2015 has undeniably been the year of proper big hitters: Fallout 4, The Witcher 3, Bloodborne, Star Wars Battlefront.
But what about the games that flew under the radar? What’s the most underrated game of 2015?
I have a couple of candidates. The first one is Expand, the Australian-made ‘meditative’ experience that has players exploring labyrinths like mazes.
The second is Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture. A game that no-one really talks about now, except to complain about the walking speed. That was one of the most interesting experiences of 2015 for me.
What about you? What does your list look like?
Comments
89 responses to “Tell Us Dammit: Most Underrated Game Of 2015”
Grow Home
Shovel Knight: The Apex of the Shaft
Creed – Technically a movie but it’s so good that it’s a game.
Grow Home is amazing, loved that game.
Also Life is Strange, maybe not everybody’s cup of tea, but it’s in my personal 2015 GOTYs list.
Telltale’s Game of Thrones and Tales from the Borderlands games were both surprisingly good. Also officially Kerbal Space Program was released earlier this year and it’s brilliant.
+1 for Tales From the Borderlands. Enjoyed it from beginning to end, even it was really just a mildly interactive story. The setting and perfectly pitched humour meant that I may have enjoyed it even more than the original Borderlands games (and I played the hell out of them).
Also + 1. So surprised Tales Of The Borderlands was so damned good.
+1 Game of Thrones. Excellent story telling in a game and sometimes I wish I had more time to make a decision. Or a Pip Boy.
+1 for GOT, I sat awake at night worrying about my decisions
10/10.
Adding my +1 to both GOT and Tales/Borderlands – Telltale should just feel free to mainline themselves straight into my bank account.
Fallout 4 is the most underrated game of the year. Going to win every other award (including mobile GotY), why not that one?
With the way some people complain about it, you’d think it was the worst game of the year, banged their boyfriend/girlfriend and is Literally Hitler. Pretty sure I suffered radiation damage just from reading the Steam forums for the game.
Yeah, after the first couple of days I stayed well away from forum comments. The naggers were just so intent on whining about something thats very very minor most of the time.
Seriously though, in the context of the question asked, why not FO4? We didnt get a release date until what? June? For a AAA game, that was well hidden, and to me was as good a job of flying under the radar as you’ll see with such a big title. Most are screaming to the masses a lot longer out than FO4 did.
Almost everybody feels strongly about this game. Being a nagger or being a fanboy aside, things like Fallout Shelter, Pip-Boy Editions, ads on Tinder, presence on Pornhub and the sheer amount of coverage this game is getting on Kotaku and other websites hardly qualify as “flying under the radar”.
The announcement/release date thing might very well just be a production and finalization related circumstance. It’s not like there’s no controversy around the final state of the product anyway.
Mostly depends on what you think “underrated” means. If it’s lack of hype, then I can’t seriously consider Fallout 4.
If it’s lack of deserved appreciation then that’s a completely different thing and I think it’s fair that quality of the game is being debated.
Betrayal hurts the most from the ones you love. 😛
Personally enjoying it, although the bugs (occasional crashes and some nasty UI glitches) are irritating.
Witcher 3.
This. After this game I can never look at any side quest(s) in any other game the same way again. I still have friends talking about how great quests in other games are when they haven’t even played Witcher 3 and a little piece of me dies inside. It is also what made my opinion of Fallout 4 much less(I still love Fallout 4’s gameplay more, but there is no beating that Witcher world and story).
Yeah The Witcher 3 woke me up to the fact that side-quests don’t have to be the way they have always been. They can be good. Whenever I see any open world game announced now I groan, because I know they’ll fill it with “content” instead of content, like The Witcher did.
Underrated? It will most likely garner several prominent goty awards you would have to think.
One would definitely think so. However, if it loses said awards to the AAA titles, it would hence be underrated as fuck. That would not be a good sign for the future of gaming.
Witcher 3 tops my list this year despite the amount of hype I had for other titles.
Granted there’s no strict definition of what a AAA title is, but surely Witcher 3 qualifies. 6 million units sold as of August, US$ 67 million budget. It’s not exactly an underdog.
