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00:00 "Pilot Cooper, our journey is far from over."
00:03 Welcome to Mojo Plays, and today we're looking at great games that went overlooked by most players
00:08 due to poorly chosen release windows. "And there you have it."
00:12 "Cool." Before we begin, we publish new content all week long,
00:19 so be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to get notified about our latest videos.
00:24 Vampire The Masquerade - Bloodlines. "Without a sire, most child are doomed to walk the earth
00:31 never knowing their place, their responsibility, and most importantly, the laws they must obey."
00:37 This cult classic earned its status due to a passionate fan base that fixed
00:41 many of the problems it had at launch. While it had wonderful writing and characters,
00:46 it famously had a horrible development period, releasing with missing content and a lot of bugs.
00:52 It obviously could have used a bit more time in the oven, but it was over time and budget,
00:57 so Activision released it during a crowded window. November of 2004 saw many high-profile
01:02 franchises make a return, namely Halo 2, Metal Gear Solid 3, and Half-Life 2. In comparison,
01:09 Vampire The Masquerade didn't stand a chance, even if it had launched in a flawless state.
01:15 It was a financial disaster and took developer Troika Games with it.
01:19 "But then what reason would I have not to hate that loathsome Nosferatu scoundrel?
01:24 Bloody Nosferatu. They're so... unclean." Shadow Hearts - Shadow Hearts. "I'm honored that you
01:31 remember me." The PlayStation 2 had an incredible catalog of RPGs, though not all of them got the
01:37 credit they deserved. Shadow Hearts is fittingly dark in comparison to many others, taking
01:41 inspiration from H.P. Lovecraft in the ultra-violent manga Devilman. This, along with its own subtle
01:48 twists to turn-based mechanics, delighted those who played it. So why is that number so small?
01:54 Well, because in North America, Shadow Hearts released six days before another RPG,
02:00 Final Fantasy X, which naturally ate it alive. 2010's Resonance of Fate from Tri-Ace met a
02:06 similar fate, releasing at the same time as Final Fantasy XIII. Note to all publishers,
02:12 do not release your RPGs around a Final Fantasy. It will not go well.
02:16 Mad Max
02:23 Maybe great is a bit of a stretch here, but we still feel that 2015's Mad Max is a game more
02:34 people would have gotten enjoyment out of had they given it a chance. Driving through the
02:38 apocalyptic wasteland and battling whoever crossed us was still extremely fun, if not a little
02:44 mindless. Franchise creator George Miller even acted as a consultant, lending it some credibility.
02:49 Unfortunately for the game's sales numbers, most players couldn't resist the allure of Kojima.
02:54 Due to a delay from 2014, Mad Max released on the same day as Metal Gear Solid V The Phantom Pain,
03:01 a much more anticipated trek through an open world. Unsurprisingly, Max was completely overshadowed.
03:08 Okami
03:14 It may have a ton of love behind it now, but Okami was an extremely poor seller on release.
03:27 Inspired by The Legend of Zelda, it was released in North America two months before Twilight
03:32 Princess, the entry in which Link also turned into a wolf. Although it was initially a PS2
03:37 exclusive, it seems many players weren't interested in buying a Zelda-like on a different platform.
03:42 Regardless, its American release was also one month before that of the PlayStation 3,
03:47 and players were likely more interested in the new system's launch lineup. Additionally,
03:52 games were shifting to a grittier, more realistic style at the time, and Okami had distinct
03:57 watercolor visuals. Even Nintendo had to adjust to player bias in Zelda,
04:02 with Twilight Princess being an answer to the backlash behind Wind Waker's visuals.
04:07 Sin
04:12 The late 90s were a glorious time of growth for many genres, including the first-person shooter.
