The number of games that have been released over the last fifty years is absolutely massive. While not every game can stand out, there have literally been thousands of games that have found a strong following, or were just massive hits beloved by the public. The thing is, even those games can end up getting lost in the shuffle and forgotten. And those are the games I’m here to talk about.
Now, some franchises, like Mega Man or Castlevania, live on the periphery. Though “live” may be a misnomer, as they are not quite alive, but not quite dead. But people are still keenly aware of their existence. You get collections for them, they’ll be referenced in other games, they still linger. We aren’t talking about those games. This is a list of the games that made an impact, and then seemingly vanished into smoke. Poof!
WHERE TO PLAY
You wouldn’t know if these days, but NBA Jam washuge. During the height of the Arcade’s relevance, NBA Jam was among the most popular games. In fact, it is one of the highest-grossing arcade games ever. It brought intwo billion dollarsin revenue. That isn’t even adjusted for inflation. Ms. Pacman? Donkey Kong? Mortal Kombat? They weren’t evencloseto that.
Not only didNBA Jam kill it in the arcades, but it was released on every console that existed during the 90s (that was still alive when NBA Jam launched, at least). This was theheightof pick-up-and-play arcade sports titles, when people played sports games even if they didn’t care about sports because they were justfun. But alas, despite being utterly massive in its day, the people have forgotten NBA Jam. It wason fire, now it has beenrejected.
Another similar example of a massive arcadey sports game being forgotten is the once beloved NFL Blitz.
After the PlayStation, and its fancy polygonal graphics, hit the scene, a number of publishers desperately attempted to reimagine their classic franchises in 3D. Outside of Nintendo, these attempts typically faltered. But then there is the Maximo franchise: thespiritual successorto the Ghosts ‘N Goblins franchise. Two of these games were made for the PS2, and both of them were fantastic. They played well, had a charming aesthetic, and even translated that crushing difficulty over to the new titles.
Hell, you still went down to your undies after taking too many hits. If you were wondering how they were received, both Maximo games were praised by reviewers. As for sales, well, we know thefirstgame became a Greatest Hits title, so it definitely moved copies. We don’t, however, have any information on The Army of Zin’s sales. Given that the third game was canceled mid-development, we can probably assume it didn’t light the world on fire. Nonetheless, it is shocking how quickly these titles were buried. Capcom doesn’t even mention Maximo these days. Hopefully, we’ll see Maximo crawl out of the grave one of these days: heart-patterned underwear and all.
The Breath of Fire franchise is another one Capcom seemingly forgot existed. I think this is a bit of a softer entry on this list, as fans most certainly fondly remember the Breath of Fire games, but as time passes, there are fewer and fewer of us. Time is a cruel mistress, after all. Dragon Quarter was an exceedingly brave entry in the franchise, andit was divisive on release, but it still reviewed pretty well despite that.
So, Dragon Quarter, and its divisiveness must have sold poorly then, right? Actually, it didn’t. It was a big success in Japan, qualifying for their version of the Greatest Hits. Even it it sold well, it may not have met internal projections. What happened next is that Capcom released an ill-fated Japanese-exclusive gacha in 2015 titled Breath of Fire 6. Now, the series appears to be dead, and the world has moved on. I only hope that we’ll see the dragon be reborn again one day.
The Metal Gear Acid duology was a pair of Metal Gear games that featured turn-based, stealth-oriented,deck-building, Tactical JRPG gameplay. I know that’s a lot to process, but the end result was pretty great. While the first Acid game provided the bedrock, it was Acid 2 that really took things to the next level. It came packed with a distinct cell-shaded aesthetic and a greatlyexpanded number of cards available - allowing for anincrediblelevel of build variety.
Metal Gear Acid 2 was also well-received, too. It was seen as a big step forward for the series, and was lauded by critics at the time*. However, despite earning this, the Metal Gear Acid games have been lost to time. The PSP being a moderate success in the West, and the games existing in a niche within a niche, were hurdles too massive to overcome. Which is too bad, as these are some of the finest Metal Gear games ever released.
*A few reviewers kicked up a fuss because the Acid games didn’t play like Metal Gear Solid, and a few reviewers didn’t like that it was a deck builder, but those reviews were in the minority, and, frankly, wanting a game to be another game is always going to be a useless criticism.
While the Tony Hawk Pro Skater series is finally getting new titles again after spending a decade in limbo, SSX has, shockingly, been completely forgotten. It is fair to say that 2012’s SSX is not the best game in the series. As the seventh generation had a tendency to do, they removed a lot of the color from the game, giving us something that looked comparatively drab. However, while it wasn’t an SSX3-like masterpiece, SSX (2012) was still a fantastic game.
