Part 2 is now live: ruclips.net/video/jitK8J3Xc4o/видео.html Part 3: ruclips.net/video/jqNa0rNe1zg/видео.html Did you play any of these games before? I just realized that the majority of games on the list have/had local coop. If you wanna get any of these games on GoG, you can use my links: Blades of Time on GoG with my link: cutt.ly/e13gNvM The First Templar: cutt.ly/O13hJnO Venetica: cutt.ly/513h11i
I played Venetica a lot, really liked it. Especially the atmosphere and story. There are not many games where you canonically play a Necromancer (in most games it's just a class among many that can summon some skeletons, not in-depth like in Venetica).
I actually remember Ayumi really well - she was the protagonist of another hack'n'slash game called Oniblade back in 2008 I believe. I worked in a gaming magazine at the time and we had a lot of promo materials for the game laying around. At one point the sticker with her looking very tsundere-like ended up at the side of my home desk computer right next to Lightning from then upcoming FFXIII so the image got engraved in my mind. Never played the game though xD
I still own it on XBOX 360. We were starved for those types of games on console. That gen was when we started getting them in force. I still have Hunted and the First Templar as well. Thought The Cursed Crusade was going to make the list.
Venetica released in September of 2009. It is the same year we got Minecraft, Assassin's Creed 2, COD MW2, Bayonetta, GTA 4 Episodes, Dragon Age Origins, L4D2. And in 2009 you would have gotten some hits from 2008 like GTA 4, Fallout 3, Mirror's Edge, Burnout Paradise or whatever. Venetica was a bottom shelf game.
Criminally underrated? 7/10 is about fair, maybe 8/10 if you wanna be generous. But fact is: it doesn't have much competition as the industry seems to have forgotten about action adventures/RPGs and that makes it stand out. It scratches an itch that the industry has pretty much completely abandoned in favour of churning out Dark Souls clones. I hate the Souls-series for completely ruining the action RPG genre for me.
@@siberyuswithengard7364 I actually dislike easy games, so I do appreciate a decent challenge. However, I absolutely hate cheapshot BS around every corner with floaty ass movement and laughably bad and spastic hitboxes to the point where you have to look for ways to cheat or break enemy AI just to make is remotely fair. And don't get me started on the storytelling, it's just downright godawful.
@@RoughThief so, you dislike artificial difficulty and gappy/messy storytelling, two aspects that can be found in every souls... I like your view, I always thought the same: invisible enemies backstabbing you throughout a foggy forest (DS 2), random dongs hiding behind random corners or shadows only waiting to cheaply gang bang wandering players (literally every souls has done that), obnoxiously long and stunlocking combos (Elden Ring mostly), ... they all seem deliberately placed with no specific reason other than bother you
The 2010s were a really exciting time for gaming, I feel like. It felt like there was always something to look forward to, and we hadn't learned to be jaded about AAA publishers yet.
"Hunted: Demon Forge" had very good grim atmosphere and you can play it as singleplayer where other character is handled by AI. And it does quite well! Yeah and that elf chick looks stunning and badass :-D I even have and an urge to replay game some day.
Replayed it recently, like before, I eventually burnt out on it mid-to-late game. However, atmosphere and even worldbuilding are still top-notch in my book. If you like grim, this game is definitely worth your time once more. And yes, she indeed looks stunning and badass :)
I played it 2 years ago and I hadn't played it before. I enjoyed it quite a bit. The atmosphere is really nice. Fighting is really rough though. I really wonder why I didn't hear about it back when it came out (especially since I'm german as is the developer).
Gameplay straight sucks but the hair and physics are good AAA masterpiece 10/10. Kidboy 2007 hair and physics wer better. Also gameplay matters alot more than hair. But I can tell from your name you're one of them ppl that think anime girls are cute so that weirdness is accepted amongst weirdos
I played hunted a decent bit back in my youth. It was quite entertaining to play with a partner and the character interaction between the two playable characters are enjoyable to me
I remember playing Hunted with an ex back when it was a fresh new game. It was really difficult, I ended up buying a strategy book for the game and over a few days me and my ex got good enough to do a no death run start to finish. I remember it being really fun, we played it 3 or 4 times probably. I'd like to replay it today and see how it holds up.
I always liked "Hunted: Demon Forge", it's a dark & brutal Dungeon Crawler that plays more like "Gears of War" with some light RPG elements, and the 2 main characters are funny in a serious 80s/90s movie style. I think it's kinda underrated. Some other games that are nearly forgotten in time: - Raze's Hell (very funny, though simple shooter) - Conan (GoW-clone, but nicely done, Ron Pearlman as Conan is funny) - Binary Domain (1 of my favorites, another GoW-like, but more like Anime, with some light RPG elements & decisions-making + different outcomes, I think very underrated) - Project Sylpheed (it's ACE COMBAT going into space, but it's Anime, the action is like MACROSS / SPACE BATTLESHIP YAMATO, simple, enjoyable) - Overlord 1 (very funny, you basicly play Sauron who is the CO of 80s/90s Gremlins) - Drakan (only played THE ANCIENT'S GATES, very PS2-ish, but nice) - Ring of Red (always thought it's a good tactical game, but it doesn't hold up to FRONT MISSION 3) - Breakdown (sweet FPS Beat 'm Up Adventure, I'm probably 1 of the few who liked this) - Hellnight (PS1, simple, but interesting Run Away Horror Sim with several outcomes) - WH40K: Space Hulk - Deathwing (even though it's kinda the only thing that might keep you here for longer, it's like Horror-Survival, you have to fight constantly, CQC is quite demanding, but it realy sucks there's no real story here)
Whoa, great list! I also liked PS2 Drakan, but never finished it due to the save corruption bug at the first dragon gate. Will definitely have to emulate a playthrough at some point if I can make it though the tedious platforming swamp section. Also a fan of Binary Domain. Hellnight I'd never heard of, but it looks atmospheric as all get out.
