Great Obscure Games

[joshuaayt]

ObsCure, for PS2 and (as a port) the PSP.

Truly an obscure game, is ObsCure.

 

[ChromeAlchemist]

Sacrifice

I love you. But anyway...

Original War. Just...someone play it so I can shut up about it...

I think a user by the name of Valiance played it in the past? Forgive me if I butchered your user-name...But he's the only other person, in like, the world who played it.

Oh, and I used to play it on GameSpy online with some Polish guys. They were cool.

 

[Latinidiot]

The Void:
You play a recently deceased individual that has entered The Void.
The Void used to be filled with colour but the Brothers and sisters squandered it, colour doesn't like to be wasted.
You're givven one of the sisters hearts, a method through which to harvest, and bestow colour, and you must try to pass as a brother in order to avoid your destruction.
This game is very fucking pretty, fairly simple, but remarkebly hard to play as you must keep at least one of your heats filled with colour lest you simply fade away.

Iji:
A metroid style free indie game, where you play Iji, a young woman that was injured during an alien invaion that killed mch of humanity, while she was in a coma her brother and a team of scientists augmented her with the aliens tech so she could be their last hope.

Sounds standard so far doesn't it?
But this game is brilliant, it has a somewhat subtle morality system, multiple endings and and a shitload of text in the form of the aliens diarys and reports, which change dependin on how you play and the desicions you make.
It also has a damn good soundtrack.

What platform? I'm intrigued.

 

[Katana314]

If I'm correct, both The Void and Iji are for PC.

I'd like to note Aquaria, an indie game for PC with not only a brilliant soundtrack and beautiful worlds to explore, but intense boss fights and a total play-time to die for (averaging at around 20 hours for most people)

 

[moretimethansense]

What platform? I'm intrigued.

PC The Void is by a studio by Icepick Lodge and Iji is here

 

[Siberias]

Yay Baten Kaitos gets a few mentions, it's still my most treasured Gamecube game

I also agree with Space Station Silicon Valley, Etrian Odyssy and Mystical Ninja

Now to add my own:

Legend Hand of God (PC): A pretty cool Diablo Clone with one of the first implementations of physx I ever saw, using it to add physics to grass lol.

Bit Generations - Dotstream (GBA): An awesome game amongst the collection of Bit Generations games, where you guide a line through speed ups, mazes and ace against other lines, the soundtrack is awesome too (if you do well and don't hit too man obstacles xD)

 

[anthony87]

Ronin Blade: Samurai game for the PS1 with a slight survival horror vibe to it.

 

[Fiz_The_Toaster]

snipidipity

You are like the only other person that I'm aware of that's played that game. I remember playing it though, it was really weird, but I remember playing the hell out of that game.

I wish I still have it.

Haha, nice to know there are more of us.
I remember playing that game when I was like 11/12 in 99' or 2000. I used to play at my best friend's house, we would spend hours trying to decypher everything, for our young minds it was pretty tough and quite weird (a bit frightening too).
The game is divided in three or four major acts and I think it booted and ran from the CDs, so back in the day you needed three CDs to boot those different parts. I remeber that the first time we played it, after beating the first chapter (which took us a whie) we had to replace one CD for the another, we then discovered that the damn thing was corrupted and, as a result, we had to wait for months until we got our hands on another copy (mind that downloading it wasn't even an option).

I think I was about 13 when I played it, I found it in the bargain bin and didn't much of it. Ha! I think after the carnival level, if I remember right I think that's what it was, I was so confused and weirded out by it I had to finish it. Yeah I remember changing out the CDs and I remember I lost the last one and it took me about two days to find it. Thankfully it wasn't scratched or anything and I could finish it without freaking out that it might not play properly. I remember my mom walking behind me, staring at the scream and watching what I was doing, and I think about 10 minutes later she goes, "What the hell are you play?" I miss weird games like that.

 

[Wayneguard]

Disciples 1 and 2 for sure. Even within the turn-based strategy genre (obscure in its own right), they're not that well known. Fantastic games though.

