Great Playstation 2 Games

[Teron]

So I've fairly recently acquired a Playstation 2. I realise I'm unfashionably late to the party, but fortunately I don't care much about technical (as opposed to artistic) graphic quality, so as far as I'm considered it's a cheap console with a lot of good games I haven't played yet. However, I've been mainly a Nintendo fan with some PC gaming on the side for most of my life, so I'm not sure what games to get beyond the most obvious, well-known stuff (of which there was enough to justify getting the console, but I don't want to limit myself to what I've heard about without really trying).

So, I turn to the Playground. You've often been an invaluable source of information on games and other media, even though I was rarely the one asking questions. What's worth playing? You may as well pretend I don't know anything at all, if only to keep anything from getting overlooked due to differing definitions of "obvious". There's hardly any genre I don't have at least some interest in. Just tell me what you've enjoyed, and why I might like it too (comparisons to Nintendo/PC games can't hurt, but aren't necessary), and I'll see soon enough if I need to refine my enquiry.

I do have a few questions about specific games:

1. Ratchet and Clank: There are something like five games in the series, and while they can be had pretty cheap, it looks like a significant investment of time, at least. Is the gameplay in the earlier installments solid enough, or the story important enough, that I should start with the first game, or is there a better starting point?

2. ICO: As a rule, I don't really care whether a game's graphics are outdated, but I've been led to understand ICO's visual design account for a good part of its appeal. How does it hold up?

3. I think I remember hearing something about the PS2 version of Psychonauts being noticeably inferior somehow -- something about bugs, probably -- but it's just as likely that my less than impressive memory is playing tricks on me. Is there any truth to this?

Thanks for reading and (hopefully) responding!

[Innis Cabal]

Okami. Okami. Okami. Thats all that needs said. Oh well..Persona 4 as well.

[warty goblin]

Can't speak to ICO in particular since I've never played it, but it's been my general experience that games that had good visual design when they were released still look pretty good now. They might not be as pretty as some, but whatever made them striking to begin with is likely to still hold true. The one exception to this can be if you've played another later game with a similar visual style but much more advanced graphics, since the scaleback can be quite jarring, at least at first.

[oyhr]

How about Silhouette Mirage? Even though it's a PSX port of a SS game, you should be able to play it just fine on your PS2 and I doubt you played it yet.

[Moonshadow]

Dark Cloud and Dark Chronicle.

[Inhuman Bot]

I liked Veiwtifull Joe and Shadow of the Colossus, myself. As well as Metal arms: Glitch in the system, though it and Veiwtifull Joe weren't exclusives.

[Teron]

Okami. Okami. Okami. Thats all that needs said. Oh well..Persona 4 as well.
You make a compelling argument. :smallamused: As it happens, I already have the Wii version of Okami. I also have Shadow of the Colossus (which is indeed very good) and Final Fantasy XII, (which I got for free but haven't gotten around to trying it yet).

Thanks for the suggestions so far; I'll look into them. If it's not too much trouble, though, could you mention the genre of the games you suggest and summarise their strengths (and shortcomings, if you want to be thorough)?

[Razaele]

Some of my favorite games for the PS2:

Resident Evil 4 (Survival Horror)
Zone of the Enders: The Second Runner (Mech Simulation)
Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater (Action/Stealth)
Godhand (Beat em' Up)
Devil May Cry (Action)
Devil May Cry 3 (Action)
Front Mission 4 (Strategy)
Indigo Prophecy (Role Playing/Puzzle Solving)

[Mando Knight]

The Metal Gear Solid games are pretty much the epitome of tactical stealth action combined with extended cutscenes and ridiculously mind-bending numbers of plot twists.

[aaron_the_cow]

Jack and Daxter FTW!!!!

one of my favorate games, the sequales arn't half bad either

[Isak]

Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies

Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War

Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War


Of those, I'd say 5 is the best, by far. AMAZING storyline that is emotionally touching, not naming any specifics. I was noticeably upset at one point of the game; and ready to jump up cheering and shouting at another. Amazing graphics and gameplay as well.

4 and Zero are quite good as well. Zero brought in some new elements, such as Ace squadrons. 4 is just good amounts of fun.


Final Fantasy X and XII are very much great games as well. I much preferred XII myself; but X can't go without mention. X-2 is playable, and I even enjoyed it, but many seem to disapprove of it.

The Xenosaga games are also pretty good in my opinion. VERY long cutscenes, but very well done games overall.

[Zevox]

I was also late to the PS2 party, getting mine two years ago. I can tell you, I wish I hadn't been - turns out it has plenty of great games in my favorite genre, RPGs, and specifically JRPGs.

