It's hard to say what is a hidden gem these days. Here are my picks hopefully you guys haven't already heard of most of them. I figure they're games people who like Shenmue would enjoy.
Anachronox: An American JRPG style game set in a sci-fi setting. It's funny, well written, easy to play with a decent grid based turn based combat system. Only thing is it did leave off to a sequel but never sold well enough for it continue (might be familiar territory for us). But the game's main story is self contained enough to still be enjoyed. Definitely worth checking out.
Terranigma: An overlooked SNES action RPG a la Secret of Mana that really is one of the best on the system. Great graphics, fun real time hack'n slash gameplay with a totally unique magic system. The general story is pretty standard JRPG fare but how it is told is really well done. In a lot of ways this game subverts tropes of the genre in the best way possible. It also has a unique gimmick where towns can grow and expand when you complete sidequests something I've never seen done in any other game. The game is a spiritual sequel to Soul Blazer and Illusion of Gaia but is not connected to those games at all. You don't need to play them to get into Terranigma and you probably shouldn't bother since Terranigma is way better.
If you have any interest in this genre this is a must play.
If you are interested I'd recommend going in blind as the story has some twists.
Boku no Natsuyasumi (My Summer Vacation): This is a series of games where you play a little boy on his summer vacation. You get to go fishing, catch bugs, swimming etc. It's a little bit of a "life sim" in the sense of Harvest Moon or Animal Crossing. It's a sort of existential game where there is no real goal other than to have as much fun and do new and interesting things before the summer ends. For those that like laid back and more family friendly experiences this is a great series. It also has the procedural day to day aspect that Shenmue has.
These games never came out in the west so translating them is kind of hard. If you can deal with that (or are fluent in Japanese) check them out.
Cosmology of Kyoto: A kind of educational game/adventure game set in a mythological Kyoto in the 10th Century. This is sort of an existential game as well where the game has many endings. You will die often and reborn according to your karma all the while exploring a medieval Japan filled with real history and mythology. The game has a built in encyclopedia so there is an educational component to this. This was one of the few games that Roger Ebert praised. It's clunky by modern standards though. Might need a walkthrough to get going as it's difficult to navigate and figure out controls. Once you get into it, it's fascinating. I should warn you though, this game can be quite dark, especially its depictions of Naraka (Hell).
Holy Striker: A Japanese only SNES action/puzzle game. This game is pretty simple, you wack an orb with your sword and break blocks and hit enemies. It's really fun though and kind of addicting. It also supports 2-player co-op. Might be hard to find a translated version but it doesn't matter there is no real story.
Cinemaware games: This is a company that made many 'interactive movie' type DOS games back in the day. If you're interested in the progenitor of this genre these games might be worth checking out. I recommend The King of Chicago a mobster game set in the 30's that has some interesting ideas that were ahead if its time. Good thing is these games are really short and designed to be really re-playable with a lot of branching paths.
Scumm Games: These are standard old school point and click adventure games created by LucasArts back in the day. Most people are probably aware of these by now, especially the more popular games done by Tim Schafer. There may be some games though that are under looked like The Dig or Loom though which are more mature and worth checking out. If you haven't played any of these games however you need to check them out. You can use the ScummVM emulator to play them rather than a DOS emulator.
Gabriel Knight Series: These games used to be really popular but no one talks about them anymore. Again forgive me if these are not really considered "hidden". Either way they are a trilogy of adventure games that are absolutely excellent. They follow the titular character a "shadow hunter" who explores mysteries of the occult. This first game is set in New Orleans while Gabriel solves a string of Voodoo murders, the sequels are just as great involving werewolves and vampires. They are mature games. Really well researched, very well written and voiced, by a celebrity cast no less(Tim Curry, Leah Remini, Mark Hamill).
They are harder more advanced adventure games though but definitely worth revisiting for their stories alone. While some of the puzzles may be frustrating to modern audiences some of them are brilliant as well and stand amongst the best in the genre.The first game in the series got an HD remake but lost the good voice team.
The Last Express: One more adventure game. This is a game inspired by murder on the orient express made by Jordan Mechner (of Prince of Persia fame). It has a passage of time mechanic like Shenmue where everything happens on a schedule. It allows you to rewind time to try different things, in fact it is integral to solving the mystery. Each character is fully fleshed out with their own schedule and can be influenced by the player. It's a great concept that is often overlooked because of its art style (which I think is great btw). For those that like the living world mechanic this is a good one.
I wanted to include Shadow of Destiny/Memories but someone beat me to it. I recommend it as well.
