What Defines a Hidden Gem? (NES / NINTENDO ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM) 

The other day I saw a cool collection of 'Mandy' t-shirt from a designer called Creep O Rama, but apparently they were a very limited offering.

The PAL little Samson can be had for much less

I think you ran into a really interesting concept here when you were going on about "what people might find interesting, or just me" and "what's worth talking about now that everyone's talked so much about everything around this subject". I'm going to tell you the thing I've told many people over the years and plan to as long as i can, and the reason I found and have been loving your channel in the first place: YES, we find this interesting, and YES, you should talk about anything you want, even IF it has been talked about a million times before. What I have always wanted more of is just people chillin' out talking about stuff they like on youtube, especially if it's something I have in common with them like classic games. Something I've seen more and more as the years have passed since the earliest days of RU-vid when guys around our age (I think you're a handful of years older than me but it's close) like AVGN is that no one wants to talk about the same stuff other people have too much, or don't wanna cover things that are popular and have already been covered X amount, or whatever. However, the way I look at it is, myself and many people I know and have talked to personally and surely tons more besides us, all pine for more of the good old type of content that used to be all over youtube but has become rarer or at least harder to find, of just dudes "virtually hanging out" talking about this stuff.. just because. Because they're passionate about it. Because it's a passion we share. Because it's fun. Because it's chill and a good way to step away from the heat of constant fussing and fighting elsewhere in life and increasingly online these days. Let me just say , I wouldn't mind if all you ever made was various nerdy deep takes on only the most popular and well-known games on the NES. I wouldn't mind at all if you made 20 videos each 10+ minutes long just deep-diving into every aspect of Mario 3 and every thought or feeling it's ever given you. Hell, I'd LOVE that. And I'd wager that a lot of other people would, too. Now, I'm not saying that I'm begging you to go out and do that right now, but I'm just saying, you don't have to worry about discussing topics or games you feel have been over-discussed, and you don't have to worry about random ideas being too nerdy or out-there or whatever. The people finding this channel in the 2020s are by and large, people who have become enthralled with this vibe and style and subject matter that so heavily remind us, in all the best ways, of the earlier, better days of the platform and we're here for whatever you wanna put out. Whew, I'm sorry for the huge wall of text, but this is something I've thought about A LOT over the years and longed for the opportunity to say it to someone who's actually in the exact position I've wanted a new/current content creator to be in like this, while they're in that very position. Maybe I should've put it on a newer video you'd be more likely to see it but this is the one that got me to say it so here it is. Best of luck going forward dude, I'll be here for sure.

Your shirt dude! Your shirt is AWESOME!

Great video my friend. You make some great points.

I remember Mighty Final Fight back in the day. My friends thought it was trash because the chibi characters looked like fat kids. I thought it was actually pretty fun, but that wasn't a popular opinion.

Is that a Run The Jewels shirt?

I just started playing The Lone Ranger yesterday and I think it's fantastic! I'm not sure if it counts as a "hidden gem", but I don't recall hearing anyone talk about this game before. And it was made by Konami! There's side scrolling platforming, 3/4 overhead action, and first person perspective dungeon crawls in which you can use the Zapper. And I'd highly recommend using the Zapper, although you have to keep one hand on the controller's D-Pad to spin around to face targets.

Michael B the Game Genie had a top to hidden gems I lived by until I got them all… except little Samson because well 💴

I hate how worked up some people get over the term "Hidden Gem" and to be fair it's mostly down to the assumption that people using this classification are purely utilising it for click bait reasons. I think gamers and especially collector/gamers forget the 90% of people interested in video games aren't all that knowledgeable and the "hidden gem" video is really important to beginners looking at expanding their knowledge. Heck, I could do a whole video on the most popular games of the ZX Spectrum post it for outside of the UK and everyone would be a hidden gem 🤣 The hardest thing about classifying a Hidden Gem is for us to understand just how little those outside the Gamer/Collector community know about the history of video games. And that knowledge changes dramatically from region to region. I mean, as a (almost 50 year old) Scottish gamer, any NES or SNES game outside of Mario, Zelda or Pokèmon will be almost completely unknown to me. Sorry for the rant 🤣 great topic to discuss 😎👍

Yup, nailed it. I would also say that there are games that RU-vidrs have mentioned, but still no one talks about. (Kabuki & Cobra Triangle come to mind) I'm sort of an elitist and I tend to only trust the people that have played these games and not just "passively" mentioned them and said they were hidden gems, while also miss-pronouncing the name of the game lol

Thanks to you I now need kickmaster!! Looks so great!! Gi Joe: ARAH is my favorite NES game of all time and I am now discovering I want/need all the KID releases! Anyway thanks for sharing and I loved the video !

It's a good question, because one person's hidden gem is another person's beloved game. Also, it might be a game that was once popular, but is since forgotten. There are some Atari 2600 games that are both hidden gems and hidden for a reason haha. Cheers, and great video!

Little samson not worth what idiots want for it tbh

What defines a Hidden Gem? Whatever Metal Jesus Rocks considers one LOL. IMO there aren't anymore NES hidden gems. Everyone knows about them either from other RU-vidrs or because they fetch alot of money. The Gameboy however, I still come across games I've never even heard of and they are usually dirt cheap.

I’m like you with the NES. There are no more hidden games for me. There all either good, bad, or somewhere in between.

Here's a hidden gem for you: "Cocoron" - It's ok, you can thank me later! :D

I think you're on the right track in terms of how to talk about something that everyone has talked about before. I think that's what some of us long for. Tell us something that's not necessarily just 'I remember the first time...' stories but either research into the development of the title or people involved and their lives, etc. (documentarian) or editorial in terms of comparing mechanics of a game for the NES and trace it's evolution through modern games, or anything else that comes up on a night of drinking and playing Rad Racer and laughing at the fact you're drinking and driving legally (while speeding even!). If you keep at the front of your mind the things you said here with each game you take a look at, I think it'll be worth watching for me, a jaded veteran tired of the 'this game was good, it had this thing that you already knew about, and i was like, 'whoa that is cool' but yeah, it's a game. 4 out T bear claws.' type videos. I don't mind them, but they're not for me.

I think nationality counts. You Americans have way more games then we had in the UK. I keep getting games on my evercade such as eight eyes, or the immortal that I could never if heard of before...

Has anyone ever told you, that you look like max Verstappen?

I think this was good..."hidden gem" is a phrase that gets thrown around a ton.

Another highly enjoyable video. Consider my heart learned, buddy. 👆🏻

Where’s the Atlanta falcons flag tho

A great example of a hidden gem is 8 Eyes. There are gems in the logo, and you wouldn't think to look there if you weren't familiar with the game already. Hidden!

King Neptune's Adventure by Color Dreams is a hidden gem.

Do you like Karnov?

Great video from the game cottage! I really enjoy that you touch on this topic. I was just chastising a friend the other day about "hidden gem status." I think it is important to very few people, just us hardcore fans, most of us know pretty much all the games already. So what is hidden? I politely pointed out to him that "underappreciated" is probably a better term for what he was talking about. The format for your tiers is awesome, great idea!

Mandy is AMAZING!

Rescue!

I love it. You do an excellent job at explaining the nuances succinctly.