What happened to good 3rd person action combat games?

[samuraigaiden]

Every single game mentioned on this thread is garbage

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Every single game mentioned on this thread is garbage

Not as much as urmom

 

[Pathfinder: Kingmaker]

It's okay but most platinum's/clover's games blow it out of the water. And then there's God Hand that is ahead by such a wide margin all other action games are button-mashing popamole compared to it

 

[samuraigaiden]

My thoughts exactly, easily one third of the games on that list are terrible.

It's an inevitable feature of nostalgiafagging but as usual, the answer to "what happened to X?" is "nothing, you just started calling new ones shit and aggrandizing old trash just because you played it back when you had a full head of hair".

Imagine fawning over the third-person Duke Nukem games for fuck's sake.

Reminds me of the people who were nostalgic for N64 era 3D platformers a couple of years ago. They funded that Yoka Layla shit, it came out and was EXACTLY the kind of game they were asking for and, of course, everyone hated it.

 

[Pathfinder: Kingmaker]

They funded that Yoka Layla shit, it came out and was EXACTLY the kind of game they were asking for and, of course, everyone hated it.

Yokka Layle was just a shitty game, even looking through the Banjo-Kazooie nostalgia glasses. But Hat In Time came out around the same time (just with less hype around it) and was actually a great Super Mario Sunshine clone.

 

[Falksi]

Ash's list is a groovy one.

The Warriors was fucking brilliant.

Prototype, Mercenaries 2 and Crackdown were a laugh in their own little way.

I also liked Tomb Raider 2013

Saints Row 4 is a fucking blast

 

[samuraigaiden]

They funded that Yoka Layla shit, it came out and was EXACTLY the kind of game they were asking for and, of course, everyone hated it.

Yokka Layle was just a shitty game, even looking through the Banjo-Kazooie nostalgia glasses. But Hat In Time came out around the same time (just with less hype around it) and was actually a great Super Mario Sunshine clone.

And that's how nostalgia works. Nobody is nostalgic for fucking Mario Sunshine. It's the shitty 3D Mario. Fuckers are nostalgic for Banzo and Kazooie. But fucking Banjo Kazooie is trash, completely unplayable trash that nobody would ever want to engage with these days. Mario Sunshine is mediocre, but not horrible. Yoka Laylaa is exactly what they sold, a Banjo Kazooia trash kind of game. There is nothing wrong with it from the perspective of 'people want Banjo Kazoo, give them what they want'. But unfortunately people are stupid and don't know what they want. So of course the Mario Sunshine inspired thing will be less egregious than the Banjo inspired thing, because Banjo is just bad. There is no redeeming quality to Banjo, except nostalgia.

 

[Matador]

This looks beautiful. Thanks!

 

[Blutwurstritter]

Not the best games but entertaining nonetheless were Gladiator Sword of Vengeance and also the X-Men Origins: Wolverine game; they do get a bonus point for gracious violence. I think both have lock-on, so its not exactly the kind of third person action game that is sought after. An honorable mention is also Giants: Citizen Kabuto, also not a third person close combat game but absolutely worth a look for anyone that likes third person action games. The Bloodrayne games also look like they could fit but I've never played them.

 

[luj1]

Devil May Cry - Great
Devil May Cry 3 - Great
Ninja Gaiden (2004) - Great
Max Payne 2 - good
The Punisher - Great
Tomb Raider 3 - good
GUN - good
Mercenaries - good
The Saboteur - Great
Duke Nukem: Zero Hour - Great
Duke Nukem: Time to Kill - good
Duke Nukem: LotB - good
Heavy Metal FAKK 2 - good
GTA: Vice City - good
GTA: San Andreas - good
Destroy All Humans 2 - good
Dead Space - Great
Dead Space 2 - Great
Resident Evil 4 - Great
Resident Evil 5 - Good
Cold Fear - Good
Tenchu 2 - good
Tenchu: Wrath of Heaven - Great
The Suffering - Good
The Suffering 2 - Good
Syphon Filter 2 - Good
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice - Great
Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams - good
MDK 2 - Good
Prince of Persia: Sands of Time - good
Prince of Persia: Warrior Within - good
Total Overdose - Good
Blade (2000) - good
American Mcgee's Alice - good
God of War (2004) - good
God of War 2 - good
Bloodborne - good
Ghost of Tsushima - good
Shadowman - good

Solid list

This genre peaked in late 90s / early 00s (like everything else) and is now dead without a doubt. Probably killed by Dark Souls and that kind of shit

For me the best games of this type were Soul Reaver, Max Payne and MDK 2. But I also remember some lesser known innovative gems like Evolva, Outcast and Giants Citizen Kabuto (if they can qualify)

 

[samuraigaiden]

The Saboteur is great? I guess we'll have to agree to disagree

 

[Nifft Batuff]

The only 3rd person I remember enjoying were Soul Reaver and Shadowman.

