Post by Mizer on May 26, 2008 1:29:13 GMT -5
Something a little different this time. I have in my possession right now in my house three games that received no mainstream attention. They did not have big commercials, ads in magazines, I heard one advertisement one of them on an obscure little game review show, but other than that, that they had nothing in way of advertising. And in regards to that, I just have this to say: Thank...fucking...god. These are great games and it would have been a travesty to see them over marketed, crappy sequels rushed out for them, and just over all trashed. And despite these games being so great, I gotten into arguments with people how just because a game does not get mainstream attention, doesn't mean it's a bad game. Like I said, these games are awesome. So that said, I will tell you about these games now.
All three of these games are for the PS2 if any of you want to check them out. The first game I will talk about is the superior one of the three. An RPG that takes an interesting take to the whole process of EXP gathering. This is Odin Sphere.
The game puts you in control of six main characters, all of whom have separate stories that intertwine with each other and eventually come to the point for the games big climax. The main focus of the game are their weapons, which are called Psyphers. In the game, when you kill an enemy, their soul appears in the form of a glowing light called a Phozon. The Psypher is able to absorb the Phozon and after enough Phozon's are gathered, your weapon level goes up, allowing you to do more damage. Now that's one type of EXP you can get. There's another, and this is where the game gets original. In gameplay, you refill your health by eating foods. These can range from a small berry to a big ol' roasted chicken. This food actually gives you EXP as you eat it. The more food you eat, the more your max health increases.
This is the only game of the three that I have yet to beat, but I can safely say the storyline is original, in-depth, and just overall a great story. It's like you're reading a book as you play the game. Another thing...this game is long. And I mean...long. I've put in about 7 hours of nonstop play and I've not even beat the first storyline yet. So if you're like me and hate games that are great but just too short, this one is for you.
On to game number 2. This game takes a Japanese folk tale and twists it around for a fun futuristic hack-and-slash. This is Seven Samurai 20XX
Now the original story of the folktale was that an old and honorable Samurai saved some villagers from being roughed up in one of the bigger cities, can't remember which one. Turns out these villagers are being hounded by an army of bandits who possess the power of the Oni. So the old Samurai rounds of six more of his Samurai brothers and they train and prepare the village for when the bandits prepare to attack the village.
Now in the original folktale everything takes place in feudal Japan. In 20XX, the story takes place in an unnamed futuristic world, where instead of bandits, the villagers are being hounded by robots and cyborgs who are being lead by a group called the Humanoids. While not overly original and a far cry from it's namesake, it serves the purpose well. Game play is face paced with a lot of sword play and a lot of things to kill. The game, while being very difficult, is a very fun addition to the game shelf of anyone who enjoys hack-and-slash.
Onto the last game of the three. This game came from our friends at Rockstar. This game was based off a movie of the same name that has reached I suppose cult classic status. I have not yet seen the movie, but I really want to know after playing the game. This is The Warriors.
Not exactly GTA, but it's not GTA. The game has a dark, gritty New York feel to it as you step into the shoes of nine main characters, all of whom walk the streets flashing their gang name, The Warriors. I was surprised to find out that the movie actually just consists of the last two levels of the game, everything else is lead up action to what happened in the movie.
Unlike GTA where you can gunning into a area full of cops with a machine gun, you actually have to think about how you'll do combat in this game because you do not get a single firearm weapon in the entire game. Your weapons are standard gang weapons, knives, beer bottles, bricks, pipes, that kind of deal. The game offers a lot of options besides just doing the storyline missions, and doing these side options can really help you out later in the game. Such as the permenant add-on of brass knuckles to double your punching damage and the ability to hire hobos for some expendable muscle.
Maybe not for hardcore GTA fans, but fans of games such as The Bouncer and old school Streets of Rage will feel right at home with the beat-em up physics.
And that's all I have to say about these three buried treasures. As I said earlier, I hate it when people say that a game sucks because they don't get mainstream attention. It's not true, I just proved it with these three games. So if anyone else has a buried treasure that they think is awesome, put it up, give us the low down about it like I just did with these. It's time for these games to get the attention they deserve.
All three of these games are for the PS2 if any of you want to check them out. The first game I will talk about is the superior one of the three. An RPG that takes an interesting take to the whole process of EXP gathering. This is Odin Sphere.
The game puts you in control of six main characters, all of whom have separate stories that intertwine with each other and eventually come to the point for the games big climax. The main focus of the game are their weapons, which are called Psyphers. In the game, when you kill an enemy, their soul appears in the form of a glowing light called a Phozon. The Psypher is able to absorb the Phozon and after enough Phozon's are gathered, your weapon level goes up, allowing you to do more damage. Now that's one type of EXP you can get. There's another, and this is where the game gets original. In gameplay, you refill your health by eating foods. These can range from a small berry to a big ol' roasted chicken. This food actually gives you EXP as you eat it. The more food you eat, the more your max health increases.
This is the only game of the three that I have yet to beat, but I can safely say the storyline is original, in-depth, and just overall a great story. It's like you're reading a book as you play the game. Another thing...this game is long. And I mean...long. I've put in about 7 hours of nonstop play and I've not even beat the first storyline yet. So if you're like me and hate games that are great but just too short, this one is for you.
On to game number 2. This game takes a Japanese folk tale and twists it around for a fun futuristic hack-and-slash. This is Seven Samurai 20XX
Now the original story of the folktale was that an old and honorable Samurai saved some villagers from being roughed up in one of the bigger cities, can't remember which one. Turns out these villagers are being hounded by an army of bandits who possess the power of the Oni. So the old Samurai rounds of six more of his Samurai brothers and they train and prepare the village for when the bandits prepare to attack the village.
Now in the original folktale everything takes place in feudal Japan. In 20XX, the story takes place in an unnamed futuristic world, where instead of bandits, the villagers are being hounded by robots and cyborgs who are being lead by a group called the Humanoids. While not overly original and a far cry from it's namesake, it serves the purpose well. Game play is face paced with a lot of sword play and a lot of things to kill. The game, while being very difficult, is a very fun addition to the game shelf of anyone who enjoys hack-and-slash.
Onto the last game of the three. This game came from our friends at Rockstar. This game was based off a movie of the same name that has reached I suppose cult classic status. I have not yet seen the movie, but I really want to know after playing the game. This is The Warriors.
Not exactly GTA, but it's not GTA. The game has a dark, gritty New York feel to it as you step into the shoes of nine main characters, all of whom walk the streets flashing their gang name, The Warriors. I was surprised to find out that the movie actually just consists of the last two levels of the game, everything else is lead up action to what happened in the movie.
Unlike GTA where you can gunning into a area full of cops with a machine gun, you actually have to think about how you'll do combat in this game because you do not get a single firearm weapon in the entire game. Your weapons are standard gang weapons, knives, beer bottles, bricks, pipes, that kind of deal. The game offers a lot of options besides just doing the storyline missions, and doing these side options can really help you out later in the game. Such as the permenant add-on of brass knuckles to double your punching damage and the ability to hire hobos for some expendable muscle.
Maybe not for hardcore GTA fans, but fans of games such as The Bouncer and old school Streets of Rage will feel right at home with the beat-em up physics.
And that's all I have to say about these three buried treasures. As I said earlier, I hate it when people say that a game sucks because they don't get mainstream attention. It's not true, I just proved it with these three games. So if anyone else has a buried treasure that they think is awesome, put it up, give us the low down about it like I just did with these. It's time for these games to get the attention they deserve.
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