Let's defend berated games in a series we like

[Evonisia]

We all know those games. Games we play and use the disc to drool on, but when we venture over to the other fans of the franchise, the game is met with accusations of inferiority in favour of their treasured game. "Well no more!" I say. Do as the title commands and defend Mass Effect 3 with all your heart.

As for myself: Silent Hill 4: The Room is a good game.

Now don't get me wrong, it's not amazing or anything, and certainly not Silent Hill 2, Silent Hill 3 or Shattered Memories levels of good. The hate for escorts, ghosts restricting exploration and the seemingly lazy level design (yet another train level, huh?) are all well earned.

That said, in terms of Silent Hill's biggest strengths (the story and the atmosphere), it's easily one of the best instalments the series has to offer. Finally, the cultist inspiration of the town and its powers actually seem like a threat (due in large part to those annoying Ghosts) rather than coming off as toying with you like in Silent Hill 1 and 3. The first scene with the lion dogs eating their dead brother adds to this filthy organic and parasite-ridden atmosphere so well. The stuck-in-your-apartment concept is actually well done, my favourite aspect of it being the ability to go into the kitchen and Henry just says that he's not hungry, but feels like some magic is doing it to him. It all adds to this wonderful playful yet cruel tone which fits into the game's primary antagonist Crazy Mummy Issues Boy.

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

Well I was all set to go on about how Mass Effect 3 is the best game in the trilogy, ending aside. But then I saw the scratched out part, and then I just felt used.

So I'll defend Bioshock: Infinite. Part of me gets why its considered inferior, in that its not a horror game. But Bioshock and to a lesser degree Bioshock 2 had humor in them. Sure, it was dark humor, but its not like the first two Shock games were Limbo dark. And I for one never really felt afraid in Rapture, because I had a flame-thrower, grenade launcher and a shotgun and I could shoot bees, fire, electricity and tornadoes from my hand. Hard to feel vulnerable when you have enough ordinance to kill a Space Marine Terminator.

I'll put this in spoilers so people don't complain, but seriously. Its near 3 years old now. If you don't know what happens, don't expect me to feel bad for spoiling it.

Spoiler

But on to Infinite. The basic complaints I've read are that its pretentious and boring. On the first part, pretentious. Its an entirely subjective argument. What you find pretentious, I may not and vice versa. So its hard to defend against this, but also hard to take it seriously. Its equally valid to say gamers aren't smart enough to understand Infinite as it is to label it pretentious. Though there isn't much in Infinite that isn't explained at length. Its...complicated some times. Maybe even a little preachy. But its all explained, and the stakes are always well defined. There's no great exaggeration, no false sense of urgency. Your objectives are simple: Save Elizabeth, and prevent Comstock from blowing up New York. Simple enough, eh? Maybe a little comic-booky, but no one would say blowing up New York is a good thing, or that we're making too big a deal out of it.

Boring...this one baffels me. Infinite is an action game. With running, jumping, sky-hooking, robot George Washingtons with miniguns! Its hardly boring, especially if the bar is set by Bioshock 1 and 2. Not that those are boring games, but they're horror games, with a much heavier emphasis on the atmosphere than the action. The fighting in Bio-1 is cramped, desperate and brutal. But short, and not that exciting. Bioshock is mostly walking through empty, run-down areas noticing all the spooky things, like baby carriages with blood in them, or discarded human jaws. But its not terribly exciting.
Bioshock Infinite has running gun-battles over multiple floating platforms, with dozens of vantage points, secret weapons and 'tears' to use to kill the bad guys in a variety of ways. Its certainly more exciting that not.

The only part I'd call boring is the ghost-mother-hunt-for-clues bit, which ironically reminded me a lot of Bioshock 1. But that part was mercifully short, and ended with a big ol' gun battle.

 

[Xeros]

I genuinely enjoyed Syphon Filter 3. Sure, the game is 95% flashbacks, but it was interesting to play through the characters' earlier days, origins, and how-they-first-met's. My eyes lit up when you got to play their mission in Costa Rica, which acted as the intro to the first game. The levels were cool, the new weapons were fun, albeit kind of ridiculous, and the trial was a decent concept with an explosive ending, and a decent twist.

 

[DementedSheep]

Bioshock 2 though I'm not going to claim it's better than the original. The first time through BS (minus the ending stretch) is better than the first time through BS2 and the characters certainly stand out more but I enjoyed BS2 and it's more fun to replay. BS was great but what made it great for me only works the first time around. I also actually like defending the little sisters while they gather.
I think part of it might be because I had lower expectations than a lot of people. I didn't expect them to capture the feeling of exploring rapture and how it came to be when it was all new and interesting again.

 

[gorfias]

Bioshock 2 though I'm not going to claim it better than the original. The first time through BS (minus the ending stretch) is better than the first time through BS2 and the characters certainly stand out more but I enjoyed BS2 and it's more fun to replay. BS was great but what made it great for me only works the first time around. I also actually like defending the little sisters while they gather.
I think part of it might be because I had lower expectations than a lot of people. I didn't expect them to capture the feeling of exploring rapture and how it came to be when it was all new and interesting again.