I'll add more if people are interested.
Anachronox: An American JRPG style game set in a sci-fi setting. It's funny, well written, easy to play with a decent grid based turn based combat system. Only thing is it did leave off to a sequel but never sold well enough for it continue (might be familiar territory for us). But the game's main story is self contained enough to still be enjoyed. Definitely worth checking out.
Terranigma: An overlooked SNES action RPG a la Secret of Mana that really is one of the best on the system. Great graphics, fun real time hack'n slash gameplay with a totally unique magic system. The general story is pretty standard JRPG fare but how it is told is really well done. In a lot of ways this game subverts tropes of the genre in the best way possible. It also has a unique gimmick where towns can grow and expand when you complete sidequests something I've never seen done in any other game. The game is a spiritual sequel to Soul Blazer and Illusion of Gaia but is not connected to those games at all. You don't need to play them to get into Terranigma and you probably shouldn't bother since Terranigma is way better.
If you have any interest in this genre this is a must play.
If you are interested I'd recommend going in blind as the story has some twists.
Boku no Natsuyasumi (My Summer Vacation): This is a series of games where you play a little boy on his summer vacation. You get to go fishing, catch bugs, swimming etc. It's a little bit of a "life sim" in the sense of Harvest Moon or Animal Crossing. It's a sort of existential game where there is no real goal other than to have as much fun and do new and interesting things before the summer ends. For those that like laid back and more family friendly experiences this is a great series. It also has the procedural day to day aspect that Shenmue has.
These games never came out in the west so translating them is kind of hard. If you can deal with that (or are fluent in Japanese) check them out.
Cosmology of Kyoto: A kind of educational game/adventure game set in a mythological Kyoto in the 10th Century. This is sort of an existential game as well where the game has many endings. You will die often and reborn according to your karma all the while exploring a medieval Japan filled with real history and mythology. The game has a built in encyclopedia so there is an educational component to this. This was one of the few games that Roger Ebert praised. It's clunky by modern standards though. Might need a walkthrough to get going as it's difficult to navigate and figure out controls. Once you get into it, it's fascinating. I should warn you though, this game can be quite dark, especially its depictions of Naraka (Hell).
Holy Striker: A Japanese only SNES action/puzzle game. This game is pretty simple, you wack an orb with your sword and break blocks and hit enemies. It's really fun though and kind of addicting. It also supports 2-player co-op. Might be hard to find a translated version but it doesn't matter there is no real story.
Cinemaware games: This is a company that made many 'interactive movie' type DOS games back in the day. If you're interested in the progenitor of this genre these games might be worth checking out. I recommend The King of Chicago a mobster game set in the 30's that has some interesting ideas that were ahead if its time. Good thing is these games are really short and designed to be really re-playable with a lot of branching paths.
Scumm Games: These are standard old school point and click adventure games created by LucasArts back in the day. Most people are probably aware of these by now, especially the more popular games done by Tim Schafer. There may be some games though that are under looked like The Dig or Loom though which are more mature and worth checking out. If you haven't played any of these games however you need to check them out. You can use the ScummVM emulator to play them rather than a DOS emulator.
Gabriel Knight Series: These games used to be really popular but no one talks about them anymore. Again forgive me if these are not really considered "hidden". Either way they are a trilogy of adventure games that are absolutely excellent. They follow the titular character a "shadow hunter" who explores mysteries of the occult. This first game is set in New Orleans while Gabriel solves a string of Voodoo murders, the sequels are just as great involving werewolves and vampires. They are mature games. Really well researched, very well written and voiced, by a celebrity cast no less(Tim Curry, Leah Remini, Mark Hamill).
They are harder more advanced adventure games though but definitely worth revisiting for their stories alone. While some of the puzzles may be frustrating to modern audiences some of them are brilliant as well and stand amongst the best in the genre.The first game in the series got an HD remake but lost the good voice team.
The Last Express: One more adventure game. This is a game inspired by murder on the orient express made by Jordan Mechner (of Prince of Persia fame). It has a passage of time mechanic like Shenmue where everything happens on a schedule. It allows you to rewind time to try different things, in fact it is integral to solving the mystery. Each character is fully fleshed out with their own schedule and can be influenced by the player. It's a great concept that is often overlooked because of its art style (which I think is great btw). For those that like the living world mechanic this is a good one.
I wanted to include Shadow of Destiny/Memories but someone beat me to it. I recommend it as well.
I'll add more if people are interested.
Last edited:
