With the modernization of gaming and remasters like the newly confirmed GoldenEye 007, it’s hard to find a contemporary game that most people have never played. However, this can make obscure and old-fashioned games just that much more unique to the now grown-up player.
The introduction of the internet has certainly grown the player base of several unheard of but immensely entertaining games, growing their communities and enabling gamers to connect with others who share their memorable experiences. While some of these strange titles have had sequels, such as: dark cloud and the Neverhoodmany others were left to be remembered only by those who played them during their childhood.
Raptor Call of the Shadows (1994)
Raptor: Call of the Shadows was developed by Cygnus Studios and released in 1994 for MS-DOS compatible systems, the first installment of which was distributed as shareware, while the other two were sold commercially.
It’s been re-released since then: “They released a remaster or something like that on steam a few years ago. Still fun as ever,” says Redditor legalbeaver. This classic game is divided into three sectors called Bravo, Tango, and Outer Regions. each of which also has side missions.Playing these sectors in chronological order allows players to save money for upgrades and better weapons.
The Neverhood (1996)
In a surreal world floating above a chilling void, this awesome, obscure point-and-click adventure game from 1996 follows a clay-making man on his journey of self-discovery. Every bit of animation in the Neverhood is made of clay, making it unlike any other game at the time.
As the clay man finds his target, players must solve creative puzzles to unlock fun cutscenes. The game was, according to Hands-and-apples, “A clay masterpiece with a lot of personality and great humor.” the sequel, skullmonkeysis much better known for its release on the PlayStation and its faster platformer elements.
Chip’s Challenge (1989)
Published in 1989 by Epyx as the launch title for the Atari Lynx, Chip challenge didn’t find a larger audience until it was re-released with the “Best of Microsoft Entertainment Pack” in 1995. The top-down tile-based puzzle video game introduced the player to the world of geeky Chip McCallahan, who meets a girl named Melinda in their school’s science lab.
By solving increasingly challenging puzzles, the player helps the chip make its way through Melinda’s Clubhouse, to become an official member of the Bit Buster’s Club. User pikaia_gracilens disclosed that they, “played it dead and some 15 years later still had the muscle memory to get through the maze that doesn’t allow going back in one go.”
Star Globe (1995)
starball is a weird PC pinball game from 1995 with an innovative twist. Each time the pinball machine falls between the flippers, the player is taken to a lower level, where a different pinball setup lies. The player is taken through a different concept with each level they drop until the bottom is reached and a life is lost.
This three-level masterpiece brought an unheard of style to arcade gameplay and included mini-games such as building a spaceship and protecting against missiles. Jeggasyn fondly remembers it, saying, “My brother and I always competed for the highest score, the grind was long…” Further, starball had hidden stages in each round, such as Doom pinball and Llama pinball.
Dark Cloud (2001)
Developed for the PlayStation 2 by Level-5 and released in the US in 2001, dark cloud is a third-person role-playing game characterized by quirky dungeons. Each level was randomly generated, in which players could fight against monsters and search for treasure.
A group of adventurers tries to defeat the destructive Dark Genie who is terrorizing their city and team up to eliminate the mysterious threat. The main character receives a magical stone from the Fairy King that allows players to destroy and rebuild areas. Redditor FYISominus, “I loved this game because of the characters and their storylines.”
Skunny: Save Our Pizzas! (1993)
Skunny: save our pizza‘s is a Shareware Adventure game released in 1993 by Copysoft for MS-DOS. Skunny the Squirrel must travel back in time to the Roman Empire to collect all the ingredients to make a pizza, while stopping an evil chef from changing history and destroying the invention of the pizza so that he can benefit from a cheap imitation.
If a player had the full game, he would receive a new ingredient after beating each level. The only way for Skunny to make his way to the present is to make a pizza. Minister_of_Joy stated: “Unfortunately I only had the demo version, which contained only the first level. But I loved the game anyway.”
Cell damage (2001)
Considered one of the best couch co-op games of its time, Cell damage is a car-bound fighting game developed by Pseudo Interactive and first released for Xbox in 2001. Within the game’s universe, “Cel Damage” is a weekly broadcast popular fictional cartoon demolition derby series.
Redditor Generic_Pete commented that it was an “Insanely awesome crazy racing-style game. Found in a bargain bin, never heard of it or seen it in ads.” In this vehicle shooting game, players compete against (and sometimes side by side) each other as they use outrageous weapons such as boxing gloves, grenades, freeze beams and even black holes to defeat their opponents in three different game modes.
River Incursion (1982)
River Raid was originally programmed by Carol Shaw and published by Activision in 1982 for the Atari 2600, later ported to other consoles. In this top-down game, players become fighter pilots as they fly their fighter jets across the “River of No Return” to raid enemy lines.
Jeggasyn replied, “Ahhh, too good. I can still hear the metallic pling sound when flying over the FUEL sprites.” The jet can be maneuvered down and up but cannot move horizontally as the player tries his best to control his speed.The gameplay is unrestricted until a player collides with an enemy or the river bank.
Impossible Mission (1984)
Originally made for the Commodore 64, Impossible Mission is a 1984 game published by Epyx with different gameplay mechanics similar to adventure and platform games. It is known as one of the best puzzle games of its time and will be released later on both PC and other consoles.
While dodging killer robots, the player must race against time as a secret agent to decrypt and reassemble the passwords to national security computers tampered with by an evil genius. To find pieces of these codes, players must reset movable platforms and search the furniture in rooms. Redditor dizzyelk added: “We had… [Impossible Mission] on my Atari 7800. I never beat it…”
Bubsy: Claws Encounters of the Third Kind (1995)
Few gamers ever forget the first entry of the Bubsy game series, which is both developed and published by Accolade. The platformer was released on the Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo in 1995, then re-released on PC under the title “Super Bubsy” shortly after.
Reddit user AlwaysTheNewGirl81 was a big fan: “Played on SNES. It was a cat running through the Wild West. Collecting yarn balls… It was great.” The plot involves controlling Bubsy the bobcat while protecting his stash of yarn balls and collecting the wool-seeking aliens before they can steal them.User Shahfluffers commented on his hilarious death animations: “Turning into a puddle of goo just because you touch a bad guy, move still make you giggle.”
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