True. In saying that, CD Projekt Red is not exactly known for producing “AAA” titles, as compared to the likes of DICE, Treyarch, Bethesda etc. To me personally as fairly casual gamer, it was a very pleasant surprise to see such a quality game come from a developer I didn’t have much knowledge of previously. Also, I strongly agree with the bulk of CD Project Red’s methods of production and understanding of gamers wants and needs.
Bring on Cyberpunk 2077
Game was amazing I’ll agree. But. For some reason I found myself just zooming through everything rather than really taking my time and getting lost in it. Well towards the last third anyway.
I’ve been doing the opposite with fo4 for some reason though. Maybe I’ll feel the same once I’m 100 hrs in who knows.
To me, graphics, story, characters are all much better in w3. But for my money I just enjoy fallouts gameplay more.
Rather paradoxically though, I’d give witcher a 9 and fo4 an 8.
So I guess I’m just a contradictory fool ha.
I get you on this. I have played fallout 4 much more than Witcher. But if I was rating it, I would rate Witcher higher. I guess its kind of like movies. Shawshank Redemption is a masterpiece, but in comparison I would have watched something like the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles(1990) Movie much much more.
You mean Gwent Simulator 2015? 😉
transformers: devastation
I keep forgetting about that game! Thanks!
It’s 34% off on Steam.
There isn’t really anything I really liked this year that hasn’t been talked about.
Even Tales in the Sky, a fairly niche experience, has been getting a lot of press because of the love & dedication Xseed put in.
Was Shin Megami Tensei IV released in pal this year or last? I can’t remember.
Either way, play Shin Megami Tensei IV.
Oh wait, Divinity Original Sin has been drowned in Fallout 4 press. That & Wasteland 2 ( which I can’t afford just yet, so I don’t really know) are worth a look in.
Divinity was great until Fallout 4 consumed my soul.
Final Fantasy Type 0 was a great time for me, I enjoyed the gameplay & what little story there was.
I’m in the minority here, so take that how you will.
Divinity: Original Sin is excellent, but it was released last year. This year got the enhanced edition, I’m just not sure if it counts as a 2015 release with respect to Mark’s question.
Came to consoles this year, my craptop couldn’t run it lays year. By your logic, I can’t include Japanese games because they came out years ago.
On the other hand, by your logic Bioshock 1 would be on the list because it was released on mobile devices this year. I think when the question is about games released this year it’s not unreasonable to consider their first English language release.
Man, if I liked Bioshock & it came to mobile & played well, I’d mention it here. Mobile rereleases are great.
I play a lot of catchup on the train etc, so for me I’d want to know that.
Definitely Undertale
Really? My friends won’t seem to shut up about it.
Yeah, I got onto it from word of mouth, but I never really saw much mainstream coverage of it. It is entirely possible that I missed it.
Kirby Rainbow Curse. I’m assuming. I still haven’t gotten around to playing it yet, but Canvas Curse was fantastic so this one should be too, right? 😛 Really didn’t hear anyone say much about it though, pretty sure I heard more talk about Wooly Yoshi.
Also Captain Toad was great, but kinda got forgotten about before long. Though it did come out right at the start of the year I guess.
Oh hey, Codename STEAM. Forgot that happened. Haven’t touched that one either 😛
it is great but my hand feels like it is falling off holding up the gamepad with one hand to use the stylus with the other.
Rise of The Tomb Raider, a great game from what I’ve played so far, but lost in all the fallout 4 press.
The Xbone exclusivity doesn’t help it.
Invisible Inc.
It’s just tight and well polished. Does awesome things to both stealth and turn-based genres. The expansion that just got released adds a decent amount of content as well. It’s my personal GOTY, but I think that may be because stuff like Fallout 4, MGSV and Withcer 3 are still beyond my means to play.
I bought it on the strength of the developer but haven’t actually got around to playing it yet
If you enjoy turn-based gaming even a little bit, make some time. It won’t be wasted. The aesthetic is very Mark of the Ninja, but it’s definitely it’s own beast.