Anyway, if you at all like RPGs, you might like some of the games from my library. Which are:

- Dragon Quest 8. My first PS2 game, still one of my favorites. Fantastic epic-scope traditional-style fantasy JRPG from Japan's favorite video game series.
- Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3. Fantastic story and character driven JRPG, easily one of the best RPGs out there as far as that goes. It's a fantasy/horror style game set in modern Japan. I cannot recommend it highly enough unless you really do not like RPGs, JRPGs, anything anime-esque, turn-based games, or dating sim-style game elements.
- Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4. As Persona 3, but fantasy/mystery style instead of horror. And perhaps even better than its predecessor. Again, cannot recommend it highly enough unless you just can't stand the kind of game it is.
- Final Fantasy X. My favorite FF game, in large part because it actually uses a true turn-based combat system rather than that accursed ATB ("active time battle," which kind of mixes turn-based and real-time combat, to terrible results in my opinion, and dominates much of the FF series). Good story too, and mostly decent characters. I still get annoyed at how ridiculously monotone the voice actor for the main female character, Yuna, is though, and some specific scenes are just plain bad. I would not recommend the sequel, Final Fantasy X-2. It sucks. (There is another PS2 FF, XII, but I've only played a demo of that. Did not come away with good impressions, but haven't played the real thing.)
- Disgaea. Fantastic tactical RPG series. The first game, my favorite of the two I've played, has you playing as Laharl, the young Demon Prince intent on succeeding your deceased father as Overlord of the Netherworld. It's a very quirky, anime-esque series with a lot of great humor but some great story as well. At least for the first game. For Disgaea 2, the gameplay improves, but the story goes right down the tubes, as none of the characters are anywhere near as likable as those in the first game, and the one interesting twist to the story comes only at the very end and is undone in the cheesiest possible manner (at least in the ending I got, which I think is the normal/good one you're expected to get the first time through).
- Xenosaga. I am going to sblock this due to length.
This three-part game (yes, three separate games, none of which really qualify as stand-alones - you either play them in order or you'll be either very confused or never see the ending to the story, depending on which ones you play when) is an epic sci-fi JRPG that you'll need multiple degrees in philosophy, religion, psychology, and other areas to fully comprehend. Often, as a result, it is insanely confusing or seems random or nonsensical. And I won't lie, that means most people, myself included, really aren't going to like it all. I can name at least one major sub-plot from the final game that I thought was pretty poor just off the top of my head. But it's a pretty good series nonetheless, and the parts that I found good were worth sitting through the bad or scratching my head over the confusing.

My avatar is actually from the third game of the series - one of the main characters, known as Gaignun Junior, Rubedo, or most often just Jr, and he's one of the central characters in my favorite sub-plot(s) of the series.

Generally speaking, the third game is the best of the series, followed by the first, followed by the second.

Two warnings: first, one of the hallmarks of the series is cutscenes. You will probably spend as much time watching cutscenes in this series as you do actually playing the games. The longest of them all, the ending cutscene of the final game, is around 37 minutes long, before you hit the credits. Count the credits and you're near 45 minutes. This also plagues the beginning of the first game, where you spend 3/4 of your time for the first couple of hours of play either in cutscenes or just walking around a few areas, not actually doing much of anything interesting (although the cutscenes are often interesting in their own right). Once you get past that, though, it picks up quite nicely.

Second warning, the second game, which really is a step down in quality for the most part, starts off boring, has a combat system that is initially no fun to learn, and may make you want to give the series up. I took a year break after getting maybe halfway through that game before coming back to it myself. But if you find you actually like the series, even if you don't like the second game, the third game is worth it ("it" being finishing the second game, so you're fully up to speed on the story for the third). Gameplay-wise, it is much better than the others, especially with the giant robots (each game includes them, but they suck in the first, and are mostly a distraction you have to put up with a few times in the second - in the third, though, they're a major feature with great new mechanics of their own, distinct from the usual combat style). And of course it provides the conclusions for all of the stories, some of which are great, others of which... not so much; but all of which you'll probably want to see after having played through the first game.
- Kingdom Hearts. A pair of action-RPGs combining Disney settings and characters with Squaresoft's Final Fantasy style of storytelling (and some FF characters). I prefer the first, personally, simply because I think the series was better when it had a greater focus on Disney stuff rather than its own original characters and stories, which are often nonsensical. But they're both legitimately good games in any event, at least as far as gameplay goes.
- Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne. Not really related to the above-mentioned Persona games. In terms of gameplay, think of it as Pokèmon, but with demons, drawn from all manner of often-obscure real-world mythologies and integrated into one setting - oh, and where your main character becomes part demon and fights with his demons too, rather than letting them do all the work. The "story" really isn't so much a story as an exploration of the series' unique mythos, which combines a variety of concepts from a variety of real-world religions and mythologies. Admittedly, not for everyone, but I found it enjoyable.
- Metal Gear Solid 3. I've only played this one, not any of the others of the series, but this is pretty good, and since it's actually set before any of the others (taking place in the 1960s, if I recall), it's actually not a bad place to start the series. Stealth/action/adventure in genre, fairly story-heavy, actually some great concepts for some of the stealth-based gameplay. Just be warned that getting past the first area and into the main game may be a real pain in the ass at first.
- Beyond Good & Evil. It's a decent action/adventure/stealth game. Don't believe the hype it gets from its cult though - it's not a great game, just a decent one, with a better story than gameplay, and even then not a great story. Very short, too. I finished it in about one day.