@@SolarScion I forgot, "Hellnight" is the game's title in Europe, in Japan it's called "Dark Messiah" or something like that, and if I'm not totaly wrong it was never released in the US, though there are some fan-ports with englisch subtitles, I guess.
Blades of Time...Brings so many memories. I finished it in a day because my internet wasn't working and I didn't have anything to do. That made me give it a second chance and I didn't regret it.
Nice video, there could be a part 2 to this covering more obscure/jank older games. Like: Knights of the Temple, Demonicon, Rise of the Argonauts, Viking: Battle for Asgard and The Cursed Crusade.
I have so much nostalgia for Knights of the Temple, but recently replaying it made me realize that it's a lot more jank than I remembered. The OST still slaps, though. I'd also like to add a few more games to the list: Rune 1 (better than Rune 2 IMO, great melee combat and dismemberment system), Drakan: Order of the Flame (kinda janky, but you get to ride a dragon), or Enclave
I used to play knight of the Temple when I was a kid, the game was fully in English and back in the days I couldn't speak a word of it, never finished the game due to that but I must say I remember cherishing every single new enemy I could kill lol
Viking: Battle for Asgard always confused me. It seems like a game I should like, but the control scheme on PC is just obtuse with no indication as to what button does what or how the control's work (I didn't have a controller at the time), so I ended up playing it once and uninstalling it like so many steam games in my library, though at least it got a chance unlike the 300 odd unplayed games in there (damn you steam sales!).
I can give you a lot of old and forgotten games too! Throne of darkness. Space Hack Blade & Sword Prince of Qin Etrom: The astral essence Morning's wrath Restricted Area Dungeon lords Seal of evil Quest of D Nightstone Darkstone
I'd definitely enjoy more content like this, sneak-peeks into other, not-so-well-known action games/RPG games. I know a ton of these came out in the early-to-mid-2000's, and, honestly, not only the best of the best are worth playing, there are others as well which are fun to play and explore (especially nowadays when we don't really have a ton of RPGs out yet).
Venetica feels very cozy to me, although there seems to be a few crashes linked to dialogue choices (played on PC), but despite that I still dig it; now Blades of Time, on the other hand is just fun, definitely gonna get back to that one in the future.
I have not played these games but most of them seem pretty interesting to play. I do love how you saved the game that seemed the best for last. Side note: I love how you present your content. You do a great job.
Damn, wouldnt remember the first templar without this video, also played Hunted. If you want to check out more of these and havent played them, Of Orcs and Men is a favorite of mine I come back to every year and the 2012 Game Of Thrones rpg with similar gameplay and surprisingly good story.
I liked venetica enough to get the platinum trophy on PS3. It's definitely low budget and really janky, but the unlockable abilities are fun, the graphics while not great are at least cohesive and passable. No bloom overuse on console, just the usual 720p with ok performance. I definitely agree with it being a mediocre action RPG at best, but I got pretty immersed, and I really enjoy the basic combat. It's one of those games that I don't think could ever be a great, but it's also a game that never reached it's potential.
"Looks like a 2003 game, and not a good looking 2003 game" Bruh have people just straight up forgotten what 2003 looked like for PS2 games? Aside from that, great video, keep it up
Awesome video. I tried Blades of Times once, It was kind of nice, but I was playing another stuff at the time. Why is that so many of us are paying attention to old Action RPGs having some quite impressive AAA titles nowadays?. It's about the old-darkest themes and classic fantasy designs?, it's about more creative worlds?, or just missing the non-woke era of gaming? I don't think it's just about nostalgia, there's something more, I really wonder the reason.
I am playing Venetica right now. I like it quite a lot. But I understand your complaints. For me its somehow charming. The combat isn't as bad. Later you fight more enemies and more capable ones. Then you have to doge and parry more. But I am playing with German voiceover. Its my native language and it sounds better, I think. I somehow regret, that I haven't played it at launch.
Its a bad game, dont waste your time on it. "it seems combat wasnt that important for the development either. Its repetetive, boring and non rewarding. It comes down to getting those QTEs right and keep spamming the time rewind feature which gets utterly boring after it has been forced on you for the umptieth time for some brainless puzzle. Its also sometimes hard to tell weather what you are doing works on bosses which for i guess forced puzzle gameplay reasons are also often immune the rifle." "Long stretches of just running around the scenery(extremely linear) interrupted by occasional fights and popping the compass to find hidden treasures (which sounds alot more exciting than it actually is)" "All in all this game gets barely a 4/10 from me and not recommended unless your main goal is staring at the protagonists ass, which is fine as long as you realize the game itself is crap."
Blades of Time also isnt bad, actualy its slasher with many interesting mechanics, probably there is none other game like this... For me more, must try. Its just the only game in which your time copy can melt enemies, lets take that rewind you do it and you exactly creates the copy which slashing the enemy... just like you did, should i mention that you actualy can have many of those at the same time ? So its more like funny system which isnt too much demanding but may offer alot....
I would also never touch again the Arkham Knights and lot of "gems" of last years, i played many assassins and only 3 of those i finished 1, 2 and the Brotherhood... at the end of rest i just get totaly bored, just like by the DA Inquisition... That games in vid arent actualy truly an "RPG" more like the slashers, with small elements of "progression"....
