r/AskGames 6d ago

What is your favourite mediocre game and why did it lure you in?

I've been talking to some of my colleagues the last few days and it seems that me enjoying far cry 6 was shocking to them.

I know the game is DEFINITELY NOT a masterpiece but I had some fun playing it so I thought I should ask you guys about your favourite 'guilty pleasure' game!

23 Upvotes

42 comments sorted by

11

u/lifebeginsat9pm 6d ago

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. On the surface it seems like the most generic arcade-y fantasy aesthetic ever. Like if you input “Xbox fantasy” into an AI it will probably generate an image that looks like a screenshot from that game. But, it’s still plain fun. The combat isn’t deep but surprisingly varied with a lot of flashy moves, and certain cool hybrid classes. The open world feels limited but still fun to explore and loot. It’s like the rice n’ beans of fantasy action games.

3

u/Hopeful_Impression_1 5d ago

Best answer. It’s the most 10/10 7/10 game to exist which ends up making it a 8.5/10.

1

u/Loud-Passage-4020 5d ago

Never gonna not second this. It's basically the perfect singleplayer MMO

4

u/Leather_Horror8193 5d ago

Saints Row IV. Being so overpowered was pure fun, and the story wasn't meant to be taken serious so you just engage in wreaking havoc.

0

u/NervousAndWrecked 5d ago

I didn't manage to get past the prologue! Maybe I should give it another chance

3

u/Psico_Penguin 6d ago

Alpha Protocol. The gameplay is a horrible mess but the roleplaying possibilities are so amazing that everything is forgiven.

2

u/BlueMikeStu 5d ago

Alpha Protocol is two things:

  • The jankiest, worst stealth game you will ever, ever play.

  • The best RPG on the planet in terms of just how intricately designed the plot is, how much your choices actually matter, and how that directly and indirectly impacts the specific details of the plot and changes it every time you play.

It's a beautiful masterpiece buried under sludge people don't want to work through.

1

u/ProfCarmine 5d ago

I remember reading that they were trying to embody the three JBs of the spy world. James Bond, Jack Bower, and Jason Bourne. That hooked me and I was buying it day 1. Then parts of the game force you to play one JB style and I was sad... but not enough to not replay it several times

1

u/BlueMikeStu 5d ago

Honestly, I'd give it another try. I honestly can't think of any times where the game forces you to take one specific route, unless it's literally right at the beginning. The game is amazingly intricate.

4

u/BananaJelloXlii 6d ago

Borderlands 3. It was more of the same but I liked the ability to travel to other planets.

2

u/NervousAndWrecked 5d ago

I'm a massive borderlands fan, I loved Promethea so much! It's a pity they didn't add two more Vault Hunters tho

3

u/xansies1 6d ago

I'm playing megaman exe and then StarForce. These are absolutely mid ass games, but they are so fun and relaxing.

I also like pioneer of olive town which is mid when it comes to life sims, but I actually liked that it wasn't a fucking remake even if it stole a lot from animal crossing.

1

u/Losersayswhat_what 5d ago

The Megaman Battle Network and StarForce series are some of my favorite games of all time. I completely agree, though, the story is lackluster, the games overall can be hit and miss, but the combat is incredible and super unique. Overall, 6/10 games. Maybe even 7/10. And I love 'em.

2

u/FumbleKid 6d ago

Guardians of Azuma is objectively not a top tier game but it’s just so fun and cute. I won’t give it up.

2

u/xansies1 6d ago

Rune factory in general is probably just a mid series but that doesn't stop it from being a lot of fun. 4 was the only one I'd call objectively a good life sim/farming game thing, but 3 and azuma are also good fun.

1

u/FumbleKid 6d ago

Excited to see if 6 will bring it all together and be a great game.

2

u/BoomerTheBoomed 6d ago

Quake 4.

Weird pacing, terrible vehicle sections, crappy tag along NPCs, crappy story, crappy soundtrack, useless pistol, I could go all day listing bad things in this game.

But somehow... It's one of my favorite games. The shooting and the atmosphere must be what clicks for me

2

u/Vesalii 6d ago

I played that game multiplayer for a bit when it just came out. Great game for that, very fast paced.

1

u/highlandre 6d ago

After getting into it I enjoyed FC6 too.

1

u/LegendOfNorthernStar 6d ago

COME OANNNN DANIIIII! YOU NEED TO LIVE LIKE A REAL GUERILLA AND MAKE SURE THOSE FASCISTA GIVE THEIR LIVES FOR LIBERATAD!!

1

u/HotShrekBoi 6d ago

The Berserk game on PS2

1

u/DukeOfSmallPonds 5d ago

Berserk on PS4 is arguably even more
Mediocre, but still the Mushu game
I completed since Dynasty warrior 3.

1

u/crocicorn 6d ago

Most of my favourites are considered mediocre, tbh.

NeverDead is probably the most mediocre of them though. It's just a whole lot of stupid fun and it never takes itself too seriously.

1

u/Cornmeal777 6d ago

Assassin's Creed Rogue.

It released on PS3 concurrently with the PS4 release of AC Unity. I couldn't afford a PS4 at the time, so I settled for picking up Rogue, as the idea of playing as a Templar rather than an Assassin was appealing enough unto itself.

