8 Underrated Video Games With STUNNING Art Styles

While gameplay is arguably the most important aspect of any game, developers can help distinguish their work from similarly themed titles with a unique, daring art style that's quite unlike anything players have seen before.

But that's much easier said than done - coming up with something that pushes the envelope while leaving players awe-struck is incredibly difficult, hence why the vast majority of games don't stray too far from dominant, familiar aesthetics.

And yet, in the case of these games, each developer took a bold stylistic swing that resulted in one of the most visually lush games ever made.

Even so, each of these games is criminally underrated at large, either because their gameplay is challenging and unconventional, or because the art style itself, through its singular nature, might've just turned some folk off.

But for open-minded players keen to dig in, these games are well worth the rough edges, their willingness to break new artistic ground and stray from tired, dominant aesthetics securing their place in gaming history forever more.

Art styles don't always make a game, but they certainly don't hurt, and it rarely gets better than this lot...

Return of the Obra Dinn may have been well received upon release, but it's never quite enjoyed the level of mainstream success it so thoroughly deserves. This might be in part because of an art style which, while incredible, simply won't hit for everyone.

This adventure-puzzler is best defined by its "1-bit" monochromatic graphical style, serving as an homage to the aesthetic of early Macintosh games, which are characterised by their dithering shading style and general lack of colour due to technical limitations.

In an era where pixel-art retro throwbacks have long felt tired, the specificity of this game's visual style has truly helped it stand out from the pack.

Even without this sheer visual audacity, Obra Dinn would be an ingeniously puzzle game, but the bold choice to go hard with such a confronting and arresting art style? That pushes it way over the top.

As such, the game went on to win Best Art Direction at the 2018 Game Awards, and deservedly so.