Introduction
Vertigo 2
We’ve got 10, so let's get started off with number 10. Now, if there's one part of the game industry that's just consistently underrated, it's VR games. VR players know this. Unless some massive breakout hit comes along like "Half-Life: Alyx" or "Beat Saber," most of the time these games get ignored, and we'll be honest, we're the first ones to admit sometimes we don't cover these games enough.
But there's some fantastic groundbreaking stuff that's getting totally overlooked. Stuff like this, "Vertigo 2." It's a wildly creative FPS that most of you probably have never even heard of. I mean, seriously, this thing has only like a little more than 2000 reviews on Steam. It's criminal how few people know about it.
Everyone who has played it sings its praises from the rooftops, and that's real because it's awesome. In most VR games, you get real world guns. Immersive, but they don't really let developers run wild with their fun and imagination for VR. "Vertigo 2" goes nuts with fantasy weapons, and they all have really unique and fun reload mechanics.
It's great. The game is long, it's got a lot of unique environments, good enemy variety, creative scenario design. It's everything you want in a good first-person shooter. It even accommodates different kinds of VR players, like good VR games should. So they have standard movement and teleportation movement for people who get a little bit motion sickness while wearing a headset.
It's often heralded as the next best thing since "Half-Life: Alyx," and that alone is extremely high praise. If you've got VR and you haven't played this one, seriously, check it out.
KILL KNIGHT
Next at number nine, for a game that's only two years old, "Vampire Survivors" already has a long list of copycat games that are surprisingly solid. The genre of Vampire Survivor-likes is rapidly evolving. It kind of existed before "Vampire Survivors" too. But now it's reached the next stage with "KILL KNIGHT," an awesome score attack action game that has some of the hallmarks of its inspiration but is almost completely different.
It's got hordes of enemies, and you play as a super overpowered dude and you complete objectives and get higher scores and you unlock new equipment and features. That's the stuff that's mostly the same, but "KILL KNIGHT" is a much faster, more aggressive game. Rather than being a mostly passive experience, this game requires your full attention and concentration. There are counters, there are resources to juggle, and special abilities to trigger. It's kind of like "Vampire Survivors" on speed.
Everything is faster, more deadly, and the entire presentation is this visual overload of flashing lights and shaking screens. I really feel like if you were playing "Vampire Survivors" and you were like, "This is good, but it needs to be sweatier." "KILL KNIGHT" should be your thing. It's a wild game to play, but it's just as addictive as its inspirations, if not more so.
If you're a precision junkie who gets into one of those flow states where you just like are 100% focused on the game and you're suddenly this whirling death machine that can't be stopped, "KILL KNIGHT" is really satisfying and one of the very best games to come out of this type of scene.
Sonic x Shadow Generations
Next over at number eight, Sonic, our man, has been having a little bit of a quiet renaissance lately. Obviously there was "Sonic Frontiers," which was better than a lot of us expected. Then the amusing murder of Sonic the Hedgehog Game, "Sonic Dream Team," which was mobile only, but mostly solid, and then now "Sonic x Shadow Generations," which at first sounded like it was just gonna be another remaster with some tact on content, but the new stuff is actually really good.
"Sonic Generations" is easily one of the better modern Sonic games, but the bonus game "Shadow Generations" they added in here is in a lot of ways even better. It ditches a lot of the weaknesses of the original game and focuses on the strengths, which is the modern boost gameplay. This game has some of the best levels and best controls in a Sonic game in years. And the new and improved overworld is a lot of fun to explore.
The story is kinda hilarious. I mean, they brought back Black Doom, the stupid alien guy from the terrible "Shadow the Hedgehog" standalone game. You know, the one where Shadow had guns. But they managed to pull something together that actually has some heart and doesn't just feel like a little side offering.
The new Shadow campaign isn't super long, we'll be honest, but it's substantial enough that it really does stand on its own as one of the best Sonic things to come out in a minute. This collection really is worth it for the new Shadow stuff, and if you haven't played Generations as well, well then that's just the icing on the cake.
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden
Next over at number seven, "Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden." This is like an ambitious thing that combines RPG-style progression, dialogue trees, and decision making stuff with "God of War" 2018-style action and exploration and a pretty unique character switching mechanic on top of all that.
It's a game where your choices actually feel like they matter, with strong dialogue and some interesting characters, and best of all, it's like a complete game that isn't short but also doesn't drag on for too long. It's a solid step up from "Vampyr," or "Vampyr," their previous game. It's got just as much dialogue and interesting quests while filling out everything else with actually rewarding exploration and challenging more technical combat.
Now, the combat is a sticking point for some people, but if you're willing to meet the game halfway and take the time to understand how it works, then it can be pretty satisfying. It's not like this game changing thing, but it's fun to play through. If you're not feeling it, there's always the option to turn down the difficulty.
