I buy AA games and at times, prefer them over AAA games but t comes down to the genre/type of game that it is more than anything.
The AA Problem: Gamers don't want to buy AA games
- Thread starter mibu no ookami
- Start date
It's supposed to be the production costs of the game. However, there is not a generally agreed upon range which defines Indie vs. AA, vs. AAA vs. AAAA (smirk).
Very generally, one might assign the following ranges:
<$1M -> Indie
$1M ~ $100M -> AA
>$100M AAA
With rising production costs, I think you could even generously bump up the threshold for indies to like $10m, and still be in a realistic place. As for AAA, I think you could probably bump up the threshold to like $150M or $200M, now that we have major releases at $300M+ for things like Spiderman 2, etc.
Robocop Rogue City is an AA game. (And one of the best Single player FPS ive played in years)
Terminator Resistance is an AA game.
Both from the same developer and have more playability, atmosphere and fan service then most modern AAA counterparts.
Don't rule them out. There's plenty of them around and they need to stay. It shows what can be achieved with a minimal budget. There's a lot of hidden gems out there.
Terminator Resistance is an AA game.
Both from the same developer and have more playability, atmosphere and fan service then most modern AAA counterparts.
Don't rule them out. There's plenty of them around and they need to stay. It shows what can be achieved with a minimal budget. There's a lot of hidden gems out there.
- Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden (8.0/10)
Looks great, audio is good, especially the voice acting with the story/characters being really good. Gameplay/combat wise, it's good but it's setup like TLOU/GOW where you have to rotate the camera to face your enemy so you can hit them. It's not like Assassin's Creed or Horizon for example where if an enemy is to your left, you can just attack them without having to face them directly first.
- Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn (6.5/10)
It's not that the game is bad or anything. It just didn't grab me like I thought it was going to even though I can say that playing it on story difficulty was a mistake because it was way too easy as I only died 5 times in the entire game and while I would have to go back and check earlier posts I made about it here and elsewhere, I think all 5 deaths were from mistimed jumps. I'm not a fan of souls games mainly because I hate losing what I gained when I die which Flintlock has but to a far lesser extent and you can "bank" what you currently have so if you die, you don't lose the currency until you build it up again. Looks good for an AA budgeted game. Story/characters wasn't really into but did enjoy the combat and gameplay. Really should have played it on normal.
- RoboCop: Rogue City (8.0/10)
Really enjoyed this game. It's not perfect and the story/characters/models/facial animations aren't great but it nails the most important aspect - you feel like you're RoboCop when you're playing the game. While there are a few tougher/harder enemies, you're a walking tank most of the time. Outside of what I mentioned, graphics look pretty good when it comes to the environments. Combat/gameplay is overall good and enjoyable. Audio is also good.
- Atlas Fallen (8.5/10)
It's a clunky AA game but I really enjoyed it. Sand surfing never got old and I loved the combat system. Game didn't look amazing but it didn't look bad either. Story and characters were solid. It's really all about the combat system to where if you enjoy it like I did, you'll probably really enjoy the game overall but if you don't, then probably not.
- Hi Fi Rush (8.5/10)
Absolutely loved this game and is exactly what the gaming industry needs more of. No bloat, no filler. Just a 15 hour give or take linear action adventure game with great combat, music soundtrack is awesome, art style looks great and can't wait for the eventual sequel. Good boss fights as well. Story/characters is pretty good and probably better than you would expect.
- Immortals of Aveum (8.0/10)
Looks great despite the low resolution but the art style and direction easily make up for it. Story/characters is fine as is the audio but the combat/gameplay loop is really good. It's basically a first person shooter but with magic instead of guns and bullets.
- Sifu (8.0/10)
Great combat system. Won't lie, played it on easy and it was still challenging. It's basically a rogue like kinda where when you die, you age and eventually you reach the limit and if you didn't beat the game, you have to start over which isn't for me at all which is why I played it on easy. Art style is beautiful, audio is good and story is solid. It's all about the combat system though.
