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HOW did these games not sell?!
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00:00A little while ago we made a list of 10 amazing games that barely anybody bought and you guys
00:05rushed to the comments to tell us a couple of things. The first of which were the games on the
00:08list that you loved that you did actually buy and the second was more games that deserve to be on
00:13the list. And so as is tradition we've thrown together a whole new list with your picks for
00:18incredible video games that deserve to be played and purchased by far more people than they were.
00:23Some of these games are relative unknowns while others are huge names that were still considered
00:27commercial failures due to the expectations of their developers and publishers. Be sure to let us
00:32know down in that comment section which of these are your favorites or hey maybe mine the list for a
00:37few new favorites that you might never have considered playing. I'm Jess from WhatCulture and here are the
00:419 best video games nobody bought. Commenter Edition. Number 9. PsyOps The Mindgate Conspiracy. 2004 action
00:49adventure from Midway Games PsyOps The Mindgate Conspiracy had everything going for it except
00:54timing. You'll alternate between traditional third-person shooter gameplay and utilizing your
00:59suite of psychic powers as protagonist Nick Scryer. Scryer is the soldier who's been recruited by the
01:04Mindgate Corporation and needs to unravel a sinister plot driven by the baddies who are an organization
01:10called The Movement. Despite reviewing surprisingly well including scoring GameSpot's award for best
01:15PlayStation 2 game of June 2004 and getting plenty of nods for Game of the Year categories the game was
01:22a
01:22commercial disappointment for Midway. Only shifting around 400,000 copies in its first year of release
01:27PsyOps struggled to compete with the heavy hitters like Fable, Grand Theft Auto San Andreas and Half-Life 2
01:33which all launched around the same time. The game has since garnered a well-deserved cult following but
01:39unfortunately because of its commercial failings any hope for the series to continue has been dashed.
01:44Even though the game does end with a big to be continued splash screen that flashes up during the credits
01:50which
01:50certainly stings a little for the fans who did pick this one up. Number 8, Call of Cthulhu Dark Corners
01:55of the Earth. Another cult hit that didn't receive anywhere near the amount of attention that it
01:59certainly deserved, Call of Cthulhu Dark Corners of the Earth was a survival horror game that came out
02:05in 2005. Praised for its faithfulness to the Lovecraft source material, its tense and affecting atmosphere,
02:11and compelling psychological horror themes, the game just couldn't get off the ground commercially.
02:16Reports indicate the critically acclaimed game only sold about 60,000 units across all platforms in
02:22its first year of release, resulting in it being branded a commercial failure by developer Head
02:27First Productions. Hold on though because it gets worse. When Call of Cthulhu Dark Corners of the Earth
02:31was taking its six years in development, two other titles in the Call of Cthulhu series were being
02:37optimistically developed. Unfortunately, when Dark Corners of the Earth returned disappointing sales
02:42figures, both of these games were cancelled when Head First was unable to secure a publisher for
02:47them in 2006. This led to the company declaring bankruptcy and subsequently liquidating, which is
02:53a pretty sad legacy for a cult hit video game. Number 7, Nier. Now we've got to be clear when
02:58we're
02:58talking about Nier, as this entry refers to not the sequel Nier Automata or the remake Replicant version
03:051.2247 etc, but the original game, titled both Nier Replicant and Nier Gestalt, or simply Nier depending on your
03:13region.
03:13We're not even into how complicated the story and mechanics of this game are, and I think I've already lost
03:18about half of you,
03:19but let's keep going. Nier originally released in 2010 for the PS3 and Xbox 360 and was created by Yoko
03:25Taro.
03:26Despite receiving mounting praise for its soundtrack, voice acting, memorable characters, and fascinating themes,
03:31the game didn't make any special waves commercially. Speaking after the fact, Taro clarified that they
03:37weren't in the red, but the game was hardly a success. The game shifted 134,000 copies within its
03:43first year of release, but even now, 13 years on, it's estimated that the game has only sold about
03:49500,000 copies worldwide. To put that in perspective, the sequel Nier Automata has shifted over 6 million
03:56units between its 2017 release and March of 2021.
04:00Number 6. Muramasa The Demon Blade
04:02Trying to get an action-adventure hack-and-slash game to rise above the already well-saturated genre
04:08in 2009 is already a feat, but putting said game on the Wii certainly didn't make things any easier.
04:14Such was the case for Muramasa The Demon Blade, created for the Wii by Vanillaware.
04:19The game was a hit with critics who adored the beautiful art-style, tight, fast-paced combat,
04:23and Japanese folklore-inspired storyline, ultimately scoring the game an 81 out of 100 on Metacritic.
04:30Despite dazzling critics pretty much across the board, the game didn't manage to knock it out of
04:34the park with sales in either Japan or North America. Though at the time, the NPD group reported
04:40that the game sold 35,000 units during its first month on sale, and this sat within expectations,
04:46this would later be revised by the game's publisher, saying sales were low across Japan,
04:51North America, and Europe. This was considered to be in large part due to the fact that at this point,
04:56the Wii was falling out of vogue, and the untraditional nature of the game made it trickier
05:00to market. Despite returning some less-than-impressive sales numbers, the game is beloved by its fans,
05:05and even scored a re-release in 2013 for the PlayStation Vita called Muramasa Rebirth.
05:10Number 5. El Shaddai – Ascension of the Metatron
05:13Ignition Tokyo released the 2011 action game El Shaddai – Ascension of the Metatron for the PS3,
05:20Xbox 360, and PC. The single-player adventure that was inspired by the Book of Enoch was praised for
05:25its interesting art style, compelling combat system, and curious and mysterious story that blended fantasy
05:31and science fiction. Despite impressing critics across the board, it's believed that the game didn't
05:36sell particularly well. Shifting only 58,000 units in Japan at launch, and 220,000 units worldwide,
05:44that classed El Shaddai as a commercial disappointment for publisher Ignition Entertainment.
05:48This extended to the publisher being hit with a round of layoffs due to a series of commercial
05:53failures. Fortunately, there's a bit of a happy ending for this one, as the game's cult following
05:57helped along a spiritual successor called The Lost Child. The game was neither a commercial success,
06:03nor did it achieve the same critical acclaim as its predecessor, but it was a nice treat for fans
06:08of the original. Number 4. Gladius – Tactical role-playing game Gladius was published and developed
06:13by LucasArts in 2003. The game lets you create a school of gladiators and square up against opposing
06:19schools from different regions all over the game world. In keeping with our list, the game was actually
06:24rated as one of the quote, best Xbox games most people never played by the official Xbox magazine.
06:30Even though the game impressed critics with its engaging tactical combat, satisfying progression
06:34and character development systems, and strong narrative throughline in its campaign, it fell
06:39far beneath sales expectations. Reports indicated the game sold less than 100,000 copies in its first
06:45month of release in North America, deeming it a commercial failure for the studio even in the face
06:51of its impressive review scores. Though it may not have struck enough of a chord to invite a continuation
06:55of the series, Gladius is still a cult hit among fans. Number 3. Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines
07:02Although just about every RPG and vampire media enthusiast has tried their hand at Vampire the
07:07Masquerade Bloodlines by now, the game massively fell under the radar when it first came out in 2004.
07:13Suffering from exactly the same steep competition that caused PsyOps to struggle in the very same
07:18release window, there was simply no competing with Half-Life 2, Metal Gear Solid 3 Snake Eater,
07:24Halo 2, and Fable for the spotlight. Even though Bloodlines impressed critics with its fascinating
07:29game world, mature themes, supernatural powers, and intriguing story, not enough people gave it a
07:34shot when it first came out. This was in some part due to the game's technical issues and bugs,
07:39but it's sort of just accepted that the end of 2004 was just not kind to non-AAA games.
07:45The initial release stood at a modest 72,000 copies in its first three months on sale,
07:50firmly solidifying what would become the cult classic RPG as a commercial disappointment.
07:55Dedicated fans ensured the game would not fade out of the spotlight, though,
07:59as it has stayed firmly in the gaming zeitgeist and is still considered a must-play for RPG fans.
08:04The game even established a legacy where it's been cited as one of the major influences
08:09contributing to the resurgence of vampire-themed stories across all mediums.
08:13The fan-created patches that address technical issues and missing content from the original
08:18also helped the game from fading into obsolescence. Game director Leonard Boyarski even voiced his
08:23appreciation for the patches, saying while they'd hoped the game would be more successful at launch,
08:29it felt more worthwhile to see how it stood the test of time and continues to inspire modders and fans.
08:34Number 2, Darksiders 2. This will seem like a weird one,
08:37since Darksiders 2 is far and away the highest-selling game on this list.
08:41The action-adventure sequel was reviewed very well,
08:44impressing critics with its compelling story that followed the journey of death
08:47and its genuinely fun combat mechanics.
08:50Even so, publisher THQ had to file for bankruptcy just a few months after the game released.
08:55Of course, this wasn't all due to the commercial failure of Darksiders 2,
08:59but THQ did state that the game didn't perform to their expectations,
09:03even though at 247,000 units sold in its release month,
09:07it stood as the best-selling game in August of 2012.
09:10The game quickly lost steam, and the eventual 1.5 million units moved that year
09:15wasn't enough to keep the flailing company above water.
09:19Developer Vigil Games also went under as part of the company disbanding.
09:23In happier news, though, the game was eventually remastered into the
09:27definitive edition by Nordic Games, who purchased the IP when THQ's assets were sold off.
09:34Number 1. Enslaved Odyssey to the West
09:36Another perfect example of a game that both fans and critics loved,
09:40but inexplicably sold very little, is 2010's Enslaved Odyssey to the West.
09:45Developed by Ninja Theory and published by Namco Bandai Games,
09:48it was no surprise when the action-adventure turned out to be a slam dunk.
09:52Unfortunately, it was a slam dunk that nobody bought.
09:55Loosely based on the book Journey to the West,
09:58the game was praised for its interesting post-apocalyptic story
10:01and emphasis on narrative and character development.
10:04You take a stroll in the shoes of protagonist Monkey,
10:06who fights using a staff and must-solve puzzles,
10:09explore the environment, and complete platforming challenges.
10:12The graphics were deemed to be stunning,
10:14the cutscenes understated and narratively impressive,
10:17and the soundtrack was described as elevating the gameplay experience even further.
10:21Despite scoring 8s and 9s out of 10 pretty much across the board,
10:25very few people picked it up.
10:27Though Namco had hoped that sales would pass 1 million copies,
10:30after 4 months they'd only managed to sell 460,000,
10:33and then after a full year they'd only hit 730,000 copies sold.
10:38These figures were deemed too lacklustre to justify the continuation of the franchise,
10:43or the planned sequel, which was ultimately abandoned.
10:46Namco later blamed the game's busy release window for its commercial failure.
10:50Game director Temi Montanillades later reflected,
10:52I'm not sure if the fantasy elements were a turn-off,
10:55the gameplay mix, or the lack of visibility.
10:58It was probably a mix of all three.
10:59That's the end of our list, but let me know down in that comment section
11:02if you can think of any other great video games nobody bought
11:05that deserved to be on this list.
11:07As always, I've been Jess from WhatCulture.
11:09Thank you so much for hanging out with me.
11:11If you like it, you can come say hi to me on my Twitter account,
11:13where I'm at JessMcDonnell,
11:15but make sure you stay tuned to us here for plenty more great gaming lists.