The story is interesting enough that it's worth sticking through the game either way. Even if the exploration falls short at points or you might not like the combat, the setup they have here, these ghost banishing people in a colonized New England and how it all works is just awesome. It feels really, really unique.
The way the game lets you make serious decisions that don't just have lasting consequences on the towns, they actually open follow up quests where you can explore your choices in more detail, in a way some RPGs just don't even bother with or some games like action games with some dialogue stuff just kind of half-ass.
It's an all-around solid game that, yeah, it's flawed, it's a little derivative of other titles, but the entire ghost banishing stuff is interesting and unique enough that it just deserves some more attention.
Anomaly Agent
Next, over at number six, "Anomaly Agent." This is one of those games where looks can be deceiving. But don't let the awkward animation on the main guy fool you, this is a legit side-scrolling action game. The pixel art might not be for everyone here, but the action is so fast and fluid, the soundtrack is amazingly awesome, and even when certain parts of the presentation kind of falter or they look a little, you know, not that great, the game has such a unique vision and so many crazy ideas that it all just adds to this over-the-top world that they created here.
It's essentially a side-scrolling beat 'em up with platforming and it's all blisteringly fast and brutal. Along with all the beatings that you're handing out, there's also choices to make that impact the direction of the story. And there's some tricky bosses to beat.
It's one of those games where the trailers and store clips just don't really do it justice. It's one of those games that you have to play and feel to get the most out of it. Just kind of think of "Katana Zero" if you didn't die in one hit, and that's sort of what "Anomaly Agent" is here. So if you liked that game, you'll probably like this one.
Rise of the Ronin
Next, over at number five, "Rise of the Ronin." Now, in a lot of ways this is probably Team Ninja's most complete modern game yet. It's a huge open-world action game, but with the combat of "Nioh" where you make choices that affect the direction and ultimate outcome of the story.
It was very ambitious, and for the most part delivered on everything it promised. But for whatever reason, the game ended up mostly overlooked by the end of the year. I guess all the "Shadow of the Erd Trees," "Wukongs," and "Stellar Blades" stole this game's thunder, but it really deserves to be in conversation along with those games because it's just as good, and arguably better than some of them.
At least depending on who you talk to. This is just a great game all around. It's really fun to play, the setting is unique, and the combat is the real star of the show. Having a system this complex yet accessible, gory, cool, and satisfying is just a real achievement. "Rise of the Ronin" isn't a pushover, but it's a little easier than "Nioh" games with a forgiving parry and tons of flashy abilities that give you a certain advantage in battle.
All with some good character creation and good character building, some really good enemy types, and cool weapon styles. Look, graphically the game is not gonna blow anyone away. It actually looks kind of old and outdated. But this is a game that deserves a lot more respect than it ultimately got. I mean, it got good reviews and all, I recommended it for most people when I did the "Before You Buy," but man, by December we don't blame anyone for forgetting that this one kind of existed. It kind of fell out of the conversation, but you should look into it, maybe consider it.
A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead
Now over at number four, "A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead." This is one of those games where your first instinct is to immediately write it off as some cheap movie cash-in, but it's not. They put some real effort into this one to try and make it a real horror game.
The "Quiet Place" movies are perfect for a horror game adaptation. I mean, avoid making noise is one of those classic game mechanics. If you've played "Splinter Cell" from the early days, you're trained at this point. So making a game for the setting just works really well. Now because of that, it's an extremely slow-paced game.
You have to do everything carefully and slowly to avoid getting killed by the noise-sensitive Death Angels. But it gives the game this peculiar atmosphere that's both pretty tense and almost meditative in a weird way.
It's a game that I can see a lot of people getting really frustrated and fed up with after a while, but if it clicks with you, then the way this game works can be really effective. The story is surprisingly engaging too, with some sympathetic characters to get invested in and stuff. The visuals are impressive. The option to make it so the game detects audio from your headset mic is pretty funny. It's a horror game with some interesting and innovative ideas that may not strike the right chord for everyone, but it's an interesting enough horror game that it does deserve a mention.
Conscript
Now down at number three, "Conscript." Think "Signalis" or "Crow Country," but like instead of hyper-stylized "Silent Hill" future or a cool "Resident Evil" throwback, here, it's World War I. This game is bleak, it is extremely dark, but as an indie survival horror game, it is very well made and designed and it's not so stingy with stuff that it gets frustrating or tedious.
The combat, you know, it's not gonna be for everyone, it's a little rough, but just like the brutality of this world, the setting, the atmosphere, the feeling, the lo-fi visuals, the depiction of war actually being just like an outright horror, like it makes sense to apply a survival game to trench warfare. It's brilliant.
It's a mostly smooth experience with just the right amount of danger and puzzles to keep things interesting, and it's challenging. Like I said, the premise is great for a horror game, that pixel art is solid, and it's just all-around good indie survival horror.