On that list, dont touch the Rune 2 it was pretty much crap... i played it because of first, and it was surprisingly bad... very, very bad... more like the all of that Fortnite-like-games you get good before final confrontation and over... and over again, it had terrible optimisation.... and ohh gosh a.i. didnt exist... true enemies just stand there ready to be slaughtered, lot more bugs... and worse thing... Game on no more than 3 hours.
I have a soft spot in my heart for budget RPGs. You have to admire the ambition and the execution. Venetica for example I think is charming despite its rough edges.
i quickly checked your channel but i couldn't find a mention of the first Rune (2000), my favorite viking game! it's often tagged hack-and-slash but it plays as an action-adventure to me. i'm glad to see Rune II here though, i had more fun with it than i expected to (even though only 1 character from Rune 2000 briefly returns)
So just a note, it is the publisher of Rune 2 (Ragnarok) that is suing the developer, formerly Human Head studios now Roundshield studios or something, who were bought out by Bethesda. They aren't suing Bethesda itself. The PC gamer interview also has nothing about it being killed in favour of Skyrim, instead the original devs basically abandoned the game but also didn't speak to their publisher at all, they went to work for Bethesda, refused to hand over the source code for the project, and didn't show up for any of the prelaunch event's. They also apparently left the game in a shockingly unfinished state and were generally obtrusive to the publisher finishing the project. You could draw an assumption from this that Bethesda itself wanted the project killed I guess (they did buy the studio who then turned around and basically sabotaged production to some extent) but I think it's far more likely the head's of that studio were simply told to focus on whatever project Bethesda gave them, and to try and distance themselves from their former work (which wasn't exactly stellar), they basically shut off all communication in hope's it would die. Still a dick move, but I don't think Rune 2 posed any threat to Skyrim, though it potentially could have usurped Valheim. What I want to know is, is it an intended sequel to the original Rune (a great hack and slash game)? Because I can't find anything about it.
The Banter in Hunted: Demon Forge is probably where most of the writing went to as well as the world building. A lot of potential that isn't going to be seen ever again
Loved Hunted Demon Forge. Still has a special place in my games list. Another one I really enjoyed was a game called The Summoner. A unique fighting style, big story, and brilliant atmosphere
Hunted : demon forge was good, underated imo. Played it with my brother on local coop and had a blast. If you're not overly selective or analyzing a game with it's pros and cons, you'll have a blast with it. I love their exchanges in dialogue and quite funny at times too. It got 3 possible ending (as far as I know) and possibly the best one is spoiler* Not drinking those liquid power ups that woman in caddoc's dreams suggests you to do. Makes the game quite hard but imo, was the best way to play it.
Glad you liked it. Originally we were going to hint at the liquid being your downfall by in the intro videos with the Bethesda logo having a rat drink it and its eyes turning black. Ended up reusing that for the "good" ending where neither player drinks, cause Bethesda didn't want their logo tarnished lol.
I thought no one else in the planet had played Blades of Time. Honestly I had totally forgotten about it as well lol Somehow I have the memory of playing a Blades of Time 2 back in my teenage years, but can't seem to find it anywhere. I wonder if I'm just remembering the second half or a DLC of the first and only game or something, but I recall playing through some snow areas, or at least areas with a dark blue tint.
What seems to stand out a lot are games with online funcionality that was taken down later down the road, being unable to perhaps enjoy some light coop fun. Instead of just doing it the old way by a direct connection system, so you wouldn't need any servers anyway.
Hunted: The Demon's Forge is a fun game. And Venetica has been on my to-do-list for a long time. I have the PlayStation 3- and Xbox 360-versions, but when I looked it up on Steam just now, it was only €0,99. So yes... I bought it. Now to finally play it...
Venetica is a great game and u dont have what it takes to finish it obviously, but seriously perseverance is the name of the game. Its better and better as u progress. At least thats how i remember it. First Templar, i cant say only for myself, i had a fun time playing it even by myself. Probably more fun if u co op, but again, i think it depends what u expect from the game. Hunted also a great game even by urself and i played it when it was fresh and the puzzles doesnt seemed forced, it was ok, but the combat was fun. Rune II had yet to play, but eventually will get to that. Blades of Time is a real hidden gem, if u didnt played it yet, go and do so, its a fun and entertaining game with great graphics, for its time, but even today it aged quite good. Most of these are budget titles except Hunted i think, so u cant expect flawlessness but saying that u dont get that either with AAA titles so hey, these are at least quite cheap to get nowadays at least i think they are. I have them for years now, except RUNE II. And planning to revisit VEnetica. And maybe Blades of time. Will see how time allows it.
Great video. I’ve played Venetica and enjoyed that one. Tried Demonicon? Pretty good thought you would have put that in. Hunted looks sweet. As does rune 2. I loved rune 1.
If anyone knows it can help. Well, I remember an RPG game with the main character in long hair. The beginning probably started with the whipping of the main character. It was an RPG in which you probably bought units from traders and fought them tactically on the field. Anyone know what this game was called? should be in the range of 2000-2010 something like that.
Its funny all the games I’ve forgotten about or have never heard of but like seeing videos like this. Always looking for that hidden 💎 that I never played.
Two Worlds 2 was nice game but you had to learn the controls scheme (was really weird) and only first act (desert) was filled with content to the brim. Later it was empty and fast. Flying Fortress expansion helped a little. Lack of content later might be caused by deadlines and CD Project making Witcher 3, which caused people from other studios to leave? Hunted Demon Forge - only know that main character was voiced by Lucy Lawless of Xena fame. Couldn't finish it due to boredom.
