Reappraised and Remembered

Poorly received or forgotten games that went on to see some form of second wind via their reappraisal by members of the gaming community.

Does that mean every game on this list is secretly really good? Not really, but it never hurts to give them a try.

It's important to note that I haven't played every game on this list, meaning that I'm likely to make mistakes and include games that ill-fitting. Let me know in the comments if that's the case, and I'll gladly rectify it.

Is there a game missing from this list that you think would fit? Leave a comment, I'll make sure to add it once I see it!

Resident Evil 5
Resident Evil 5
Resident Evil 6
Resident Evil 6
Final Fantasy XIII
Final Fantasy XIII
God Hand
God Hand
DmC: Devil May Cry
DmC: Devil May Cry
Silent Hill 4: The Room
Silent Hill 4: The Room
Shadow the Hedgehog
Shadow the Hedgehog
Drakengard 3
Drakengard 3
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog
NieR
NieR
Rule of Rose
Rule of Rose
Final Fantasy XIII-2
Final Fantasy XIII-2
Deadly Premonition
Deadly Premonition
Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance
Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance
Metroid II: Return of Samus
Metroid II: Return of Samus
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
Castlevania II: Simon's Quest
Castlevania II: Simon's Quest
Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days
Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days
Wanted: Dead
Wanted: Dead
Kuon
Kuon
Drakengard 2
Drakengard 2
Gungrave
Gungrave
Resonance of Fate
Resonance of Fate
Prey
Prey
The Bouncer
The Bouncer
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts
Shadows of the Damned
Shadows of the Damned
Evergrace
Evergrace
Chaos Legion
Chaos Legion
P.N.03
P.N.03
Eternal Sonata
Eternal Sonata
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition
The Void
The Void
Tear Ring Saga: Berwick Saga
Tear Ring Saga: Berwick Saga
Bullet Witch
Bullet Witch
Bionic Commando
Bionic Commando
Kane & Lynch: Dead Men
Kane & Lynch: Dead Men
Perfect Dark Zero
Perfect Dark Zero
D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die - Season 1
D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die - Season 1
Akiba's Trip: Undead & Undressed
Akiba's Trip: Undead & Undressed
Metal Gear Survive
Metal Gear Survive
Folklore
Folklore
Lost Planet 2
Lost Planet 2
Stranglehold
Stranglehold
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron
I Am Setsuna
I Am Setsuna
Blue Dragon
Blue Dragon
Splatterhouse
Splatterhouse
Maken X
Maken X
ReCore
ReCore
Armored Core V
Armored Core V
Red Steel
Red Steel
Second Sight
Second Sight
The Last Remnant
The Last Remnant
Gundam Battle Assault 2
Gundam Battle Assault 2
Wet
Wet
Ninja Blade
Ninja Blade
The Suffering
The Suffering
Phantom Dust
Phantom Dust
Lost Dimension
Lost Dimension
Spy Fiction
Spy Fiction
Breakdown
Breakdown
Unlimited SaGa
Unlimited SaGa
Castlevania Judgment
Castlevania Judgment
Vampire Rain
Vampire Rain
Kartia: The Word of Fate
Kartia: The Word of Fate
Child of Eden
Child of Eden
Infinite Undiscovery
Infinite Undiscovery
Shadow Madness
Shadow Madness
Crystar
Crystar
Red Steel 2
Red Steel 2
50 Cent: Blood on the Sand
50 Cent: Blood on the Sand
Oninaki
Oninaki
Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon
Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon
Zeno Clash
Zeno Clash
Golden Axe: Beast Rider
Golden Axe: Beast Rider
Gunvalkyrie
Gunvalkyrie
Zeno Clash II
Zeno Clash II
Gungrave G.O.R.E
Gungrave G.O.R.E
Urban Reign
Urban Reign
Bodycount
Bodycount
Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor
Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor
Altered Beast
Altered Beast
Project: Snowblind
Project: Snowblind
Devil's Third
Devil's Third
Gungrave: Overdose
Gungrave: Overdose
Enchanted Arms
Enchanted Arms
Hard Corps: Uprising
Hard Corps: Uprising
Rengoku II: The Stairway to H.E.A.V.E.N.
Rengoku II: The Stairway to H.E.A.V.E.N.
Left Alive
Left Alive
Kengo: Legend of the 9
Kengo: Legend of the 9
Lifeline
Lifeline
Toukiden 2
Toukiden 2
Toukiden: Kiwami
Toukiden: Kiwami
SD Gundam G Generation-F
SD Gundam G Generation-F
Short Peace: Ranko Tsukigime's Longest Day
Short Peace: Ranko Tsukigime's Longest Day
Forever Kingdom
Forever Kingdom
Black Knight Sword
Black Knight Sword

8 Comments


8 months ago

Cool list! How is this phenomenon different from a "sleeper hit?" I have a couple in mind (like maybe Dragon's Dogma?) but I'm not sure I've entirely grokked the criteria.

8 months ago

@cowboyjosh

A sleeper hit is when something seemingly unpromising releases but it actually ends up being a well regarded hit. The difference with these games is that they were either lambasted or completely forgotten about on release, only to be rexamined sometime afterwards by other people in the community. Sometimes this results in games becoming cult classics and developing quite a following of their own (Kane & Lynch 2, NieR Gestalt, Deadly Premoniton) but a good amount of games that fall into this list haven't quite seen that same degree praise. In fact, most of these games are still despised by a large majority of the community, with only small subsets of people really vouching for them. My main goal with this list is to help people discover more games like this, and maybe they'll find one they really like!
Here a few suggestions, I just don't know if they would fit your criteria.
You have the redemption stories like final fantasy XIV, no man's sky and cyberpunk 2077. Pretty sure fallout 76 had decent playerbase a few years after launch.

And some others to consider:
- Final fantasy XV
- Call of duty infinite warfare (mainly due to its campaign)
I can't grammar to save my life
one of the best lists on the site. banger ass games

3 months ago

This comment was deleted

3 months ago

@pronounspronouns

thank u bestie <3
Good list. I've only played exactly one game here and its NieR and can confirm, definitely a banger


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