Incline Post-decline gems

[PorkyThePaladin]

There are a lot of people here who believe that gaming has died after 2004 or so, minus a couple of games here and there. But in reality, while the vast majority of games since then have been utter crap, there have been quite a few excellent offerings in the 19 years since. So I wanted to compile a list of what every edgelord Codexer should play when they are not replaying Fallout/PST/JA2/XCom/Alpha Centauri for the 2000th time. So I was thinking if everyone posts their suggestions, we can then tally them up (if enough people chime in). And people can see where the true post-decline greatness lies (according to the autistic hivemind). And use it as a gaming suggestion guide. Apologies if this has already been done, but I haven't found anything.

So, please list the video games that fit the following requirements for you:

1. Released 2005 or later (after the age of plenty).
2. You consider it a real gem. In other words, please don't post ok games, or decent games, or games you kind of liked. Only games that you thought were really something special.
3. Can be PC games or console games, or console games ported to PC/emulated on PC.

 

[PorkyThePaladin]

My list:

Fallout: New Vegas
Dark Souls
Risen
The Witcher
Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt
ELEX
Subnautica
Battle Brothers
Kingdom Come: Deliverance
Days Gone
Expeditions: Viking
Shadowrun Dragonfall
Metro Exodus
Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Disco Elysium

 

[Lemming42]

Off the top of my head, probably missed a bunch of notable games. Included the year because it's interesting to see what a barren wasteland late 2000s and mid 2010s were:

SWAT 4 (2005)
F.E.A.R. (2005)
Mount & Blade (2008) (play Warband instead though)
Mirror's Edge (2008)
Fallout: New Vegas (2010)
Alpha Protocol (2010) (embrace the jank)
Singularity (2010)
L.A. Noire (2011)
Deus Ex: Human Revolution (2011) (just separate it from DX1 in your mind, because as a prequel, it's terrible)
Legend of Grimrock (2012)
FTL: Faster Than Light (2012)
Magic 2014 (2013) (I like MtG and, other than Forge, this is what I spent the most time playing it in, heavily modded with thousands of custom cards. I assume MtG Arena replaces this for most people)
Expeditions: Conquistador (2013)
Papers, Please (2013) (just ignore the wave of tedious artsy games it inspired)
Age of Decadence (2015)
Stellaris (2016)
Dishonored 2 (2016)
Subnautica (2018)
Kingdom Come: Deliverance (2018)
Slay the Spire (2019)
Ion Fury (2020)
Gears Tactics (2020)
Metro: Exodus (2020)
Desperados 3 (2020)
Crash Bandicoot 4 (2020)
Hades (2020)
HROT (2022)
Baldur's Gate 3 (2023)

And some that I was in two minds about including or have mixed feelings about but nonetheless spent so much time with that it'd be stupid not to highlight them:

Spoiler

Fallout 3 (2008) (yeah yeah, I explained my reasoning in the 3 vs NV thread recently)
Metro 2033 and Last Light (didn't mention them just because I already put Exodus on there)
Skyrim (2011) (after hundreds of hours it'd be straight-up intellectually dishonest not to mention this)
XCOM: Enemy Unknown (2012)
Far Cry 3 (2012) (this and FC1 are the only Far Cry games worth playing)
Wasteland 2 (2015)
Overload (2018) (just because it's literally Descent, so I dunno if I'd count it as something special and amazing)
Assassin's Creed: Odyssey (2018) (ridiculous over-long mess but it's the only AC game I enjoyed)
Wasteland 3 (2020)
Fortune's Run (2023) (still in early access and I'm not convinced it won't end up shitting all over itself by the time of full release, so cautious optimism for now)

Can't believe how good 2020 was. It was so exciting at the time, because it was like, what the fuck? New games that are actually good, and I'm partly in lockdown so I can play them. 2021 and 2022 were big letdowns after that, 2023 has at least had a lot of decent if not outstanding games.

 

[HumanTotemPole]

Alpha Protocol (2010) (embrace the jank)

This game and Dragon's Dogma convinced me that jank-squealers should be shot on sight.

Far Cry 3 (2012) (this and FC1 are the only Far Cry games worth playing)

Totally off topic (sorry Porky) but I would dispute this and say FC2 is also worth playing. Certainly not as a gem, more in the interesting experiment category à la Witcher 2. Interesting to experience what it gets right and what it gets wrong.

