Topic: Most cryptic games

[Viper]

Speaking about Simon's Quest cryptic moments like throwing holywater at everything just to discover what to do I thought that would be cool to remember another cryptic games. Ok, AVGN told us about Milon's Secret Castle, but i luckily haven't played it.

But I've played another cryptic thing once.
"Dark Angael" made by Vicarious Visions. And damn, Simon's Quest is pretty straight forward compare to this.
It's based on Abuse engine, so it's basically 2D-platformer with free-aim mouse shooting. At the same time it's typical non-linear metroidvania with power relics, Cathedral, Catacombs, some evil monsters looking like aliens etc.))
To say it's hard to understand what to do in this game is say nothing. I spend hours on trying to explore all possible levels and didn't even find anything. Invisible platforms, breakable walls, "ghost" walls, some crazy switches turning on something far far away from themselves, and more.
I tried to beat it a few times in years, but always dropped. Sad, cause it has some dark moody atmosphere and some cryptic charm.

[Mooning Freddy]

Legacy of Kain is the most cryptic game series I've played recently. I can't say that the games are actually scary or difficult, but the dark graphics, atmosphere and weird-as-hell storyline are very "cryptic" and spooky. Some of those tiny in-game additions are those that create the right atmosphere. For example, in Legacy of Kain: Defiance, in the spirit world, you can often hear echoes of women crying in the background, and cryptic voices chanting out your name ("Rrrrrrraziel!").

Also, that octopus "Elder God" is one of the weirdest, most awesome characters I've seen in a game. I mean, he's a giant octopus who thinks he's god! What the heck? 

[Abnormal Freak]

I said this in the ongoing Simon's Quest thread, but I think Milon's Secret Castle is awesome. I played the heck out of that weird-ass game when I was a kid.

Also, its SFC sequel is awesome.

DoReMi Fantasy 2-3

Most cryptic game I can think of having played is Batman Forever on the SNES. Bought that when I was a kid for $12, which was a lot of money for me at the time. It was birthday money, I believe. Tried figuring that damn thing out and just couldn't do it. When I watched the AVGN review, I was stunned by the solutions, and became frustrated at the game all over again.

[PFG9000]

The Crystal Key comes to mind.  It's a Myst ripoff on the PC and Mac.  It had really gorgeous artwork and screenshots on the box, but of course the in-game graphics were far granier and lower-res than the box art.  Anyway, you basically wandered around these alien worlds trying to figure out where to go next, but the solutions were so incredibly obtuse that I couldn't figure one thing out.  I looked up a few tips online, and I was so frustrated at how ridiculous they were, so I quit right there.  I can't be arsed to try every single possibility in a game these days; I don't have that kind of time.  If there's no logic or common sense to the puzzles, it's no fun for me.

[X]

For me it was both Simon's Quest and Gauntlet 2. I never officially finished CV 2 until I looked at the Nintendo game atlas that told me where Dracula's heart was  Gauntlet 2 I never got around to finishing due to the crypticness of the maze layouts themselves. I got pretty far, but not far enough. 

-X

[kadosho]

Metroid - Prime 3 & M (only allowed to use the Wii-mote) and the storylines went somewhere...
Prime 3 - Taking us through the next chapter, but left with more details, and more questions.
(Turns out Retro will not be working on a future M title, so Prime is finished)

Other M - Read reviews, saw a few cutscenes, tried to play with the Wii-mote.
I cannot the grasp the wii-mote as a productive controller. Story wise.. umm its alright. (Team Ninja tried too hard to make a co-hesive story this time though)
But not getting to hear more "music" play in the background felt bizarre. (or maybe GS's copy was irked)

[JR]

Deadly freakin' Towers. That game isn't quite the abomination it's made out to be once you get stronger and if you have the aid of a walkthrough. But it's probably near impossible to figure out on your own.

[Vampire Killer]

I had a friend who had SotN for over 6 months before he knew there was an upside-down castle.  He played the game quite often too, just never bothered to read to description on the rings.  Oh, and he smoked massive amounts of weed, which probably didn't help.

[X]

Oh, and he smoked massive amounts of weed, which probably didn't help.

So your friend fried his ability to deduce subtle clues?

-X

[Bloodreign]

The last stage in Revenge of Shinobi, the entire stage is a maze with many rooms, many don't take you where you need to go.

[Munchy]

Siren on the PS2. I cannot imagine figuring out all of that game's weird shit without a walkthrough. So I need to hook up the freezer, wet this towel, and put it in the freezer so some guy I play as later can use the towel to time-release break a dish to distract a cop Shibito for 20 seconds? Fuck you, game.

[darkjak951]

Deadly freakin' Towers. That game isn't quite the abomination it's made out to be once you get stronger and if you have the aid of a walkthrough. But it's probably near impossible to figure out on your own.

I agree 100% with you there man. Another game I found to be cryptic was Elder Scrolls 2 Daggerfall, an amazing game however you WILL get lost...OFTEN. Not on the over world map, no I am talking about the hundreds of giant instanced dungeons. These dungeons were death mazes essentially and since most of the game is instanced(cept for the continent/island layout overall) and just had literally HUNDREDS of places to go, not only did you not know where to go first but when you DID go there you might have accidentally wandered into a maze of a dungeon that is literally 10 floors big and is probably 100 miles long total(probably over exaggerating a bit...) and you just get lost and or killed cuz you wandered into a tough monster. Still I think that game's size is just insanely large, apparently the whole overworld is the size of 2 Great Britains according to Bathesda....and to an extent I could believe that.

[Abnormal Freak]

Siren on the PS2. I cannot imagine figuring out all of that game's weird shit without a walkthrough. So I need to hook up the freezer, wet this towel, and put it in the freezer so some guy I play as later can use the towel to time-release break a dish to distract a cop Shibito for 20 seconds? Fuck you, game.

That is a bit of a cryptic-at-times game. Well, to do everything in the game, that is. It's so damn fun, but yeah, confusing at times with the whole timeline thing. Every time I pick it up again and try to get further, I forget where I had left off and usually end up shutting it off, frustrated. I can't tell if it's a design flaw, or if my brain's just stupid.

I gotta get back to playing the PS3 remake. That was pretty cool.

[Munchy]

That is a bit of a cryptic-at-times game. Well, to do everything in the game, that is. It's so damn fun, but yeah, confusing at times with the whole timeline thing. Every time I pick it up again and try to get further, I forget where I had left off and usually end up shutting it off, frustrated. I can't tell if it's a design flaw, or if my brain's just stupid.

I gotta get back to playing the PS3 remake. That was pretty cool.

The PS3 version is one of the few games I can't play for too long because it's too scary. Fatal Frame 2 being the other. It's the only one that's made me scream out loud while playing (well, I was pretty baked at the time, but still).

[HeliosCentaur]

Gauntlet 2 I never got around to finishing due to the crypticness of the maze layouts themselves. I got pretty far, but not far enough.  
-X

I don't think Gauntlet 2 ever ends, but Tengen's Gauntlet for the NES does have an ending.  That was a bit cryptic; trying to find the right exits while your life counts down.  Just one big rat race.