Dying Light for me, a friend and I played through the game co-operatively and it was a really nice surprise! 🙂
Yeah, I haven’t got into that one yet (and won’t until next year), but I’ve kind of been reviewing videos and articles on it and think it’s basically going to be a strong contender for my GOTY (that I bought in) 2016.
Agreed. I never thought I would get to the point where there would be so many good games that I want to play that it would extend far into the following year for me to catch up on them all. The struggle is real!
Nice choice. Loved every minute I played of DL. Had some small issues (iffy low-res textures in places) but the anxiety, tension and exploration immersion I had playing this hasn’t really been matched by anything else this year so far.
Fallout 4
HATRED
Oh wait… I thought that said “What games should be buried at the bottom of the sea?”
Probably ‘Axiom Verge’ or something.
Anna’s Quest :3
Ha ha, definitely.
I think there may be more than a little bias in this :3
Mad Max, it’s actually really fun.
Prob gonna pick up Dying Light today after work too, heard that was pretty good.
Yeah I’m going with Mad Max or Dying Light.
Life is Strange. My personal GOTY.
Tales From The Borderlands. Don’t understand why more people aren’t raving about it. Is currently my number 3 GOTY, and convinced me to pick up The Handsolm Collection for myself for Xmas.
Ori and the Blind Forest
wolfenstien: the old blood. seems like it got forgotten about, the second half in particular was great fun
Agree. Highly underrated game released at a great price point too.
Yeah that was fantastic. I forgot it was this year too.
Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture was amazing. Finished it in one sitting. Highly recommended.
Megaman Legacy because it’s Megaman and its on Steam! Also Downwell was quite a fun and well crafted little game and they both copped their share of hate.
Also before I forget, Plague of Shadows (Free) DLC for Shovel Knight was amazing and kinda went under the radar.
Psh, half-arsed re-release of Mega Man games with 60% of the titles that were in Anniversary Collection over a decade ago doesn’t deserve to be rated 😛
Star Wars: Battlefront, it’s getting so much hate from everyone, but it’s actually a really fun game, and I’m hooked.
I’ll second this. It’s one of those games where you find yourself playing into the wee hours because you want ‘just one more round’. The matches take about 10 minutes each, so they rarely bog down. That being said we had a massive meat grinder in a Supremacy match last night on Endor where our imperial forces were trying to storm an access tunnel held by a bunch of rebels. In the end I took a jet bike and flew straight down the tunnel, taking about 2-3 rebels out and confusing the rest enough for my team-mates to get a toe-hold inside the tunnel. The air was thick with blaster fire and thermal detonators were flying everywhere. Fantastic!
It is stories like this just make that game feel even more Star Wars. I think to many people forget to let their imaginations in to help with the immersion.
Splatoon. Best new online shooter for a few years. Once you’ve played Splatoon, Battlefront feels so lacking.
It can’t be underrated if it’s GOTY 😛
Don’t worry. That’ll never happen. 🙂
Since. I meant to say SINCE!
The fact that you didn’t just means that you’re an honest person who finds it hard to lie.
Dishonest person who finds it hard to tell the truth 😛
Yes, I can’t believe how much I enjoy this game. Seems pretty overlooked with the mainstream gaming media.
Rocket League. The original hype was good, but I feel like it’s lost a lot of its user base which is unwarranted. It’s still an amazing game.
I smashed Rocket League pretty hard when it first dropped, then it started becoming mildly abusive and I gave it a rest for Witcher etc. Jumped back on last week to have a ‘dabble’ before the combined screeching and abuse on the chat window triggered my “Nup, I’m out” button.
When it’s base consisted of thirty-something Dads just looking to play a fun little game for 10 mins, it was quite possibly GOTY material. Now I sense that demographic base has shifted to single, socially-awkward twenty somethings with acceptance issues, it makes it a very different experience from where we were a few months ago.
There’s no cure for people.
interesting point. Toxicity is what made me leave previous MOBAs. I haven’t experienced too much negativity on Rocket League. There just doesn’t seem to be enough time to type shit. The main negative experience is people spamming ‘What a save’ when you fuck up. I’ve disabled voice, so they can’t verbally abuse me.
