Game franchises are tricky. Some of them seem to be going on for ages, with a yearly release schedule and no end in sight. Then there are those that are nothing but a blip on the grand gaming timeline, with only the most dedicated fans establishing a cult-like following for a particular title or series.
Certain games for solo players used to be all the rage back in their day, but, for one reason or another, have faded into irrelevance. Other titles launched with incredible single-player campaigns but struggled to make much of an impression on the market. There is no shortage of forgotten single-player games, and many of them deserve sequels, or, at the very least, solid remakes.
Updated November 13, 2021 by Mark Sammut: Despite the prominence of multiplayer experiences, single-player games are not going anywhere. Along with the plethora of stellar indie titles that debut each month, Triple-A developers continue to produce their share of campaigns designed for solo players. 2021 alone has seen the release of Psychonauts 2, Deathloop, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Metroid Dread, Hitman 3, Tales of Arise, Scarlet Nexus, Far Cry 6, Shin Megami Tensei 5, Judgment, and Resident Evil Village, and this year has not been unusually generous. With so many huge releases on the market, it is only natural that some projects will not get the attention they richly deserve. For those searching for an older, overlooked title to play, this expanded list of forgotten or underrated single-player games should help.
13 Crysis (2007)
- Platforms: PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Nintendo Switch, and PC
Released in 2007, Crysis used to be the ultimate benchmark for graphics cards and high-end PCs for quite a few years, until new releases have caught up with its ridiculously demanding graphics (at the time).
Aside from being the biggest graphical achievement of the 2000s, Crysis turned out to be an engaging single-player FPS that warranted two sequels, which, were very good titles in their own rights, despite never managing to reach the heights of the first game. A remastered version of the Crysis trilogy hit eighth-gen consoles in 2021, but the series deserves a comeback in the form of another sequel or even a reboot.
12 Prince Of Persia (2008)
- Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360, and PC
After the release of a mediocre movie based on the franchise in 2010, the Prince of Persia games have been completely pushed aside by Ubisoft in favor of newer IPs, including its spiritual successor, Assassin's Creed. While the move to focus on other franchises has definitely turned out to be a profitable one, the atmosphere and unique gameplay elements of Prince of Persia, especially the Sands trilogy, failed to get replicated in Ubisoft's recent games.
Ironically, the critically acclaimed 2008 reboot of the franchise got forgotten soon after the disastrous release of Forgotten Sands. However, thanks to its timeless, cell-shaded graphics and smooth gameplay, the title hasn't lost its charm today. Any Prince of Persia fan, especially players who suffer from open-world fatigue induced by the increasingly massive Assassin's Creed titles should give it a shot.
11 Sid Meier's Pirates! (2004)
- Platforms: PSP, Xbox 360, Xbox, Nintendo Wii, PC, and Mobile
Nowadays, the Sid Meier signature is only associated with one game: Civilization. However, back in the 2000s, the iconic game designer was much more prolific and put out innovative simulation games with remarkable consistency.
One of the games released in that period was Sid Meier's Pirates!, an ambitious pirate sim that allowed players to roam all over the Caribbean, pledge allegiance to different colonial powers, trade, pillage, search for treasures, romance various governors' daughters, and much, much more. This 2004 game has managed to generate a cult following and would only benefit from graphics overhaul, as the gameplay still holds up to this day.
10 Gothic (2001-08)
- Platforms: PC
Not a lot of people remember the Gothic series, and for a good reason. It wasn't very popular in the US and Canada but has turned out to be a bestseller in Europe. Piranha Bytes have tried to implement the Gothic formula in plenty of games since, most notably the Risen franchise, but never managed to capture the atmosphere and gameplay of the first two titles.
To say that the Gothic games were ahead of their time would be an understatement. Many of its core gameplay elements (except the awkward and clunky combat) have been implemented in a lot of classic single-player RPG games throughout the 2000s. THQ Nordic has set out to release a remake of the first title, but they haven't disclosed much about it since releasing a playable demo in 2019, suggesting that the works aren't progressing all too well.
