Games You Love, That Everyone Else Hates

And I'm not talking about guilty pleasures. I mean games that you legitimately enjoy, but the majority of other people don't. Here are some of mine:

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories
Resident Evil 6
Sonic Heroes

At least from what I remember, not many people like these games. Maybe the general consensus has changed, and I'm well aware of the problems that these games may have, but I still enjoy these games regardless.

Was gonna add Final Fantasy XIII, but I only really like Lightning Returns, so I didn't think it was fair to put down.

I want to say EverQuest because when I was super into it, several of my friends picked it up just based on my hype and never got further than level 10. One friend got a brand-new Gold edition with every expansion, played for literally 20 minutes and never logged in again.

It's very outdated today and hard to play when there's WoW and FFXIV. Yes it was garbage all along. Garbage with amazing progression!!!!

Elder Scrolls Online, Dragon Age II (well, not love, but still), Dragon Age: Origins (fade and deep roads levels), Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition, Mass Effect.

I liked Skyward Sword. I did not love it, but I thought it was perfectly fine!

As for games I love that others seem to hate:
Dawn of War: Soulstorm People seem to have mellowed a bit on this one over time, but at launch there was so much hate thrown towards this installment of the series, but I really quite liked it. Mostly because I think that Sisters of Battle is a cool faction. Not all the new features were well implemented, but the good (Sisters of Battle) far out-weigh the bad, in my opinion.

MYST: Hear me out on this one, I know that MYST has a reputation for being a classic. But most people I talk to these days seem to tell me how bad it is, how poorly it has aged, and so on. I played MYST for the first time in 08, when it was already very old, and I loved it!

Ultima 9: Love might be a strong word, but I really quite enjoyed my time with this one. It's buggy, it's rushed, it has plenty of broken things, it pays about as much respect to the lore as a Star Wars/Star Trek crossover slashfic between Spock & Han Solo would, but I thought the good far out-weigh the bad. At least for the first bit, the crashes during the second half were kind of annoying.

Two Worlds Another case of love probably being a bit too strong of a word, but I thought Two Worlds was fun! I guess a lot of the hate towards this game comes from the fact that the console version(s?) ran really poorly and had an interface that was nigh unusable if you sat at a comfortable distance from the TV, but the PC version was fine.

UFO: Aftermath This is kind of a budget X-com from 2003. I thought it was fun, but every time I see it being mentioned, there's at least one angry person talking about how it ruined X-com (despite not being part of that series)

Men of War: Condemned Heroes & Men of War: Vietnam Heard a lot of people say they can't stand these entries in the series. I don't get it, I think they're fun. I guess it's because you mostly control small groups of soldiers, instead of a larger fighting force.

Elder Scrolls Online, Dragon Age II (well, not love, but still), Dragon Age: Origins (fade and deep roads levels), Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition, Mass Effect.

AD&D 2nd edition, as in the tabletop game? I thought this was one of the most beloved versions of D&D.

Kane & Lynch 1 & 2

masterpieces

Ugh! I have lots.

For games I love, I actually enjoyed Diablo 3 Reaper of Souls. I actually went to some forums to see if people thought this game was under appreciated and a lot came up with the answer "Like Diablo 2 with Lord of Destruction, Diablo 3 didn't get better until Reaper of Souls" which I actually find interesting. Gameplay is simple and is easy for beginners to get into and it's a fun coop game. I also like The NES Nightmare on Elm Street. If you have 3-4 players, it's actually pretty fun. I played it with some friends on emulator and had a good time. Black Desert Online is also a game with a mixed reception. Some people are addicted to it and some people think it's too grindy (Which I agree) but the game itself is graphically the best looking MMO right now and the combat is one of the best I've experienced in a game like this. I also like the story.

COD Infinite Warfare is one I love as well (and it seems a bunch of people like it from the ratings for the game on this site) even though the ending was too depressing. It's basically a Space Opera with non linear story and side missions which I thought brought fresh air into COD. South Park is another example for N64. Not bad but the control is what kills it. Sonic Heroes is also pretty damn good. One more game would maybe be Hatred. I know people think it's just a pointlessly violent POSTAL clone but it's a pretty good POSTAL clone. It was super fun just to kill everybody and shoot a bunch of military soliders and cops. I should try and complete since I never finished it. It's super edgy (My favorite line from The Antogonist being "Shut The F--k Up And Die") but it's pretty good.

And I'm not talking about guilty pleasures. I mean games that you legitimately enjoy, but the majority of other people don't. Here are some of mine:

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories
Resident Evil 6
Sonic Heroes

At least from what I remember, not many people like these games. Maybe the general consensus has changed, and I'm well aware of the problems that these games may have, but I still enjoy these games regardless.

