Underrated Gaming Genres

There are many genres and sub-genres of games out there. In spite of this, there are but a few particular formats that rule the roost when it comes to the best seller charts for PC and games consoles alike.

From action-adventure games, to first person shooters and sports titles, sometimes it seems like games are growing increasingly formulaic and similar to one another. That is, however, only true if you turn a blind eye to the ferment of creativity taking place in indie and developer-led spaces across the industry.

Those regions tell a distinctly different story, and are home to a host of innovative and genre-bending titles to explore. Below we’re taking a look at some majorly underrated game genres. Not all of these are necessarily obscure, but most are criminally overlooked, and ripe with novel gameplay experiences to dive into.

Classic Games

The classics include any games that are adaptations of traditional, physical recreational titles. These range from old school tests of strategy, to casino titles, and even popular board games. Nowadays it’s possible to experience many of these in modern video game format.

Chess is a potent example of this. With its origins dating back to the 6th century AD on the Indian subcontinent, it’s one of the oldest continually played games still enjoyed today. While its physical version remains dominant, virtual forms of chess such as those offered by platforms like Chess.com have grown in prestige over the past decade. This has led to chess being rediscovered by a new generation, leading to its current status as being among the fastest growing esports in the world.

Another type of game that has a long history, especially in North America, is the slots game. The first slot machine was invented by German immigrant to North America, Charles Fey, who developed the Liberty Bell fruit machine at the turn of the 20th century. Slot machines have made the jump into software form over the past 20 years, and now people play real money slots online in Canada, where the market for online games is experiencing a consistent growth rate of 7.21% through to 2026 towards an estimated market volume of $461 million.

Roguelites

Both Roguelikes and Roguelites take after the basic format set by the 1980s dungeon crawling classic Rogue. That means procedurally generated combat and exploration, and in the case of the former, the ever present threat of perma-death. Roguelites, on the other hand, features a meta-game overlay allowing the attributes, items or unlockables you acquire from playthrough to playthrough to endure.

That is not to say they are necessarily easier though, far from it, but they do offer more incentive to keep playing and unlocking new features. Many reviews of Hades, the latest game to emerge from the Supergiant Games studio, clearly demonstrate that it is among the best Roguelites to emerge in recent years. In this title you are tasked with battling your way out of the Greek underworld through hordes of procedurally generated enemies.

The expectation of death is baked into the gameplay mechanics, meaning rather than being frustrated with each failure, you welcome the opportunity to learn more about the world, and encounter new dialogue and events. Other noteworthy examples of Roguelites to emerge in recent years are Dead Cells, FTL: Faster Than Light, and The Binding Of Isaac: Rebirth.

Colony Simulators

Ostensibly a combination of resource management and survival game, the best colony simulators keep enough curve-balls flying at you that novel and captivating storylines emerge as you and your small community struggle to weather each successive challenge.

A great example of the genre is RimWorld, which is consistently ranked as one of the best colony sims on Steam according to user reviews thanks to its compelling AI storytelling and engaging gameplay. This 2013 title has been steadily built upon since its release and now offers unimaginable depth for strategic gamers to tangle with. Your small colony of space-farers has crash landed on a procedurally generated planet and must build everything from refrigerators, to a guiding philosophy, if it’s to survive disease, raiding parties, psychological breakdown and climatic disaster.

Rendered in quirky 2d style, this game rewards each new playthrough with fresh realizations. Honorable mentions in the colony sim genre include the mediaeval flavored Banished from 2014, and the eagerly awaited upcoming post-apocalyptic city builder, Atomic Society.