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Games That Shattered Your Expectations (aka surprise hits)
- Thread starter Holykael1
- Start date
Audible Phonetics
Member
Went in low expectations really enjoyed.
Cameron122
Member
Crusader Kings II. I'm not very good at grand strategy, didn't expect to put so many hours into it. The RPG elements definitely helped. One of my favorite games of all time.
DarkLiberator
Banned
I didn't know a thing about Deus Ex: HR when a friend gifted it to me and game was amazing. I'm now glad that I didn't follow any of the trailers or any news at all prior to release.
The original Tenchu: Stealth Assassins
It was a total impulse buy to sate my stealth itch while waiting for MGS to come out.
The stellar music, the unintentional (and quotable) bad acting, and the compelling gameplay. Absolutely loved it from start to finish.
Too bad the sequels have all been hot garbage.
It was a total impulse buy to sate my stealth itch while waiting for MGS to come out.
The stellar music, the unintentional (and quotable) bad acting, and the compelling gameplay. Absolutely loved it from start to finish.
Too bad the sequels have all been hot garbage.
ScottSullivan
Member
This was me with Demon's Souls, the first time playing a souls game is truly a unique experience
Black Republican
Member
999
Outlast
Nier
Sleeping Dogs
Portal 1 & 2
Tales of Vesperia
Half life (back then i never liked FPS type games, this one completely made me take them more seriously)
Super Mario World 3D (havent completed a 3d mario game in years)
Outlast
Nier
Sleeping Dogs
Portal 1 & 2
Tales of Vesperia
Half life (back then i never liked FPS type games, this one completely made me take them more seriously)
Super Mario World 3D (havent completed a 3d mario game in years)
psychotron
Member
Psychonauts was one of the best purchases I've ever made. I remember X-Play talking about how much they liked it, so I decided to go pick it up. I've been hoping for an HD update ever since.
Expected a GTA clone. Turned out to be much more than that. imo it was even better than GTA IV
Yup, this was also a surprise hit for me as well. Loved every bit of it except the cockfighting bullshit that I had to repeat 50 times to get the trophy.
SoraanTribal
Member
A recent example of this for me would be Pikmin 3:
I always thought the Pikmin games were just some weird series that I had absolutely no interest in. I didn't see the appeal, but I really didn't know what the games were about either tbh. The game went on sale during the holidays last year, and a friend recommended the game to me, so I picked it up. I ended up falling in love with the game, and it was in my Top 5 for 2013. I want to go back and play the previous games in the series now.
Also:
That game. Just this past week actually. I had such low expectations going in and was initially turned off by the Saturday morning cartoon/Power Rangers vibe, but fell in love with the game as well.
I always thought the Pikmin games were just some weird series that I had absolutely no interest in. I didn't see the appeal, but I really didn't know what the games were about either tbh. The game went on sale during the holidays last year, and a friend recommended the game to me, so I picked it up. I ended up falling in love with the game, and it was in my Top 5 for 2013. I want to go back and play the previous games in the series now.
Also:
That game. Just this past week actually. I had such low expectations going in and was initially turned off by the Saturday morning cartoon/Power Rangers vibe, but fell in love with the game as well.
Came to post this.
I didn't expect much either but I think it has some of the best gunplay of last gen.
I agree, the story is forgettable. Plus, an absolute awful ending.
This game could have been so much more.
ComputerMKII
Banned
Katawa Shoujo, hands down.
iN1njaCPFC
Member
I am still waiting for a reboot on this...Hope you see this Major!
The demo blew me away, to the point i got out and instantly bought the game.
Loved it so much, and love Split/Second even more... i won't ever forget you Black Rock, nor i will ever forgive fucking Disney for shutting down the studio and cancelling Turok 2 (see my tag)
Expected a lazy tie-in, got a deeply satisfying brawler with cool gameplay, good graphics and some memorable moves (i still remember that fierce jump move over enemies, sooo badass).
Expected a waggle fest/shitty third party Wii game, found an original third person action game with some cool moments.
pokeystaples
Banned
Who knew?! I ended up putting over a hundred hours into this thing.
Omegasquash
Member
Vanquish: It looked fun but I didn't think it would be THAT fun.
funkystudent
Member
Arkham Asylum is the text book example of this.
Unknown developer.
Licensed Game.
Mid generation Edios.
Who expected that to turn out well? Then it came out and was in GOTY contention with Uncharted 2.
Unknown developer.
Licensed Game.
Mid generation Edios.
Who expected that to turn out well? Then it came out and was in GOTY contention with Uncharted 2.
kahboomkin
Member
Yup.
I can't think of another game that even comes close
Baron Von Beans
Member
Vanquish got me, but I was secretly very pumped to play it.
