However, there are games which turn out even better than expected. Even if they looked good, the final result is something truly special. Here are 15 games that are way better than they initially had any right to be.

Inside

Coming off the success of Limbo, Playdead Games began work on Inside, a spiritual successor of sorts. Many praised the former for its presentation and gameplay in 2010. However, despite starting development on Inside two months later, it was a long journey for the studio. Revealed in 2014, it faced some delays, which wasn’t enough to create overwhelming concern. At the time, many expected Inside to be good, but not that good.

And it was more than good on release in 2016. Earning near-universal praise from critics, its dark mood and storytelling were arguably superior to Limbo. The short length also exemplified how a video game could deliver pitch-perfect pacing with compelling puzzles and mechanics, on top of an incredible plot that didn’t hold the player’s hand.

Several years later, Inside is remembered even more fondly than Limbo, transcending its indie identity to become one of the best games ever made.

Horizon Chase Turbo is a tribute to the arcade racers of the late 80s and early 90s like Out Run, Rush, and Top Gear. the game will offer split-screen multiplayer, 12 Cups to compete for, more than 100 tracks, 48 cities, more than 30 unlockable cars, and 12 upgrades. There will also be an Online Ghost Mode and competitive leaderboards to top.

Sonic Mania, on the other hand, is a fast-paced platformer that features remixes of classic of classic levels as well as new ones. It’s the best Sonic game in years, so if you haven’t played it, you should definitely pick it up while it’s free. You can also upgrade to Sonic Mania Plus for the low price of $5, which is somehow even better than the original game.

Sony is flying pretty high with the PlayStation 4, and it seems many of its users are too. We learned not too long ago that the engagement for PSN, the system’s online network, was pretty amazing. There’s a lot of people out there with PS4s, and about just as many using its services. One of those services is PS Plus, which features two free games each month- and this month it’s Borderlands: The Handsome Collection and Sonic Mania.

Borderlands: The Handsome Collection bundles together Borderlands 2 and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel along with all their DLC. It has visual updates for each game as well. It’s just in time for the upcoming third game, Borderlands 3.

Next is Sonic Mania, a throwback to the Genesis era of the blue hedgehog, which was largely well received. It’s worth noting that this doesn’t seem to be Sonic Mania Plus, the enhanced version of the base game, so you may have to purchase the expansion to upgrade.

Both games will be available to download on PlayStation 4 on June 4^th to Plus subscribers.

Chaos Aeronite (Hard Mode) – Final Fantasy 13

What’s worse than a boss with a timer? How about one with an invisible timer? Chaos Aeronite is annoying enough on Normal Mode in Final Fantasy 13 especially since you need to stagger it four times in the first three minutes. Not only can the boss hurt you plenty, but if you fail to stagger it within three minutes, it flies away and must be battled again…which is when all of its HP has been regenerated. Did we mention that Hard Mode gives Chaos Aeronite approximately 57,750,000 HP?

Sega of America and Atlus U.S.A have just announced the appointment of Ian Curran as the new Chief Operating Officer and President of Sega of America. He will begin performing his duties from today onward. Curran has previously worked with quite a few notable video game companies, in case you didn’t know, such as THQ Nordic and Acclaim Entertainment.

Curran has many years’ experience working in video games publishing, and he’s had a pretty god track record in achieving greater revenue and efficiency at places he’s worked. Most recently, Curran had also worked with Gioteck, which designed and supplied gaming accessories and he accomplished great results with the company. In his new role at Sega of America, he’ll be responsible for maximizing profitability for the publishing sector of the company. He will also be in charge of handling Sonic the Hedgehog business units in the Americas, the Middle East, Europe, and Africa.

Regarding his role, Curran stated, “My thanks and gratitude to Mr. Miyazaki and the entire company leadership for this opportunity to lead our operations and executions in the Americas and EMEA. I appreciate all of the incredible efforts Mr. Hiraoka has made to lay the groundwork for our operations in the Americas. Coming off the success of Persona 5, Sonic Forces, Sonic Mania Plus, and the Yakuza series, and with so much more on the horizon, including Valkyria Chronicles 4, it is an incredible time to join the team. As part of the Sega family, we are inheritors of an expansive body of work and opportunity which I plan to help reach its full potential.”