 

[omicron1]

I'll suggest 2 older titles that are still a lot of time and ones that I have spent a lot of time on, especially this first one:

Lode Runner 2. The goal is simple; collect the gold in the level, avoid being killed and get to the exit. At first it's easy, but later levels become increasingly hard. On top of that, there's a timer and scores to beat and when you beat those scores, why not challenge yourself and see if you can do even better? It's really a lot of fun when you figure it out. I have a review handy here: http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.258922-A-look-at-the-past-Lode-Runner-2 if you're more interested.

My other game is Moho, about imprisoned criminal robots in the future, figthing for a chance to be set free. Sounds bizarre, but the many different game modes and levels are quite fun and again, there are timers in the different levels, adding a lot to the reload value. Another review, if that interest you: http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.259075-A-look-at-the-past-Moho

EDIT: Oh, I just thought of another game. Robin Hood: Legend of Sherwood. A great and very fun game. It's a lot like Commandos and Desperados, the gameplay is very much the same as in those two games with controlling characters, avoid the guards/knocking them out, sneaking your way into a place, most of the time a castle and do perform some objective like rescuing a hostage or stealing money or something else. It's not exactly new, but it's not ugly to look at, in part because of the beautiful handdrawn backgrounds. I don't have any review for that, but I would definitely recommend it.

I remember Robin Hood... I also remember one point in the game where I had about four Robin Hoods and a dozen Little Johns. Dang game was buggy as anything...

 

[Megacherv]

Klonoa: Door to Phantomile on the PSX.

SERIOUSLY! NO ONE I KNOW HAS EVER HEARD OF THIS GREAT GAME!

I have! That game's awesome! Really want to get Klonoa 2 somehow

 

[Megacherv]

Rarely do I meet someone who has played this game.

Wait, Dice Multimedia as in EA DICE?

 

[StarStruckStrumpets]

Klonoa: Door to Phantomile on the PSX.

SERIOUSLY! NO ONE I KNOW HAS EVER HEARD OF THIS GREAT GAME!

Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus gets an honorable mention, as well as Tomba!

Klonoa IS my childhood.

Ghadius always scared the fuck out of me...

On Topic: Dark Cloud. That game is to me what Zelda is to most gamers' childhoods.

 

[Levethian]

Legend Hand of God (PC): A pretty cool Diablo Clone with one of the first implementations of physx I ever saw, using it to add physics to grass lol.

If you're into that sort of thing - Din's Curse? Utilises rogue-like RPG elements to create a reasonably non-linear experience.

 

[NerfedFalcon]

-VVVVVV: A difficult-but-not-impossible platformer based around messing with gravity. Expect to die about 400 times the first time through.

-Lego Racers: The must fun you'll ever have trying to figure out the physics behind custom body kits on a car.

-Super Mario 63: A Flash game with 12 worlds to explore, 128 MacGuffins to hunt down, FLUDD, a plot and a level builder. Bliss.

 

[Nothing Tra La La]

Haunting Ground might be considered obscure by some. It was a ***** to find, so I think that makes it somewhat obscure.
The same goes for Rule of Rose.
Really great games, both very unheard of by most people I've spoken to.

 

[Emilin_Rose]

You're really letting me do this? Really? okay then. Here goes.

Top on the list is the Lost Kingdoms series, 1 and 2. Get them both they're amazing
Secondly is Rhapsody, and earlier title from NIS, who made srpg nerd legend Disgaea
Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne. Kinda like persona, but i liked it more. PS2
Fatal Frame series: All 4, though the first is my favorite. PS2 except for 4 which is WII
Hey You Pikachu, so much nostalgia N64
Quest 64, the only game i've hailed as having gameplay, battle system, music, and(for its day) graphics so good i could actually overlook the nonexistant storyline.
Harvest Moon is a life simulator. Like the sims but you actually LIKE the characters in HM. Like animal crossing, but you have more to do.
Lets see what else:
Eternal Darkness GC
Clocktower SNES(roms tend to have english patches, since thats pretty much the only way to find the game)
Klonoa series
Animaniacs SNES
Also if you can track down a ps2 headset there's an old game called "Lifeline" that i found fun.
Viewtiful Joe(if you haven't seen it yet)
American Mcgee's Alice
and soon Alice: Madness Returns
Wave Race 64
Space Channel 5 DC
Mystical Ninja N64
Dark Cloud 2(best rpg ever)PS2
.Hack//infection/mutation/outbreak/quarentine PS2

For a more recent title Sonic and the Black Knight for the Wii. Multiplayer is kinda stickytaped on the way spcampaign was taped onto halo3, but the single player is so much fun its ridiculous.

