Critics=mah, You=RAH! 'Mediocre' games discussed

DesertEagleXIX

DesertEagleXIX

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This week my local Best Buy had a YMMV clearance on Beowulf and Conan, at $10 each. Since I'm a sucker for cheap games, I bit the bullet on both. While certainly not AAA qulaity, these God of War clones had me amused, and even yelling "fuck, yeah!" intermittingly while playing Conan.

Looking at Metacritic, most reviewers were indifferent to both titles. Obviously, a significant price drop help to sway my opinion a bit. So, what games do you enjoy that critics were indifferent about.

Also rans:

Hot Pixel - PSP
Just Cause - 360
Red Star- PS2
Firefighter FD18- PS2
Serious Sam - GC
 
Call of Juarez.

I liked this game alot, sure it had it's flaws, but it also had Reverend Ray, who is one of the coolest anti-heroes ever.
 
My expectations of a game is linked to how much I paid for it. For $60, a game needs to be a AAA must have title of the highest quality. When a game hits $10, I look at it differently. I will accept more flaws at that price. A $10 game only needs to give me $10 worth of enjoyment.

I would have definitely picked up Conan for $10. I liked the demo, but it wasnt worth $60 to me. For $10? I'd love me some Conan.
 
[quote name='Puffa469']My expectations of a game is linked to how much I paid for it. For $60, a game needs to be a AAA must have title of the highest quality. When a game hits $10, I look at it differently. I will accept more flaws at that price. A $10 game only needs to give me $10 worth of enjoyment. [/quote]

Ditto. Take EDF2017, for example. I paid $12 for it but it's long as all get-out, there's a great sense of progression, and stumbling upon each new weapon is a fine time to retry an easier stage and see how deadly it can be.

Would I have been happy if I paid $40 for it? Not as much, but for $12 it was a ~bargain~.
 
Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games. Middle of the road reviews, but I really liked it as a more intense Wii Sports-like title.
 
[quote name='The Successful Dropout']Enter the Matrix

I actually played it through twice and almost a third time.[/QUOTE]
Ditto this. Yet, I couldn't get past an hour into Path of Neo.
 
Gotcha Force for the Gamecube. Almost no one gave this game a chance. It was panned for being a kiddie title that had a poor story and was repetitive. But the gotta catch'em all aspect, the diversity and creativity of the characters, and the mutiplayer made this one a classic.
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']Opoona[/quote]

I read that Opoona was too easy - is this the case? As long as it isn't a cakewalk I would consider picking it up at a lower price.
 
Got Bulletwitch for $9 at CC. It wasn't too bad, I beat the first few levels but stoped playing after I got something better.

I'd love to get Dynasty Warriors: Gundam if I found it for $20 or cheaper. I digged the demo.
 
I second Godhand.
And Bulletwitch. Bulletwitch isn't great, but it's worth $20 if you like third person shooters.

Unreal Championship 2.
Wartech (360)
Chromehounds
Armored Core 4
Project Sylpheed
 
[quote name='darthbudge']Call of Juarez.

I liked this game alot, sure it had it's flaws, but it also had Reverend Ray, who is one of the coolest anti-heroes ever.[/quote]
I second Call of Juarez. I loved this game, I'm a sucker for westerns. I didn't play all the way through however because I got frustrated with the stealth missions. Before that however, it was great.

Also, I loved Dreamfall. I can't wait for the second chapter.
 
Godhand - The game was amazing

Dungeon Siege: Throne of Agony - A fairly deep dungeon crawler built specifically for the PSP but it wasn't 'innovative' enough and scored average despite its great controls, well thought out design and huge amount of loot. You can fuck right off, Gamespot.
 
Honestly, I can't think of anything off the top of my head that's gotten medicore reviews across the board that I loved.

There are plenty of games critics love that I don't like, but I'm pretty selective and only play AAA games in genre's I like for the most part. So little time I can/am willing to free up for gaming I try to make the most of it!
 
Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom for PS3. I thought this was one of the best action-rpgs ever.
Gauntlet: Dark Legacy on PS2. This was/still is the best action-rpg I've played.

Actually, a lot of my favorite games are considered crappy games by critics.
 