Zevox

[psilontech]

Some of these have already been suggested or have already been played on another console, but I'll just repeat them because I love them so much:

Okami
Metal Gear Solid 3
Twisted Metal: Black
Guitar Hero II
Silent Hill 2
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
God of War
Disgaea: Hour of Darkness
Silent Hill 2
Silent Hill 2
Resident Evil 4
Kingdom Hearts
Shadow of the Colossus

Oh, did I mention Silent Hill 2 yet?:smallwink:
That and a re-mentioning of GTA: San Andreas. Spent SO MUCH TIME on this game!:smallbiggrin:

[Corlindale]

I'll second Persona 4. A fantastic game, my only real complaint is that it wasn't longer - it ended way too soon for me (despite my played time being about 60 hours at that point).

Final Fantasy X is also really enjoyable, and will give you many hours of solid entertainment.

You should also check out the Katamari games. I've got We Love Katamari, and it's incredibly fun and quite unlike anything else I've ever played. It's hard to explain the concept fully, but basically it's about rolling stuff up to become bigger to roll more stuff up:smallsmile: It's very Japanese and very insane.

As for your original Rachet & Clank question - Both 1,2 and 3 are great games, but I don't think you'll necessarily have to play them in order. The story is not that significant, you can easily just play the game for the great, fast-paced gameplay (I've been playing the series with my little sister of 7 who doesn't understand a word of English, so I've kind of been forced into skipping cutscenes and the like most of the time). Even if you don't pay attention you'll always be told what to do.

Oh, and ICO is still really pretty (amazingly so, when one considers how old it is.)

[Shpadoinkle]

I was also late to the PS2 party, getting mine two years ago. I can tell you, I wish I hadn't been - turns out it has plenty of great games in my favorite genre, RPGs, and specifically JRPGs.

DQ8 is really one of those "love it or hate it" games. The thing is, most people, since it's a Square-Enix game, will pick it up and expect something like the last few Final Fantasy games, when it's practically nothing like them. There's much less emphasis on story and much more on exploration and fighting mooks. Also, if you're fighting anything level appropriate, most of the random encounters won't let you sleep through battles by taping down the Attack button for an automatic win like FF7 - 10 do.

If you're not familiar with the Dragon Quest series, I VERY, VERY STRONGLY reccommend renting DQ8 first if at all possible. It probably won't be possible at this point, but do it if you can.

As for Final Fantasy X, I hated it. I found the leads more annoying than anything. And no I didn't play it for five minutes then quit, I actually finished the game and did most of the extra stuff. Damn chocobo races were designed by Satan...

[Zevox]

DQ8 is really one of those "love it or hate it" games. The thing is, most people, since it's a Square-Enix game, will pick it up and expect something like the last few Final Fantasy games, when it's practically nothing like them.
Can't imagine why people would make a mistake like that. It's not the Dragon Quest series just popped out of nowhere - it was an Enix series before the merger (as opposed to Final Fantasy, a Square series; hence their large differences), was actually around before Final Fantasy, and sold in the US as Dragon Warrior. Granted, a couple of the games were skipped over in the US, which resulted in the series being "dead" for a time on this side of the ocean, but Dragon Warrior 7 had brought it back here during the PS1 era.

The rental recommendation is probably pointless at this point too. Aside from the unlikelihood of actually finding it at a rental store these days, you can probably buy it used at a Gamestop for little more than it would cost to rent it. I think I only paid $12 for mine, and that was two years ago.

Zevox

[Rockphed]

Jack and Daxter FTW!!!!

one of my favorate games, the sequales arn't half bad either

Addenda to the above:

Jak and Daxter is a modestly long game. I think it would take about 30 hours on a first play through, with an absolute minimum time of about 10 hours. Getting the game fully completed takes about another 10 - 20 hours if memory serves.

Jak II is a long, hard game, with 30 hours being the absolute minimum time to complete the game, and about 70 hours being a solid first play through, I think. That might be how long it takes to get EVERYTHING completed in normal mode. Oddly enough, the hardest parts are right near the beginning or right at the end.

Jak 3, on the other hand, is easy compared to Jak II, and short to boot. Personally, I suspect it was rushed. At some point, you acquire a gun that is inherently better than all other options almost all the time. Also, the various missions and tasks don't repeat enough.

As to Ratchet and Clank, my personal opinion is that they are rather linear, but otherwise fun. I have only played 1 and 2, but they are solid games. I prefer Jak and Daxter, but Ratchet and Clank aren't bad.

