What are some games that are considered black sheep's or weaker entries in series that you think are excellent?

I think Super Mario Bros 2 is a masterpiece and the second best Mario game ever behind Super Mario Bros 3 (My favorite game ever). I feel it gets too much flak for not being a real Mario game but judging it on it's own merits it's an extremely solid and satisfying game. If I may be so bold I would say it's a much better game than SMW.

I also think Castlevania Bloodlines and Castlevania for the Sharp X68000 are some of the most enjoyable entries in the Castlevania series due some very fun level design.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider.

Not only do I love it, I even think it's the best of the last 3 Tomb Raiders.

Resident Evil: Last Escape/ Nemesis stands out the most for this thread.

See a lot of older fans dismiss the game just for existing. Either because it borrows Resi2 assests for one area that lasts five minutes (if taking your time). Or because they're Veronica supporters, and wanted 32-bit generation over with or something. Considering Veronica looks bad next to Remake and Outbreak, going a little further back wasn't bad for me. Was even surprised how good the game looked for a 32-bit game.

As someone who joined with the Outbreak entries and dipped back to the older games. Nemesis was the best of the 32-bit games. It's mechanically superior (and mechanically superior to Veronica also), better zombie variety, and A.I. use. Pacing is really good, though a shorter experience. Pursuer> T-103, it's just more tense and T-103 is an easily exploitable idiot. Lastly Mercenaries, a staple of the series we take for granted today.

Remake when Capcom?

Bioshock 2 for sure.

Kirby's non-platformer games. They're usually better the platformers!

I stick up for Dark Souls 2, it's still a very good game despite being inferior.

Streets of Rage 3. It has the best gameplay in the series, but it gets ragged on because the OST is more experimental, and it's also way too hard for most people. Anyone that claims Bare Knuckle 3 is better just sucks.

@MarkoftheSivak: Thank you for saying this. I made that opinion known here before, and literally everyone disagreed. They finally gave Lara a sense of humor and the story was much more relatable and enjoyable. Closer to a decent movie script than the previous two were. I actually like most of the characters in this one. In the first two, I didn't care about anyone.

Fallout Tactics. Love that game and has aged a lot better than the original 2 fallouts.

@uninspiredcup: Got to agree about Bioshock 2. Combining powers to set traps was lots of fun, and Sofia Lamb was an excellent villian.

I think Twited Metal 4 is great, but no one gave it a chance because 3 was so bad.

Silent Hill Shattered Memories it's easily my favorite in the series. I love the setting, characters, and story. It had a really cool psychological effect to it that would make changes to the characters depending on how you would answer questions from a psychologist.

Homefront 2. It had issues with a buggy release, but I really enjoyed the game after the patch.

Far cry 4. Its pretty weak compared to excellent 3 or the recent 5 but I enjoyed the journey.

silent hill 4: the room was really slept on, but I think the prevailing opinion has swung back a little in later years as so many of us have grown up to better relate to the premise (sleep-deprived man isolated inside his apartment, with nowhere to go but a hole leading to a terrible psychic labyrinth left by the most abandoned man of the time)

Sid Meier's Civilization VI. Fans of the fifth game can't stop hating it for cartoonish visuals(at least from their claims), general gameplay that more focused on economy than warfare, fan favorite Napoleon Bonaparte demoted to great general rather than faction leader, district systems etc but I love it more than V. Even the core game have more content than V at launch.

See people shit on Blacklist a fair bit, which always surprises me, as I feel it's one of the better entries in the series.

As good as the original or Splinter Cell 3? Hell no. But certainly I would put it above the other entries.

Assassins creed 3 for me it was brilliant I enjoyed the hunting elements even the story was passable. I enjoyed it more than black flag personally.

Yeah that's a good one...

Also the Ninja Theory DMC game.

Dark Souls 2 is the one that sticks out to me the most. not a bad game by any stretch though.

Bioshock 2 Falls in the that same category

Uncharted 3 too

Far Cry 4

half life 2 episode 1 always seems to get a rough ride but i thought it was great. the elevator sequence in the underground car park when the lights go out to pitch black and you're battling shrieking zombies hurling themselves at you by torchlight as you wait for the lift to descend is one of the most intense moments i've had in gaming

Street Fighter III: Third Strike. I heard countless times that its backgrounds are miles behind those of Second Impact, and New Generation to a lesser extent, but its gameplay and custom options are excellent, because they serve the faster gameplay and balance of its prior version, which I play on the Dreamcast through Double Impact. The presentation in Third Strike is not as jazzy and the sound not as clear, but it's got Chun-Li and a few other characters, the latter who appear to be from other franchises.

Compared to other games in the series, it's not as iconic as Street Fighter II, but it's free from having to redesign its characters in anime fashion, like Zero/Alpha did by including them all by the third, and its drawn and animated set up makes it a stand out against IV and V.

@doomnukem3d: I love Mario 2 but also feel like it does get the credit it deserves nowadays, there was a time when it was considered the black sheep of the series but that opinion seems to be falling out of favor as time goes on.

@Renegade_Fury: The sound effects in SoR3 make it hard to play for me, why is axel so softspoken in this game compared to how loudly he screamed "grand upper" in the previous game. I do think sor3 gets a bad rap, but it is most definitely a step down from its predecessor and, while still probably one of the better beat em ups of that gen, it will always sit in the shadow of sor2, which is easily one of, if not the, best beat em up ever.

On topic: While I don't know if it fits here, I am going to say Super C. I think it is every bit as good as the original contra, but it is rarely talked about. I don't think anyone considers it a bad game, it is just a forgotten game, which is a shame because it is absolutely phenomenal.

Also, here is my obligatory, " I love Resident Evil 6" comment that I make every time this topic comes up.

I figured I would add some more.

Dark Souls 2 is actually my favorite of the DS-proper series (Bb is still #1 though).

I actually liked Phantasy Star III, it was my least favorite but I still enjoyed it and even got all 4 endings.

I might also add Final Fantasy 12, loved by many but also hated by some, it seems to be the most divisive entry in the series but it's in my top 3 (5 and 6 being the others) for the FF series.

@MarkoftheSivak: From what I remember with FF 12 it had a great game world but it was the characters and story I didnt care for. I think I was let down by the gameplay since I was a kid and wanted turn based but nowadays I probably would prefer its gameplay.

@pook99: I know it's an iconic game and I think it gets plenty of love by Nes devotees. I was surprised though how low its score was on gamefaqs in comparison to other big Mario games.

Fallout 4 for sure. No new Vegas, but damn, it's still fun as hell.

Dark souls 2. I don't get the hate. Love it.