"Genre Breaking" games?

[jeebortjoobert]

What games can you think of that feel like they break boundaries and whose mechanics and vibes felt really unique to you? games you feel like you need a PowerPoint presentation to explain the premise of? for me it's "Knights in the Nightmare", I was gushing about it to a friend recently and was having a really hard time describing its mechanics, it feels closest to "bullet hell" but that really doesn't feel like doing it justice

 

[Bakuma1997]

Undertale, i've played so many RPG's where you play a minigame to increase or decrease damage effects, but nothing prepared me for a friggin shump like combat fest

 

[ArchienineZXAdventArchienineZXAdvent's icon]

I think Mega Man Battle Network

 

[PSVitaForever]

What games can you think of that feel like they break boundaries and whose mechanics and vibes felt really unique to you? games you feel like you need a PowerPoint presentation to explain the premise of? for me it's "Knights in the Nightmare", I was gushing about it to a friend recently and was having a really hard time describing its mechanics, it feels closest to "bullet hell" but that really doesn't feel like doing it justice

I've loved it, even if I admit I had to use cheats or I would have never beaten it. I don't usually do these things, only buying games and not merchandise, but for this one I bought the artbook from across the ocean. And I remember I bought it physical on ds (after trying it with r4) and then I got the psp physical version as well.

For your question, I would say "Gravity Rush", because unless I'm mistaken (if I am, please correct me so I can discover new games), I've never seen such a mechanic of manipulating gravity and flying through the world like that. And it's not the same as a game about planes or simply flying.

 

[Evaccaneer Doom]

Digimon World is truly a rare breed of game

 

[lestagio]

Outer Wilds is a hard one to describe. I don't think that describing the premise itself is TERRIBLY hard, but you really just have to play it to see why people think it's so awesome. I didn't find it as life changing as some people do, but it was still a damn good game. "So it's a puzzle game... but not really, and you just go to planets and explore and read things to decipher what is causing a certain anomaly."

Neon White is a kind of weird one too: "It's a FPS game where guns are cards and you can discard said cards to gain special abilities and you have to figure out how to kill all the enemies and get to the end". It's just crazy how it's like a parkour FPS game, but still has SHOOTING unlike something akin to Mirror's Edge.

I think the craziest one of all is Dwarf Fortress though. I don't even know where to begin describing that game. I should pick it up again, it's just complex as hell. The way I would pitch it to someone is "There was a bug where cats were dying in taverns, and it turns out it was because they were stepping in alcohol, and then when they would clean themselves by licking their paws, they'd die of alcohol poisoning. Yeah so it's a simulation/management game with THAT level of complexity."

 

[Majora Fi]

Zelda (is it RPG or not?)

 

[Ikagura]

Zelda (is it RPG or not?).

Zelda is action adventure but I can hardly see the RPG element from the simple fact there's no levelling system and no damage number showing.

 

[Viviana Santos]

ULTRAKILL is by far one of the most absurd FPS games I've ever played; the sheer level of creativity and freedom this game gives to you is absolutely insane!

---

By far my favorite FPS of all time! Definitely a must-play in the genre.

 

[Sanarchy]

Lost Kingdoms forever broke that yoke of Action RPG's for me by making it a deckbuilder as well. Not only did you focus on what cards to bring with you to a mission, there are so many possibilities. Not a single spiritual successor exists to this series and no copies of it. It's still so terribly one of a kind when it made that splash in 2002.

 

[KrazyKoen]

I was never really into roguelike deckbuilders until Balatro basically re-invented the entire genre. After two years it's one of my most played games of all time and I was really rooting for it to win game of the year 2024.

 

[aviaovrumvrum]

Terra Nova: Strike Force Centauri is different from any other FPS I've ever played. It uses some really unconventional controls to simulate piloting a mecha, while also having to command your squad. Once you get used to its mechanics and consequently can get more efficient and creative the game gets SO satisfying!

 

[stealthRUSH stealthRUSH]

Trap Gunner on PlayStation

 

[Anim8rDude Anim8rDude]

What games can you think of that feel like they break boundaries and whose mechanics and vibes felt really unique to you? games you feel like you need a PowerPoint presentation to explain the premise of? for me it's "Knights in the Nightmare", I was gushing about it to a friend recently and was having a really hard time describing its mechanics, it feels closest to "bullet hell" but that really doesn't feel like doing it justice

When I read the thread title I was immediately going to say Knights in the Nightmare, & lo & behold you mention it lol. Yup that game certainly takes the cake for being the most unique & helluva addicting game lol.

Well then, Ill go with my 2nd best answer... which is flippin' Valkyrie Profile 2!
Oh boy! Where do I even start with this game? Just layers & layers of depth & unique mechanics that just don't exist in any other action-JRPG!

 

[Viviana Santos]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention Killer7! That game blends together elements of rail shooters, first-person shooters, adventure games, and puzzle games in an incredibly masterful way.

 

[TruthandConsequence]

A game I'd need a PowerPoint to explain? Ninja Gaiden 2 for sure. One of my absolute top games. Top 3 games for me at least. The way that the mechanics blend with the level design, and the aggressiveness of the enemies makes it one of the most chaotic experiences in gaming and I love it. Going through Master Ninja on real hardware Xbox 360 is a true test of patience and perserverence.

 

[Galynx]

Lost Kingdoms forever broke that yoke of Action RPG's for me by making it a deckbuilder as well. Not only did you focus on what cards to bring with you to a mission, there are so many possibilities. Not a single spiritual successor exists to this series and no copies of it. It's still so terribly one of a kind when it made that splash in 2002.

One of the most interesting implementations of deck-building in my opinion is Phantom Dust. Battles are fought in 3D arenas with partially destructible terrain. Skills have all sorts of effects, like traveling along the ground, changing their properties based on your health/equipped skills/aura (it's like mana), or even affecting all the players in the match. The story's pretty interesting, too. It originally came out on the original Xbox, but there's a port you can download for free from the Microsoft Store.