A list of post 2004 interesting experiments, interesting failures and outright decline milestones would also be interesting. A sort of 'how did we get here?' explainer.

 

[PorkyThePaladin]

Oooh, Far Cry 2. Such a weird game. See, Far Cry 1 (which was made by Crytek) was an excellent shooter, then Ubisoft buys the brand and has an internal studio make Far Cry 2. And when you start it, it feels like a really cool game, a very original setting, actually solid gameplay, open world, hits all the checkboxes. Right up until you see an enemy checkpoint re-spawn right after you cleared it. And then it hits you, it's a Ubisoft game. And nothing you do matter, and the game won't even try to create an illusion of meaning.

 

[Falksi]

To add to those already mentioned:

- Avernum: Escape From The Pit
- Geneforge Mutagen
- Bard's Tale 4 DC
- Streets of Rage 4
- Wonderboy: The Dragons Trap Remake
- Yakuza Like A Dragon
- Persona 5 Royal
- Witcher 2
- Mass Effect 1
- Hard West
- Shadowrun Returns (yes Dragonfall is better but Returns is still cool)
- Nioh 2
- Dark Souls 3
- Assassins' Creed Origins
- The Sexy Brutale
- Tales of Berseria (pushing the "gem" claim, but it's humour and revenge theme just make it includable for me)
- Valkyria Chronicles
- Demons of Asteborg
- Tanzer
- Xenocrisis
- Dead Space

 

[Maxie]

as decline happened in 1977 (the release of Zork), Space Rangers 2 (2004) is decidedly a post-decline gem

 

[Blutwurstritter]

Warhammer 40000: Dawn of War - Dark Crusade (2006) <- The base game is of course also a gem but before 2005.
Company of Heroes (2006)
C&C 3: Tiberium Wars (2007)
C&C 3: Kane's Wrath (2008)
Supreme Commander (2007)
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance (2007)
Starcraft 2 (2010)
Spellforce 3 (2017)
HoMMV: Tribes of the East (2007)
Age of Wonders III with all dlcs - (2014)
Factorio(2020)
Dark Messiah of Might & Magic (2006)
Call of Juarez (2006)
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger(2013)
Doom (2016)
Doom Eternal (2020)
Everspace (2017)
MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries with all dlcs (2019)
Synthethik: Legion Rising (2018)
Trine(2009)
Hotline Miami (2012)
Drakensang: The River of Time (2010)

 

[Mise]

Mount and Blade Warband(2008)
Slay the Spire (2019)
Darkest Dungeon (2016)
Stalker(s)

Not really gems but I liked them even though I see them more as fast food, good while you eat them but won't touch them once again for years
Ass Creed 2
Grim Dawn
Fallout NV

There are more of course, these are just the top of my head.

 

[HoboForEternity]

Without overlapping what's already said:

1. Ctrl alt ego. Play this you bastards. Just do it.
2. Voidspire tactics/any rad codex bro games.
3. Ys games
4. Trails series (if you want longform and wall of text anyway)
5. Astlibra revision (play this too or you are decline enabler)
6 . Yakuza series
7. Bug fables: the everlasting sapling.
8. Dark wood
9. Pathologic 2
10. Rain world
11. Baba is you
12. Heaven vault
13.the surge 1/2
14. Styx: master of shadows/ styx 2
15. Wadget eye games (esp primordia/gemini rue)
16. The bbrotherhood games (stasis, etc)
17. Ghost of a tale
18. Sniper elite games (underrated imsim-lite) (havent playted 5 but 4 and 1 is my favorite, 2 and 3 are kinda weak because ps360 hardware limitation. Basically the same issue as deus ex hr and dishonored. Small level due to low console ram and cpu)
19. Unsighted (rly good top down zelda clone)
20. Utawarerumono (vn with some tactical combat with really good story)
21. Mimimi games (shadow tactics/desperados/shadoe gambit)
22. Sorcery!
23. Opus:echo of starsong
24. Obra dinn
25. Golden idol
26. Lacuna
27. Ghostrunner (last level is a bitch and i didnt finish the game, but tbh 9/10 game outside of the last level)
28. Katana zero
29. Dark eye: chain of satinav (rip daedalic) and memoria

