Rare Gems

[Firice da Vinci]

I am looking for some absolutely great video games that very little people know about or own. Maybe you just bought it because the cover looked cool or you just heard the name hear and there, so you decided to make a purchase. Was there a massive amount of praise for a game years after it was released, so you were willing to dish out three times the original price? It might even be some series that you are fondly attached to, but is a Japan only release.

I believe that my favorite game, Xenoblade Chronicles, counts as a rare gem. This game was originally released in Japan with, probably, not much intention to be released anywhere else. Then came Operation Rainfall. Much like Operation Moonfall, it was a petition to make three acclaimed JRPGs get translated and shipped to Europe and North America. Xenoblade was the first to be announced out, and, to this day, it is the only thing I have ever needed to preorder, as it was a GameStop exclusive and only shipped once over here in the States.

Selling now for $130 online, this is the one of the, if not the, best JRPG in existence. I have seriously invested over 300 hours playing this one game. The graphics are some of the best for the Wii, the pacing for the plot is phenomenal, the soundtrack is beautiful, and the gameplay is fun and addicting. Xenoblade is actually worth the hefty price, which is over twice the amount it originally sold for.

I have also heard good thing about the remaining Operation Rainfall games: The Last Story and Pandora's Tower. I don't know what went on with the former. It's release date changed at least three times and it was back-ordered the last time I checked. To my knowledge, Pandora's Tower never got news over here, but all three games are available in Europe (luckies).

According to HCBailly, Radiant Historia and Hexyz Force(phyical copy) are two of the best RPGs since Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy IV, and are pretty rare. I'll take his word for it.

 

[Ventus]

Star Ocean Till the End of Time is a rare gem for sure. Only, it isn't all too rare.

 

[selicyc]

The Last Story and Pandora's Tower did see a release in the North America region! The former was released in 2012, while the latter was released in April of this year. Both are also criminally underrated, though that's another topic.

Baten Kaitos is a rare gem, brought to you by the folks who would eventually make Xenoblade Chronicles. Baten Kaitos has something similar to the start of Xenoblade; the main character, Kalas, leaves his home on a revenge quest but eventually shows his true colours. But what makes this game so unique is that you're a part of the game too -- you accompany Kalas as a guardian spirit, and on occasion he will turn to face the screen to ask for your advice on what he should do. You foster bonds with the him and the group, and the stronger your bond is, the more benefits in-game you receive. It was made for the good old purple lunchbox, but it's still somewhat hard to get a copy of and fairly expensive when I last checked.

 

[Salem]

Tales of Symphonia for the GCN is good as far as I remember. If I think of more I'l come back to this thread.

 

[Hinas]

Good Gravy, Xenoblade Chronicles is that expensive already?! I want that game, but I never had the money at the right time. Now I have no choice but to cry....

Rare gems, huh? Would you count indie titles as rare gems, not because they're hard to find, but because they're surprisingly good? I played To the Moon recently, and that game is excellent! Although I'm sure plenty of people heard of it... It's less of an actual game and more of a story, but the story and soundtrack are so good, it's just okay.

The people who developed To the Moon also came up with a game called Quintessense: The Blighted Venom, which I am also enjoying so far. Once again, it's more of a story based game than anything else. Weirdly, I've never heard of it until after I played To the Moon and visited the developers website. So give that one a shot!

As for rare physical copies of games, I remember hearing that Persona 3 for the PS2 was released in small quantities, although I didn't have a problem finding the PSP version. Great great game, btw! It's like a mix between a visual novel and a monster collecting RPG, without the world exploration.

I must say that I dislike it when companies release games and soundtracks in small quantities. D: If I wanted to legitimately get a hold of a game I want, I feel that I should be able to! I feel that the limited quantity releases punish people for not being able to afford everything that they want. -_-

 

[ihateghirahim]

Hehehe. I got a copy of Xenoblade like right after it released. I had no idea it would be so sought after. Maybe I'll sell my copy. (What's the current price on it) Really though, it is a great game and any JRPG fan will love it. It's endless quests, a good if confusing story, all sorts of exploration, lots of imagination, and great adventure. It also has that certain weirdness that only the Japanese can produce.

Other than that, Paper Mario the Thousand Year Door or the RE remake for the Gamecube. TTYD is a great turn-based RPG. The RE remake is an amazing survival horror game with all manner of improvements over the original version.