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Quietly influential games

L Thammy

L Thammy

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Oct 25, 2017
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Metroid was never my thing and I didn't spend very long in Amiga land, so I never got into Turrican. But I was curious lately, so I was looking it up. When I did, I saw that another one of the major influences for Turrican was a game called Psycho-Nics Oscar. I had never heard of this before, so I took a look at that too:



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It seems to be a fairly unassuming run and gun, albeit one with Gradius' power purchase system. But the look of it is pretty close to Turrican, and supposedly the powerups are similar as well. So I guess the idea is that Turrican takes the action of Psycho-Nics Oscar and then put it in an open, maze-like stage more similar to Metroid.

It reminds me of another game that I learned about a few years ago, Mad Stalker: Full Metal Forth. This was the game that inspired Guardian Heroes. It's a single plane beat-em-up with fighting game inputs, with boss battles that shift a little more towards a fighting game. Additionally, all of the bosses in the game are playable in versus mode, which could have inspired Guardian Heroes' policy of letting you play as everything in the game.



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Which then leads me to think that there are a bunch of games like these, which maybe aren't that well remembered by themselves, but nonetheless have left very visible waves of influence. I think a well known in gaming circles is Sweet Home being kind of a precursor to Resident Evil:



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Or another one that I personally think is interesting, the Daisenryaku series, which influenced a bunch of turn-based games like Advance Wars, Nectaris, and several Gundam games.



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There are more examples coming to mind: Cabal leading to a whole bunch of similar games like Wild Guns, Darkstalkers influencing Street Fighter Alpha and a lot of other high energy fighting games, Minecraft being inspired by Infiniminer. It's hard to say what really counts as under the radar when some of these games were popular in their day or maintain a cult following. But I think there are plenty of things that might count as examples, definitely more than the number of videos that I can embed.

Are there any games that you think have made an impact even being little known?
 
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Deleted member 34949

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You already mentioned it but it bears repeating: Darkstalkers doesn't get nearly enough credit for all of the mechanical and aesthetic innovation it bore for the genre for Capcom and non-Capcom fighters.

Gatlings in Guilty Gear and Chain Combos in the Vs. games? Darkstalkers did it first.

EX Moves? Darkstalkers again.

Multiple Super Meters? Yup.

Airdash functionality in fighting games? Yep, Darkstalkers.

Guard Cancels? Three guesses.

Not to mention being one of the first big fighting games I can recall to really stray away from the martial arts aesthetic the genre then employed at the time (I think technically, Clayfighter might have actually beaten it by a year in those specific regards. But Clayfighter is also complete ass, so) and really dive into more wild, fantastical character and environment designs, which the genre would largely adopt pretty quickly.

Without Darkstalkers, I doubt we get the Vs. series as is, Guilty Gear and most anime fighters/airdashers in general, and even more offbeat, but still somewhat inspired stuff like Waku Waku 7.
 
spad3

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Jak and Daxter was the first open world game without loading screens, set the standard for future open world titles.
 
r_rose

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Kill Switch set a lot of standards for cover shooting that Gears cemented.
 
Grain Silo

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Tokimeki Memorial is probably the standard-setter for a lot of Japanese games with dating/romance elements. Persona, Fire Emblem, if not most straight up dating sims
 
Vex

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Seven Force said:
You already mentioned it but it bears repeating: Darkstalkers doesn't get nearly enough credit for all of the mechanical and aesthetic innovation it bore for the genre for Capcom and non-Capcom fighters.

Gatlings in Guilty Gear and Chain Combos in the Vs. games? Darkstalkers did it first.

EX Moves? Darkstalkers again.

Multiple Super Meters? Yup.

Airdash functionality in fighting games? Yep, Darkstalkers.

Guard Cancels? Three guesses.

Not to mention being one of the first big fighting games I can recall to really stray away from the martial arts aesthetic the genre then employed at the time (I think technically, Clayfighter might have actually beaten it by a year in those specific regards. But Clayfighter is also complete ass, so) and really dive into more wild, fantastical character and environment designs, which the genre would largely adopt pretty quickly.

