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One of the most underrated games of 2008 was Golden Axe Beast Rider, the result of now defunct game developer Secret Level, owned by Sega. Unfortunately, a batch of reviewers who clearly never finished the game (something IGN is constantly guilty of) ruined the company and they went out of business.
What the reviews did not tell you is that things get very exciting a few levels in. Golden Axe Beast Rider becomes true to its name when the gameplay shifts to depending on gigantic beasts that destroy everything in their path. My favorite is a giant gorilla-like thing that can tear other beasts apart. Eventually you gain control of a dinosaur creature that can eat people and other beasts. Awesome.
If that were not enough, Golden Axe Beast Rider has tons of other bonuses. For your efforts, you get bonus powers, weapons, and best of all, costumes. Many of the outfits are similar, except the last which is the classic bikini from the original Golden Axe arcade game. it is the only choice with color and uncovered butt-cheeks. You have to beat the game for this sexy outfit.
Secret Level promised to make the sequel multiplayer like they originally planned before they crashed and burned. A very interesting post mortem was published in the magazine Game Developer, a magazine that also ironically crashed and burned. The article said that they constantly ran into development issues, and had to axe multiplayer. It also stated that several people felt that they were cutting the heart out of multiplayer. In fact, while working on Golden Axe Beast Rider, they ran into all kinds of problems. Working on two games at once (Iron Man) meant cutting their team in half, and lack of key talent caused major issues as well. And of course, the game ran over-budget and was in serious danger.
Regardless, you should buy this game