9 Binary Domain (2012)
- Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360, and PC
Before transitioning into Sega's Yakuza team, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio made its debut with Binary Domain, a third-person shooter that prioritizes squad-based gameplay. Set in a future where global warming has sent Earth completely off the rails and robots are commonplace, a task force was created to keep a check on the advancements of robotics.
Binary Domain's single-player campaign is lengthy and plenty of fun, incorporating a Consequence System that impacts the squad's relationship with their leader, Dan Marshall, depending on the player's actions. The gunplay isn't quite as enjoyable as something like Vanquish, but Binary Domain is perfectly serviceable in that area.
8 Singularity (2010)
- Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360, and PC
Nowadays, Raven Software devouts all of its resources to Activision's Call of Duty license, but the studio has a long history of crafting great but underappreciated single-player games. Singularity builds on the developer's experience with classic FPS titles such as the Hexen series, and it is arguably Raven's best shooter outside of COD. Set in an alternative reality where the Soviet Union found a way to produce monsters, Singularity is a blast from start to finish, delivering a campaign that balances overpowered weapons and a fun time-manipulation mechanic with a solid sense of atmosphere.
Although not lacking in story beats or distractions like puzzles, Singularity is at its best when it goes big. The game is packed with grand set pieces that allow players to get creative with their weapons and abilities.
7 Killer Is Dead (2013)
- Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360, and PC
Grasshopper Manufacture's games tend to be consistently polarizing. No More Heroes is the developer's most well-known franchise, and even those are not without their detractors. Killer is Dead is frequently dismissed as an uninspired retread of NMH, and while that criticism is not without merit, this 2013 game outdoes its more popular counterpart in some ways.
For one, Killer is Dead's combo-focused gameplay is more enjoyable than NMH's combat on a minute-by-minute basis, even if the latter's bosses are a step above the former's still decent offerings. Due to its encounters with normal enemies being quite fun, Killer is Dead's missions breeze by quickly, with only a few of the later stages overstaying their welcome. While by no means a masterpiece, Killer is Dead is a worthwhile entry in the hack and slash genre.
6 Majin And The Forsaken Kingdom (2010)
- Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360, and PC
While waiting for The Last Guardian to become a reality, Namco Bandai published Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom, a game very much founded on the same core concepts. In this action-adventure title, players control Tepeu who must work alongside Teotl, the eponymous Majin, to push back the Darkness enveloping this world. Consequently, the two combine forces to defeat enemies, solve puzzles, and complete some platforming.
Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom does a stellar job developing the rapport between Tepeu and Teotl, using their friendship as the heart of its predictable but charming narrative. The gameplay has a handful of frustrating moments, but these instances are generally fleeting, with most of the experience being a joy.
5 The Operative: No One Lives Forever (2000)
- Platforms: PS2 and PC
Back in the PS2 era, colorful, adventure-driven shooters were not an unusual occurrence. The best example of this trend is The Operative: No One Lives Forever, a quirky single-player FPS game with a unique sense of humor and exciting, multi-layered missions.
After its release, the title was hailed as the best FPS since Half-Life and got two sequels. Unfortunately, due to a complicated intellectual property rights status, it has been hanging in limbo for the past decade. Hopefully, the case will get resolved, as the first-person-shooter scene is in desperate need of a refreshing, funny spy game to counteract the swarm of battle royales and military games that the genre is associated with today.
4 Sunset Overdrive (2014)
- Platforms: Xbox One and PC
According to a long-running meme, Xbox One had zero original exclusives to its name. Players who take that claim seriously have clearly forgotten about Sunset Overdrive. This 2014 open-world shooter was praised by critics for its originality and innovative traversal mechanics.
Although it was a blast to play, the open-world game didn't generate too much hype within the gaming community and became largely irrelevant soon after release, which is a shame. Developing a sequel for the Xbox Series X/S would definitely be risky, especially given that Insomniac Games now create Play Station exclusives, but it could prove to be worth the gamble on Microsoft's side if they approached it the right way.