Tales of the Abyss. I recognize that it's far from perfect... the plot moves at an absolutely glacial pace, the main character is a giant asshole, the game is kind of ugly even for PS2 standards... the list goes on. But I still managed to enjoy the game quite a bit. Once the plot finally does get moving, it's pretty good, and the main character eventually sees the error of his ways and becomes likable. But a lot of people aren't as forgiving as I am, because I've seen a fair amount of hate for the game.

However, I do despise Skyward Sword!

Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs (I can finally explore without oil running out, yay!)
Dead to Rights: Retribution (best dog in a video game)
Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days (the found-footage style I dig)
Silent Hill 4: The Room (better combat / gripping plot)
Silent Hill: Homecoming (same as 4, stay away from that PC port though)
Velvet Assassin (stealth in WW2 done right, also really shows how scary war can be)
You Are Empty (post-apocalyptic soviet environments filled with Painkiller-ish monsters, what's not to like?)

I love Skyward Sword, I don't understand why it's so despised. Like I'll be the first to admit that the motion controls they tacked on to Twilight Princess on Wii were horrible, to the point where it actively impeded my enjoyment of the game -- thankfully I had played the GameCube version first, and I recently played the HD version on Wii U, refreshing my memory properly -- but in Skyward Sword, they were great, really satisfying. The story was great, the dungeons were great, the overworld was more linear but I didn't think that was a negative, I thought it was a worthy 3D Zelda. The only real negative I have towards the game is that its minor character cast is just kind of there; all of the townspeople felt hollow barring a few exceptions, which isn't something I could say for Twilight Princess and certainly not for Majora's Mask.

(On another note, I don't dislike Re:Chain of Memories, but having played it on PS4 very recently, it's a lot more repetitive than I remembered. Somehow that was the fourth time I've played some version of Chain of Memories, something is wrong with me.)

As far as the topic at hand, the first that comes to mind is Page Chronica for PS3. I have literally never read a positive remark for this game that wasn't from me. (Part of this is that it's incredibly obscure, but still, all the people who have admitted to playing it decidedly do not like it.) I don't understand this, because I thought it was really good. The story is solid, the aesthetics and graphics are pleasing, the central gameplay mechanic with the spelling of words is really unique, and the platforming, while admittedly very hard, isn't insurmountable, nor is it unfair. I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in offbeat, hidden gems. There's even a demo, so if you've got a PS3 you can at least try it.

Others off the top of my head include Epic Mickey, which I loved, even with its wonky camera. Ico is far from hated, but it's completely in the shadow -- get it? -- of Shadow of the Colossus, which I find disappointing because I believe Ico is the superior game. Pandora's Tower doesn't seem to get a lot of love, but it's one of my all-time favorites. Corpse Party: Blood Drive is often considered the worst game in the series, but I thought it was just as good as Corpse Party on PSP, and a fitting conclusion to the Heavenly Host saga. I also quite enjoyed Chibi-Robo: Park Patrol and Chibi-Robo: Zip Lash, and while they're far cries from the original masterpiece, they're still very fun games in their own right. There are probably more, especially if my perception of certain games' reception is off, but those are all I can think of at the moment.

I think FFVIII is superior to FFIX, but I understand that most people put IX either as the top game in the series or close 2nd. I really thought VIII was definitely more of a challenge, I liked the characters a lot more, and the story, that could get you a little confused and leave you puzzled, yet I loved it. I feel that IX was just a step backwards to get some nostalgia out of the fans that wanted something more like FFVI. Now I do have to say FFIX is a tremendously good game that I have beaten, but I just like FFVIII more.

I liked Skyward Sword. I did not love it, but I thought it was perfectly fine!

As for games I love that others seem to hate:
Dawn of War: Soulstorm People seem to have mellowed a bit on this one over time, but at launch there was so much hate thrown towards this installment of the series, but I really quite liked it. Mostly because I think that Sisters of Battle is a cool faction. Not all the new features were well implemented, but the good (Sisters of Battle) far out-weigh the bad, in my opinion.

MYST: Hear me out on this one, I know that MYST has a reputation for being a classic. But most people I talk to these days seem to tell me how bad it is, how poorly it has aged, and so on. I played MYST for the first time in 08, when it was already very old, and I loved it!

Ultima 9: Love might be a strong word, but I really quite enjoyed my time with this one. It's buggy, it's rushed, it has plenty of broken things, it pays about as much respect to the lore as a Star Wars/Star Trek crossover slashfic between Spock & Han Solo would, but I thought the good far out-weigh the bad. At least for the first bit, the crashes during the second half were kind of annoying.

Two Worlds Another case of love probably being a bit too strong of a word, but I thought Two Worlds was fun! I guess a lot of the hate towards this game comes from the fact that the console version(s?) ran really poorly and had an interface that was nigh unusable if you sat at a comfortable distance from the TV, but the PC version was fine.