0:09 what game is this?? I know it says darksiders 2 in the bottom corner but looking it up with the year that’s next to it I can only find darksiders 2 (2012) so like…where can I even find anything about it?
I loved Hunted: Demon's Forge. I still do. I really love the character design. Gameplay wise, it's not perfect, but it has so much potential to be great. Personally for me, it would make a great sandbox game, where you take mercenary jobs from different places and can switch players between the two.
I bought hunted the demon's forge with local coop in mind and then I found out about PC version. I ended up playing it anyway and enjoyed it a lot, in a manner that I would like to see (or record) a proper let's play of it (playthroughs in youtube are mainly focus to have fun with the various bugs of the game). Cursed Crusade could be on the list too as an action adventure with local coop. And Rise of the Argonauts is another that I didn't see in comments section.
A few of these games were ones that came out when I was with my ex-wife and we really wanted to play these games but never had the money to get them. We spent our game budget on stuff like Dungeon Siege 3 and Borderlands instead.
Fun fact: Blades of Time looks decent cause they smoothed out what was wrong with X-Blades. It was one hell of a drug playing X-Blades back in the day because clunky control and visual hellscape. If you have experienced X-Blades before and can digest it, you will definitely like BoT.
One game I greatly enjoyed that I feel never seems to get the praise it deserves is called, "The Cursed Crusade." Seriously, play it if you haven't. If I recall correctly it was an Xbox 360 exclusive but it could've also been on PS3.
Hunted the demons forge was Published by Bethesda which explains why it's magic system was never explained making it way too confusing and complex. Basically it was next to impossible to use so it was a waste. Without the use of magic it became a straight out hack and slash game which is fine. But it would have been nice to be able to use the magic system
Castlevania curse of darkness... That one is the one nobody knows about (the music in this game is top nutch!) And Knights of the Temple 2 this one is for sure the darkest RPG out there lol
Part 2 is now live:
ruclips.net/video/jitK8J3Xc4o/видео.html
Part 3:
ruclips.net/video/jqNa0rNe1zg/видео.html
Did you play any of these games before?
I just realized that the majority of games on the list have/had local coop.
If you wanna get any of these games on GoG, you can use my links:
Blades of Time on GoG with my link:
cutt.ly/e13gNvM
The First Templar:
cutt.ly/O13hJnO
Venetica:
cutt.ly/513h11i
I played Venetica a lot, really liked it. Especially the atmosphere and story. There are not many games where you canonically play a Necromancer (in most games it's just a class among many that can summon some skeletons, not in-depth like in Venetica).
Blades of Time also isnt bad, actualy its slasher with many interesting mechanics, probably there is none other game like this...
@@Kai-tn4yx 99 cent in steam sale season was thinking of pickin it up myself
I actually remember Ayumi really well - she was the protagonist of another hack'n'slash game called Oniblade back in 2008 I believe. I worked in a gaming magazine at the time and we had a lot of promo materials for the game laying around. At one point the sticker with her looking very tsundere-like ended up at the side of my home desk computer right next to Lightning from then upcoming FFXIII so the image got engraved in my mind. Never played the game though xD
No but i was planning to.
Venetica looks like a game I'd have loved back when i was 12 and was lucky to get 2 games a year, and thus enjoyed what ya got.
Saaaame. Wish I’d heard of it back then.
I still own it on XBOX 360. We were starved for those types of games on console. That gen was when we started getting them in force. I still have Hunted and the First Templar as well. Thought The Cursed Crusade was going to make the list.
I liked Venetica. I wasn't explecting much. I did a plot summary on my channel. I'm surprised more people haven't watched it.
Facts
Venetica released in September of 2009. It is the same year we got Minecraft, Assassin's Creed 2, COD MW2, Bayonetta, GTA 4 Episodes, Dragon Age Origins, L4D2. And in 2009 you would have gotten some hits from 2008 like GTA 4, Fallout 3, Mirror's Edge, Burnout Paradise or whatever.
Venetica was a bottom shelf game.
I actually think Hunted: Demons Forge is a criminally underrated game.
Criminally underrated? 7/10 is about fair, maybe 8/10 if you wanna be generous. But fact is: it doesn't have much competition as the industry seems to have forgotten about action adventures/RPGs and that makes it stand out. It scratches an itch that the industry has pretty much completely abandoned in favour of churning out Dark Souls clones. I hate the Souls-series for completely ruining the action RPG genre for me.
@@RoughThief you mean Souls are too difficult with a messy/confusing storytelling?
@@siberyuswithengard7364 I actually dislike easy games, so I do appreciate a decent challenge. However, I absolutely hate cheapshot BS around every corner with floaty ass movement and laughably bad and spastic hitboxes to the point where you have to look for ways to cheat or break enemy AI just to make is remotely fair.
And don't get me started on the storytelling, it's just downright godawful.
@@RoughThief so, you dislike artificial difficulty and gappy/messy storytelling, two aspects that can be found in every souls... I like your view, I always thought the same: invisible enemies backstabbing you throughout a foggy forest (DS 2), random dongs hiding behind random corners or shadows only waiting to cheaply gang bang wandering players (literally every souls has done that), obnoxiously long and stunlocking combos (Elden Ring mostly), ... they all seem deliberately placed with no specific reason other than bother you
@@siberyuswithengard7364 LOL, phrasing! That gave me a good chuckle.
The 2010s were a really exciting time for gaming, I feel like. It felt like there was always something to look forward to, and we hadn't learned to be jaded about AAA publishers yet.