I had a great time with Roadkill, but I'm a sucker for Car combat/exploration games. I can see all the problems the critics had with the game, but I still had fun with it.
 
The last few levels of Conan sucked. Any recommendation for that game should come with a warning that the end will be repetitive and frustrating. There are many other games that I would recommend with a warning. Kameo (swimming is horrific), Perfect Dark (the checkpoints suck), Viking (repetitive and stealth missions have little direction), Jericho (use the cheats), Dynasty Warriors 6 (avoid some boss characters until you are fully leveled up) and History Channel:Battle for the Pacific (only ~2 hours long).

Rarely does a game get an average review below 7.5 that doesn't at least have one problem that will cause some people to hate it.
 
[quote name='Fragonard']Also, I loved Dreamfall. I can't wait for the second chapter.[/QUOTE]

Dreamfall is the second chapter. It is the sequel to the PC game, The Longest Journey (which is better IMO).

[quote name='MillerTime2523']I was a fan of Perfect Dark Zero back in the day, but not too many other people were.[/QUOTE]

It wasn't panned by most critics though. It's been on a few lists of worst games (obviously those people hadn't played many games) but in general it got a lot of 8s and 9s.
 
Omikron: The Nomad Soul. Sure the fighting and shooting bits sucked, but they were tiny parts of an otherwise farily-good game that was pushing boundaries.
 
Advent Rising. Hated by most people and critics but I absolutely loved the story and found the gameplay to be fun. I seem to get lucky with these things, but I didn't really notice any of the bugs and the frame rate issues were not a problem for me. Too bad it was the first part of a trilogy, now we'll never see the other two games.
 
[quote name='Green Card200']I read that Opoona was too easy - is this the case? As long as it isn't a cakewalk I would consider picking it up at a lower price.[/QUOTE]

No, it's not a cakewalk. It's not ridiculously hard or anything, but I'd be surprised if anyone got through the game without dying at least once. It definitely gets easier once you go along and get more party members.
 
Flatout 2 for ps2 is pretty good, but is incompatible with currently shipping ps3. it works great on older ps3 (with hardware chip for bc), and is mistaken for a next gen title sometimes.
 
Current gen.
Gun (360 vers.) graphics are weak but great story and mission variety; Also, best voice acting in a game ever (seriously), look up the cast.
Chromehounds
Condemned 1

Last gen.
Counter-Strike (360 version, buying system was well executed and no hacks)
Rygar (ps2)

PC
Undying
XIII (Who knew David Duchovony can't do voice acting worth a damn)


There are so many.
 
I second Enter the Matrix... I just finished it yesterday. For a game that cost $3, it was a a lot of fun. Yakuza got a metacritic of 75%, but it was also pretty good.

Many game critics have many unrealistic expectations of innovation. They play so many games that it takes something very different to make them take notice. I don't really care about graphics anymore, as long as games keep up with current standards its good by me.
 
I'll add another vote for Conan. I actually got to play a review copy, and while it was in no way a $60 dollar game, it was worth the time I put in to it, that's for sure.

I complained about it a while back, but I'll also add Urban Reign (PS2). It's *so* close to the definitive beat 'em up (if not for the ruthless AI and utterly non-functional defensive system), it's not even funny. Flawed, but worth a play if you're at all a fan of the genre.
 
RLH for the XBox. I quite enjoyed it for the $10 I paid for it. Sure the creatures you shoot off, most look a lot like the creatures from "Alien", but it's still quite fun and has a pretty well done storyline.
I honestly don't get all the hate for it.
Pfffttt Koei, ugh. They should know they're pretty much shit and aspire to nothing better then DW unlike Hudson Soft who needs to STOP just making "Bomberman". This is why Hudson Soft is in the red. They don't have Mario or Sonic as their classic property so they have to use more of their other IP's: "Battle Heat", "Team Innocent" and Bonk.
 
[quote name='LegendK7ll3r']XIII (PC version), I agree with critics for the game on consoles, but playing on a PC.. Dear God, did it ever make a difference.[/quote]

Ditto. I almost forgot about that game. I played it on the PC and it was awesome. I never finished it for some reason though.... :whistle2:k
 
[quote name='PenguinMaster']Dreamfall is the second chapter. It is the sequel to the PC game, The Longest Journey (which is better IMO).
[/quote]
Ah yes, my mistake. I forgot about The Longest Journey. I still need to play that.
 