[Shpadoinkle]

Can't imagine why people would make a mistake like that. It's not the Dragon Quest series just popped out of nowhere - it was an Enix series before the merger (as opposed to Final Fantasy, a Square series; hence their large differences), was actually around before Final Fantasy, and sold in the US as Dragon Warrior. Granted, a couple of the games were skipped over in the US, which resulted in the series being "dead" for a time on this side of the ocean, but Dragon Warrior 7 had brought it back here during the PS1 era.

Uh huh. And how many people who aren't fans of the series do you think know that?

[Djinn_in_Tonic]

Red Faction is a fairly entertaining game, which I'm personally quite fond of. Hard as hell when you turn the difficulty up and shows its age a bit, but still really fun.

The Ratchet and Clank series is entirely recommended, from game 1 all the way to game 3 (you can give 4 a miss if you want, although it's still quite fun).

Also, I'd check out XIII. It was pretty unique when it hit the PC/Platforms, and still holds up as a good game. Same with the original Deus Ex (which is far better than XIII, if not as visually interesting), but that's only if you don't have it for the PC.

[The Dark Fiddler]

Kingdom Hearts is a good game.

And then if you like the gameplay, Kingdom Hearts II.

If you also like the story, or only like the story but want to play it all, get Re:Chain of Memories after KH I.

[Cubey]

2. ICO: As a rule, I don't really care whether a game's graphics are outdated, but I've been led to understand ICO's visual design account for a good part of its appeal. How does it hold up?

ICO's graphics are beautiful aesthetically and not technologically. They help create an atmosphere (a GREAT atmosphere) rather than stunning you with sheer technological advancement. Which I'd say works very well. It's an excellent game and I suggest you play it.

And from the same people: Shadow of the Colossus. Play these games in any order, they compliment each other resulting in an overall even better gaming experience.

[Terraoblivion]

Most of the games i would say have been mentioned but i will second the following:

Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 and 4
Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2
Shadow of the Colossus
Final Fantasy X and XII
Disgaea

I also disagree with Zevox about the quality of Beyond Good and Evil. While it is true the plot is neither overly wordy or has a traditional "deep" plot. I think that the strength of the storytelling and use of cinematic techniques more than make up for this in creating the plot.

I also never experienced any problems with my PS2 copy of Psychonauts, nor did i find the ending as unfair and difficult as its reputation. So i'd recommend it.

Finally i have a few warnings about Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne. These are not to be taken to suggesting that it is a bad game, it is a great one, but they are worth keeping in mind. It can be really hard to get. When i bought my copy last January it was one of only five copies i could find for sale in all of Europe and i had to get it from a Greek guy who could barely describe its condition in English. Secondly it is not your friend, in the second half the difficulty might not grow immensely high, but it grows very unfair. Invisible warp squares sending you a long way back and the like is to be expected and bosses that you have to find the trick to defeat through pure trial and error is to be expected. Finally if you are squeamish the latter part might be rough, since you are asked to do some rather nasty things just like how you are asked to choose between three potentially horrifying ways of remaking the world. It is rewarding to choose and despite the general superficiality of the philosophical content, still likely to get you to think as you develop your position. Especially since you cannot do like i did in another Megaten game and joined up with the most attractive of the choices, since they are all fairly ugly and the artstyle simply cannot do attractive. Still heartily recommended, just be aware of the potential problems.

[Optimystik]

Resident Evil 4 (Survival Horror)

At the risk of derailing the thread, I feel compelled to point out that RE4 is "survival horror" the same way that Diablo is a "roleplaying game."

I love the game, don't get me wrong, but there isn't much horror when you end up toting around enough weapons and ammunition to supply the French Foreign Legion, and you're fighting guys that are using shock rods and hatchets.

[Volug]

Well RE4 does provide for some "jumpy" moments, of surprise.

The regenerators are still freakin' scary though.

[Hunter Noventa]

Do not forget that you can pick up PS1 games at your local non-gamestop video game store. It's a bit harder to find that sort of place, but I'd bet you could find at least one in town, so I'll list games from both consoles that I enjoyed.

Suikoden 1,2,3,5. 1 and 2 are very rare and on the PS1, but they remain among the best classic JRPGs in existence. 3 and 5 are onthe PS2 and should be a lot easier to find. They're also excellent, though 3 is lower in terms of quality in my opinion. 5 is one of the best games ever pretty much. I left 4 out for a reason.

Front Mission 3 + 4. Turn based strategy with customizable giant robots and actually decent plot. The forgotten Square-Enix franchise. 3 is onthe PS1, but a very good and deep game, 4 is on the PS2 and I'm less excited about it. Both games feature New Game+ features as well.

Disgaea 1 + 2. Two amazing,hilarious, beautiful and never-ending strategy games fromthe illustrious Nippon Ichi. Probably a little hard to find, but these games will make you laugh and keep you playing forever.