"Hunted: Demon Forge" had very good grim atmosphere and you can play it as singleplayer where other character is handled by AI. And it does quite well! Yeah and that elf chick looks stunning and badass :-D I even have and an urge to replay game some day.
Extremely underrated.
Same.
Replayed it recently, like before, I eventually burnt out on it mid-to-late game. However, atmosphere and even worldbuilding are still top-notch in my book. If you like grim, this game is definitely worth your time once more. And yes, she indeed looks stunning and badass :)
PUH PUH PUU UU YOU MEAN BEST ELF EVER!!!
This video has inspired me to have a playthrough, just finished and quite enjoyed it. A decent if old hack and slash
I absolutely loved Hunted the Demon's Forge. I still have my ps3 connected and play it from time to time.
i'm playing venetica right now and pretty enjoying it so far !! And for a 2009 game it's pretty impressive to have clothes and hair physics
I played it 2 years ago and I hadn't played it before. I enjoyed it quite a bit. The atmosphere is really nice. Fighting is really rough though. I really wonder why I didn't hear about it back when it came out (especially since I'm german as is the developer).
Gameplay straight sucks but the hair and physics are good AAA masterpiece 10/10. Kidboy 2007 hair and physics wer better. Also gameplay matters alot more than hair. But I can tell from your name you're one of them ppl that think anime girls are cute so that weirdness is accepted amongst weirdos
@@ramrodbldm9876 No you have two sword one for dead second for people ! Best game Deck13 story & gameplay, "The Surge 2" not even close !
Is it on the steam platform?
Go check what got released in 2008 and in 2009 if you think that is impressive.
Hunted: The Demon's Forge is a hidden gem. I finished the game twice.
I remember stumbling upon Venetica back in the day when I was sailing the high seas, I thought it was a blast!
I played hunted a decent bit back in my youth. It was quite entertaining to play with a partner and the character interaction between the two playable characters are enjoyable to me
Venetica is a brilliant game. Very original gameworld and story!
I remember playing Hunted with an ex back when it was a fresh new game. It was really difficult, I ended up buying a strategy book for the game and over a few days me and my ex got good enough to do a no death run start to finish. I remember it being really fun, we played it 3 or 4 times probably. I'd like to replay it today and see how it holds up.
I always liked "Hunted: Demon Forge", it's a dark & brutal Dungeon Crawler that plays more like "Gears of War" with some light RPG elements, and the 2 main characters are funny in a serious 80s/90s movie style.
I think it's kinda underrated.
Some other games that are nearly forgotten in time:
- Raze's Hell (very funny, though simple shooter)
- Conan (GoW-clone, but nicely done, Ron Pearlman as Conan is funny)
- Binary Domain (1 of my favorites, another GoW-like, but more like Anime, with some light RPG elements & decisions-making + different outcomes, I think very underrated)
- Project Sylpheed (it's ACE COMBAT going into space, but it's Anime, the action is like MACROSS / SPACE BATTLESHIP YAMATO, simple, enjoyable)
- Overlord 1 (very funny, you basicly play Sauron who is the CO of 80s/90s Gremlins)
- Drakan (only played THE ANCIENT'S GATES, very PS2-ish, but nice)
- Ring of Red (always thought it's a good tactical game, but it doesn't hold up to FRONT MISSION 3)
- Breakdown (sweet FPS Beat 'm Up Adventure, I'm probably 1 of the few who liked this)
- Hellnight (PS1, simple, but interesting Run Away Horror Sim with several outcomes)
- WH40K: Space Hulk - Deathwing (even though it's kinda the only thing that might keep you here for longer, it's like Horror-Survival, you have to fight constantly, CQC is quite demanding, but it realy sucks there's no real story here)
Whoa, great list! I also liked PS2 Drakan, but never finished it due to the save corruption bug at the first dragon gate. Will definitely have to emulate a playthrough at some point if I can make it though the tedious platforming swamp section.
Also a fan of Binary Domain.
Hellnight I'd never heard of, but it looks atmospheric as all get out.
@@SolarScion I forgot, "Hellnight" is the game's title in Europe, in Japan it's called "Dark Messiah" or something like that, and if I'm not totaly wrong it was never released in the US, though there are some fan-ports with englisch subtitles, I guess.
Thanks!
I want to add "Armies of Exigo" to that list as well. It was really good warcraft 3 clone
Blades of Time...Brings so many memories. I finished it in a day because my internet wasn't working and I didn't have anything to do.
That made me give it a second chance and I didn't regret it.
Nice video, there could be a part 2 to this covering more obscure/jank older games.
Like:
Knights of the Temple, Demonicon, Rise of the Argonauts, Viking: Battle for Asgard and The Cursed Crusade.
I have so much nostalgia for Knights of the Temple, but recently replaying it made me realize that it's a lot more jank than I remembered. The OST still slaps, though.
I'd also like to add a few more games to the list: Rune 1 (better than Rune 2 IMO, great melee combat and dismemberment system), Drakan: Order of the Flame (kinda janky, but you get to ride a dragon), or Enclave
Maaaan , rise of the argonauts was so good ! I love that game.
I played the SHIT outta cursed crusade when I was younger, I extremely enjoyed that game.
I used to play knight of the Temple when I was a kid, the game was fully in English and back in the days I couldn't speak a word of it, never finished the game due to that but I must say I remember cherishing every single new enemy I could kill lol
Viking: Battle for Asgard always confused me. It seems like a game I should like, but the control scheme on PC is just obtuse with no indication as to what button does what or how the control's work (I didn't have a controller at the time), so I ended up playing it once and uninstalling it like so many steam games in my library, though at least it got a chance unlike the 300 odd unplayed games in there (damn you steam sales!).