They tend to do it best. It's been a good year in general for indie horror really, and "Conscript" is worth considering.
Children of the Sun
Now down at number two with Devolver Digital, the game publishers, you know you're gonna get something interesting and weird at the very least, and "Children of the Sun" checks all their boxes. It's hyper-violent, stylized, and weird, but with a simple but satisfying as hell central core mechanic. Each level is filled with these cultists, but your revenging sniper only has one bullet to take them all out. To accomplish this seemingly impossible task, you have this special psychic ability to control the bullet, and each cultist you hit is a new opportunity to hit another one.
If you don't hit 'em all, it's game over and the mission restarts. So completing each of the game's maps is more like solving a puzzle than just a simple test of accuracy or blowing a dude's head off.
It all starts simple enough, but you start to learn new powers like being able to control the trajectory of the bullet mid-flight or completely re-aim without hitting an enemy. These special abilities are recharged by hitting weak points. The cultists get tougher with these shields and psychic powers of their own as you go in. So the game does ramp up the difficulty in a pretty satisfying way. And the game doesn't overstay its welcome either. It's just a fun game, full stop. It's "Sniper Elite" combined with "Superhot" and that is incredibly awesome.
Nine Sols
Now down to number one, "Nine Sols." The developer, Red Candle Games, it's their follow-up to "Devotion," and it's just about as far from that game as you could possibly imagine. They went from a psychological horror walking simulator to this highly stylized animated side-scrolling "Sekiro" inspired action game. It's such a hard shift that you'd think that the final result would be a little rough, but no.
"Nine Sols" isn't just a good game, it is a great one. It may look superficially similar to something like "Hollow Knight," but this isn't really a metroidvania in the traditional sense. It's really a full-blown action game with some interconnected environments. What makes this game great is the tight action, the surprisingly effective storytelling, and the absolutely brutal, but fair difficulty.
This game has some of the best and most difficult boss fights of the year, which is extremely high praise considering the competition out there, think about it. But it's true. Combat is fast, fluid, and intense. It's parry-focused, but the timing is forgiving and always consistent.
It never feels like you get hit when you shouldn't in this game. The game always plays fair, even when some of the bosses seem nearly impossible at first. I mean, it's insane.
It's not just the bosses that make this game, though, it's got excellent presentation all around, the manga-style panels it uses for certain segments are gorgeous. The music is fantastic, and the world design is just excellent all around. It's one of the best games of the year and hey, if the difficulty is too much for you, there are options to make it easier. So if you're not a crazy masochist like some of us here at Gameranx, you could beat it too. And to drop the illusion for a second, like I said, this list is made up of the Gameranx team's choices, "Nine Sols" in particular, Eric and Kevin have been singing the praises behind the scenes for months now, trying to get all of us here to play it.
So yeah, "Nine Sols," definitely look it up, definitely consider it.
Bonus Games
Those are 10 games, but we do have some bonus games for you.
Enigma of Fear
See what I mean about indie horror this year? This is another great one with some real stylish presentation and excellent pixel art. What makes this game stand out is its non-linear, open-world and more in-depth investigation system, where it's more about piecing together clues and figuring out what's going on rather than finding chess-themed keys and just pushing boxes around.
The game lets you go pretty much anywhere you want right from the start, but actually figuring out what's going on is the tricky part. There are multiple endings, lots of secrets to uncover, and a cool dog. This is definitely one to check out.
Lorelei and the Laser Eyes
Another game kind of built like a Rubik's cube that you slowly unravel. As you solve puzzles and get a little smarter, the story is revealed to you and it is probably unlike anything else you'll play this year. If you like a good story, but if you really like some good puzzle games, some good mystery, check out "Lorelei and the Laser Eyes."
Farewell North
This is a story-based adventure game where you get to play as the dog. It's well made, the story is touching without being overly just kind of like, you know, like the dog and the owner kind of stories go. It's beautifully presented as well. Yes, the description sounds real on the nose. I mean, you literally play as a dog, a dog bringing color to the world, so you can probably guess what kind of story is being told here, but it's done in a really fun way. It's always pushing forward, you never linger on one activity for too long, the pacing kicks ass. They even make animal herding not feel like a huge chore like it is in other games. If you're into these kinds of narrative adventure games, which I'm always here for personally, then check this one out, it's a good one.
Conclusion
But like I said, those are 10 of the most underrated games of 2024. There are so many other ones out there. I know there was a bunch of stuff we could not squeeze on this list, so I'd love to hear your picks down in the comments.
Look, if you only play big AAA games, that's cool, more power to you. But if you were interested in checking any of these out or any other recommendations, we just want to hear what you think down in the comments. As always, thanks for reading and we'll see you guys next time.
0 Comments