 

[mogwaimon]

Yeah every single Darksiders game has its heart in the right place (continuing the 3rd person action genre without being braindead popamole) but the execution is sadly mediocre in each and every instance.

eh, I can't speak for the sequels but the first Darksiders game is a fairly competent 3D Zelda clone, pretty solid IMO and rare to find. I would say it's an average game, mediocre is too harsh IMO

And that's how nostalgia works. Nobody is nostalgic for fucking Mario Sunshine. It's the shitty 3D Mario. Fuckers are nostalgic for Banzo and Kazooie. But fucking Banjo Kazooie is trash, completely unplayable trash that nobody would ever want to engage with these days. Mario Sunshine is mediocre, but not horrible. Yoka Laylaa is exactly what they sold, a Banjo Kazooia trash kind of game. There is nothing wrong with it from the perspective of 'people want Banjo Kazoo, give them what they want'. But unfortunately people are stupid and don't know what they want. So of course the Mario Sunshine inspired thing will be less egregious than the Banjo inspired thing, because Banjo is just bad. There is no redeeming quality to Banjo, except nostalgia.

On the other hand, I'm gonna get a bit harsh here; do you even listen to the drivel coming out of your mouth? do you even play video games? I've seen my fair share of elitist opinions here that I didn't agree with, but this one takes the cake.

 

[<3sRichardSimmons]

Darksiders is at its best when it’s trying to be a 3D Zelda clone. The problem is that it only tries to do that about half the time.

 

[Ash]

The only 3rd person I remember enjoying were Soul Reaver and Shadowman.

Which is odd, as both are a bit lackluster. Not terrible, but barely make my list.

The Saboteur is great? I guess we'll have to agree to disagree

Yeah it is probably good not great, my rating was off. I thought at least one open world TP action mayhem game should qualify as great, but in reality none do. Fun games though, until the 360/PS3 era came along and fucked it up. The Saboteur was the last, for me.

This genre peaked in late 90s / early 00s (like everything else) and is now dead without a doubt. Probably killed by Dark Souls and that kind of shit

Huh? But a) Dark Souls is good, and b) it was killed by cover shooters, cinematic braindead trash, sightseeing sims, Batman braindead combat clones, collectathons...

e.g Assassins' Creed, Kane & Lynch, GTAIV & V, Batman, Shadow of Mordor, Tomb Raider 2013, God of War Reboot, Uncharted, Gears of War, Spec Ops: the Line, Watch Dogs, Sleeping Dogs, Just Cause and so on.

Terrible trash that wiped out whatever value third person action games had. Dark Souls was one of the only good ones left, but I consider it ARPG and I intentionally excluded third person ARPGs from my list.

 

[Ash]

Imagine fawning over the third-person Duke Nukem games for fuck's sake.

Imagine actually playing them? Duke Nukem: Zero Hour is perhaps my favorite third person shooter of all time. Who the fuck needs Duke Nukem Forever when this game exists.
It is designed exactly like a boomer shooter and Duke Nukem game, except it is third person. Fuck yeah I'll fawn over that just as I would Duke Nukem 3D/Shadow Warrior/Blood or any of those classics.

 

[Reinhardt]

Answer: they're gone. But I was going to play through a lot of third person games some time ago, to see how the genre changes over time. Does anyone have a good list? Made a list a while back but apparently I only went up to the year 2001, here it is anyway. Haven't played all of them so can't vouch for them all being good:

Fade to Black (1995) - this is kind of crap but it's the first 3D TPS

Tomb Raider (1996) - excellent

MDK (1997) - good
Tomb Raider 2 (1997) - excellent
Nightmare Creatures (1997) - alright
Excalibur 2555 AD (1997) - fucking terrible

Tenchu (1998)
Die By The Sword (1998) - downs syndrome simulator
Deathtrap Dungeon (1998) - bad
MediEvil (1998)
Heretic 2 (1998) - good
The Elder Scrolls: Redguard (1998) - really cool, awful controls though
Space Bunnies Must Die! (1998)
Tomb Raider 3 (1998) - alright

Syphon Filter (1999)
Drakan: Order of the Flame (1999) - fuck yeah
Outcast (1999) - ULUKAI
Tomb Raider 4 (1999) - alright
Urban Chaos (1999) - fucking great, massively overlooked game

Spider-Man (2000) - alright
Rune (2000) - alright
Star Trek DS9: The Fallen (2000) - lol

Oni (2001) - alright
Severance: Blade of Darkness (2001) - great
Max Payne (2001) - all time best ever

That's an incomprehensive list for sure. Can anyone fill in the gaps, or suggest third person action games after 2001?