I can give you a lot of old and forgotten games too!
Throne of darkness.
Space Hack
Blade & Sword
Prince of Qin
Etrom: The astral essence
Morning's wrath
Restricted Area
Dungeon lords
Seal of evil
Quest of D
Nightstone
Darkstone
Thanks!
Wow, Blades of Time actually looks pretty neat!
I'd love to see a fan expansion to the game, or something that rounds the game out further.
BoT is amazing, I played so many times a decade ago :D
perhaps check out X-Blades a.k.a Oniblade - Blades of Time is either a sequel or a spiritual successor to this game, or something like that
I'd definitely enjoy more content like this, sneak-peeks into other, not-so-well-known action games/RPG games. I know a ton of these came out in the early-to-mid-2000's, and, honestly, not only the best of the best are worth playing, there are others as well which are fun to play and explore (especially nowadays when we don't really have a ton of RPGs out yet).
Venetica feels very cozy to me, although there seems to be a few crashes linked to dialogue choices (played on PC), but despite that I still dig it; now Blades of Time, on the other hand is just fun, definitely gonna get back to that one in the future.
Venetica has an amazing story in the end. I really loved that game back then 🥰
Another recommendation
Blade of Darkness
Rune I
Enclave
Omg I love Enclave, I have put so much hours in that game on the original Xbox, and than PC. I f-ing love it
I have not played these games but most of them seem pretty interesting to play. I do love how you saved the game that seemed the best for last.
Side note: I love how you present your content. You do a great job.
I played all of these back in the day. Loved them all! I really enjoyed Venetica. We had some great gems back then.
Venetica looks like Gothic and Neverwinter Nights 2 had a baby and then left it to die.
Damn, wouldnt remember the first templar without this video, also played Hunted. If you want to check out more of these and havent played them, Of Orcs and Men is a favorite of mine I come back to every year and the 2012 Game Of Thrones rpg with similar gameplay and surprisingly good story.
Play 'Blade of Darkness', i think you will find that one interesting.
I liked venetica enough to get the platinum trophy on PS3. It's definitely low budget and really janky, but the unlockable abilities are fun, the graphics while not great are at least cohesive and passable. No bloom overuse on console, just the usual 720p with ok performance.
I definitely agree with it being a mediocre action RPG at best, but I got pretty immersed, and I really enjoy the basic combat. It's one of those games that I don't think could ever be a great, but it's also a game that never reached it's potential.
"Looks like a 2003 game, and not a good looking 2003 game"
Bruh have people just straight up forgotten what 2003 looked like for PS2 games?
Aside from that, great video, keep it up
Awesome video. I tried Blades of Times once, It was kind of nice, but I was playing another stuff at the time.
Why is that so many of us are paying attention to old Action RPGs having some quite impressive AAA titles nowadays?. It's about the old-darkest themes and classic fantasy designs?, it's about more creative worlds?, or just missing the non-woke era of gaming? I don't think it's just about nostalgia, there's something more, I really wonder the reason.
@click4gameplay did you ever play Arx Fatalis - if yes whats your opinion about it?
The First Templar's gameplay reminds me so much Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone from 2004.
I am playing Venetica right now. I like it quite a lot. But I understand your complaints. For me its somehow charming. The combat isn't as bad. Later you fight more enemies and more capable ones. Then you have to doge and parry more. But I am playing with German voiceover. Its my native language and it sounds better, I think. I somehow regret, that I haven't played it at launch.
It's always a good time when you upload!
Vebetica abd hunted are very beautiful games
Blades of time definitively got my attention. I'm hyped for this game
Its a bad game, dont waste your time on it.
"it seems combat wasnt that important for the development either. Its repetetive, boring and non rewarding. It comes down to getting those QTEs right and keep spamming the time rewind feature which gets utterly boring after it has been forced on you for the umptieth time for some brainless puzzle. Its also sometimes hard to tell weather what you are doing works on bosses which for i guess forced puzzle gameplay reasons are also often immune the rifle."
"Long stretches of just running around the scenery(extremely linear) interrupted by occasional fights and popping the compass to find hidden treasures (which sounds alot more exciting than it actually is)"
"All in all this game gets barely a 4/10 from me and not recommended unless your main goal is staring at the protagonists ass, which is fine as long as you realize the game itself is crap."
Blades of Time also isnt bad, actualy its slasher with many interesting mechanics, probably there is none other game like this...
For me more, must try.
Its just the only game in which your time copy can melt enemies, lets take that rewind you do it and you exactly creates the copy which slashing the enemy... just like you did, should i mention that you actualy can have many of those at the same time ? So its more like funny system which isnt too much demanding but may offer alot....
Time features you are not using only in puzzles, but essence of it is to use in fights...
I would also never touch again the Arkham Knights and lot of "gems" of last years, i played many assassins and only 3 of those i finished 1, 2 and the Brotherhood... at the end of rest i just get totaly bored, just like by the DA Inquisition...
That games in vid arent actualy truly an "RPG" more like the slashers, with small elements of "progression"....
On that list, dont touch the Rune 2 it was pretty much crap... i played it because of first, and it was surprisingly bad... very, very bad... more like the all of that Fortnite-like-games you get good before final confrontation and over... and over again, it had terrible optimisation.... and ohh gosh a.i. didnt exist... true enemies just stand there ready to be slaughtered, lot more bugs... and worse thing...
Game on no more than 3 hours.
According to Protondb, all but Runes II play well on the Steam Deck. Would make a cool retro RPG bundle on Steam or Humble Bundle. Great video
Rune 2 looks pretty rad - wish it was on consoles!