04:26 The futuristic Sin has players fighting against a corrupt biotech company,
04:30 with a few tweaks to traditional FPS gameplay to set it apart. However,
04:34 one of its biggest criticisms at launch were its frequent bugs, which could have been fixed had
04:39 publisher Activision not aimed for a Christmas release. But you know what other sci-fi FPS
04:45 released for the holiday season that year? A little game called Half-Life. The future
04:49 groundbreaker launched two weeks after Sin in North America, and stole every bit of spotlight
04:55 it had managed to grab. Sin may have had a better time, and better performance,
04:59 if it arrived just a little later. Shantae
05:08 The half-genie hero Shantae is now an indie darling, consisting of multiple well-received
05:18 platformers. But Capcom got it off to a horrible start. Granted, the first game was a hard sell
05:24 for the developer way forward, as it was a new IP. Additionally, it was an impressive technological
05:29 feat for handheld games at the time, but that meant its cartridges cost more to produce.
05:33 Still, after Capcom signed on as publisher, it waited for months after the game was already
05:38 finished to release it. At that point, the Game Boy Advance had already been released,
05:43 and many players had moved on from the Game Boy Color. Also, because its cartridges were more
05:47 expensive, not many were printed. So when it sold poorly, more weren't made.
05:58 Knights Into Dreams
05:59 When Sega and Team Sonic released Knights Into Dreams in 1996, it instantly became a critical
06:11 darling, praised for its unique visual flair and mechanics. Sadly, there were a few things holding
06:16 it back from reaching as wide of an audience as it could have. It was released on the Sega Saturn,
06:21 which was never a great seller in the US. But it was also released in the US one month before the
06:27 Nintendo 64, and therefore Super Mario 64, one of the most important platformer video games in
06:33 existence. That's not to mention the new platforming kid on the scene, Crash Bandicoot, who
06:38 arrived the same month as Mario. Knights is great, but not much can measure up to something like that,
06:44 even back then without the historical significance.
06:47 Kingdoms of Amalur - Reckoning
06:56 Our fate had been written, at least, that is what we believed, until you died.
07:02 Fans of fantasy action RPGs could find a lot to love in Kingdoms of Amalur. Even if it didn't do
07:08 much new, combat was still fun, its visuals were strong, and it had a huge scope. Unfortunately,
07:14 it was released in February of 2012, three months after Skyrim. We don't need to tell you how big an
07:20 impact that game had, so the familiar nature of Kingdoms just didn't cut it. Prior to release,
07:26 lead designer Ian Frazier expressed concern that people would still be too wrapped up in Bethesda's
07:31 release to pay attention to his. With how many people still play Skyrim today, that concern was
07:37 completely valid. While a sequel entered pre-production, it was cancelled when co-publisher
07:41 38 Studios closed due to low sales.
07:44 Beyond Good and Evil
07:54 There are few games more deserving of the title cult classic than Beyond Good and Evil. Its story,
08:03 characters, animations, and visuals are still supremely strong 20 years later. But it could
08:08 not have been released at a worse time, being the incredibly packed holiday season of 2003.
08:15 It faced major opposition from big names, like Final Fantasy X-2 and Medal of Honor Rising Sun,
08:21 just to name a couple. GameCube-only players were more interested in party games Mario Party 5 and
08:27 Mario Kart Double Dash. Ubisoft even gave itself competition, releasing and spending more on
08:33 marketing for Prince of Persia The Sands of Time. Beyond Good and Evil had no room to grow,
08:38 and sold extremely poorly, though would thankfully find more fans later in life.
08:42 Titanfall 2
08:47 "Trust me."
08:49 We will never understand EA's baffling choice to release Titanfall 2 when it did.
09:00 The work put in by developer Respawn resulted in a far superior package than the first game,
09:05 including a now beloved single-player mode. But even that couldn't stand against new
09:10 entries in both the Battlefield and Call of Duty franchises. Titanfall 2 released in late
09:15 October of 2016, smack dab in the middle of the two giants, and was neglected by FPS players
09:21 everywhere. EA also owns Battlefield developer DICE, making the decision even more confusing.
09:27 Thankfully, Titanfall 2 would find more fans later through sales, and Respawn's continued
09:32 support of the game. But it could and should have been more successful than it was.
09:42 What game do you feel was released at the wrong time? Share your thoughts in the comments,
09:46 and be sure to subscribe to Mojo Plays for more great gaming videos every day.
09:50 "But you still lie inside. Dormant. Waiting to rise again."
09:58 "I'm not going to die."
10:01 "I'm not going to die."
10:02 "I'm not going to die."