UFO: Aftermath This is kind of a budget X-com from 2003. I thought it was fun, but every time I see it being mentioned, there's at least one angry person talking about how it ruined X-com (despite not being part of that series)

Men of War: Condemned Heroes & Men of War: Vietnam Heard a lot of people say they can't stand these entries in the series. I don't get it, I think they're fun. I guess it's because you mostly control small groups of soldiers, instead of a larger fighting force.

I agree with you on the Men of War games. Always made me sad that the mainstream appeal of that series went to the multiplayer focused Assault Squad titles since the single player ones were really something special.

Megarace 3 (to be honest, I think the game still sucks, but it has Lance Boyle in the cutscenes just like the first two, haha)

Everyone acts like Fallout Tactics is a bastard child of the series that doesn't even deserve acknowledgement, but it is my all-time favorite tactical game.

I agree with you on the Men of War games. Always made me sad that the mainstream appeal of that series went to the multiplayer focused Assault Squad titles since the single player ones were really something special.

It would be nice to have both. I do like the two Assault Squad games, they're great fun when playing with friends, but yeah, some more proper SP games would also be nice. Maybe with a better game engine, as what they're using right now really shows its age (mostly on a technical level).

Everyone acts like Fallout Tactics is a bastard child of the series that doesn't even deserve acknowledgement, but it is my all-time favorite tactical game.

I think acceptance of the game has improved over time, for the obvious reasons.

Pixark
Thief Simulator
Saints row 3

All on switch. All not reviewed very well minus SR3. Loving all three of them.

Devil May Cry 2 - It's not as good as the other four games, for sure, but I still enjoy it. Plus playing as Trish makes it even better.

Mega Man X7 - Everyone seems to hate this game and find it inferior to X6 for some reason. In my opinion, it's a decent game that does something unique compared to the other X games.

BioShock 2
Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
Sonic Heroes
Spider-Man: Web of Shadows

This is a difficult question because it's hard to grasp what you're actually asking and I think the gaming landscape has changed over time.

For example, a game that immediately comes to mind for me is Metal Gear Solid 2. At the time everyone hated it, but it's probably my favourite in the series. Looking back however I don't think you can say everybody hates it as there's been a bit of a newfound appreciation and I would say it's a cult favourite.

Nowadays though, I think games get totally lambasted for being legit bad games. If someone told me that they loved metal gear survive or anthem I would be surprised, and I think they would definitely fall into your "guilty pleasures" category.

I'm struggling to think of anything recent, and some of the games listed by other people, I just don't think were ever considered bad.

Mass Effect Andromeda and DmC: Devil May Cry

Weird one right?

Two off the most hated games in the respected franchises, I think if they didn't have the franchise name in both they would actually be solid titles. Mass Effect Andromeda was full of weird and stupid bugs which made people stay away. The storytelling was really mediocre and disappointing but the gameplay is amazing ill even put this out there and it might be controversial but ME:A had the best combat gameplay out of all Mass Effects. It's the same with DMC:DMC absolutely loved the gameplay but I didn't like the story I also don't like what they did with the characters but I can't fault the gameplay and combat it was really good not the best but it certainly carries the game.

Mirror's Edge 2, I love the fluidity of the game's movement. Looks great on PC too.

Another game I love but people probably hate is Doom 3. It's a better Doom game than Doom 2016 in my opinion. It's more atmospheric, the level design is better than Half-Life 2 and Halo 2, two other FPS Games that came out the same year, the guns are satisfying to use, the enemies are cool, you can bunny hop pretty fast. The only thing that didn't age well was the stupid obligatory six generation unskippable cutscenes (Because we gotta show how good the graphics look guys!) and the graphics have not aged well at all when compared to Halo 2 and Half-Life 2 even with the remastered BFG Version. It's probably my second favorite Doom besides the original Ultimate Doom. Doom 2016 comes in third place though but I still like it enough.

Another game I love but people probably hate is Doom 3. It's a better Doom game than Doom 2016 in my opinion. It's more atmospheric, the level design is better than Half-Life 2 and Halo 2, two other FPS Games that came out the same year, the guns are satisfying to use, the enemies are cool, you can bunny hop pretty fast. The only thing that didn't age well was the stupid obligatory six generation unskippable cutscenes (Because we gotta show how good the graphics look guys!) and the graphics have not aged well at all when compared to Halo 2 and Half-Life 2 even with the remastered BFG Version. It's probably my second favorite Doom besides the original Ultimate Doom. Doom 2016 comes in third place though but I still like it enough.

I never liked how they bowed to public pressure and made it so you could have your flashlight on while holding a gun - the original release was SO TENSE because you had to choose between being able to see in the dark, or having a gun ready to fire... changing it ruined the entire flow of the game IMO - which is always not a popular opinion - but the BFG edition isn't as atmospheric as the original thanks to such a little change!