There's also Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon, a stunning rpg that does an excellent job of looking into human nature. Gameplay isn't the best, but can be overlooked. Also Crow is awesome. This one's for the wii too.

Well i'd stop now but i'd just think of more.

See, already did. Evolution Worlds. Not the best, but an okay gc title.
and another GC title, AMAZING ISLAND. Minigames aren't much, but the character creator is amazing.

For ps2 again we have Graffiti Kingdom. Not much more than a mediocre platformer cellotaped to the most amazing 3d create-your-own-character drawing system i've ever seen.

Lets see now what next. Wizard 101 is an MMO i personally loved.
Hmm what else. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Sky(maybe not obscure enough but oh well.)

Kings Quest 7. old PC game. No one will disagree on this one.(if anyone has a copy pleeeese let me know, i've been wanting this game forever. I miss it so.)

and since this is getting long i'll leave you with somethings from the days of shareware.

An old dungeon game called Haven, made incredibly difficult, to the point where it is entirely UNFAIR AT ALL, ask anyone who's played it.

An old in-depth DnD style RPG that was RIDICULOUS in everything it did, from the amount of ways to create your character, the stat and guild system, the traps in the dungeon itself(stay away from studded tiles, those things are BAD NEWS, same with water if you aren't quick). Really tough because your team autofights when a hostile enemy is near, and in that same way if you don't think quick you'll either die or drown or something. Oh and the identification and selling of items is pretty well done too. Mordor 1.something

Or if you want a more traditional turn based rpg with what would be considered these days utterly stupid(note stupid is good here) levels of customization and a wide world and amazingly fun story, There's Exile 3, Ruined world.

or if you feel like something more casual for half an hour, Quenzar's Cavern was also really fun.*hisssssssss* hehe

I'll find some links here if i can.

Exile 3 http://www.spiderwebsoftware.com/exile3/winexile3.html
Can't find haven. I got it off an old disk called '1000 best games for windows'
Mordor: http://mordor.uni.cc/forum/index.php?automodule=downloads
Quenzar's Cavern http://www.demu.org/pages/view.php?ref=4939&search=man&order_by=random&sort=ASC&offset=74&archive=0&k=

 

[Sp3ratus]

-snip-

I remember Robin Hood... I also remember one point in the game where I had about four Robin Hoods and a dozen Little Johns. Dang game was buggy as anything...

Really? I never experienced anything like that, from what I remember when I played it(I really should play it again sometime soon), I had no bugs or errors or anything of that nature. I don't think I played with any patches either, but I could be remembering wrong. No matter what, I still had a lot of fun with it.

Disciples 1 and 2 for sure. Even within the turn-based strategy genre (obscure in its own right), they're not that well known. Fantastic games though.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for mentioned those games, seeing as I forgot to. Me and my brother played those two gmes a lot, really fantastic games. I always loved the art style of the Disciples games, even the third one, though it's not as great as the first two. Also, great avatar, even if I am more of a Legions of the Damned kind of man instead

 

[jesseetc]

I've never met another Phantom Dust fan in my life, so.

 

[Hiphophippo]

Time Hollow for the DS. A fantastic story about time paradoxes. Admittedly, the gameplay is just "go here, talk to them, click that, move on" and the story is always the same, so no replay value. But the story . . . damn, it's good.

And the kick-ass theme song doesn't hurt either!

Spoiler: The theme song . . if you're interested

Isn't that made by Cing? The developer that did Hotel Dusk? God it's a shame they went under.

I suppose on that note, Hotel Dusk is my contribution to this thread.