Biggest contendor would be the Saints Row games. I got 2 and 3 free on PS Plus, then I saw the ridiculousness of SR4, and decided I needed to play them. Two months before SR4 was released, I beat SR2 in a month, and then SR3 in the next month, right in time for SR4 to be released. I then dove in SR4. Good lord. Before I started playing any of them, I saw them as a shameless GTA clone. While that may have been true for one, it started fading away in 2, and by 3, it was it's own comepletely unqiue beast. SUre, it's an open world city. Yea you are a criminal. Yea you get guns, and can kill anyone. That is where the similarites end. SR3 shines, and 4 puts a superhero gloss of paint over it. From it's jokes, to gameplay mechanics, to the variety, so the services in place to just make the game more fun for the player. It's great. I had so much fun with my time with the Saints games, which I am very thankful for, because I now know they are far, FAR more than a "GTA Clone". I will be day 1'ing whatever their next game is, no doubt.
Biggest contendor would be the Saints Row games. I got 2 and 3 free on PS Plus, then I saw the ridiculousness of SR4, and decided I needed to play them. Two months before SR4 was released, I beat SR2 in a month, and then SR3 in the next month, right in time for SR4 to be released. I then dove in SR4. Good lord. Before I started playing any of them, I saw them as a shameless GTA clone. While that may have been true for one, it started fading away in 2, and by 3, it was it's own comepletely unqiue beast. SUre, it's an open world city. Yea you are a criminal. Yea you get guns, and can kill anyone. That is where the similarites end. SR3 shines, and 4 puts a superhero gloss of paint over it. From it's jokes, to gameplay mechanics, to the variety, so the services in place to just make the game more fun for the player. It's great. I had so much fun with my time with the Saints games, which I am very thankful for, because I now know they are far, FAR more than a "GTA Clone". I will be day 1'ing whatever their next game is, no doubt.
thesaucetastic
Unconfirmed Member
Dangan Ronpa. Expected it to be a normal visual novel/dating sim thing, couldn't have been more wrong. I'm glad I went into it completely blind.
BotoxAgent
Member
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow
SniperHunter
Banned
Ace Combat 4 Shattered Skies
I only bought it cause I love planes and it turned out to be my favorite PS2 game by far
some others:
Hotline Miami on Vita
Velocity Ultra on Vita
Battlefield 1942
Halo CE
infamous
I only bought it cause I love planes and it turned out to be my favorite PS2 game by far
some others:
Hotline Miami on Vita
Velocity Ultra on Vita
Battlefield 1942
Halo CE
infamous
rainking187
Member
Red Dead Redemption. The only Rockstar games I'd played before it were GTA games and I didn't like any of them, so I didn't expect to love the game as much as I did.
Hippopuncher12
Member
Demon's Souls for sure.
itzknickknac
Member
OP, I've always been into the MGS series as a kid. I watched my cousins play it and really liked the stealth element it had. So everything met my expectations. MGS3 however, felt like they took away some of that stealth vibe from the game. I'm not far into the game, but was not as good as I expected. I'm with you on that.
But, one game that didn't really blow me away.. but exceeded my expectations was......
FFXIII second playthrough
The first playthrough, I ended the game with so many questions unanswered and didn't want to go through the hassle of reading every catalog. So I restarted the game, read every dialogue, and really payed attention to plot/character interactions/etc and the game just made much more sense to me which in turn made the story more likable.
Although the sequel was good, I wish they took a different approach on the entire sequel though. I would've loved to explore the entire world of grand pulse.
But, one game that didn't really blow me away.. but exceeded my expectations was......
FFXIII second playthrough
The first playthrough, I ended the game with so many questions unanswered and didn't want to go through the hassle of reading every catalog. So I restarted the game, read every dialogue, and really payed attention to plot/character interactions/etc and the game just made much more sense to me which in turn made the story more likable.
Although the sequel was good, I wish they took a different approach on the entire sequel though. I would've loved to explore the entire world of grand pulse.
I came to post this. Instead I have QFT.
randomengine
Banned
One day my brother came home with a game and it was this game. I sat down to play it at noon and when I looked up at the clock it was midnight. I had not moved. Did I eat or go to the bathroom? I don't remember...all I remember was playing this game.
One of the few RPGs I have played through to the end without using a walkthrough. I was mesmerized by this game and I still hold all RPGs to its standard. The idea of unlocking new attacks by using your most recently unlocked attacks (or was that in my head) was a revelation that added to the strategy of this game. So many characters to choose from that were different.