I have a soft spot in my heart for budget RPGs. You have to admire the ambition and the execution. Venetica for example I think is charming despite its rough edges.
If I was not playing dragon Isles I'd definitely be interested in 2 of these I've never heard of.
Sjajan video s jako dobrim zaključcima, svaka čast! Keep up the good work!
A bit of a mistake I noticed early in the video: the game you list as Darksiders II is actually Two Worlds II
Thanks... Now it bothers me a lot, lol.
I always remember Shining Force I and II as the best RPG I ever played. Few people know it.
i quickly checked your channel but i couldn't find a mention of the first Rune (2000), my favorite viking game! it's often tagged hack-and-slash but it plays as an action-adventure to me. i'm glad to see Rune II here though, i had more fun with it than i expected to (even though only 1 character from Rune 2000 briefly returns)
The actual hidden gem IMO is the first Rune game from 2000. I guess it goes with the name Rune Classic on Steam.
Blades of Time is a really good game and I also like its "prequel" X-Blades. Maybe a bit too simple for most, but it has a nice flow too.
I don't know if you are going to make this as a series of forgotten games but i am recommending Marlow Briggs, Devil's Hunt and Mars: War Logs
That's the plan. Thanks for the suggestions. Noted!
Really enjoyed Hunted.
Can you add Sacrifice to your "games to bundle in a video" list ? i haven't played it in forever
also The cursed crusade
He doesn't really cover RTS games which Sacrifice is (despite the 3rd person perspective) so I wouldn't count on it.
So just a note, it is the publisher of Rune 2 (Ragnarok) that is suing the developer, formerly Human Head studios now Roundshield studios or something, who were bought out by Bethesda. They aren't suing Bethesda itself.
The PC gamer interview also has nothing about it being killed in favour of Skyrim, instead the original devs basically abandoned the game but also didn't speak to their publisher at all, they went to work for Bethesda, refused to hand over the source code for the project, and didn't show up for any of the prelaunch event's. They also apparently left the game in a shockingly unfinished state and were generally obtrusive to the publisher finishing the project. You could draw an assumption from this that Bethesda itself wanted the project killed I guess (they did buy the studio who then turned around and basically sabotaged production to some extent) but I think it's far more likely the head's of that studio were simply told to focus on whatever project Bethesda gave them, and to try and distance themselves from their former work (which wasn't exactly stellar), they basically shut off all communication in hope's it would die.
Still a dick move, but I don't think Rune 2 posed any threat to Skyrim, though it potentially could have usurped Valheim.
What I want to know is, is it an intended sequel to the original Rune (a great hack and slash game)? Because I can't find anything about it.
The Banter in Hunted: Demon Forge is probably where most of the writing went to as well as the world building. A lot of potential that isn't going to be seen ever again
Loved Hunted Demon Forge. Still has a special place in my games list. Another one I really enjoyed was a game called The Summoner. A unique fighting style, big story, and brilliant atmosphere
They gave Venetica for free on GOG a few months ago. Looks ok , might try it someday
Hunted : demon forge was good, underated imo.
Played it with my brother on local coop and had a blast. If you're not overly selective or analyzing a game with it's pros and cons, you'll have a blast with it.
I love their exchanges in dialogue and quite funny at times too.
It got 3 possible ending (as far as I know) and possibly the best one is spoiler*
Not drinking those liquid power ups that woman in caddoc's dreams suggests you to do. Makes the game quite hard but imo, was the best way to play it.
Glad you liked it. Originally we were going to hint at the liquid being your downfall by in the intro videos with the Bethesda logo having a rat drink it and its eyes turning black. Ended up reusing that for the "good" ending where neither player drinks, cause Bethesda didn't want their logo tarnished lol.
I thought no one else in the planet had played Blades of Time. Honestly I had totally forgotten about it as well lol
Somehow I have the memory of playing a Blades of Time 2 back in my teenage years, but can't seem to find it anywhere. I wonder if I'm just remembering the second half or a DLC of the first and only game or something, but I recall playing through some snow areas, or at least areas with a dark blue tint.
Pretty obscure game for some reason, really enjoyed it back in the day
What seems to stand out a lot are games with online funcionality that was taken down later down the road, being unable to perhaps enjoy some light coop fun.
Instead of just doing it the old way by a direct connection system, so you wouldn't need any servers anyway.
Hunted: The Demon's Forge is a fun game. And Venetica has been on my to-do-list for a long time. I have the PlayStation 3- and Xbox 360-versions, but when I looked it up on Steam just now, it was only €0,99. So yes... I bought it. Now to finally play it...
Hunted: The Demon's Forge can be played online with special software.I think it was hamaci or something like this
I played Hunted Coop with a friend and liked it. Ah and don´t drink the slag.
I like Venetica too.
This does not help me narrow choices for Christmas free time gameplay.
My soft choice was Fable 3 but now I'm tempted to try one of your pickups 🤗
whish fable 3 was still available on steam
Venetica is a great game and u dont have what it takes to finish it obviously, but seriously perseverance is the name of the game. Its better and better as u progress. At least thats how i remember it.
First Templar, i cant say only for myself, i had a fun time playing it even by myself. Probably more fun if u co op, but again, i think it depends what u expect from the game.
Hunted also a great game even by urself and i played it when it was fresh and the puzzles doesnt seemed forced, it was ok, but the combat was fun.
Rune II had yet to play, but eventually will get to that.
Blades of Time is a real hidden gem, if u didnt played it yet, go and do so, its a fun and entertaining game with great graphics, for its time, but even today it aged quite good.