While some complained the graphics were better in BS1, BS2 had better art direction. It was in the plot that Rapture was becoming a coral encrusted ruin and it was gorgeous to behold.

My favorite berated game ever? Witchaven. Much maligned, it was state of the art for me when it came out (Witchaven 2 was broken. It was unplayable.) It was about the most advanced, graphics wise, game my Pentium 120 Mhz could play. Fun, scary, and when I needed them, cheats available!

Dunno why it was so despised.

 

[kissthebottle]

Dragon Age 2.

YES. I will cop to it being watered down substantially and was like five steps backwards from Origins. And YES, it did tremendously piss me off that pretty much every single dungeon was the same map/environment with different enemies and treasures, every warehouse the same, etc etc. I will definitely admit is by FAR the weakest game in the series. And while it's short, it's probably a good thing that it was (considering how repetitive it is to replay the same map over and over more or less).

That said... I still love it for what it is and in spite of it's glaring flaws. I absolutely love the story. Hawke is still my favorite DA protagonist (especially playing as sarcastic/purple Hawke). I love the companions (even broody, grumpy, Fenris). Varric and Hawke's friendship makes my heart grow three sizes every time I play through the game. Anders is one of the most complex characters in the series and I love how polarizing he is to the fandom and how much he makes people question their morals/how far they would go (within the confines of the franchise/story/canon) and he is still one of my favorite Bioware love interests. I enjoy that the relationships with the characters has a friendship/rivalry system versus a solid approve/disapprove system (that they ultimately reverted back to). I liked the idea of DA 2 being, at the core of it, a story about a dysfunctional and familial group of friends who ultimately may disagree with or even despise some of the things others in the group may do, but at the end of the day they do have each others' backs when it counts. It's like, "I may not agree with what you do, but I still respect you, and we have this weird bond" (rivalmancing is so fun). I think while the gameplay suffered a lot, the story still had a lot of heart and I generally will let gameplay slide on the side of mediocrity if it still tells me a damn good story.

 

[AgedGrunt]

FFXII had a fun battle system. It blended turn-based play with free-moving combat. It felt new, interesting and made the game feel fluid while still requiring strategy. It's not a replacement for traditional turn-based battles, but those tend to become boring and distracting after a while.

And let's be honest, if the game took no chances then there would have been no value to it.

 

[kissthebottle]

FFXII had a fun battle system. It blended turn-based play with free-moving combat. It felt new, interesting and made the game feel fluid while still requiring strategy. It's not a replacement for traditional turn-based battles, but those tend to become boring and distracting after a while.

And let's be honest, if the game took no chances then there would have been no value to it.

I hated the battle system initially when it came out and it made me not play it past a few hours.

Lately, I've been considering giving it another shot, now that I'm older and wiser and also for some of the points you brought up. I had since branched out of how I thought an rpg should play, especially a FF game.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

FFXII had a fun battle system. It blended turn-based play with free-moving combat. It felt new, interesting and made the game feel fluid while still requiring strategy. It's not a replacement for traditional turn-based battles, but those tend to become boring and distracting after a while.

And let's be honest, if the game took no chances then there would have been no value to it.

I hated the battle system initially when it came out and it made me not play it past a few hours.

Lately, I've been considering giving it another shot, now that I'm older and wiser and also for some of the points you brought up. I had since branched out of how I thought an rpg should play, especially a FF game.

FFXII is literally the same battle system as FFX. The gambits are just if-then-else statements that you would do yourself without any thought really like healing an ally that needs to be healed. All FFXII's battle system does is keep you out of constantly going through menus. To me, if you hate FFXII's battle system, you hate most of all previous FF battle systems.

 

[Umpa Lumpa]

Empire total war. I don't understand why everyone hates it. Better naval battles than any of the others, bigger map, better economy and tactics that are more complex than just melee up front, archers to the back.

 

[Elfgore]

Dawn of War: Soustorm. It seems everyone hates this expansion. I can kinda understand why. The addition of the flying units was just pointless, they shot for the moon and missed for the campaign. Making it way more complicated than it needed to be. But... the two new factions make it all worth it. The Sisters of Battle are freakin' awesome, with a god damned Angel flying into battle for them. The Dark Elder have awesome warp beasts on there side. I enjoy the hell out of what they bring.

 

[ChaoshadowZero]

Zelda: Skyward Sword. I see so much hate for this game, but I love it. It's not the best Zelda game, but it is a good one. I guess most people don't like the motion controls which I can understand. What I don't understand is the amount of hatred I see about the game as a whole.

For the record; I like the motion controls, I like Fi, and I'm ok with the Imprisoned.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

I saw Dragon Age II, BioShock 2 (both games with I greatly enjoyed, perhaps more than the original even), and I would like to add another sequel. Dark Souls II. I enjoyed this game very much. Is the lore as well thought out, and the levels as detailed? No, but I still had a blast playing it. I played it more than I did Dark Souls, actually. I don't know why, but it just sucked me in more. I think the controls are better, the ability to use more weapons and rings is nice, and finding those little clues to tie it to Dark Souls was a blast. I'm buying the remake this Tuesday because I enjoyed the game so much.