By the way, I have no idea what my criteria was when I put the list together. If MediEvil applies, why doesn't like, Crash Bandicoot? No idea.

Wait, Nightmare Creatures is OLDER than Deathtrap Dungeon? Always thought it's other way around...

 

[Ash]

I always assumed since the 90s that Deathtrap Dungeon was a good game, and I would get around to it sometime. With a name and concept like that how could it possibly be bad? It was the 90s, my expectations were it would be at least decent, probably with a kickass soundtrack (i.e like Nightmare Creatures). Then I played it some 5 years ago. Unfortunate.

 

[Pathfinder: Kingmaker]

Mario Sunshine is mediocre, but not horrible.

Sunshine is literally the best 3d Mario game. It's where the series peaked in both level design and character movement (the two things that make or break a 3d platformer IMO). Huge interconnected zones with multiple obstacle courses and challenges that are fun to explore and fuck around and extreme freedom of movement in a 3d space achieved by mario's moveset combined with jetpack make it the best platformer of ps2/gamecube era.

Later 3d Mario releases are good (Galaxy is built on a fun gimmick of levels being planetoids with complex gravitational fields and Odyssey has some fun item mechanics) but never really measured up to the perfected gameplay formula of Sunshine

 

[samuraigaiden]

I hope y'all are at least willing to admit that among normies Sunshine is the least beloved 3D Mario. And even if you think it's the best 3D platformer ever, it's still accurate to call it mediocre because the genre as a whole is garbage

 

[BLOBERT]

RED FACTION THREE WHATEVER IT WAS

LOLLLOLOL FUN DESTROYING EVERYTHING

MERCENUES ALSO BRO FOR MANY SAME RESONS

 

[DJOGamer PT]

In the last 10 years, we actually had some pretty good 3D Brawlers
From what I played:

Devil May Cry 5
Nioh 1+2
Bayonetta 2
MGR Revengeance
Yakuza 0 (as well as Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise)
Dragon's Dogma
Warhammer 40k: Space Marine


One recent brawler I've been ages to yet try is Absolver, but from what I hear the game seems undercooked despite having cool ideas...

 

[DJOGamer PT]

I hope y'all are at least willing to admit that among normies Sunshine is the least beloved 3D Mario. And even if you think it's the best 3D platformer ever, it's still accurate to call it mediocre because the genre as a whole is garbage

Sunshine was injustly reviled in it's time, but it's now much more favorly looked upon and has a community nearly as dedicated as 64
And rightly the so, it is a good game, much better than the Galaxy titles
However from what I've been playing, Odissey is easily the most fun I've had from a Mario game

3D platformers are fewer than 2D ones for the simple fact that they are much more difficult to make and get right than 2d ones
Not gonna argue wich is sub-genre is better, but 3D platformers can be genuinely great games and no amount of contrarian takes can prove the contrary - play Sands of Time and Mirror's Edge 1

 

[mogwaimon]

Sunshine isn't one of my favorite Marios, it's true, but to outright state that it and Banjo Kazooie of all games are 'unplayable trash' is fucking retarded and a rare actually bad opinion.

as an aside, when it comes to Fist of the North Star Lost Paradise...eh, it sounds really friggin' sweet on paper but in execution? I recently played through it and for some reason it just doesn't match up to the core Yakuza games. The combat is alright and of course the side stuff is there in spades, but the main quest is completely boring and filled with tutorials as well as meaningless 'go here and talk to someone' errands, leaving the only mildly interesting plot points and setpieces until the end of the game, basically, and then it's over all too soon. I don't want to say it's skippable especially if you're a FotNS fan, there's still fun to be had there but it certainly doesn't match up to Yakuza 0, IMO.

 

[Machocruz]

Sunshine is a lot of fun, if garish. The Banjo games were always wank, like all the Rare flatformer collectathons. Only internet revisionism and furfags keep the name on life support.