Best PS2 Games You Should Play
Although we have PS4 today to play graphics intense games; But PlayStation 2 holds the record of highest selling console with more than 155 million units sold till date. No other console is near to this record. So if you were or are a proud owner of this beast of SONY released in 2000, here are 15 Best PS2 games you should play. If you don’t own a PS2 but want to own this legend visit here.
1. Shadow of The Colossus
One of those unique games, where hard-to-repeat elements converged under the direction of an artist with talent and sensitivity. Fumito Ueda forced the PS2 to the edge of its technical possibilities to capture its particular fable, the story of a wandering and sad rider who rides to an ancient temple to be entrusted to an ancient god. Your prayer, bring back to life a young woman just died. The price to pay, end the life of 16 colossi, 16 formidable titans that roam free for an empty and desert world.
Further, On the back of Agro steed and with the flash of his sword as a guide; the player must find and approach the monstrous creatures to kill them. They will be terrestrial, amphibious, flying, dark, igneous, sandy, elusive, arcane and even malefic. Some lives for another. All in a dichotomous maelstrom that thickens and dirty; like the clothes of Wander, with the terrible moral conflict that underlies the chain of decisions in which; Ueda adds us to the rhythm of the epic soundtrack of Ko Otani.
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2. God of War II
It seemed impossible and they succeeded. One of the last to reach the useful life of PS2 but who was in charge of reminding us all of the wonders that can be done with it. Incredible graphics that made us doubt if it was our old black console or we had passed to the competition. A gameplay inherited totally from his previous adventure and the promise of being much more beast and violent. The final fight against Zeus gives rise to what was achieved.
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Also Read: Best SNES Emulators | Best N64 Emulators
3. Final Fantasy X
Final Fantasy X is an RPG developed and Additionally, published by the company Squaresoft. Within the Final Fantasy series, this game marks an important transition between totally customized scenarios to complete three-dimensional environments thanks to the Emotion Engine processor from PlayStation 2.
However, some interiors and specific scenarios continue to use pre-rendered models. Final Fantasy X is the first in the series to present a wide range of realistic facial expressions as well as other technological achievements. Such as the variation of lights and shadows between different parts of a character’s clothing. It was also the first installment of the series to incorporate voices in the dialogues of the characters, dubbed by professional actors.
Undoubtedly one of the RPGs most loved by fans of this genre. An experience in unparalleled gameplay that has given us a series of truly amazing CG animations.
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4. Okami
One of the most charming and epic games that we have been able to experience on PS2. Inaba, Kamiya and the bulk of Clover’s team created a great adventure based on some of the most ingrained myths of Japanese folklore. However, It can be argued that it was a game too long and did not have that brilliance in the dungeons that have the best adventures of Link, but their possible flaws were hidden behind the fantastic visual style, one of the best examples of cel-shaded of PS2.
To its many virtues, we must add the endearing of its stories and characters, as well as a soundtrack to remember, one of the most outstanding of the past generation with some themes capable of illuminating our day. Also for the memory, there are some moments like when Amaterasu “cleans up” the corruption of an area and the sad scenario begins to recover life and color.
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5. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Although we are still excited about the GTA V game, Grand Theft Auto III was the revolution; Grand Theft Auto: Vice City became the confirmation; and the game that occupies us, the unique, great and unrepeatable Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, became the ribbon of the sandbox genre, a ribbon placed at such a height that even the Rockstar North itself has not yet been able to reach again.
Summarizing the virtues of San Andreas in a single paragraph is an impossible task; Demons, even with ten long pages at our disposal we would still be scratching the surface of a cyclopean videogame, the most ambitious GTA released to date. In the skin of Carl Johnson, a former gang member who returns to Los Santos (the Los Angeles of the GTA universe), his hometown, after hearing about the death of his mother, we will realize that we are facing the GTA philosophy raised to the nth power. Therefore, From there we will have to deal with corrupt policemen, wars between gangs, dark conspiracies and characters of ambiguous loyalty, in true Rockstar style. Additionally, you experience Driving, shooting, exploration, three large cities, many other huge rural areas, secret objects, a wide range of vehicles, brides, gyms, shooting ranges, warm cafes, the occasional cameo.
Further, Game is splashed across the length and breadth of a monumental play area whose extension has even given rise to generate their own urban legends. In short, the longest sandbox with the greatest possibilities that the times have seen. Maybe Rockstar North finally manages to surpass its own standards with Grand Theft Auto V; but until then, if you can only play a GTA, let it be this one. Just to meet The Truth, the experience is already worth it.