Without Darkstalkers, I doubt we get the Vs. series as is, Guilty Gear and most anime fighters/airdashers in general, and even more offbeat, but still somewhat inspired stuff like Waku Waku 7.
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Jeeeez. DarkStalkers quietly changed the game!!! How quickly we forget. Put some respect on DS name!!!!
 
TheMoon

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Seven Force said:
You already mentioned it but it bears repeating: Darkstalkers doesn't get nearly enough credit for all of the mechanical and aesthetic innovation it bore for the genre for Capcom and non-Capcom fighters.

Gatlings in Guilty Gear and Chain Combos in the Vs. games? Darkstalkers did it first.

EX Moves? Darkstalkers again.

Multiple Super Meters? Yup.

Airdash functionality in fighting games? Yep, Darkstalkers.

Guard Cancels? Three guesses.

Not to mention being one of the first big fighting games I can recall to really stray away from the martial arts aesthetic the genre then employed at the time (I think technically, Clayfighter might have actually beaten it by a year in those specific regards. But Clayfighter is also complete ass, so) and really dive into more wild, fantastical character and environment designs, which the genre would largely adopt pretty quickly.

Without Darkstalkers, I doubt we get the Vs. series as is, Guilty Gear and most anime fighters/airdashers in general, and even more offbeat, but still somewhat inspired stuff like Waku Waku 7.
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there's a difference thought between "quietly influential" and "did it first" and I think it's worth keeping that in mind.

for example we know that Sweet Home was Mikami's reference point for Resident Evil because he explicitly said so. I'm not sure with a lot of examples that may or may not be dropped here that this is always the case. Someone may have come first from elsewhere but it's not necessarily been an influence on the people making whatever the popular version was. Say a form of Z-targeting having been in Mega Man Legends which came out a year before Ocarina of TIme. Not saying this was the case with Darkstalkers, I'm just quoting your post because you're framing it from a "this did it first" perspective.
 
Sumio Mondo

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Elthlead (1987) - Basically gave birth to the Strategy RPG genre in Japan and was the precursor to Langrisser. This was also before Fire Emblem.


iu
 
YohraUtopia

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Overcooked (I think?) basically introduced the modern style of family-friendly co-op games (think Moving Out and a million other very similar clones)
 
Birdie

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I still attest Link's Awakening contributed a lot to what I'd consider the vibe and style of modern Zelda but got overlooked due to being a side story handheld title and Ocarina of Time got that title instead despite quite a bit of elements originating in Awakening
 
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L Thammy

L Thammy

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Grain Silo said:
Tokimeki Memorial is probably the standard-setter for a lot of Japanese games with dating/romance elements. Persona, Fire Emblem, if not most straight up dating sims
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I've actually wanted to post a separate thread about how dating sims might have evolved out of raising sims / Princess Maker clones, but that's a story for another day.
 
GameShowPresident

GameShowPresident

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Don't know how "quiet" it is due to it being a cult classic among enthusiasts, but ICO has been cited by developers as a major influence for games like God of War, Last of Us, and Dark Souls (just off the top of my head).

He'll, I just played through Sands of Time and that felt like a bigger budgeted (for its time) adaptation of the game.
 
Paroni

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Angband.png


ARPGs and loot games in general owe a lot to Angband (1992 and still being updated). The Diablo formula is basically the same but in real-time. As far as I know, Angband also popularized color coding names of items by type and rarity.
 

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TheMoon said:
there's a difference thought between "quietly influential" and "did it first" and I think it's worth keeping that in mind.

for example we know that Sweet Home was Mikami's reference point for Resident Evil because he explicitly said so. I'm not sure with a lot of examples that may or may not be dropped here that this is always the case. Someone may have come first from elsewhere but it's not necessarily been an influence on the people making whatever the popular version was. Say a form of Z-targeting having been in Mega Man Legends which came out a year before Ocarina of TIme. Not saying this was the case with Darkstalkers, I'm just quoting your post because you're framing it from a "this did it first" perspective.
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That's a fair point on the post framing, though I used the wording I did here specifically because fighting games (and in particular their developers/producers) tend not to be shy about voicing their inspirations for their work and shout them out in and out of their games; Take Harada kinda-sorta-but-not-really joking about cribbing ideas from Virtua Fighter for use in Tekken over the years. Pretty sure there's some old interviews out there with Daisuke Ishiwatari mentioning Darkstalkers being a big influence on GG's design and mechanics as well.
 