360

Tenchu Z - It's nowhere near as bad as everyone thinks it is. Reminds me of the old splinter cell - only with ninjas.
Warriors Orochi - takes all the good stuff from the dynasty series. I miss the bodyguards, but everything else is great.

xbox

Rogue Trooper - probably the most accurate/excellent translation from a comic to a video game
Sniper Elite - wish more shooters were more realistic like this game.

PC

Anarchy Online - dated graphics ( they are updating the engine soon so it will look nice and new) - Still the MMO with the most content (everquest might have slightly more), personalization, and stat abilities ever. Not to mention the most solo friendly.
Team Fortress Classic - as much as I love TF2 it still isn't half as enjoyable as TFC to me. Would be cool to have tfc gameplay with tf2 models/graphics.
 
Two Worlds: It's not a great as Oblivion (not that I was expecting it to be, seeing as how Oblivion is from an development house that's pretty much perfected open world RPGs, while Two Worlds isnt), but it's not nearly as bad as most reviewers seem to think it is. The game does start out pretty bad, but it gets better after a few hours when your character gets more powerful.
I think I paid something like $20-30 for it and I felt like I got money's worth.

Call of Duty 3: A lot of gamers seem to hate this game, but I thought the single player was nearly as good as Call of Duty 2, while the multiplayer far exceeded Call of Duty 2 (at least the 360 CoD2 multiplayer).


Ghost Squad/House of the Dead 2 and 3: Both got pretty low scores, but both are a bunch of fun if you enjoy rail shooters. I can't wait for more Rail shooters are released on the Wii.
 
Tsugunai Atonement - One of the earlier PS2 RPGs, published by Atlus.

Some unique ideas in this game, and a unique story too.

Great soundtrack as well.

Pretty terrible graphics though.
 
[quote name='Noodle Pirate!']360
Sniper Elite - wish more shooters were more realistic like this game. [/QUOTE]

This is one of my favorite Xbox games hands down. I hope Namco has enough sense to make a next-gen sequel.

I forgot to add Black, I loved that game!
 
[quote name='Nephlabobo']Tsugunai Atonement - One of the earlier PS2 RPGs, published by Atlus.

Some unique ideas in this game, and a unique story too.

Great soundtrack as well.

Pretty terrible graphics though.[/QUOTE]

Sorry, but no. That game was horrible.
 
[quote name='LegendK7ll3r']XIII (PC version), I agree with critics for the game on consoles, but playing on a PC.. Dear God, did it ever make a difference.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, but it also came with Starforce, so if you haven't reformatted your PC since....

I'll second Gun. Great game. Played it twice and had a ton of fun both times.
 
[quote name='h3llbring3r']Current gen.
Gun (360 vers.) graphics are weak but great story and mission variety; Also, best voice acting in a game ever (seriously), look up the cast.
Chromehounds
Condemned 1

Last gen.
Counter-Strike (360 version, buying system was well executed and no hacks)
Rygar (ps2)

PC
Undying
XIII (Who knew David Duchovony can't do voice acting worth a damn)


There are so many.[/quote]

Agree on:
Gun
Condemned

And I agree that the graphics in gun are fricken terrible.

I'll also add:
Enter the Matrix (I agree, it was good fun)
Drakan (PS2) Dragons kick ass
Mario Party 8
Bouncer (PS2)

I'm gonna have to stop at PS2, because when I was younger I kind of liked all games. It's sad that I am so picky now, before I could pick up Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace for the PSone and have a blast all day. Now I am sitting critiquing Mass Effect for having major texture pop in..
 
I agree on Enter the Matrix. Great game? Hardly. But neither was it as bad as everyone made it out to be. I think many went in with too high of expectations. I went in with very low expectations and was very happy with it, for the most part. And yes, I played it at release.
 
Urban Chaos for the Xbox1

GREAT SP game, even if the shield was a bit too powerful

GREAT fun over live...too bad there's NEVER anyone playing it on Live
 
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