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6. Resident Evil 4
The great bombing of Capcom, a title that attracted attention only by name. After many years with successful and convincing deliveries, the Resident Evil franchise, the forerunner of survival horror in consoles, reached a fourth installment that was going to change everything. The first thing that changed was the scenario: Capcom with Mikami in the lead signed an exclusive agreement with Nintendo, in a move by the brilliant Japanese company that allowed him to enjoy the remake of Resident Evil and Resident Evil: Zero as the ante-rooms to Resident Evil 4. But the power of Playstation and its penetration in the market was huge, and a title like the new Resident Evil could not be absent from the Sony console. In 2005 it arrived and it became one of the best PS2 games, although technically it will not be as clean as in the original version.
The plot of Leon and the turn to action make Resident Evil 4 an essential work to understand the mechanics of action games in the third person since many have inherited the title.
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7. Kingdom Hearts
We were told that Square was preparing a video game that was going to mix Disney characters with their peculiar iconology. We looked surprised that this savagery would work, it was impossible that these two separate worlds could coexist in harmony. And how wrong we were. ‘Kingdom Hearts’ came straight to our heart, recovering old Disney film classics and updating them in a very intelligent way. The adventures of Sora, Mikey, Donald, Goofie and the Keyblade have achieved their own place in the iconology of videogames, and well that is.
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8. Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening
Devil May Cry stomped on the last generation of consoles. A hack and slash of Capcom that surprised by the high rate of play, by the cool character who starred in the story and for having a devilish gameplay. After the first delivery came a second part defenestrada by critics and public, to be unworthy of what was seen in the premiere of Dante. With this panorama Capcom put all the meat in the spit and took out a third party that returned to recover much of the sensations that generated the original delivery. In this case, the great variety of styles that we had available to equip Dante and his usual cast of weapons of all kinds, both for melee and firearms, made the title more than attractive on a playable level .
The presence of various characters such as Vergil, some of the best enemies of the saga and the “pique” to replay him to major difficulties confirmed that Dante had returned through the front door.
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9. Primal
The studio First Party of SCE Cambridge Studio, after giving life to Sir Daniel Fortesque in the unforgettable MediEvil, already launched for PS2 Primal, one of those titles that a decade later continue to overflow with an incredible epic in each section of graphics, history, characters, execution and, something rare to see today, extension. A story that earns the definition of ‘epic’ with the remembered Jen and Scree of protagonists. Four huge and absolutely unique worlds (a perpetual and always snowy night world, underwater reign, a world of decadent royalty – a cross between pre-revolutionary France and Tim Burton – and a kingdom within a volcano) to explore, explore and Explore until you discover secrets like the deck of cards of the characters. Ungameplay full of battles, its negative point perhaps, and exploration, but in which the Ico-style puzzles predominate, since you always have to keep the two charismatic characters together.
Some graphics that still endure the type stoically, especially with the possibility to deactivate the progressive scan in its HD rescaling. And a job devours, bent or in V.O. impeccable, with professional actors embroidering their roles in any of the two versions, along with one of the best soundtracks never written that we already highlighted in the report dedicated to video game music, and that It overwhelms by sutorrente orchestral and its enormity, forcefulness and sound lyricism. Ensuma, one of the most undervalued imperfect jewels of the PlayStation 2 and the last generation that deserves much to be rediscovered only on the PlayStation 3 PSN, but like Strangers Wrath, in an HD version for PS Vita that takes advantage of its visual potential in the system screen.
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10. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
One of the best games in history. The tactical espionage of Hideo Kojima returned to harvest applause of criticism and emotion of users with the story of how soldier Jack and his Virtuous Mission ended up forging him as the legendary Big Boss, genetic father of Solid Snake. Great political background, in 1964 after the Cuban missile crisis with the subsequent tensions between the US and USSR, Khrushchev and Kennedy, the operations of espionage and counterintelligence, love towards other people and towards the country itself, and the production of the first Metal Gear as a trigger for the conflict.
The great outdoor environments, survival, camouflage, CQC and other great playable advances that Snake Eater contributed, are forgotten with the debut of The Boss, Jack’s instructor and an authentic patriot, one of the video game characters that truly can make the player releases a tear, with that indelible final combat between white flowers with the title of Boss in play. Masterly. The Cobra Unit manages to compete in charisma and clashes with the final heads of PSX’s Metal Gear Solid, especially the sniper duel with The End, and Colonel Volgin, ruthless, ends up explaining why Jack’s patch. The epilogue is worthy of the best James Bond movies, with action rebounding and loves betrayed by unwavering loyalties. Unmissable and essential.