Final Fantasy Tactics. Gets it's own Entry for being absolutely awesome. It's on the PS1 and a bit rare, but if you see it, grab it for more turnbased strategy and a deep, amazing plotline.

Lego Star Wars 2. This one covers the original trilogy, and is just plain good fun.

I'll second pretty much everything said about Xenosaga.

[Galileo]

Funnily enough, the OP's first paragraph describes me perfectly.

I realise it's already been said a lot here, but Persona 4 really is an amazing game. I'm really enjoying Futurama as well, mostly because it's not a cheap spinoff, it's actually written and voiced by the people who work on the show. I'll also second everything said about Ace Combat.

Battlefield 2 isn't the best shooter I've ever played, but it's reasonably fun and the hotswapping system is one of the coolest ways of handling a class system in an FPS I've seen.

[Belobog]

The thing you have to remember about Ratchet and Clank is the stories have a kind of Flash Gordon 'Adventure/Problem/Galaxy of the week' feel to them. They're mostly self-contained, don't take themselves too seriously, and have lots of running jokes and self references. Overall, they're enjoyable, funny, and action-packed, so I can't do enough to recommend them.

Beyond Good and Evil is also very well done story-wise, and worth a look if you can manage to get it for a reasonable price.

[Dispozition]

I think almost everything that I'd suggest has been said. Although I don't think I saw Jak and Daxter. It's like Ratchet and Clank, but better :D

Other than that, put another one onto the Kingdom Hearts and FFX.

[Hida Reju]

Here are a few overlooked games

Psi-ops the Mindgate Conspiracy
This one was considered one of the hidden jewels due to interesting physics and smooth controls. Not to mention cool villians.

Deception III: Dark Delusion one of the most fun games I have ever played you can play this game for hours on end. Great stress relief by slaughtering dozens with carefully laid traps. To be honest the PS1 game Deception 2: Kagero was even more fun to me but this one was still awesome.

[Tirian]

This thread has done a pretty good job of describing 85% of my PS2 game collection already. :smallbiggrin:

To briefly recap, Jak and Daxter games (except the racing game), Ratchet and Clank games (I liked all four of the PS2 games -- don't know quite why people hate on Deadlocked so much -- but the two PSP ports are awful), Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy (I don't hate X-2, but it's admittedly pretty weak, the rest is great if you like the JRPG thing), Katamari Damacy (if you can find it), and Okami.

Notes on games already mentioned:

I agree that Beyond Good and Evil is a fun game with a great feel to it. So is XIII -- neither are perfect but both are worth seeing through to the end (or IS it? Sorry, the one flaw is that both games have lame cliffhanger endings.)

Games I haven't seen mentioned and can't imagine why not:

Sly Cooper -- Sort of the lost child next to Jak and Ratchet, but the Sly Cooper games are the same sort of lighthearted humor and solid gameplay with anthropomorphized animals. Great look. Like the others, it peters out at the end so the first two are better than the third, but the third is far from awful.

Prince of Persia and God of War -- Srsly guys, why aren't you telling Teron about PoP and GoW? Completely antisocially savage gameplay (and, in the latter case, even more antisocially savage cutscenes), but they deliver. And in all five games you will be stunned that you're playing on a game platform that is nine years old.

Star Ocean 3 -- I don't know about the rest of the Star Ocean franchise at all, but if you like Final Fantasy and want an excuse to avoid your family or responsibility for a few hundred more hours, this delivers.

Dance Dance Revolution -- Very different, of course, but since you already have a PS2 it doesn't cost that much more to turn it into a fun exercise machine. There are a lot of titles and they can be hit or miss. I have MAX2 and SuperNova, and endorse both.

[Kiren]

My first ever PS2 game: Klonoa 2 Lunatea's Veil

My favorites would be: Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2

[Dracomorph]

I was an early adopter on the PS2, mostly because it was backward compatible. My list of Games I've Played that I Incessantly Recommend to Others:

FFX/FFX-2: These games are completely different, make no mistake. FFX has an epic plot set in a gorgeous world, and FFX-2 has a largely frivolous plot, set in the same gorgeous world, only the world is enriched by the changes since the first game. FFX-2 is unspeakably girly, but well-assembled mechanically, and actually fun.

The entire God of War series: Seriously, all fantastic, as per previous posters. Almost mandatory, and actually findable in stores even now.

Kingdom Hearts 1&2 (but not Chain of Memories, ew.): These games are great, but absolutely play them in order. I found that I enjoyed the first game less after playing the second, because it fixed a few annoyances in the combat system that I hadn't noticed before, but which now stick out like a sore thumb. Good stories, preachy but not incomprehensible like so many Japanese games.

Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance: This game isn't anything special, really, but it's a lot of fun and very replayable. Ideally, you would play this in co-op, because it's much more fun with a friend. This one's fairly personal, because it really captures the spirit of the old Sega Genesis brawlers like Golden Axe, which hit my nostalgia nerves really hard.