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L Thammy

L Thammy

Spacenoid
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Oct 25, 2017
51,678
TheMoon said:
there's a difference thought between "quietly influential" and "did it first" and I think it's worth keeping that in mind.

for example we know that Sweet Home was Mikami's reference point for Resident Evil because he explicitly said so. I'm not sure with a lot of examples that may or may not be dropped here that this is always the case. Someone may have come first from elsewhere but it's not necessarily been an influence on the people making whatever the popular version was. Say a form of Z-targeting having been in Mega Man Legends which came out a year before Ocarina of TIme. Not saying this was the case with Darkstalkers, I'm just quoting your post because you're framing it from a "this did it first" perspective.
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Darkstalkers came across as kind of a testbed that Capcom used for ideas that were too wild for them to do in Street Fighter (yet).
 
flashman92

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Herzog Zwei was basically the first RTS game supposedly influenced Dune II, Warcraft, and CnC
 
xendless

xendless

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Depends on the region and era of release what's considered quiet I guess
 
Orayn

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xendless said:
Depends on the region and era of release what's considered quiet I guess
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Yeah, a good example would be something like Tower of Druaga which was enormously influential in terms of game design but the game itself was really only popular in Japan.
flashman92 said:
Herzog Zwei was basically the first RTS game supposedly influenced Dune II, Warcraft, and CnC
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Total Annihilation, Supreme Commander, and Airmech are even closer. People have also argued that it lays some of the foundations for MOBAs too.
 
HonestAbe

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Starsiege: Tribes. It introduced shoutcasting as the "first real big" e-sports.

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Before There Was ‘Fortnite,’ There Was ‘Starsiege: Tribes’

The jet-packing, pioneering game looked like the future of first-person shooters when it debuted 20 years ago, and its influence can still be seen in some of today’s most popular games
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Cool video a bit about it.

youtu.be

Tribes - The Grandfather of eSports & Shoutcasting

ReDeYe at Valencia eSports Congress (2012)Originally a clip on Twitch that is no longer available. Thought I'd upload to YouTube.
youtu.be youtu.be
 
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DiipuSurotu

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The obscure Japan-only game "Marvelous: Another Treasure Island" was influenced by Zelda: ALTTP and then it went on to influence the Zelda series in turn.

en.wikipedia.org

Marvelous: Mōhitotsu no Takarajima - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

Development

This was the first game directed by Eiji Aonuma.[3][4] Aonuma wanted to work on a Zelda game ever since he had played The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, and made Marvelous as close to Zelda as he could.[5] The game uses the engine from The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.[6]

In a move which Aonuma attributes to his position on the Marvelous team, Miyamoto recruited him to join the development team for the Zelda series.[4][5] Aonuma then worked on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.[7]


Release

BS Marvelous: Time Athletic was considered for re-release in 2003 as a stand-alone game that later became The Legend of Zelda spinoff title Tetra's Trackers.[11] Although the stand-alone Tetra's Trackers was ultimately cancelled, the game's code was included in The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords+ (the Japanese version of The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures) as the Navi Trackers minigame. Among the oxbow code remaining in The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords+ can be found 3D character models for the original camp instructor from the BS Marvelous games as well as maps taken directly from BS Marvelous: Time Athletic.[12]
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CaveGhostPurp

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Spelunker was one of the main influences for what many consider to be a perfect game and a modern classic- Spelunky.

384236-spelunker-nes-screenshot-a-ghost-is-on-the-spelunker-s-tail.png


..It was actually decently popular in Japan. A very misunderstood and decisive game, I'd say, but a pretty good one IMO. And the ps3/ps4 HD entry into the series is excellent. Spelunker World/Party kinda sucks though lol.
 
YohraUtopia

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Another one. Ultima (I'd say specifically Ultima III) set the groundwork for WRPGs, CRPGs, AND JRPGs in some ways.
 
jonjonaug

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Here's an interesting article on that very subject regarding an interface/player perspective twist-y porn game from 1998.

ontlogy.wordpress.com

A Look At – Shuusaku – The Original DDLC?