- Remnant II (8.5/10)
Little side note - haven't completed it yet. I'm literally on the final boss and can't beat him on the second phase. Eventually I will but don't know when. I really enjoyed Remnant in 2019 which i did complete and this one is more Remnant but better in every way. Looks better, plays better, levels are better, better bosses, better combat system with a dual archtype system and a good story that at least for me kept me interested the entire way through the game.
- Dead Island 2 (8.5/10)
Recently bought the first game and Riptide but haven't played either. I know both are from Techland where as the sequel is from Dambuster. When I first played the game, couldn't get into it but it was more due to the fact that Jedi Survivor was a week or so away and I was just way more hyped for that game. Anyway, played through it a month or two later and really enjoyed it. Yeah, it's got some humor and goofy shit but man, the combat is so freaking good. Guns and melee feel great. Like the different locations, audio is very good, game looks great and story isn't amazing but I enjoyed it and it kept me interested. Still have to play through both expansions at some point.
- Miasma Chronicles (8.0/10)
This is an isometric turn based strategy RPG from those who made Mutant Year Zero. I'm not really a fan of turn based combat but if the game's setting and length appeals to me, I'll play it. Looks great, sounds great, story is pretty good and the combat system is probably the main highlight of the game.
- Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name (8.0/10)
Not into the turn based games as they're way too long and don't have an easy difficulty level so I skip them but I do enjoy Ryu Ga Gotoku's "beat em ups". I love Yakuza Zero and enjoyed Yakuza Kiwami 1 and 2. If you've played any Yakuza game with Kiyru, then you already know what to expect. I like the combat system but after so many years and games, I honestly wish they would go in a Sleeping Dogs direction. Not that it's bad. I'm just getting tired of it. I was going to play Like a Dragon: Ishin but instead, I will just wait for Pirate Yakuza which seems to have a lot more varied gameplay and combat which hopefully freshens it all up. I do view the story/characters in Yakuza games as the strongest aspect of the game.
Those are just the games from 2023/2024. On a side note, a decent amount of these games are on Game Pass so if you have access to it and wanted to try those that are available there before buying them, you can do so. For the record, I rented Banishers from GameFly, played Flintlock, Hi Fi and Gaiden via Game Pass. Miasma and Aveum were purchased on sale digitally and the rest were purchased day one digitally.
Just remembered one. Forgot about it since I separate my gaming lists by platform.
- Stellar Blade (9.0/10)
Currently my 2024 game of the year (even though I am expecting Dragon Age to surpass it for me personally) but even if it doesn't win, it's an excellent freaking game. Excellnt combat and gameplay. Story and characters are pretty good. Looks great. Love the enemy design. Great soundtrack/good audio. Insane boss battles. Only major negative I had with the game is the two open areas. They're too similar and in all honesty, the linear levels are far superior in my opinion. And Eve is the BABE of the year!!! lol
- Stellar Blade (9.0/10)
Currently my 2024 game of the year (even though I am expecting Dragon Age to surpass it for me personally) but even if it doesn't win, it's an excellent freaking game. Excellnt combat and gameplay. Story and characters are pretty good. Looks great. Love the enemy design. Great soundtrack/good audio. Insane boss battles. Only major negative I had with the game is the two open areas. They're too similar and in all honesty, the linear levels are far superior in my opinion. And Eve is the BABE of the year!!! lol
Most of these mentioned are not AA games. I would not consider Remnant, Yakuza or Stellar Blade AA by any means.
AA games sorta don’t exist like they did. There’s a huge gap now between indie and AAA and not much in between.
AA games sorta don’t exist like they did. There’s a huge gap now between indie and AAA and not much in between.
These are some great recommendations! I have a few of these in my library right now that I really need to get around to playing. Thanks for this thoughtful write up!
I think it's kinda telling that a lot of the great AA examples cited here are actually AAAs with heavy asset reuse or jank.
AA as it used to be has largely ceased to exist.