The subject I like to write about most concerns this industry’s history. I just published an article about canceled games called 25 Console Games That Were Canceled For Crazy Reasons. It was a true passion project for me and I’m not just trying to draw attention to it for promotion’s sake. It also has ties to today’s topic. That’s because forgotten games, or overshadowed games, whatever you want to call them, come out on the very cusp of being canceled. That is to say, you could theorize as such, or at least know that their performance, or lack thereof, leads to a studio closing down, or a sequel not getting made. Get what I’m saying?

Then there are the games that should have been canceled and/or erased from the history books. Games that promised grandiose ambitions, but failed to live up to them and continue to do so. I’m kind of talking around a bunch of specific examples now so it’s probably best to just get this thing started, right? The last thing I want to promote before I get into the meat of things is that a lot of the “worth a second look” titles come with video reviews from yours truly. I can’t spend hours on each game in this article so hopefully, these reviews will help fill in the gaps on what these shimmering gems are all about and why they are worth your time. With all that said, it’s time to get into the highs and lows. Let’s begin!

30 Worth A Second Look: This Titan Fell

Titanfall 2 was the best shooter of 2016, but unfortunately, it didn’t get its just deserts because it was sandwiched between two colossal giants. On October 21, 2016, Battlefield 1 released. The following week Titanfall 2 launched and then a week after that it was Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare’s turn. All three of these games are fantastic shooters, but because Battlefield and Call of Duty are bigger names, they outranked Titanfall 2. It was set up to fail, basically. I mean, Respawn Entertainment is a partner of EA. Why would EA want to launch two of its games back to back? Both are completely different in terms of tone, setting, and gameplay, but still.

So that’s the logical reason why it failed financially, especially compared to those other games. That said, there’s no excuse not to play it now. I see it criminally discounted to $6 on PSN regularly. That’s a steal! It is without a doubt one of the best shooters of this console generation. Not only that, but it’s about giant robots for crying out loud. It’s beautiful, fast, frenetic, and just a blast to play. Reviews can back me up on this one. It’s not just me.

29 Stay Lost: A Miserable Attempt

I was a huge fan of Call of Duty in college. I jumped in with some friends to stand outside Best Buy for the midnight launch of Modern Warfare 2 and then again for the original Black Ops. I waned off of multiplayer post graduating college, but I still loved playing through the campaigns. As the digital wars raged on it became tedious and I was getting bored. It’s been up and down since Ghosts came out, the first one I actively hated. All that said, I was thrilled knowing they were going back to World War II. Yes, it’s been done in a million other shooters, but not to this point technology wise.

Unfortunately, it was a by the numbers shooter with little ambition. Yet, even though it was about the Allies fighting the Nazis, they were barely seen. It’s like they thought it would be too controversial to depict them. Look. I’m not saying all German soldiers are from that group and that they should be all hated, but if there is one thing the world seems okay with it’s that those particular baddies are definitely okay to destroy. They are the real-life equivalent to a Saturday morning cartoon set of villains. Even if they were more prominently featured it would still be a boring game.

28 Worth A Second Look: Colorful And Crazy

Insomniac Games isn’t a first-party studio for Sony, but because they made a lot of exclusives for them across the PS1, PS2, and PS3, they may as well be. I associate them as such and I absolutely adore their games, especially Ratchet and Clank. No matter what they do, even if reviews are poor, I’ll take a look. That is to say, I have complete faith in them. I was a little disappointed at the concept of the Xbox One getting an exclusive because I didn’t really want to buy an Xbox One, but Sunset Overdrive looked neat. I eventually caved just last May in 2017 because the backward compatibility had me sold.

Jump in and quench that thirst with a cold OverCharge!

So I spent some time catching up on not just Xbox One games, but a bunch of older titles too. Obviously, Sunset Overdrive was one of those games because that’s the setup I was going for. It’s colorful, funny, and has tons of zany weapons just like Ratchet and Clank. It reviewed pretty well too. The only reason I can think of why it didn’t do too hot was that we’re overflowing with zombie games. They may not be exactly zombies, but they are close enough and the fatigue is setting in.