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Also Read: Best Dreamcast Games | Games like Diablo 3
11. Zone of The Enders: The 2nd Runner
Parallel to the development of Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and Snake Eater between 2000 and 2004, Hideo Kojima’s team worked on a series of wicks that was won over fans from all over the world beyond the followers of this genre. of games so specific and more prolific in Japan and Otaku environments. With the same Kojima as producer, Yoji Shinagawa in the mechanical designs –Kazuma Kaneko of Shin Megami Tensei collaborated with two contributions- and Shuyo Murata in the direction, the team proved versatile in such a different register, giving birth to some Orbital Frame unforgettable, like Jehuty and Anubis. The secret of its success: high rhythm in the battles, simplicity of handling with immediate reward, great technical section and some well-knit characters, with included anime sequences, piloting some frankly spectacular wicks.
The 2nd Runner improved the level of the first ZOE, but the history of the second follows immediately after the events of the first. Kojima, including references to closed micro in an interview with this magazine, was pointing since 2008 the possibility of retaking the third episode of ZOE, something that everything points is in pre-production after the news of May of last year.
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12. Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec
Of course, another key to the fast and brilliant triumph of PS2 was soon to have a Gran Turismo in the life of the machine; a lesson that Sony would have done well to remember with PS3 and possibly recover for their next console table. Built on the solid foundations of one of the Playstation’s Queen sagas, Gran Turismo 3 incorporated powerful technical and audiovisual innovations. Although for that it sacrificed the huge number of cars from the magisterial Gran Turismo 2; a very significant cut from 650 cars to something more than 180. Despite this, the title of Polyphony was the best possible ambassador of the new platform; and was even used as a spearhead in an intense publicity campaign, which also earned him one of the best-selling games of the story and the best-seller within its own saga, with about 15 million units.
The honeymoon was not complete in Europe because of an insufficient PAL conversion, but even that could not tarnish one of the great games of the PS2 catalogue.
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13. Beyond Good & Evil
Ubisoft in the new generation has games like The Division and Far Cry. But also has to his credit an extensive catalog of great titles made during the last generation of consoles. The gala company won the public of the three desktop consoles of the past generation with a title like Beyond Good and Evil; a classic adventure that put us in the shoes of Jade, a photojournalist who was in the middle of an alien conspiracy that could endanger their existence. With this premise and a pig as the main companion. The Ubisoft adventure designed by Michael Ancel, creator of the Rayman series; offered a very varied and interesting proposal: action, platforms, puzzles, exploration; extras such as photographs and touches of driving. Of everything a bit in a game where stealth also had an important role.
Notable acceptance in the press and even better feedback among users. It is not surprising that this title has been subsequently remastered in HD. And it’s even less surprising that more information about a future sequel to Jade’s adventures has been asked for actively and passively.
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14. Silent Hill 2
During the generation of PlayStation 2, a saga lived a golden age, an age started in the previous stage of the SONY platform. We speak, of course, of Silent Hill, the license of Konami, and in particular of his second installment, premiered in the hardware of the Japanese company with enough success and the necessary maturity to deal with conflicting topics with style, narrative and terror. James Sunderland moved to a dark Silent Hill and as lost as his wife, Maria, transformed into Mary. In addition to giving birth to scenarios, master-Akira Yamaoka melodies, thanks; and superb settings, the second part of the license was able to make the generational jump taking advantage of the PlayStation 2 hardware. Something that, unfortunately, has not happened too easily in the current platforms (leaving out Origins of PSP).
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15. Onimusha Warlords
One of the first gaming franchises that was born on PS2 and managed to settle on 128 bits. Mixing the Sengoku Jidai of feudal Japan and reinterpreting that historical period with demons, magic and a resurrected Nobunaga Oda as an antagonist, Capcom. Thanks to the creativity of Keiji Inafune and Jun Takeuchi, coined a series of action, combat, exploration and puzzles that counts with eight titles; and that is the sixth most important intellectual property of the company.
Warlords was the starting point, with the samurai turned into ronin Akechi Samanosuke as protagonist and his assault on an Inabayama castle owned by the Oni demons of Fortibras and Nobugana to save the princess Yuki from a human sacrifice. In addition to Samanosuke, played by the actor Takeshi Kaneshiro -we saw him here in The House of the Flying Daggers. He also takes control of the ninja Iga Kaede, who assists us during the adventure. The combination of Japanese folklore and game system as a fast beat’em up, simple combos, exotic weapons and elementals -Ranizan, Enyuu and Shippuu; and the final bosses, catapulted success to Onimusha. Even forcing the competition to ask Capcom for a special edition with expanded content, Genma Onimusha.
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So that’s it, there were 15 Best PS2 games you should play. If you find any game worthy and I skipped it please do mention it in the comments box.
Also Read: Best SNES Games | Best N64 Games