The trolls still take the time to crack open the little keyboard and type abuse. It’s still a great game played with mates, but, yep, I’ve completely written this off as an online experience.
Christmas stuff coming soon along with some Mad Max-style DLC, should bring some people back (including me, love everything they’ve added so far)
Dying light is the Most under rated game of 2015, first it game out in january so it was well before bloodborne, witcher3, splatoon battlefront, fallout 4 and asscreed. Next techland has never been taken seriously by mainstream sites. They have always pushed out great games that have been hampered by pubisher interfence (dead Island,Riptide, Cartel). FInally it was a yet another zombie game with a typical zombie outbreak story that caused it to be marked down in reviews (also had a bit of rocky launch).
However the combat was just so bloody enjoyable and the parkour was excellent, there was good balance between evading, melee, and gunplay. and the biggest check box was the addition on modding and an offical editor with steam workshop intergration. All this was possible because Techland ditched Deepsilver and gave WB very little control
Edit: btw i will not whitelist the site
Mark told me to get Expand and I did and it was great. Probably that one.
Tetris Gameboy.
Mad Max was way, way better than I thought it would be so I’ll go with that.
Most of the entries here haven’t been underrated by any form. My pick for truly underrated would be Dino Run DX!
Tales from the borderlands
Agree on Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture – I bought it a couple of weeks ago and it completely blew me away. Finished it twice (and will certainly go back for more), and it’s only the 2nd game soundtrack I’ve ever actually purchased (the other being Journey).
I’m also gonna throw Until Dawn in here, too. I won’t be nominating it for GOTY or anything, but it was certainly a lot better than I was expecting. It wasn’t something that I was even vaguely considering buying until after it came out and the reviews were way better than I expected. Really fun game if you can get into the whole schlocky teen slasher movie vibe.
Helldivers was another one that came out of nowhere (for me, at least) and was a whole heap of fun.
SOMA? i’ve yet to play it personally, but i have heard great things about it.
Life is Strange was pretty great, but I wouldn’t say underrated – it was rated pretty highly from what I saw, and deservedly so. Life is Strange is probably my GOTY.
Wolfenstein The Old Blood is perhaps my most underrated. It is a fantastic addition to The New Order, and it hardly got a mention anywhere.
Pillars of Eternity really surprised me. A true RPG which I found more involving and interesting than Dragon Age : Inquisition. I’m yet to play fallout 4 (and play the hell out of and likely enjoy it), but POE is my favorite role playing experience this year.
Broforce. Love it.
I’ve spent a stupid amount of time with Dungeon Travelers 2, even though I recognise that it’s actually not all that great as dungeon crawlers go.
Sword Art Online: Lost Song was surprisingly good – Hollow Fragment was very much a grind-fest, but levelling in SOA Lost Song is enormously faster, so grinding is much less of an issue. Plus, flying around is fun. Very few RPGs – very few games other than flight sims – do flight well. Or at all, really.
JRPG-wise, I was disappointed with Tales of Zestiria. I was expecting the usual Tales move to an alternate world, and instead the game just… ended. At the time I had been blocked from some travel options and so couldn’t finish off several quests, and so I headed for the endgame expecting the world to be opened up. Instead, it closed down.
The Music Machine: goddamn, please play it! No one is paying it any attention and all the focus is going to the big name game (as far as the sort of space it’s pitched in) trying to do a similar thing (Everybody’s gone to the rapture, which I haven’t played to be honest, but at least it got a decent amount of coverage while The Music Machine got basically nothing). Boasting some of the most unsettling locales, an incredible art style and one of the most creative stories (really well told too, something I didn’t expect from a game of its size) I’ve seen in a game period I almost feel like a cultist trying to get people to play the thing because it so dearly deserves more attention, Gunpoint was a game I felt somewhat similarly towards but it ultimately did do pretty well and made a name for itself in a way I’m worried The Music Machine won’t.
Honourable mentions and runners up: The Music Machine, The Music Machine and The Music Machine.
Trine 3
The Trine series is fantastic.