It was still an excellent arcadey sports title. And while itwascriticized at the time for losing some of that charm, it still reviewed well. Because hey, even a somewhat drab SSX is one hell of a good time. From what I could dig up, publicly available information appears to imply that SSX wasn’t a sales bomb either. However, this would be the last we’d hear about SSX. EA hasn’t said much since, and as for 2012, well, even the SSX fans out there seemed to have forgotten that it was ever released.
I didn’t want to fill this list with snowboarding games, but what the hell happened to Cool Boarders and 1080 as well? Why did we stop getting snowboarding games?
Diddy Never Returned From His Kong Quest
Diddy Kong Racing
Diddy Kong Racing focuses on high-speed, entertaining racing action as well as a large dose of adventure and exploration. Diddy Kong and seven other characters - including Banjo the bear in his debut N64 outing - race through 20 beautiful 3-D courses on one of three vehicles: a cart, hovercraft or plane.But pushing your foot (or paw) to the floor is only half the story - you’ll also need to explore the nooks and crannies of each track to find shortcuts and hidden items. These in turn open up new courses, time challenges and races against turbo-charged bosses - if you can find them in the game’s sprawling island hub.Diddy Kong Racing also features Rare’s proprietary Real-Time Dynamic Animation Technology (RDA). This programming technology allows the game to include a wealth of large, colourful and highly textured characters in a massive environment, so even with multiple kart-riding animals on-screen the action is suitably fast-paced.Real-Time Dynamic Animation Technology squeezes the most out of the Nintendo 64’s hardware, allowing for sparkly reflections and mirroring effects whenever appropriate. Diddy Kong Racing also features a Versus Mode that allows two to four players to compete using any combination of vehicles - and a variety of multiplayer scenarios makes for unrivalled depth of play.
Mario Kart is thriving, Crash Team Racing has had a big remake, and Sonic’s racing series is, hopefully, on track to recover some of its lost glory. The Kart Racing scene feels like it is in a good place. But what about theotherbig kart racer on the N64?What about Diddy Kong racing? Not only did Diddy Kong Racing do the different kart types thing way before Mario and Sonic, but it did it better. Here you select the kart type before the race, which will open up unique paths.
This is also a kart racer where item pickups aren’t randomized, and you may collect multiple of the same weapon type to level them up. So cool! Oh, and you know how fans keep clamoring for guest characters in Mario Kart World? Well, Diddy Kong Racing had ConkerandBanjo. All of this made Diddy Kong Racing an instant classic… that Nintendo and its fans have largely forgotten about. Do you know what is messed up? The closest thing to acknowledging Diddy Kong Racing is Diddy’s absence from the Mario Kart games.
Diddy Kong Racing did get a DS remake, but that one hasn’t really been forgotten, as it was never known about in the first place.
Rayman Legends
Following on from Rayman Origins, 2013’s Rayman Legends is an acclaimed platformer in Ubisoft’s iconic series. Rayman and his allies must defeat a nefarious magician in order to rescue Barbara and the other princesses.
On a list of bafflingly forgotten games, Rayman Legends is easily one of the most confusing. Rayman Legends was universally beloved. It released on every console, even being ported to the Switch a whole four years after its initial release on the seventh generation of consoles. The data we have suggestsit sold nearly five million copies. Yet, when is the last time you’ve heard Ubisoft talk about the franchise? When did you last hear anyone talk about these games?
What is going on here? Rayman Legends is quite possibly the best game Ubisoft was directly responsible for. It is amongthe best platformers ever created. Even if it didn’t sell to expectations initially, it eventually sold more than any Rayman game before it. Yet, this classic feels like it is being lost to time. Evaporating before our eyes. Oh god, his arms and legs are already gone. Quick, we need to spread the word before the rest of him vanishes!
Boxing is a curious sport. While it saw a decline in popularity during the 2000s, it still featured mega-stars, and still, to this day, has maintained a prominent position as being one of the most popular sports globally. Yet, there are almost no new boxing games being developed. Which is odd, as there used to be multiple big franchises. None of them were as big as Fight Night. Andno Fight Night game was as well-received as Fight Night Champion.
With a well-received career mode, which saw players put the gloves on as Andre Bishop, a boxer looking to rise through the ranks. And the story is… excellent? It’s well acted, compelling, and draws you into the experience. It sold two million copies as well. So, it wasn’t a bomb, though it sold less than the previous entries in the series, so EA quietly backed away from the franchise. There are still a few real ones out there, but most gamers have seemingly forgotten Fight Night Champion.
But let’s leave this list on a high note. EAhasindicated that they may be interested in revisiting the franchise. So, who knows? Maybe Andre Bishop will be making another run for the belt. And maybe gamers will remember the champ and put a little respect on the Fight Night Champion name. It deserves to be under those bright lights, not lost in the darkness.