Odin Sphere: This game is OMG beautiful. A solid, side-scrolling brawler to boot, with interesting item mechanics.

Mana Khemia: Alchemists of Al-Revis: This game is a mostly traditional RPG, and is just tons of fun.

Prince of Persia: Sands of Time: Agreed widely to be an excellent game, and I agree, even if I do tend to get stuck with low sand in awkward places.

Last, but far from least:
Bard's Tale: Song of the Bard: This game is fun to play, has great dialogue and better songs, and the snarky main character is a joy. Also, the wolves can swallow a small kingdom's treasury.

I figure that huge list should cover my bases.

[Tirian]

Sorry, didn't notice you asked a question in there other than just seeking out recommendations.


1. Ratchet and Clank: There are something like five games in the series, and while they can be had pretty cheap, it looks like a significant investment of time, at least. Is the gameplay in the earlier installments solid enough, or the story important enough, that I should start with the first game, or is there a better starting point?

In fact, there are six games now that there is a port of Secret Agent Clank. You should only consider the four PS2 exclusives made by Insomniac, for the rest of this post I will blissfully repress the memory of Size Matters and Secret Agent Clank.

In my mind, there is a big jump between the first game and the latter three. The innovation was that the weapons gain experience as you use them and power up with enough use, so it is in your interest to use all of the weapons. That wasn't true of the original, and my experience is that I killed far more enemies with my wrench than with anything that used ammunition. So you wouldn't miss that much of "the R&C experience" if you skipped the original. A lot of characters will return in the later games, but they are solidly re-introduced so you just have to roll with it. (If you then go back and play the original you will be spoiled on one very anti-climactic plot twist.)

I would play the rest in order. The nice thing about playing the first three games in order, BTW, is that you can use save games from previous games to unlock weapons you have already bought in the later games. And I would claim that the games are only really long if you are dedicated to buying the BFG9000-clone in each game and powering up every weapon to its max level, which is not necessary and requires a second full playthrough anyway.

[Belobog]

I think almost everything that I'd suggest has been said. Although I don't think I saw Jak and Daxter. It's like Ratchet and Clank, but better :D

Excuse me, sir, but I do believe your fists and my fists must be involved in a discussion. The winner shall be determined through however many teeth scattered across the ground are not their own. :smalltongue:

[Teron]

Thanks for all the suggestions. You've been a great help. :smallsmile:

[Yora]

Having heard so many great things about it and really being a great fan of Colossus, I now played Ico.
And... well, I don't know.

Yes the basic idea is interesting and well done. But for one thing, the gameplay really isn't so great. Push some blocks, klimb chains and ladders, swing a stick at some shadows. The puzzles seemed quite hard to me at times, but there wasn't much fun in solving them.
And then, when you think you finished the first part of the game and have your first confrontation with the Big Bad.
Credits roll.

I felt like being stuck in some places for hours and had to redo entire sections of the game several times, because the auto-save function is really not so great. And still it took me less then 10 hours.
Quite the disappointment, I have to say. :smallannoyed:

[dsmiles]

How can you all forget Star Ocean: Till the End of Time?
By far the best and most replayable PS2 game ever.

[Reinboom]

How can you all forget Star Ocean: Till the End of Time?
By far the best and most replayable PS2 game ever.


Star Ocean 3 -- I don't know about the rest of the Star Ocean franchise at all, but if you like Final Fantasy and want an excuse to avoid your family or responsibility for a few hundred more hours, this delivers.

Tirian didn't.


My recommendation list:
Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance (Note, there are 2 versions, Substance is the international version, and contains more content)
Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (Same note as substance)
Final Fantasy XII
Final Fantasy X
Final Fantasy X-2 (I actually rather enjoy it, YMMV)
Dragon Quest VIII
Ratchet and Clank series
Wild Arms: Alter Code F (Remake of the first Wild Arms)
Wild Arms 3
(Possibly 4 and 5, I have yet to play them, though I have 4...)
Silent Hill 2
Silent Hill 3
God of War
Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus (Note, this is different from the version without the 'Plus', or without the 'Accent Core'.)
Viewtiful joe
Sly Cooper series
Klonoa 2
Disgaea series
Makai Kingdom
Killer 7
Okami (controls better than the Wii version, in my opinion)
Katamari Damacy
We Love Katamari
Persona 3
Persona 4
Star Ocean (3): Til the End of Time
Marvel vs Capcom 2
Contra: Shattered Soldiers (For the masochistic in us all. It's like the SNES Contra 3 classic, but with both the deadly and awesome turned up)

Since you have a Wii it seems, I would recommend against Resident Evil 4 for the PS2 and recommend the Wii version.

There is also a ton of PS1 games, if you do not already have them.

