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As you may or may not know, video games are my passion. I loooove to play video games, and even try my hand at making them. But something else you'll find if you know me at all, is I hate this decline of gaming that's been happening for the last few years.

Just like TV, games - or rather game makers - have sunk to the level of quickly producing crappy games that pander to mindless fads, idiocy, and squeeze any bit of comercial money making power out of a concept. I could go on a long 'back in mah day...' rant about how during the hey-day of the N64 and PS, games were bizzare and creative and concepts were bold and adventureous. There was constantly some new inventive things experimented with and a treasure trove of unique games and ideas to explore. But instead of lamented on the loss of the Video Game Renassance (spelled wrong, lol), I feel like listing a few games I think are underrated.

Not many game makers take a chance and do something unique anymore. Mostly because the same few companies control the entire industry nowadays, but.. There are a few games still out on the market that are worth looking into if you're a gamer who is tired of the same old cookie-cutter-crap flooding the markets.

~ Lost Kingdoms series:
Two games as far as I'm aware, Lost Kingdoms and Lost Kingdoms 2, both are on the Gamecube. This one is especially exciting for us girl gamers, as women are portrayed as strong and capable, including being the main characters. The game itself is basically an RPG and a card game, which sounds strange, but it works. Your character, the princess, has a magical artifact that allows some magical cards passed down in her family to be summoned to life. Your deck draws a card for each button on the right hand side of your screen, and you decide which monster to summon to fight the monsters around you as you run through beautiful landscapes and fight all kinds of weird things - many of which you can own as cards and summon yourself.

The stories both have replay value, the gameplay is addictive and fun and much simpler than it sounds, the music is a highlight I personally think, and overall, they're some of my favorite games EVER. It also has multiplayer options if you can find someone else with data for it. The multiplayer is fun, but you need somebody else who's ever actually heard of the game. Maybe a sibling or something.

~ Custom Robo Series:

I'm not sure how many Custom Robo games have been released in English as it's a long running series in Japan with a LOT of games, but I have played two: Custom Robo (Gamecube) and Custom Robo Arena (DS). These two games are surprisingly diffirent, one having great music while another has a better story, etc. But in general the gameplay and concept of the Custom Robo world, the little tiny robots and their battles, is quite fun.

The general idea is, you play a kid with a surprising aptitude for using these little mentally-controlled robots that are all the rage. You start out just getting your first Robo and not knowing much about them or anythign for the matter, allowing the character to explain to you as the player the setting and play control. But eventually, you always somehow get sucked up in a much deeper plot involving a legendary Robo at risk of destroying the entire world. Therefore, you have to keep getting better with your Robo, getting new parts and completing all sorts of battles and challenges until you finally can defeat the threat and save your world and all the characters you have come to meet in your adventure.

The Robo Battles are fun and addictive, the characters and story are enjoyable and there is plenty to do after you beat the game. Another bonus is, this is a game that just calls out for multiplayer games. everybody makes their own Robo and you can fight. Depending ont he game, there's different rules and games, like 4 player melees in the GC version, or plain one-on-ones through wireless on the DS.

~ Guilty Gear Series:

These games I wonder if they are 'underrated' because they have a devote cult following, but I don't know a lot of people who've even heard of them. All my friends who like it, I introduced them to it. So I'll talk about it here.

It's a fighting game not unlike many you've played before like Mortal Kombat and Tekken, but different too, on the Playstation consoles. It's in 2D but the art is pretty cool and the controls are just as complicated. It has a story between the games but don't expect it to make the slightest bit of sense. There's plenty of time travel, paradoxs, secrets, and bonus-content-only explanations that make the games make absolutely no sense at all, but that doesn't stop the characters and game from being enjoyable and endearing.

That's one of my favorite things that draws me to the series, actually. All of the characters are quirky and memorable with bizzare looks, histories, and fighting styles. Weapons on not just for show, and don't be surprised if somebody has wings that turn into people and shoot you with arrows. Or somebody's hair turns into a giant spike and impails you. There are a zillion modes of play, many characters, all sorts of unexpects and super super weird 'Am I on drugs or did that just hapen?' style twists, and plenty of room to beat the crap out of your friends in this series.

As I mentioned, it's got quite a following, so their must be something a lot of people who've found it, love and keep coming back for.


IN CONCLUSION:
These are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. I have a nose for finding lesser known, enjoyable games and introducing my friends to things they adore. This probably won't be my last time to do an entry like this since I didn't even go into Shadow Hearts or Jet Set Radio or Odama or anything yet. So don't feel limited to the crap they shove down your throat at WalMart or whatever. There's a lot of real gems out there for someone who enjoys video games, if you just dig down in the game store bins, or through Amazon.com listings. Maybe if REAL gamers spend their money on these instead of all the crap they keep producing to steal your money now, then maybe they will start changing their ways a little. It's unlikely, but it's worth a try to support the games that are actually worth your time, right?

At the very least, I hope you find a new game you really enjoy that you might not ever find otherwise. : )