Following a chance encounter with Mr Kato, the caretaker of a prestigious dormitory of the all girls Shukusei Music Academy, Shuusaku, a letch derived of morality, has infiltrated the premises by a…
ontlogy.wordpress.com ontlogy.wordpress.com
 
OneTrickJeffrey

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Trespasser is probably one of the most influential bad games out there. Large outdoor environments, full physics engine with ragdolls, and a diegetic HUD all the way back in 98.
 
Jroc

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Symphony of the Night was allegedly based on A Link to the Past, NOT Super Metroid. Not sure if I fully believe it but that's the official statement anyway.
 

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NHL_%2794_Cover.jpg


The introduction of one-timers in NHL '94 changed the landscape of button-pressing.
You could either time the "shoot" button just right to line up with the reception of the pass, or press the "shoot" button while the puck is still on its' way, basically pre-loading the shot.

I don't know of many other games, sports or otherwise, doing timed button-presses or pre-loaded actions at this time.

Not to mention the deep roster management and stat-keeping that this game had.

Some say that sports games never really got better than this.
 
Jpo1991

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Does Rogue count?

Has a whole genre named after it, but with the great majority of players never playing it. I know that "Roguelike" being after Rogue is a "Did you know gaming?" moment jere, but think is a valid citation considering the majority of players probably has no idea that a 1980 game called Rogue exists.

Rogue_cover.jpg
 
Belphegor

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DiipuSurotu said:
So it wasn't influential at all, if it took 10 years for another game to replicate the idea.


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One could say that games like TIE Fighter, X-Wing, Rebel Assault, and Rebel Assault 2 all had over-the-shoulder shooting too. Syphon Filter had an over the shoulder camera and Splinter Cell as well so there were other games that had this feature in between.
 
Uncle at Nintendo

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Cave Story is basically the stage opener for the indie explosion in the 2010s, but I don't know if it's that obscure. Undertale was heavily inspired by it.
 
Radnom

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Dream Quest is HIGHLY influential, it inspired a bunch of devs who made similar roguelike deck building games (and similar) - the art is amateur but the game loop is extremely solid.

ss_7d5713ab8bf793a36474616958bf770f85b066c3.1920x1080.jpg
 
makonero

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DiipuSurotu said:
Also I always thought the huge plot twist in Portopia influenced the plot twist in Baten Kaitos. Masato Kato (writer of Baten Kaitos) is a fan of Yuji Horii.
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I believe it! Portopia definitely has an outsized influence in all kinds of Japanese games. I tried to play a fan translation a few years back and had a hard time adjusting to the old gameplay but it's clear how influential it has been and continues to be.

I doubt we get 999 or Ace Attorney without it.
 
etrain911

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When I think of this, I think of the original AC. I think a lot of modern open world game design and it's emphasis on verticality can be found here.
 
Willin

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DayZ basically birthed both the survival genre and battle royale which is kind of nuts to think about.
 

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CaveGhostPurp said:
Spelunker was one of the main influences for what many consider to be a perfect game and a modern classic- Spelunky.

384236-spelunker-nes-screenshot-a-ghost-is-on-the-spelunker-s-tail.png


..It was actually decently popular in Japan. A very misunderstood and decisive game, I'd say, but a pretty good one IMO. And the ps3/ps4 HD entry into the series is excellent. Spelunker World/Party kinda sucks though lol.
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I knew from your PFP that you were a real one. Spelunker rules, and Spelunker HD was the only game to this day I've gotten PSN messages about where people ask me how I got so high on the leaderboards.
Moonlight Midnight said:
Brendon Chung's work, specifically in games like Gravity Bone and 30 Flights of Loving.
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I played 30 Flights of Loving and it was interesting. What games have been influenced by Brandon Chung's work?
 

Divine Moleman

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etrain911 said:
When I think of this, I think of the original AC. I think a lot of modern open world game design and it's emphasis on verticality can be found here.
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What about Sly Cooper, especially 2 and 3? Not sure if they were inspired by it but you should check out Sly Cooper if you want to see that kind of stuff in a fun cartoon world.

Here's a clip of Sly 2 that shows what I'm talking about, just someone going around the open-world getting collectibles. Pretty good for 2003.


View: https://youtu.be/MEn_75qcBXk?t=96
 
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