The BEST ps2 games you've ever played?

[Gia Sado]

Side note: If there is another thread, i guess merge this one with it, havent seen one though.

Was bored so i felt like discussing this.
Ok, seeing as Ign sucks and all ps2 rated games are based on the sole perspectives of reviewers, i decided to make a thread about it. Ps2 has had so many games that in their right respect were fucking amazing. I guess throw in your favorite games, explain why, and give your own rating. Good thread contribution could be games that were extremely under-appreciated, including imports. You can also dis games that are over-hyped as well as those that sucked horribly.

SOME of my favorites are Okami, FF12, and Ico. Ill explain reasons why later.

[SympathyX]

@Gia:

SOME of my favorites are Okami, FF12, and Ico. Ill explain reasons why later.

I'm confused. Are we talking about the best or our favourites? Some of the best games I've played on the PS2 aren't my particular favourites

[Lazzie]

I'm with SympathyX. For example, Shadow of the Colossus is better than Disgaea: Hour of Darkness (this cannot be denied), but I like Disgaea more, so it's one of my favorites while SotC isn't, necessarily. Lots more examples like that.

[Sakonosolo]

Shadow of the Colossus, MGS3, