There have been countless PlayStation games over the years, with many of the best going on to become widely acclaimed and talked about for years. Despite many of the greatest PlayStation games receiving their fair share of remakes or remasters to bring them into the modern era, just as many great games have fallen through the cracks over the years.
While some games like Bloodborne or the Sly Cooper series still have fans clamoring for a remaster all these years later, not all of PlayStation’s franchises have been as lucky. Whether it’s from unfortunate release timings, a problem with accessibility, or simply being left behind by their developers, there are plenty of great PlayStation games that are still worth being talked about to this day.
Stuntman Filled A Niche You Never Knew You Had
Launching in 2002 for the PlayStation 2 and later in 2003 for the Game Boy Advance, the original Stuntman game offered the unique concept of encouraging reckless driving in the best way possible through its movie-style stunt sequences. With a director shouting out commands as you drive to rack up points, Stuntman offered a relatively unexplored gameplay style for the racing game genre.
While its controls and visuals are more than a little dated at this point, its sequel, Stuntman Ignition in 2007, showed just how much potential the format had with more modern hardware, making it a shame that nobody really talks about the series anymore.
Infamous: Second Son Is One Of PlayStation’s Best Forgotten Exclusives
Released in 2014 as an exciting new PlayStation 4 exclusive, Infamous: Second Son was launched to wide critical acclaim with some impressive sales figures behind it. Even earning nominations at the 18th annual D.I.C.E. Awards, Infamous: Second Son was praised for showcasing the PS4’s strengths with its stylish combat, traversal system, and offering a similar branching morality-based story to its predecessors.
Despite how beloved Infamous: Second Son was on release, the series has largely been forgotten ever since, with developer Sucker Punch moving on to the Ghost of Tsushima series. Unfortunately, after all these years, it’s rare to see Infamous: Second Son talked about outside a few dedicated communities clamoring for a series revival.
Drakengard 3 Is NieR’s Far Less Popular Cousin
Released in 2013 for the PlayStation 3, Drakengard 3 is a dark and chaotic entry in the hack-and-slash genre that takes full advantage of the series’ creativity, but it failed to reach the level of popularity that its successors later would. Offering a mix of dragon-riding combat, an unforgettable story, and a colorful cast of characters, Drakengard 3 refined the series’ gameplay, even if it was very far from perfect.
Compared to the raving success of NieR: Automata and NieR: Replicant to a lesser extent, the Drakengard series as a whole is still relatively overlooked outside the series’ wider appeal in the Japanese market or for Yoko Taro’s dedicated fanbase.
The Original Gravity Rush Isn’t Talked About Enough
Dropping in 2012 for the PlayStation Vita with an eventual sequel in 2017 for the PlayStation 4, Gravity Rush is one of those unforgettable gaming experiences that scratches a truly unique itch. Although the controls of the first Gravity Rush are a little clunky by today’s standards, its imaginative world, gravity-based traversal, and gameplay improvements made in its successor are something that’s best experienced firsthand.
Unfortunately, despite being a cult classic that saw some time in the limelight upon release, Gravity Rush rarely comes up when talking about PlayStation’s best games. Today, its niche gameplay offerings deserve a lot more attention.
Jak and Daxter Doesn’t Get Nearly The Same Love As Similar Franchises
With the first game in the Jak and Daxter series releasing all the way back in 2001, the action-adventure series has been relatively dormant ever since its last remastered collection in 2012. Helping to define the PlayStation 2 era of platforming with its open world design and charming sense of humor, Jak and Daxter is still an excellent series to revisit all these years later, especially with the fan-made adventure mod.
What makes the lack of attention Jak and Daxter get in the modern era so confusing is just how successful its competitors at the time have become. New games like Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart and the demand for a Sly Cooper return make the lack of a conversation around Jak and Daxter even more disappointing.
The Order 1886 Released At The Worst Time Possible
Although 2015’s release of The Order: 1886 for the PlayStation 4 isn’t exactly at the top of anyone’s list of the best PlayStation games, that doesn’t mean it deserves to be another forgotten piece of gaming history. Releasing for $59.99, The Order 1886 faced plenty of heavy criticism for its incredibly short length, long cutscenes, and uninspired gameplay loop for its price.
Despite all its flaws, The Order 1886 still offers a visually stunning gameplay experience with an incredibly unique atmosphere that is more than worth picking up if you can get it at a low discount for a short but sweet experience. This is presumably the last we’ll see of this interesting game world, despite several sequel rumors over the years.
Killlzone Should Have Been A Long-Lived Franchise
With the original Killzone released in 2004 on PlayStation 2 and the latest Killzone: Shadow Fall released as a launch title for the PlayStation 4 in 2013, the franchise has been dead in the water with little mention from developers or fans alike for over a decade. Featuring a grim sci-fi world with respectable FPS mechanics and weighty combat systems, Killzone had the potential to be a solid multiplayer competitor for PlayStation.
Even with Killzone‘s potential and being at the forefront of PlayStation’s identity for some time, the series hasn’t had nearly the same visibility since its official support ended. It’s only occasionally mentioned, typically with a degree of grim hope, or with its inclusion in Helldivers 2’s first collaboration in 2024.
Dreams Is Far More Than A Simple Kids’ Game
While the initial concept behind the early-access release of PlayStation 4’s Dreams in 2019 piqued many players’ curiosity as an easily accessible creation tool, it wasn’t exactly the right game for general audiences. Being seen mostly as a tool for children to get into game design or art creation, it wasn’t long before people started realizing the full potential of Dreams as more than a simple game maker.
Despite being largely forgotten after its initial release, that thankfully hasn’t stopped plenty of surprisingly robust user-made games or animations from being created in its engine. Unfortunately, the number has significantly died down in recent years as fewer people talk about the software.
PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale Still Has So Much Potential
Trying to take advantage of the unparalleled popularity that Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. series had, 2012’s PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale offered a similar party-style fighting game with its own roster of iconic characters. Unfortunately, despite having the perfect formula for success and good reviews at launch, the gameplay didn’t stand out enough to carry on throughout the years.
Aside from less-than-stellar gameplay compared to more refined offerings, the actual cast of characters wasn’t nearly as instantly recognizable and iconic as Nintendo’s, while missing several of PlayStation’s best. Combined with the fact that a majority of PSASBR‘s cast are human characters with firearms, it’s somewhat understandable why it has been largely forgotten, even if it desperately deserves a modern revival with fighters like Astro Bot at the helm.
Puppeteer Was An Incredibly Charming Platformer For Its Time
Out of all the best PlayStation games that nobody talks about, 2013’s Puppeteer for PlayStation 3 is easily one of the most standout offerings that has been painfully overlooked over the years. With a hand-crafted world that prides itself on constantly providing new content without reusing anything, the surprisingly dark but clever storytelling pairs perfectly with its inspired platforming mechanics.
Even if Puppeteer faced some criticism for outdated game design elements like checkpoint management or janky controls, the overall experience is still one that more people need to experience, especially if they’re looking for a whimsical PlayStation experience that you would normally only see from Nintendo.
- Brand
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Sony
- Original Release Date
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November 19, 2020
- Original MSRP (USD)
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$399.99 (Digital Only), $499.99 (Disc Drive)
- Weight
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Digital Edition now weighs 3.4 kg & base version weighs 3.9 kg