[FinalJustice]

There goes mine (I'll try to put some unmentioned games here):

Devil May Cry 1 and 3 (In this order, please) - My favorite series. Dante is Awesome incarnate, and it has a fun as hell, over the top fast paced gameplay. Had to repeat the mention, sorry.

Naruto: Narutimate Hero/Accel (Ultimate Ninja) series - My second favorite series in PS2 (Naruto haters, begone!). It is a high mobility, extremely fast paced 2d fighting. It's a beautiful game mechanically, a lot of fun indeed, but you probably won't like it if you do not like the anime/manga.

God of War 1 and 2 - Mandatory.

Metal Gear Solid 3 - Mandatory². It's truly a beautiful game. Pick MGS2 if you like the series, but expect it to be waay worse.

Soul Calibur III and IV - People whacking each other with melee weapons, fun and stunningly beautiful. Lacks blood, though, but it's forgivable. People claim III is better balanced and IV is buggy, but I like'em both.

Red Dead Revover - Did not see any mention for this one here, which is an absurd. A third person shooter, western to boot. From visual, to soundtrack, to gameplay, this game is simply gorgeous. If you like western, you'll probably cry. If not, you will enjoy this game nevertheless.

God Hand - A hilarious Capcom beat'em up. It's funny and waaay over the top. The mechanics are kinda hard to pick on, but it's fun. Enjoy for its nonsensical hilariety.

Yakuza - This, you have to play this. A beat'em up/adventure set on Japan from Yakuza times. Gameplay is fun and all, but the setting and the plot are stunning. Really beautiful game.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance - It's... strange. Part action RPG, with stages... But it's fun and if you like Marvel superheroes, you will love it, if only for the sheer ammount of characters involved and the hilarious cutscenes (thanks, mostly, to Spidey).

Wild Arms Alter Code: F - Classic, it gives a nostalgic feeling, it has a good story and charismatic characters. It is fun, even if simple. I loved it.

[Cubey]

Yes the basic idea is interesting and well done. But for one thing, the gameplay really isn't so great. Push some blocks, klimb chains and ladders, swing a stick at some shadows. The puzzles seemed quite hard to me at times, but there wasn't much fun in solving them.
And then, when you think you finished the first part of the game and have your first confrontation with the Big Bad.
Credits roll.

You miss the point if you get Ico for gameplay. You play that game not for puzzle-solving or fighting enemies, but for the atmosphere, and to see how natural and deep the interaction between the two characters gets, despite the simple and minimalistic design.

I know what I said sounds very pretentious and artsy, but in case of this one particular game it's true.

[potatocubed]

I would like to add Shadow of Memories to this list. I think it was called Shadow of Destiny in the US: it starts with the protagonist's death and then he gets to hop around through time trying to prevent his own demise. Short, but good.

[Mr. Versipellis]

Ratchet and Clank is BRILLIANT!!!!!

[Dispozition]

I'll back up SweetRein on Guilty Gear. I own like, three version of that game on different consoles. The PS2 one I have is XX #Reload, which iirc is one of the worst ones, but still damn good.

I can;t vouch for star ocean on teh PS2, but the PSP version is hella fun, so I presume the PS2 version would be better since I find it more intuitive for jRPGs than the PSP.

[Yora]

You miss the point if you get Ico for gameplay. You play that game not for puzzle-solving or fighting enemies, but for the atmosphere, and to see how natural and deep the interaction between the two characters gets, despite the simple and minimalistic design.

I know what I said sounds very pretentious and artsy, but in case of this one particular game it's true.
I like artsy and the things the game did, it did very well. But it's just a great build up, with nothing to follow.
It boils down to:
Ico and Yorda get from the prision to the front door, but the front door gets shut. So they open the door, but then Yorda gets snatched away. Ico goes back inside, sees the Queen on her throne, and sticks a sword into her. And the game is over.
And that's not a summary, that's everything that happens. Though it still took me 9 hours, it kind of felt like a demo to me. It shows what amazing levels you can create, the special athmosphere of the game, and the very interesting interactions of the characters, who don't share a language. But there could have been so much more, I think.

Of course it's unfair to compare an earlier game with a later development, but because there are not many games like these, take a look at Colossus: It has the same essentials: A large environment that is mostly empty, very few dialog, an extremely small cast of characters that communicate all emotions only through posture and sound, and a narative that only lets you observe the characters actions, but tells you nothing about their intentions.

But it manages to build up tension and makes you try to anticipate what will happen next. Something that Ico just didn't do to me. So you want to escape and there's only one way to go, so you follow the corridor. But the gate is shut, so you follow the corridor further to activate the gate mechanism. Then you're knocked out and when you wake up, there's just one way to go and you follow that corridor to the end. And credits roll. It just didn't get me thinking.
So the boys with horns get into the cages? I wonder why? Let's go on and see what else we see that could indicate what's happening here. - There's this shadow woman who does not want the girl to leave. I wonder what else we see about her or find in the castle, that could hint at her identity and intentions. - But yeah, there's nothing more comming during the rest of the game.