27 Stay Lost: Pedigree Doesn't Mean Success

I never owned an Xbox prior to the Xbox One, but that didn’t stop me from playing Halo. Whether it was playing through the campaigns with co-op at a friend’s house, or joining in on giant LAN parties, I was all over this series. So I knew Bungie’s pedigree. That’s why I was excited when their next big franchise, Destiny, was going multi-platform, plus it was a new genre unto itself. It was the thing that got me to buy a PS4, and yes, it was the special edition white one. It was short in terms of stuff to do, but it was new, unique, and the shooting was top notch. Even though Bungie did a pretty terrible job supporting it via updates and content packs I was still excited for the sequel.

While I had just as much fun with the mechanics of Destiny 2 it all felt too familiar. The problems I had with the first weren’t fixed and stuff that wasn’t a problem before was changed for the worse like how your character stopped talking. Now the same controversy is happening where the DLC is just not living up to the hype. I understand their vision for this game was huge and I don’t know if Bungie is simply incapable of handling it, or if Activision is pressuring them to ship stuff before it’s ready. One thing is for sure: I’m not excited in the slightest about a Destiny 3.

26 Worth A Second Look: Space Ninjas!

You know what game Destiny did improve for the better? Warframe. When it first debuted in 2014, reviews were mild at best. It wasn’t trying anything ambitious, as it was more or less a multiplayer game without much else. With the success of Destiny, the team took notice and reformed it to be more or less a clone, but one that is free to play. Now when I say it copied Destiny, it didn’t really. I mean it’s also an MMO style shooter, but it’s in third-person and you’re more of a space ninja rather than a space cowboy. There are similarities, but saying it’s nothing more than a Destiny clone would be a disservice.

Games like this call into question the industry’s set path on reviewing games. Right now we, myself included, only review games at the moment. If the launch is bad, chances are that game might do disastrous in terms of sales. Reviews can be more, but let’s face it. To the average consumer, they’re basically buying advice. Big companies like IGN or GameSpot simply don’t have time to dedicate manpower into having one staff member review one game as it continuously updates. If they had unlimited money, sure, but that’s Ludacris. Thankfully, this article can hopefully give second chances to games that have since found their way.

25 Stay Lost: Fading Into Obscurity

Warframe may be an example of a game that changed for the better, but I have no hope Sea of Thieves can turn itself around. Let’s look at the facts. This is a $60 game that launched with little to no content. There’s not even any voice acting, which would be fine for a non-AAA title backed game by a huge company like Microsoft, but this is 2018! In a lot of ways it feels like a Steam Early Access title and if that were the case and it only cost like $20, I’d be okay with that. It’s not though. Sure, technically it could only cost $10 to try it out for a month if you join the Xbox Game Pass program, which is a heck of a deal, but what about those players that don’t pay attention to that sort of thing and buy this at a store?

This game sunk before it ever set sail.

Money issues aside it’s also not fun. I had some engaging sailing moments even with random people, but navigating through cumbersome menus is tricky at best. Just the fact that there is no map is bothersome and the combat leaves a lot to be desired. Again, sailing is fun but what good does that do in a sea filled with no players and little to explore? It could be saved eventually, but I think it’s already too late.

24 Worth A Second Look: Clunky Yet Entertaining

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations was the first game that questioned my like for the series. Even if the first game was clunky, I got what it was going for. Revelations was just too much too fast and felt like a cash grab from Ubisoft. Like Call of Duty, it has been up and down ever since with a lot of downs to be sure. The worst of them all was Assassin’s Creed Unity. Because it was so broken it was the first I avoided completely, which made me think it was finally time to let this franchise go.

Even though the teases for Assassins Creed Syndicate, the next game, looked promising, I was hesitant because of Unity and I think of a lot of people were too. A game or two a year is a lot and it could also be an issue of just burning out. So yes, there was a lot going against Syndicate, but it’s worth a second chance. The dual protagonists are great, offering different story and gameplay types between the two. The setting is awesome with some great grappling hook mechanics that make getting around a breeze. Yeah, it still has some jank, but what AAA game doesn’t?

23 Stay Lost: So Very Boring

Assassins Creed Unity was broken at launch. We know that. I avoided it like the plague, but it’s been four years now. Surely the numerous updates over the years have made it a better game, right? On a technical side of things, yes, it runs a lot better. With the power of the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X, it’s even enhanced beyond that even if it isn’t said outright. That said, there’s more wrong with Unity than just the graphical hiccups. The landscapes are gorgeous don’t get me wrong and if you want some good old life-taking gameplay in France then that’s cool too.