Most of these are budget titles except Hunted i think, so u cant expect flawlessness but saying that u dont get that either with AAA titles so hey, these are at least quite cheap to get nowadays
at least i think they are. I have them for years now, except RUNE II. And planning to revisit VEnetica. And maybe Blades of time. Will see how time allows it.
Great video. I’ve played Venetica and enjoyed that one. Tried Demonicon? Pretty good thought you would have put that in. Hunted looks sweet. As does rune 2. I loved rune 1.
I played Venetica in 2020. Blades of time looks pretty cool
If anyone knows it can help. Well, I remember an RPG game with the main character in long hair. The beginning probably started with the whipping of the main character. It was an RPG in which you probably bought units from traders and fought them tactically on the field. Anyone know what this game was called? should be in the range of 2000-2010 something like that.
The first templar and hunter are absolutely amazing games
Its funny all the games I’ve forgotten about or have never heard of but like seeing videos like this. Always looking for that hidden 💎 that I never played.
I got Venetica for free on GOG a few months back.
Two Worlds 2 was nice game but you had to learn the controls scheme (was really weird) and only first act (desert) was filled with content to the brim. Later it was empty and fast. Flying Fortress expansion helped a little. Lack of content later might be caused by deadlines and CD Project making Witcher 3, which caused people from other studios to leave?
Hunted Demon Forge - only know that main character was voiced by Lucy Lawless of Xena fame. Couldn't finish it due to boredom.
Steambot Chronicles is an obscure and forgotten RPG. It’s DEFINITELY a hidden gem 💎
0:09 what game is this?? I know it says darksiders 2 in the bottom corner but looking it up with the year that’s next to it I can only find darksiders 2 (2012) so like…where can I even find anything about it?
Can you cover Anachronox one of these days?
I loved Hunted: Demon's Forge. I still do. I really love the character design. Gameplay wise, it's not perfect, but it has so much potential to be great. Personally for me, it would make a great sandbox game, where you take mercenary jobs from different places and can switch players between the two.
i was hoping to see "Demonicon" also went by The Dark Eye: Demonicon. its a PC rpg and really enjoyed it. was suppose to go consoles but never did.
I love Venetica, played both on the 360 and the PS3, not the best RPG out there but it definitely has its charm.
I bought hunted the demon's forge with local coop in mind and then I found out about PC version. I ended up playing it anyway and enjoyed it a lot, in a manner that I would like to see (or record) a proper let's play of it (playthroughs in youtube are mainly focus to have fun with the various bugs of the game).
Cursed Crusade could be on the list too as an action adventure with local coop. And Rise of the Argonauts is another that I didn't see in comments section.
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Blades of Time
i love ya (no homo)
love the game, maybe i'll gonna buy the PC version now
Love this series! Keep it up! Also have you ever played deathspank?
Thanks for covering these
A few of these games were ones that came out when I was with my ex-wife and we really wanted to play these games but never had the money to get them. We spent our game budget on stuff like Dungeon Siege 3 and Borderlands instead.
Venetica was the only true RPG in this list. The game becomes more open once you reach Venice.
Fun fact: Blades of Time looks decent cause they smoothed out what was wrong with X-Blades. It was one hell of a drug playing X-Blades back in the day because clunky control and visual hellscape. If you have experienced X-Blades before and can digest it, you will definitely like BoT.
Hunted's couch co-op is awesome in the ps3 version. Tactical combat and beer drinking with a friend🤠
I subscribed, was a great video. I missed out on the first Templar game so I’m thinking of trying that out.
I played Hunted with my GF, we had zero idea that drinking the silver stuff would give you the bad ending. It is as fun.
Blades of Time has an anime-style prequel called X-Blades (Oniblade) from the same developers Gaijin Entertainment.
I freaking love Hunted: The Demons Forge. Its not perfect, but is such a guilty pleasure of mine.
The PS3 had some true quality action gems like Brutal Legend, Lollipop Chainsaw, Splatterhouse, Asura’s Wrath and more.
I immediately recognized divinity. Tgat tame impressed me so much
Spoiler Warning! The best part about the Hunted Demons Forge coop was that in the end scene you could choose to betray your friend. :D
i will try Venetica for sure
Just found your channel man and loving it! Great stuff cheers lad
One game I greatly enjoyed that I feel never seems to get the praise it deserves is called, "The Cursed Crusade."
Seriously, play it if you haven't. If I recall correctly it was an Xbox 360 exclusive but it could've also been on PS3.
Lost Odyssey only on the 360 is one of the best rpgs on the system. It's from some of the same people who worked on Final Fantasy.
Hunted the demons forge was Published by Bethesda which explains why it's magic system was never explained making it way too confusing and complex.
Basically it was next to impossible to use so it was a waste.
Without the use of magic it became a straight out hack and slash game which is fine. But it would have been nice to be able to use the magic system
Demon Forge co-op on PC was awesome, back in the day.
you need to try enclave as well. also x-blades, it's kinda like a prequel sort of thing of blades of time.
Hunted TDF was a great game and also don't know if u ever played Armed&Dangerous.
Also a good impresion for Dark Messiah of Might and Magic.
Castlevania curse of darkness... That one is the one nobody knows about (the music in this game is top nutch!) And Knights of the Temple 2 this one is for sure the darkest RPG out there lol
Did Venetica ever get fixed/patched? I played it a long time ago on PS3 but couldn't get past the first part with how glitchy it was.
it's amazing how they could have been forgotten
Hunted: Demon Forge and Kingdom Under Fire was my jam.