that’s utterly unapologetic in its lunacy and yet is portrayed as completely normal in game. The jokes seemingly demand some kind of reaction from somewhere, and the search for that just makes finding all the planet’s (and Kindred’s) goofy nuggets all the more compelling. In other words, Journey to the Savage Planet’s zaniness is almost entirely internally consistent, keeping the humor fresh and fun throughout.
Comedy-focused titles often suffer from trying too hard, which ironically, always kills the joke no matter who or what’s telling it. It happened toDeadpool; it happened with High on Life, and it happened withBorderlands 3too. They’re all arguably good games, but they just couldn’t go the distance when it came to humor. Journey to the Savage Planet’s more passive approach of allowing players to explore a universe that only happens to be crazy rather then more direct “look at how crazy this is!” path of these other games is something that gaming needs to study and hang onto if comedy games are ever going to advance. Humor is capable of carrying a full gaming experience and this is the proof.
This list is, of course, by no means exhaustive, and one could argue that there are plenty of other amazing titles out there that are even more deserving. Still, though, it remains that these games, despite apparently being excellent, were nonetheless largely left behind. Those that haven’t yet had the pleasure of trying them out would be doing themselves (and gaming) a favor by picking one up, and those who have would be doing everyone else a favor by recommending some of their own favorites below!
