4 Underrated Games Released In 2013 That You Need To Play

I must admit, 2013 was a big year for gaming. More importantly, games that would never have received much recognition were highly regarded in the gaming world. The rise of the indie gaming scene is what really led to this major shift in the types of games that are heaped with praise, with games like Gone Home, Brothers, and plenty of others receiving almost unanimous love from both players and critics alike.

However, even though plenty of games were reviewed well, and even sold very well, there were still others that just didn’t get the attention they deserved. This happens for many reasons – bad marketing, poor timing, a premise that didn’t catch on for one reason or another, and a slew of other factors can come into play. This is my chance to throw some praise at the games that did not get theirs when they were released. These were some of the most underrated games released in 2013 across various platforms. If you didn’t play them, you totally should.

Metal Gear Rising Revengeance

When you think about the Metal Gear franchise, you probably think of Solid Snake slowly creeping through enemy areas trying to be as stealthy as possible. What you probably don’t think of is a third-person action game with all kinds of hacking, slashing, and running head long into enemies without an ounce of fear. However, that is exactly what you get with Revengeance, which is probably why not enough gamers played the game.

)

It seems like a lot of people wrote this game off because it wasn’t the traditional Metal Gear game, but in doing so they robbed themselves of a very enjoyable game. The story is nonsense, which is par for the course in Metal Gear, but it’s the gameplay that makes this worth checking out. If you like games like Ninja Gaiden and Devil May Cry, you will have a good time with Metal Gear Rising Revengeance. And for fans of the series, you get a little bit of crazy Metal Gear lore, which is always a good thing.

Sly Cooper Thieves In Time

Sly was a beloved franchise from back in the day, and many gamers were very excited when the return was announced, but for whatever reason, the game was not greeted with very much fanfare when it finally released last February. In spite of receiving positive reviews from most major gaming outlets, sales figures were quite low, with the game moving only about a quarter of a million units worldwide. For any AAA release, this is not considered successful.

)

The gameplay is actually quite good, featuring much of the stealth mechanics that players loved from back in the early PlayStation days. Additionally, it looks absolutely fantastic, featuring a beautiful art style that maintains the looks and feel of the old game, but uses the technical power afforded to it by newer consoles very well. Whether you’ve played the old games or not, this is a game that is definitely worth playing.

DMC

I was a little conflicted about whether or not I should include this game, because to be completely honest, it was quite a bit more successful than most of the others on the list. However, it still gets talked about far too negatively because it is different from previous Devil May Cry games. It’s a reboot though, so by definition it should be different. The fact is, reboot or not, it’s a fantastic game. The combat mechanics, while slightly tweaked from the traditional formula of the series, is still really smooth and stylish, and it actually makes things a little more accessible, especially when compared to Devil May Cry 2 and 3.

)

One point of contention for many fans is the new look of Dante, the series’ main character. This is, of course, a matter of preference, and not something that can be argued one way or the other. However, you should not let that be a factor that prevents you from playing the game. Even if you don’t like the new Dante, the game is just so well-made that it’s worth moving by that. If you like character action games, this is really one of the best released in 2013, and in spite of some of the criticisms, it’s a game that you should definitely grab, especially if you can manage to find it in one of the many Steam sales.

Wonderful 101

This Wii U game is actually really good, but it seems that it had a quick moment where it was talked about in the gaming community, and then it was forgotten. This, coupled with the fact that Nintendo is struggling to sell the Wii U console, means that not enough people actually took the plunge and gave this game a shot. It’s a highly stylized game that looks just as cool as it plays.

)

Basically, the game sees the player controlling a huge squad of superheros from a camera angle that looks a lot like Diablo 3 and other action role-playing games. However, unlike other isometric games, this one is more about managing what your crew is doing, and not about playing one character. Unlike a lot of Wii U games, it actually makes good use of the controller by zooming in and letting the player control characters from a traditional third-person viewpoint on the smaller screen. It’s a very interesting game, and it does things differently from others on the platform, and for that, it deserved far more praise and love from players than it received.

Conclusion

Of course, these are not the only games that were underrated. In fact, I’ll bet that you can name quite a few that I didn’t touch on. So for that, I turn to you. What are some games form 2013 that you feel more people should have played? Hit the comments section below and let us know!