 

[Konjad]

RPGs:
Alpha Protocol
Baldur's Gate 3
Brigand: Oaxaca
Colony Ship
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
Divinity: Original Sin
Elex
Elex 2
Fallout: New Vegas
Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer
Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir
Neverwinter Nights 2: Mysteries of Westgate
Pathologic
Precursors
Prelude to Darkness (though without patches it's pre-2005, but 2022 version is the best to play)
Risen
Risen 2
The Chronicles Of Myrtana: Archolos
The Witcher
The Void (aka Tension or Turgor)
Vendetta: Curse of Raven's Cry
Venetica

Tactical:
nuXCOMs
Dungeon Rats
Battle Brothers
Hard West

Strategy:
Attila: Total War
Three Kingdoms: Total War

Action (multiplayer)
ArmA 3
M&B: Bannerlord
Red Orchestra 2
Chivalry

Simulators:
Euro Truck Simulator 2
Kerbal Space Program

 

[Lady Error]

There have been more than enough:

Underrrail
GRIMOIRE
Shadowrun Dragonfall
Dark Spire (NDS)
Age of Decadence
Colony Ship
Disco Elysium
NEO Scavenger
FTL
Might & Magic X
Divinity: Original Sin 1 & 2
Baldur's Gate 3 (despite occasional cringe)
Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire
Tyranny

Strategy:
Rimworld
Europa Universalis IV
Civilization 4 & 5
Battletech

 

[Terenty]

From the recent recent ones:
It Takes Two
As Dusk Falls

 

[Feyd Rautha]

Interesting that no one has posted Prey (2017), I remember people talking quite fondly about it. I wasn't that into it tbh.

I would rather recommend Prey (2006).

Then some from on top of my mind:
ATOM RPG
Expeditions: Viking
The Fall part 1&2
Terminator Resistance
Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon
Stalker
Grey Goo
Primordia?

I also liked Shadowrun Returns and J.U.L.I.A.: Among the Stars.

I'm a story fag and don't play that many games anyway.

 

[Morpheus Kitami]

Don't really play a ton of modern games these days, but:

Alpha Protocol
Bastard Bonds
Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead
Far Cry 3
Ion Fury
Mount & Blade (Plus mods like 1866, Solid and Shade)
Resident Evil 4
Starsector
STALKER
SWAT 4

 

[PorkyThePaladin]

Couple of comments:

1. To those of you saying "Without overlapping what's already said:" or "To add to those already mentioned:", please list all games, because I want to do a tally at the end, how many votes each game got.
2. If you are listing a series, please list each game for same reason as above.

 

[flyingjohn]

A-train tourism.
Japanese TTD series with a bigger focus on trains. One of the most overlooked management/transportation games on the market.

Troubleshooter.
Nuxcom done right.

Megamek.
Freeware battletech leaps better than harebrained's failure.

Edit: Adding Grimoire as well.
The only good western dungeon crawler after decades of nothingness and japanese developers stuff.

 

[gabel]

Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen
Hollow Knight

 

[Hag]

There are a lot of people here who believe that gaming has died after 2004 or so,

Those people are posturing and one should not listen to their opinion.

 

[std::namespace]

Fallout: New Vegas

full on retardation straight from the first post!
an absolutely broken running simulator, ugly beyond sin too

unironically, why are you breathing? whats the point? how dumb are you?

 

[Lady Error]

Newfag discovers that he can say anything on the Codex, so he cannot contain himself.

 

[std::namespace]

Mount & Blade (2008) (play Warband instead though)

another absolutely broken mouse button holding simulator
larpfest that should be dumped into garbage

 

[std::namespace]

- Avernum: Escape From The Pit
- Geneforge Mutagen

ahahahahahha
oh man
ahahhahahahahahhahahahah

 

[std::namespace]

HoMMV: Tribes of the East (2007)

really? really? r u serious? like really? really? no? i fucking hope not

 

[Bester]

Are you posting all games that came out after 2004 or something? Your lists contain so many entries that make my fingers tired from scrolling. Yeah, these are all "gems", sure. The thread has been rendered useless with the first such list.

No American games after 2004 are not not shit. Not a single one.