The protagonist and the main themes of the story just bothered me. Thankfully, if you really want, you could skip and play it on mute. What’s the point then? If you just want to play a mindless video game then there are so many better choices. For Example, you could play Dynasty Warriors. As much hate as that series gets, it can be fun in small doses to hack and slash fools to pieces. It’s not like I’m above muting my TV to play boring segments of games, but that is all I wanted to do in Unity, so again, what would be the point in playing it?

22 Worth A Second Look: A Cop Drama Worth Playing

Battlefield Hardline is an example of a game that came out during a politically hot scandal. 2015 was around the time police brutality was really starting to take its toll in the U.S., giving rise to the “black lives matter” movement. So when a game comes out during this sensitive time period, selling players on being a totally awesome cop that answers to no one, well, you can see where I’m going with this. Now, Hardline was actually developed by Visceral who previously worked on the Dead Space series. That had me excited for one. Two, this was the first game Amy Hennig worked on after leaving Naughty Dog while she, and other Visceral members, were also working on a Star Wars title. You know, the canceled one I just wrote about.

Let’s get hard…on crime!

History aside, now that we’re in kind of better place in terms of cop stuff, not really, I can recommend this without fear of backlash. Yeah okay, it’s weird that it has “Battlefield” in the name, making fans of the proper franchise angry that it isn’t what they wanted. So what? Any game that lets me stealth take down people by handcuffing them is cool in my book. It’s silly and over the top in all the right places.

21 Stay Lost: The Force Wasn't With Them

Star Wars Battlefront was a fine reboot for the franchise after EA made that exclusive deal with Disney to make their Star Wars games. It wasn’t the experience I wanted, reminiscent of the original series, but that’s okay. It was something new and I welcomed the change. It looked, sounded, and played fantastically well. It was the biggest budget Star Wars game to ever exist and even with the lack of content, I ate it up. Fast forward to E3 2017 wherein EA basically made a “we heard you speech” when they showcased the sequel. There was now a proper story campaign and all DLC was going to be free. Too bad you can’t put an asterisk in your words because there was a big one people couldn’t see.

While everything was technically “free” they put the cost of unlocking characters so high that it would take an unbelievable amount of time to get everything. To make up for this they installed microtransactions. It was so controversial it spurred a Senate movement to get legislature to take notice. Discussions of how microtransactions should be handled were in part due to EA’s disastrous launch of Star Wars Battlefront II. Even without the storm, it’s not a good game. Let’s force wipe this one from our brains.

20 Worth A Second Look: What's In A Name?

Final Fantasy Type-0 HD? What the heck does that mean? I know. It's a dumb name in a series of increasingly stupid names. Silly titles aside, originally Final Fantasy Type-0 was a PSP game that never left Japan. It began as a side project in the Fabula Nova Crystals pact under the name of Final Fantasy Agito before it was renamed. It’s an action RPG about a school of military cadets who act like mercenaries. It has the mature storytelling of Final Fantasy Tactics mixed with some of the ideas from Final Fantasy VIII with the combat of Kingdom Hearts.

It never came over here because it released too late in the PSP’s life cycle, which by that point meant the portable system was all but destroyed outside of Japan. Funnily enough, a fan translation came out about a month before Square Enix announced this official HD port. All that hard work for nothing. Maybe the best reason to buy this game at launch was the fact that it came with a beta for Final Fantasy XV. That’s kind of why I was excited admittedly, but the game is good in its own right too. You can learn more in my video review.

19 Stay Lost: The Best Kept Secrets...

I go back and forth on what the best RPG on the SNES is. Some days it’s Final Fantasy VI and other times it’s Super Mario RPG. For the most part, my mind constantly falls on Chrono Trigger as not just the best SNES RPG, but also truly one of the best RPGs of all time. I bring that up because I was tricked into buying a game I thought was related to Chrono Trigger as a kid. That is Secret of Mana. The box said Squaresoft and the protagonist looked like Crono. Since it was a lot cheaper than Chrono Trigger I had to settle for it instead. At the time I thought I was settling, but turns out it was a fantastic game. One of the SNES’ forgotten greats.

This should have stayed a secret.