One day I got on my dad's computer to look for a game to play. Here were the usual RTS games he was so fond of, but what was this.....an extremely dark fantasy game where you fight demons? Cool, let's try it out. Oh, you can play it online.....what does that mean, let's try it out.....I was 15 at the time, it was summer, and I stayed up playing this game until at least 5 am every day through the summer. This game consumed my life and my soul.
One of the few RPGs I have played through to the end without using a walkthrough. I was mesmerized by this game and I still hold all RPGs to its standard. The idea of unlocking new attacks by using your most recently unlocked attacks (or was that in my head) was a revelation that added to the strategy of this game. So many characters to choose from that were different.
One day I got on my dad's computer to look for a game to play. Here were the usual RTS games he was so fond of, but what was this.....an extremely dark fantasy game where you fight demons? Cool, let's try it out. Oh, you can play it online.....what does that mean, let's try it out.....I was 15 at the time, it was summer, and I stayed up playing this game until at least 5 am every day through the summer. This game consumed my life and my soul.
Fancy Clown
Member
I did not expect to like Guacamelee nearly as much as I do.
Metroidvania's were never really my thing, and all the attention around meme humor sort of put me off, but I tried the game when it was on sale just because I heard some people saying it was really good, and I couldn't put the game down that whole weekend. Great platforming, combat, bosses, art style, and music. Love the game.
Metroidvania's were never really my thing, and all the attention around meme humor sort of put me off, but I tried the game when it was on sale just because I heard some people saying it was really good, and I couldn't put the game down that whole weekend. Great platforming, combat, bosses, art style, and music. Love the game.
Just picked it up because there was a drought of RPGs for the PS3 at the time. I would have never expected that it would become the game of the generation for me and one of my all time favorite games.
Game of the generation? I picked this game up in the bargain bin and have yet to try it. Is it really that good?
Final Fantasy Tactics on PS1. Did not seem like my type of game, but watching a friend play it back in college convinced me to give it a try and I loved it.
Borderlands on 360. The game that ruined standard first person shooters for me. Watched a livestream of it being played about a week after it released and decided to give it a try. Several hundred hours later and co-op shooters will have to live up to this for quite some time.
Diablo 3 on 360. Again, didn't seem like my kind of game on PC but put a controller in my hand and bye bye social life. Several of my friends have become addicted after trying interventions on me. I can't be blamed!
Borderlands on 360. The game that ruined standard first person shooters for me. Watched a livestream of it being played about a week after it released and decided to give it a try. Several hundred hours later and co-op shooters will have to live up to this for quite some time.
Diablo 3 on 360. Again, didn't seem like my kind of game on PC but put a controller in my hand and bye bye social life. Several of my friends have become addicted after trying interventions on me. I can't be blamed!
itzknickknac
Member
I'm curious too. Really tempted to buy on amazon.
EDIT:
Wow, the prices are pretty high for this game
Not Spaceghost
Spaceghost
Most recently, Titanfall.
I was not expecting the game to be very good or interesting. I wasn't expecting how much emphasis on speed and mobility the game was going to have. The map design is also surprisingly top notch, with so many nooks to hide in, and so many things to scale.
A really welcome surprise, renewed my waning interest in FPS's.
I was not expecting the game to be very good or interesting. I wasn't expecting how much emphasis on speed and mobility the game was going to have. The map design is also surprisingly top notch, with so many nooks to hide in, and so many things to scale.
A really welcome surprise, renewed my waning interest in FPS's.
randomengine
Banned
Sometimes even the positive buzz for a game cannot give you enough of a gauge for who you will or won't enjoy a game. Two of the most obscure recommended games for the Nintendo DS are The World Ends With You and 999. After having played both, I can safely say that both of those recommendations cannot prepare you for either game.
I hated The World Ends With You. I couldn't stand the gameplay. I know it has its fans, but so does Kingdom Hearts and after playing almost every game in that franchise I can say without a doubt that they are wrong about its quality and basically love it for fan service and not the quality of the gameplay.
However, everyone was wrong about 999 as well because 999 was better than anyone said it was. Nothing anybody said before experiencing this game could have prepared me for it. It is just that good. The story is a masterpiece and made the ending of Bioshock Infinite feel like fan fiction. It changed the way I look at stories in games. How could such a little interactive novel have such amazing complexity?
I hated The World Ends With You. I couldn't stand the gameplay. I know it has its fans, but so does Kingdom Hearts and after playing almost every game in that franchise I can say without a doubt that they are wrong about its quality and basically love it for fan service and not the quality of the gameplay.
However, everyone was wrong about 999 as well because 999 was better than anyone said it was. Nothing anybody said before experiencing this game could have prepared me for it. It is just that good. The story is a masterpiece and made the ending of Bioshock Infinite feel like fan fiction. It changed the way I look at stories in games. How could such a little interactive novel have such amazing complexity?