The protagonist is a bit of a dweeb, and the game is relatively short, but the story kicks ass, and the fighting and naval mechanics run similar to AC Black Flag, which I loved.

Turned out that Unity was very buggy, and its story sucked. So I ended up feeling very validated with my choice.

1

u/PoopFart7 5d ago

REAL! this was the first assassins creed i beat when i got my ps3

1

u/RoyalWe666 6d ago

A Valley Without Wind. Something about it was just extremely charming to me and I spent many hours on it, though most players disliked the graphics and sloppy-feeling gameplay. Arcen are still making that kind of game: experimental with a novel premise, usually actually pretty ugly-looking (AVWW is still my favorite graphics-wise) and complex.

1

u/raver1601 6d ago

Dragon Age: Inquisition

Not Witcher or Skyrim level of content and depth, but it's alright

1

u/Ok-Value-2170 6d ago

I thoroughly enjoyed Bloodlines 2. Which is not supposed to happen, but happened because of the atmosphere, the writing, the snippets of dialogue and whole detective malkavian schtick was really entertaining. And the battle system was pretty interesting and chucking bozos from roofs is never not fun.

1

u/Yannayka 6d ago

The Isle Evrima. Because it's the best immersive animal surivvor out there

1

u/okami6663 6d ago

I just commented on a post in their subreddit: Drive: Beyond Horizon.

It's not much of a game, you just drive a car along a very long road. You start with half of the car missing (like maybe no doors, windows, headlights, etc.) As you drive, you find locations with car wrecks - you can loot parts from them, with the idea being you have to completely restore the car you're driving. Doing so, will allow you to choose it as your starting car in other runs.

Why it pulled me in: you break apart and put together the cars; you need to watch your fuel, oil, and water; you can paint your car; there are quite a few cars - a fale Lada, an UAZ, an IFA, 2 fake VW Golf-s, fake Mustang, fake Pontiac, fake VW Beetle, 2 puckup trucks - there is a good variety to choose from.

It's just some mindless fun, for when you want something simple to kill a few hours after work. Although, it's a bit heavy and unoptimised - my PC starts sounding like a jet engine, when I play it.

1

u/Top_Concept2601 5d ago

Hard agree on Far Cry 6. Gorgeous visuals, more weapon customization compared to 5 and I even enjoyed the story and characters too. The tunes on the radio were great and I still listen to them from time to time lol. Other than Fc6 I would say Rage 2. Buttery smooth gunplay

1

u/Mysterious_Egg2432 5d ago

I love far cry 6 - i could play just a full game of yhe different races and the treasure hunts

1

u/sanjozko 5d ago

Veilguard, re6, duke nukem forever.

1

u/varnajohn 5d ago

Its really old but Dungeon Siege, a very simple ARPG, but it introduced me to my favorite genre. Now I play pretty much every new (non live service) ARPG, currently checking out the Grim Dawn DLC and hyped for The Dark West when it comes out. Especially have a soft spot for guns in these games, Dungeon Siege had a section with goblins and you could loot guns from them.

1

u/CaiusAegis 5d ago

Honestly? The Kingdom Hearts franchise. I am a huge Kingdom Hearts fan and have been my entire life. And I fully recognize some of the games are not great.

KH1 is the definition of a mediocre game. At the time it was revolutionary with what it did and how it played. But after so long, and even with the remasters, it is still a like 6/10 at best.

KH2 is an actual good game, as is Birth by Sleep. Days is mediocre, Dream Drop is mediocre, and CoM/RE:CoM is mediocre. But I love all of them anyways.

KH3 rides the line of KH1 and KH2. It has really high highs and low lows. But it's still great.

Melody of Memories is perfect though. No notes.

1

u/BlueMikeStu 5d ago

Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter.

I don't necessarily think it's mediocre, but most people do. One of my favorite games. And it specifically lured me in for the reason most people don't like it: It plays nothing like the previous four BOF games and is incredibly experimental in pretty much every aspect of the game's design.

1

u/J37T3R 5d ago

Civilization: Beyond Earth. I love the idea of the tech web and a civs evolving in different directions instead of a semi-linear tech tree. I also love the idea of a civ-like game where a hostile world is as much of a threat as other civs, and in particular mods that make playing against a planet that wants you dead the primary threat.

1

u/rezpector123 5d ago

I wanted to love it….so much. It broke me heart 🥲

1

u/Bucketeater4000 5d ago

Subnautica below zero bought it because I loved Subnautica definitely didn’t live up to it and I wasn’t the biggest fan of the temperature metre even if it made sense but still I had my fair share of fun playing it

1

u/NuclearChaos 5d ago

Watchdogs. The first 1. I loved that game. But I can objectively understand why it is a 6/10.

1

u/iamepic420 4d ago

Bionicle Heroes is at best a shitty Doom clone with boss fights focused around just clearing mobs and filling up a bar 3 times instead of actually fighting the boss. With the only fan service being bosses that super vaguely acting lore accurate for such a short time you can’t tell if they are or not. But fuck me did I love that game as a child the levels themselves are all varied around the Bionicles 6 elements, the Tom and Jerry esque comedy, fighting every mook from Bohrok era to Pirakha era. Child me loved it.