Also, I'll take the bait. I don't think Mass Effect 3 is a bad game. I enjoyed the vast majority of it. Yes, some of the choices kind of got streamlined (who's on the Council) and it kind of felt a bit narrower in scope. I missed that sense of exploration that the first, and to an extent the second, game had. But I liked seeing how things played out, catching up with all the characters, and spending more time with my Shepard and Liara.
And with The Citadel DLC installed now, I just pretend that that is wear the game ends. Shepard has already defeated the Reapers and this is just a post-game adventure. Seriously, go play it and just cut out the part where Shepard is being a downer at the end, remembering that there's still a war to win. This DLC really does feel like the end.

 

[Evonisia]

Full disclosure: I only made the Mass Effect 3 joke because I imagined it would be the first response followed by savaging by people upset by the ending anyway. Feel free to say it if you want. I personally have not played it because I just couldn't get in to the first Mass Effect game (maybe I should roll FemShep instead).

 

[kissthebottle]

Zelda: Skyward Sword. I see so much hate for this game, but I love it. It's not the best Zelda game, but it is a good one. I guess most people don't like the motion controls which I can understand. What I don't understand is the amount of hatred I see about the game as a whole.

For the record; I like the motion controls, I like Fi, and I'm ok with the Imprisoned.

I honestly don't get the hate either for Skyward Sword...like outside the motion controls. I did personally hate those because they killed my wrists and I couldn't marathon it the way I like to marathon Zelda games.

I also think Wind Waker gets an inordinate amount of hate as well, and I don't get it. Other than sailing taking FOREVER (which they fixed in the HD remake), it's one of my faves. Like if I did have to pick a "worst" Zelda game (aside from those CD-i abominations), I would say Twilight Princess. It's a good game, it's just not a very good Zelda game, in my opinion.

 

[SKBPinkie]

ME 3 was still a fantastic game, and the ending, while not entirely satisfying, was definitely nowhere near as bad as people claim it to be.

That being said, ME2 > ME3, without a shadow of a doubt. Even the people who liked ME3 will not claim otherwise.

Also, just an FYI - I played ME3 after all of the DLC came out.

And another game that gets no love - Halo ODST. It had some fantastic set pieces, great atmosphere, probably the best soundtrack I've heard, etc. It really didn't deserve all the hate it got. Plus, it was the first game to introduce us to Firefight. While Gears of War's Horde mode was much better, it was still great to play a co-op survival mode in the Halo games.

 

[Silvanus]

Bioshock 2 though I'm not going to claim it better than the original. The first time through BS (minus the ending stretch) is better than the first time through BS2 and the characters certainly stand out more but I enjoyed BS2 and it's more fun to replay. BS was great but what made it great for me only works the first time around. I also actually like defending the little sisters while they gather.

Agreed. Bioshock 2 was great, most of all for refining combat and substantially improving the use of traps. Defending Little Sisters was fun and new, too.

My only complaint would be that it felt too much like more of the same (both design-wise and gameplay-wise), but I can't deny that after Bioshock 1, I very much welcomed more of it.

 

[Evonisia]

And another game that gets no love - Halo ODST. It had some fantastic set pieces, great atmosphere, probably the best soundtrack I've heard, etc. It really didn't deserve all the hate it got. Plus, it was the first game to introduce us to Firefight. While Gears of War's Horde mode was much better, it was still great to play a co-op survival mode in the Halo games.

ODST was actually what I was gonna post before I decided to change it to Silent Hill 4. Behind Halo 2, ODST is easily my favourite Halo game and imo it's the most solid as a game even without the atmosphere/story/tone and what not: gameplay wise Reach was sluggish and 4 was just Reach but with more lag and fail.

 

[Asclepion]

Resident Evil: Operation Racoon City wasn't a terrible game. Or rather, the things that made it a terrible game could be easily fixed. There's such great lore to draw from that you could surely make it worthy of it's series.

- Make the character designs less ugly. Get rid of the whole 'glowing blue' aesthetic and either have them as regular USS or UCBS soldiers.
- We get that Umbrella is evil, but constantly telling some dudes that they're expendable isn't a good way to get them on your side. Having Umbrella operators that are actually trying to save you (or at least not have you die pointlessly) would make more sense.
- Vector has active camo? In 1998? WTF?
- Combat is boring because enemies soak unrealistically huge amounts of damage. A simple tweak to some values would do a lot to improve the experience.
- You don't need to have established RE characters be making cameos. There's tons of people in a major city and multinational corporation like this.

 

[Timeless Lavender]

Ace Attorney Miles Investigation- I love this game but it is not well liked in the fan base. The game have some of my favorite characters and some of the best soundtracks in the franchise. It may not be the best in the series but it definitely not as bad as people make it out to be.