The gaming industry is full to the brim with quality titles that are an absolute blast to play through. However, the sheer overpopulation of games means that a ton of great titles are going to miss out on the time they deserve in the spotlight for a whole host of reasons. This is a shame since some really good games end up being ignored by many people simply because they don't really bother to check them out.
Thankfully, not all titles have to remain veiled in obscurity for the longest time. If these games are actually good, then chances are that players will get around to trying them out at some point or the other in the future... regardless of how long it might take. The games mentioned below are great examples of titles that absolutely exploded in popularity long after they were released.
10 Psychonauts
Double Fine Productions has a history of developing great games that never get the recognition they deserve upon launch. Psychonauts is the poster child that exemplifies the problems that the studio has faced ever since its inception.
Thankfully, more and more people started talking about how brilliant Psychonauts really was. As a result, the game gained more traction, with a sequel to this game finally releasing in 2021.
9 Among Us
At launch, Among Us was a fairly engrossing yet unknown indie title that had players incriminating each other in search of the impostors that were slowly whittling away at the crew. It took a while for the game to gain some traction.
The advent of the pandemic suddenly led to a massive burst of popularity for this game, turning it into a global phenomenon that most people absolutely adored. Hunting down your friends and feigning innocence is easily one of the most addictive game loops that had players in stitches for quite some time indeed.
8 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
There's no denying the fact that The Witcher 3 was a major hit upon release for all the right reasons. Everything from the graphics to the gameplay was absolutely sublime.
Single-player games generally show a trend of a dwindling player base after most players are done with this title. However, the release of The Witcher on Netflix sparked another wave of interest in this title, leading to a resurgence as more and more people revisited this amazing title.
7 No Man's Sky
No Man's Sky was one of the most hyped games around before launch. The idea of exploring a massive universe was a titillating one, but the game lacked so many promised features on its launch that it and the developer became public enemy number one for the longest time.
However, Hello Games didn't give up on No Man's Sky and strived to incorporate all the content that was missing in the game. The end result is a title absolutely brimming with amazing content that most people absolutely adore now!
6 Okami
The 2000s was a time when gaming had started evolving into something more mainstream, with shooters and action titles becoming more and more prominent. As a result, most gamers didn't really pay attention to unique and creative concepts that had a ton of promise.
Okami was one such title that absolutely bombed upon release. However, more and more players who tried this title out realized what they were missing out on, and the game quickly turned into a cult classic that has steadily garnered its fair share of fans.
5 Beyond Good & Evil
Ubisoft is a studio that is now generally known for churning out the same copy-pasted titles over and over again. However, there was a time when the developer was known for experimenting around with unique concepts and releasing creative games across the board.
Beyond Good & Evil is one such title released by Ubisoft that sold poorly upon release. Thankfully, word-of-mouth led more and more gamers to check out this great game for themselves. With the news surrounding its sequel being threadbare at best, most players can only revisit this title to experience the magic of this universe.
4 Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines
When it comes to poorly times launches, Vampire: The Masquerade — Bloodlines has to take the cake. After all, this game was released around the same time as the legendary Half-Life 2!
After its torrid launch, players slowly got around to this game and experienced its brilliant world for themselves. Now, the game is so popular that it's on track to receive a sequel of its own too!
3 Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn
The original release of Final Fantasy 14 was such a massive disaster that the entire game had to be scrapped and reworked from the get-go. Thankfully, the reimagination of Final Fantasy 14 was absolutely brilliant, with A Realm Reborn being one of the best MMORPGs of all time.
It helped that the game sold itself purely on its quality, with each expansion for this MMORPG giving players more of an excuse to get into this amazing experience. Unlike most MMORPGs, Final Fantasy 14 doesn't really force players to grind and lets them enjoy the game for its storyline, characters, combat, and bosses instead!
2 Spec Ops: The Line
Most players assumed that Spec Ops: The Line was nothing more than a generic military shooter upon release. Given how sick people were of this tired trope, the game didn't really sell that well early on.
It's only after people got to know more about this game that they realized how brilliant Spec Ops: The Line really was. The game was a self-aware exploration of the military shooter genre and how it desensitized people to the large-scale violence of minorities without a care in the world.
1 EarthBound
Given how people rave about EarthBound right now, most people would assume that this JRPG sold like hotcakes upon release. However, this couldn't be further from the truth.
The odd nature of EarthBound's setting and story meant that most people wrote it off as a boring game upon release. It took a while for players to understand the strengths of this game and why it's one of the best JRPGs ever made.