We will have to wait and see what the future holds for Sega and Ian Curran. Here’s to hoping for the best in all their future endeavours, and of course, also for some great Sonic games in the future.

Sonic games have always done better on Nintendo platforms than they do anywhere else- even Sonic and Sega All Stars Transformed did the best on Wii U, in spite of it being, well, the Wii U. So it should not have come as a surprise to anyone that Sonic Mania Plus, the retail launch of Sonic Mania, did better on Switch than it did anywhere else.

And yet it does- but that’s because of the context surrounding these numbers. First, these numbers refer to the game’s performance on the UK charts during launch week- the UK traditionally being Nintendo’s weakest market, you would have expected the other console version to have outperformed the Switch one. Secondly, consider the extent to which the game did better on Switch than anywhere else. GamesIndustry reports that 52% of all sales for the game came from the Switch. The PS4 came in second place with 34% of all sales, and Xbox nabbed last place with just 14%.

Like I said, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone- and yet, this is more validation of the Switch’s quiet, steady, slow success in the UK. Sonic Mania Plus is available now for PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, and Xbox One.

Super Meat Boy

As an early indy hit, Super Meat Boy had to earn all of the praise it got to show that smaller teams could be worth just as much attention. Super Meat Boy then had a lot of confidence in the mechanics surrounding the super tight platforming gameplay to not offer players a way to just cruise to the credits. Losing the idea of lives lives and allowing the player to restart the small stages roughly 12 times per second until the proverbial brick wall was beaten down allowed many to find their groove and not really even notice death.

Sonic Mania has been a huge success both critically and commercially since it released last year. It’s no surprise then that Sega will soon be releasing an expanded and definitive version of the game called Sonic Mania Plus. As promotion for the game’s release, a new video has been released in the style of an old infomercial, and it is hilarious!

The infomercial looks like it has everything you could have from the ’90s including, the format and the look of the video. In addition to what we saw of the game in Sonic Mania, this expanded version will have some new content as well, including two new playable characters, a new Encore mode, and more. If you are a Sonic fan and haven’t played this game yet, then this definitive edition is going to be worth getting. As the guy in the infomercial points out, this is the “highest rated Sonic game in fifteen years.”

You can check out the infomercial below. Sonic Mania Plus is going to be available for the PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch on July 17.

Sonic raced back into our collective hearts with last year’s fantastic return to form with Sonic Mania (we don’t talk about the other one), and in little over a week Sega will release the title in physical form with the expanded content of Sonic Mania Plus, which includes two brand new playable characters, among other things. The first of two developer diaries has been released, discussing the new art undertaken for the expansion.

Focusing on Art Director Tom Fry and Sonic Team Creative Director Kazuki Hoshino, the video shares, beyond details on the art for the base game, how they brought back the long lost characters of Ray the Flying Squirrel and Mighty the Armadillo, having to redesign them from scratch since Sega didn’t exactly have a lot of assets laying around for such deep cuts. 

We’ve included the video below for your enjoyment. When Sonic Mania Plus releases on PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch on July 17, it will mark the first physical release of the game. If you have it already though, it’s just a $5 DLC that also comes to the PC and grants the remixed “Encore Mode”, which includes the two new playable characters and their unique play styles, as well as four player races.

Gaming is something that deserves to be celebrated, and fan service nods to the history of a series or this pastime can be an amazing way to highlight how far we’ve come or how our characters and their stories have grown alongside our own. We would like to share 15 of our favourite moments, but of course there is way, way, way too many to fit onto a single list. In the spirit of community, make sure to share and discuss your favourite fan service moments just below in the comments. Also, last warning, there will be spoilers. Big ones, so click ahead if you intend to play anything we discuss, since these are too good to spoil for you.

Sonic Adventure 2 – Green Hill Zone

The last official Sonic game to release before the unavoidable collapse of the Dreamcast and Sega’s foothold in the console scene is still an undeniable favourite among series fans, though new players may find it hard to stomach in 2018. Should players have been crazy enough to comb through each and every level, conquer those Chao events and collect every last emblem in the game, one final stage would be unlocked. A fully 3D recreation of Green Hill Zone from Sonic the Hedgehog 1 became open for play as a bonus for those faithful enough to 100% the game, and a great way to put a capstone on the Sega dynasty.