Games you think are underrated and potential reasons why?

[Null]

What games have you played that you think have been underrated over the years? Like, truly underrated - not cult classics or ones that have good critical consensus behind them. 

For me the answer that always comes to mind here is Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare. I’m not talking about the multiplayer, that was okay but nothing special. I’m talking about the story mode. It was ignored massively by critics and the fanbase despite being really engaging and interesting, and easily one of the best campaigns since the original Modern Warfare. 



The SetDef and The Mars supremacists were some of the coolest villains ever. I think the reason it didn’t do well was because at the time CoD fatigue was high, and people were really turning away from the series and rejecting any futuristic settings. It’s a shame really because I’d rather have liked to have spent more time in this world.

[Helikaon]

IW also had a really dope zombies component too. Really fun and creative maps, I remember one was in a 80s theme park, haha.

For me I think Medievil doesn't get nearly the respect and praise it deserves. It has one of the dopest settings in any videogame, really cool art style, cool lore if you look for it, and addictive gameplay. The only thing that really sticks out as a negative would be the controls.

[Wayno]

IW also had a really dope zombies component too. Really fun and creative maps, I remember one was in a 80s theme park, haha..

I was never a big Zombies fan but me and the ex put some serious hours in to Zombies in Spaceland. The soundtrack absolutely rocked.

[Helikaon]

That's what I'm saying! Blasting through hordes of zombies while 80s hits play was a sick gameplay experience. I don't buy COD's any more, I tapped out after Modern Warfare 2/Warzaone 2.0., but I have some fond memories.

[Bread]

The sad thing about gaming is that it's a time-consuming and expensive hobby, so I'm a bit of a slave to reviews and critical acclaim. I wanna be sure that I'm not wasting £70 and 40 hours, so I don't allow myself to indulge is as many panned and/or niche games as I might do with films and music. So there, if a game has a Metacritic score of less than 80 that I thought was class, I'd personally define that as "underrated". Of which I have a couple:

Days Gone is fucking excellent and I won't hear a bad word against it. Cringey dialogue aside, I'd put it's poignant narrative up there with other Sony first party exclusives, the open world is genuinely great fun to drive around and taking out a pack of hordes is absolutely class.

Pokemon Scarlet/Violet ran like shit and looked like shit, but it was a step in the right direction in regards to scope, gameplay and open world branched narratives. I had a blast playing it, I'm not arsed about it running like it was developed for a potato.

Resident Evil 3 Remake is a terrible remake, but treat it as a standalone venture, and it's really fun. Raccoon City looks gorgeous, the dodge mechanic is slick as hell, the RE Engine remains deliciously satisfying and despite only being 5 hours long, it's endless replayable.

The Evil Within 2 is one of the best horror games ever made, and a massive improvement on it's predecessor. The semi-open world structure is superbly implemented without sacrificing the scares, and it's plot is less deranged whilst still being suitably fucked up.

All of these games score somewhere in the 70 range, so they aren't exactly stinkers. I wish I had some truly 40-50 range flops to embellish, but I sadly haven't found that game yet for me to champion alone.

[Jassassino]

Dragon Age II. It's not an in depth choice and effect RPG like it's predecessor, but I understand how people were burnt when they wanted that. Look at it like a tactical action adventure game with light RPG elements and you'll have a great time with a very well fleshed out and written story.

Subnautica. Loved among the community and fans, but never made to mainstream appeal. I think this is the current peak of the lonely, single player survival simulator. It's beautiful, unique, a tonne of mystery and has a lot of interesting dynamic mechanics and wildlife to keep gameplay fresh. I think people just lump it in with "another one of those kind of survival base builders", but it's actually so much more.

Jurassic World: Evolution. Honestly really fun. The only downside is that it has the Jurassic World aesthetic and not Jurassic Park, but you can actually fix that with unlocks. Love a park builder and although I prefer Operation Genesis in the Jurassic Park series, this one is still really fun with a good amount of depth to keep you hooked. It's a bit of a shame it doesn't incorporate some of the more fun focused and detailed elements of Planet Zoo like enclosure planning and building in a way where you can give the animals toys, dynamic feeders, etc. but it's still good.

[Helikaon]

Just recently discovered a new game that I can't believe doesn't get mentioned more often: TREPANG 2.

It's basically The Matrix meets John Wick. Insanely satisfying gun play, gory as hell, very intense. Having a lot of fun with this one!