Ico is a very good demonstration of this really brilliant art style these people created. But they don't do anything with it. Maybe for other people expiriencing this style is enough to call it a great game. But for me, it's simply lacking... an... I don't know what. :smallbiggrin:
But it could be personal preference. I think I'm a person who likes art that is "clever" and gets you thinking, but does not care so much about aesthetics.
Though that probably doesn't justice to Ico, as it's definately not without lots of deeper layers. But still... :smallbiggrin:

[Zovc]

1. Ratchet and Clank: There are something like five games in the series, and while they can be had pretty cheap, it looks like a significant investment of time, at least. Is the gameplay in the earlier installments solid enough, or the story important enough, that I should start with the first game, or is there a better starting point?

I tend to lose interest in 'adventure' games, and I managed to lose interest in the two Ratchet and Clank games I played. I did like them, though, I just didn't finish them. They're good games, as far as I can tell. Don't be afraid to check out the Jack and Daxter games if you like Ratchet and Clank (I can't personally recommend them--or RaC, for that matter--as I don't have enough experience with them, I just know they are both similar in play style).


2. ICO: As a rule, I don't really care whether a game's graphics are outdated, but I've been led to understand ICO's visual design account for a good part of its appeal. How does it hold up?

While I have never played ICO, I happen to LOVE Shadow of the Colossus. I hear there are many allusions to ICO in SotC. Hint, the game was made by the same company.

Shadow of the Colossus is an excellent game, and I insist you play it. The game's scale is completely epic in scale, and is essentially one "colossal" (in every sense of the word, really) boss fight after another.

If you like ("Japanese") RPGs, you definitely should check out Persona 3 and 4. There has been a rereleased version of P3, Persona 3:FES. Due to the improvments from 3 to 4, I'd recommend you play 3 first, so as not to be spoiled when going from 4 to 3. If you don't like 3, chances are you won't like 4. For the most part, 4 is just a revised version of 3, but in a larger sense than that probably implies. Feel free to ask me (in a PM, preferably) about the differences if you would like details.

Another JRPG to consider is Disgaea. There are two games in the series on the PS2, and both have a ridiculous scale to their combat. The games are extremely zany, from their sense of humor to you making towers with your characters to get across levels. I don't think I have enough experience with the game to do it justice with an explanation, but it is something to consider.

I acquired a game (yet another Atlus title) called Dokapon Kingdom. It resembles Mario Party, in that it's a 'board game,' but it's much more of an RPG and is much more brutal. If you're interested in a game about aggravating friends, feel free to PM me asking about it. :P

Of course, I didn't read your thread through, so I can't address any specific genres or anything you prefer, but I greatly recommend the Persona entries on the system.

Don't forget that your PS2 can play PS1 games, as well.

[Mr Hair]

Wow. A lot of very good games have already been posted. I've been gaming on my trusty PS2 since it launched, and even I've been able to scrawl down a new name or two for future reference. :smallsmile:

Just to throw in a couple of games that don't seem to have been mentioned too much; I really really recommend Tony Hawks Pro Skater 4. Now, it is actually available on the Gamecube so there's a good chance you've tried it, but if not you owe it to yourself to hunt a copy down. THPS4 is all about pulling off insane death-defying tricks, completing eclectic and varied challenges over sprawling locations, finding hidden secrets, building your own skate parks and kicking back to one of the best game soundtracks ever made. Honestly, just take a look at it. (http://planettonyhawk.gamespy.com/View.php?view=thps4_gameinfo.Detail&id=15)

In other words, fun.

SSX 3 is much the same. It's on the 'Cube, but if you haven't tried it yet be prepared to punch a one-way ticket to Fun City. (Population: You!)

Other then that; Freedom Fighters is a good one. It's a little short and the story's a little cheesy (though in a good way), but it has some of the most addicting and enjoyable squad-based gameplay I've found to date. Tekken 5 is simply one of the best fighting games I've ever played, period, and it comes bundled with the arcade versions with Tekken 1, 2 and 3 as a neat bonus. TimeSplitters: Future Perfect is a very slick and very polished FPS, and Dynasty Warriors 5 is just a gloriously chaotic Japanese-Hero-Battle-Simulation-Thingie.

Lastly, I'd just like to reiterate the point that you may want to check out the odd PS1 game here and there. There were a few gems on there that haven't been replicated onto the PS2. GTA 2, for example, is one of my favourite games of all time, as it has all of the humour, freedom and wacky-sandbox-goodness you'd expect of a GTA game, but doesn't get bogged down in the kind of lifestyle simulations and the occasional rail-roading that the PS2 and later versions have. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, PaRappa the Rapper, Vagrant Story and Wip3out 3: SE all also jump out as good, unique(ish) games.