This all leads to me discussing the remake that came out on PS4 and PS Vita earlier this year. It’s an example of a game that is somehow worse than the original even with the updates. For one, the pixel art is way more charming than the weird phone like polygons of this thing. There are voices, but they’re bad and they don’t even lip sync. Everything feels like this was created on a weekend without any love going into it and this game deserves love. Best forget and play the superior version on your SNES Classic instead.

18 Worth A Second Look: Score One For Anime

Attack on Titan is one of those anime that broke through the mold. It hit not just with fans of the medium, but even people outside the general radius and for good reason. It’s really good! Now, in history, games based on anime have usually turned out pretty poor. For that matter, most licensed based games aren’t good, but there are a few shimmering examples and I feel like developers are getting better. Case and point, Omega Force’s first Attack on Titan game on PS4.

For those unaware, they’re the developers of the Dynasty Warriors franchise. It has its fans, but on the press side, they get a lot of hate. Because of that and because this is an anime, I think it got overshadowed, but I think, without a doubt, this is their best game. Like I say in my video review, it captures the essence and adrenaline of the show. If flying around open spaces and cutting down giant titans like a cross between Spider-Man and Shadow of the Colossus doesn’t sound cool, then I don’t know what is. Just make sure you get the first and not the second game because Attack on Titan 2 has, uh, let’s say issues.

17 Stay Lost: Not Worth The Wait

Are video games art? It’s a question that’s been debated for years. The obvious answer should be yes. Even a Michael Bay movie is considered art because films are more easily recognized as such. Shouldn’t that same mentality be applied to video games? Even a blood-fest like Call of Duty has artistry behind it. Well, whether you agree or not, there is a set of games that even critics on this debate can’t help but admire and that would be Team Ico’s games. That would include Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, and The Last Guardian. They’re stunning games visually and they have haunting, unique stories to them. I recognize that. I love Shadow of the Colossus, but I'm not too fond of the other two and more specifically for this article, The Last Guardian.

It was first unveiled at E3 2009. It was often delayed and/or not shown, prompting many to think it was canceled very similar to another long-awaited Japanese PS3 game, Final Fantasy Versus XIII. It’s hard to imagine both these games started on PS3, early on in the console’s lifecycle, but were later ported to the PS4 instead. In my mind, we would have been better off if this game never came out. I know it’s sad to say given that the big bird dog is adorable, but working with it in a puzzle game made me want to tear out its feathers and scream.

16 Worth A Second Look: All Around Fun

Somehow this series keeps on creeping its way into my articles as of late. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it a thousand times more. Disney Infinity is a fantastic franchise. The obvious answer why it and a lot of the other Toys to Life games went away was because of money issues. Not in terms of development. No, I’m talking about on a consumer level these games were hard to get into because of the price. Quite frankly, it was its greatest strength and greatest weakness.

These toys were built to last.

Each starter kit cost about $80. That was enough to get you in, but then there were other figures that were about $10, which weren’t necessary, but they made the games better. So let’s say you’re going to invest upwards of $100 on one game. That sounds like an insane investment, but one I think, now that it’s defunct, is worth it. You can skip the first game, but the second and third sets are all fantastic, simple RPG brawlers you can have fun with alone, or with friends. Everything is super cheap now, which breaks my heart since it is canceled, but at least it can give me some solace knowing others can afford to try it out now. If nothing else collect the figures. They’re awesome!

15 Stay Lost: Even Character Creation Can't Save It

Here’s an example of a series that has more bad games than it has good and yet we keep getting sequels. I could argue that Sonic hasn’t been fun since the 16-Bit days, but I would understand fans backing up Sonic CD and the first Sonic Adventure. Ever since then, definitively, it’s been terrible, especially on the 3D side. All these gimmicks like making him into a knight or a Werehog were just dumb marketing ploys as if that made the games good. I’ve never been a fan of Sonic, but the gamer inside of me wishes the best for the true fans. When Sonic Mania came out and was actually good I thought, okay, maybe Sonic Forces will be great too, but I was too optimistic.

It’s not so much bad as it is just too overly dramatic and more of the same bad platforming as before. Sections where you’re zipping around feel great, but it’s all on rails and is that what you want from a platformer? The character customization is the big thing that sticks out. It’s both stupid and amazing all at the same time. How can a series so clunky come out time and time again? As funny as it is to make a character, it’s still a pass for me. Never again SEGA. Keep those furries away.

14 Worth A Second Look: Don't You Forget About Me

This is both the most obscure pick on my list and my favorite, meaning it’s in dire need of attention. So, Full Metal Furies is, at heart, an old-school brawler with beautiful pixel art and RPG elements thrown in for good measure. It’s the newest title from Cellar Door games, which, if you like Rogue Legacy, you’ll love this. That is to say, I am madly in love with both games. Their art, style, controls, music, and everything in between all scream AAA to me, but on a smaller, more indie scale. Here’s why it got overlooked.

One, it launched as an Xbox One exclusive on consoles, which is a platform that is good, but not as beloved as the PS4, or Switch currently. Two, it had some really bad audio issues at launch making it literally sound like a record scratching as you played. Three, it released in January right in the middle of Monster Hunter World fever. Who has time for indie games when you have that, right? Wrong! Since then the audio issues have been fixed, which for me, didn’t deter my enjoyment since it didn’t affect gameplay directly. It’s a simple, yet addictive game on its own, but like most brawlers, is better with buddies. Please, please, please don’t sleep on this game.

13 Stay Lost: A Far Cry From Its Predecessors

Far Cry 3 hooked me from minute one. While the next adventure was more of the same, I still had a good time since Pagan Min was a fun villain and the locale was equally beautiful. That’s what really sold me on the third and fourth games and what I think Ubisoft does best for all of its open world properties. As bad as some of those Assassin’s Creed titles got, I was never bored with the locations. That wasn’t the problem, but that’s neither here nor there. Point is, Ubisoft is a master of introducing me to places I’ve never thought about. That’s all to say that Far Cry 5, in terms of its location, was a big turn off to me. Montana? Really? It may be exotic to other gamers from across the seas, but to me, it’s incredibly boring.

I’m praying for a miracle this one will be stricken from the record.

Minnesota, where I live, is basically Montana in extreme of beautiful plains, open waters, and forests. We’re just missing crazy red necks, although they exist too. Location aside, it’s also just a bad plot that tries to be more than it is. It can’t decide whether it wants to be serious, or some crazy bang bang shoot ‘em up. The dichotomy is all over the place plus I’ve grown weary of the Far Cry formula now. For me, it was an easy pass.

12 Worth A Second Look: The Sequel No One Wanted

Let’s get it out of the way folks. Yes, the first Knack was a lackluster platformer at launch for the PS4. When you look at Sony’s pedigree of awesome and unique platformers like Crash Bandicoot, Ratchet and Clank, Sly Cooper, and so on, it was a letdown. It wasn’t as bad as people said, but it wasn’t too far off. Like Assassin’s Creed Unity and Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, I think the same aftertaste may have plagued people from picking up the second game. Jokes went around the Internet when it was announced asking who asked for a sequel. Sure, it was a good laugh because it didn’t make sense, but now that it’s out, I’m not afraid to say it’s good.

Knack 2 is still not as great as the heights as those other PlayStation platformers, but it’s good nonetheless. Plus, this time the gimmick of bringing in a friend for co-op made it a blast to play. No, it didn’t stand a chance next to Super Mario Odyssey last year, but what game can? Now that the price has dropped and we’re far enough away from Nintendo’s linchpin I recommend a second look. Grab a buddy and let the Knackoning begin!

11 Stay Lost: Not Enough Spirit

I missed the Nintendo 64 almost completely. The only time I got to check it out was at a friend’s house. Tried some of the greats like The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, Super Mario 64, Super Smash Bros., and so on. Except for Mario, I didn’t get to play any of the hailed 3D platformers. I’ve said it before, but my family went the Sony route after the SNES. Even on the PS1, I didn’t play a lot of platformers. It was a new time for me when RPGs and survival horror games ruled my life. I never played Banjo-Kazooie is what I’m getting at.

That said, because I knew its pedigree, I was excited for the spiritual successor Kickstarter game, Yooka-Laylee. A cute, colorful platformer oozing with charm sounded great. Unfortunately, it feels like that monkey’s paw trick where it was everything fans wanted, but it lacked a soul. It was a video game. You know. like something generic you would see on some sitcom that doesn’t know anything about video games so they make their own for like a quick cutaway. That’s probably harsher than this game deserves, but it bored me to tears when I reviewed it.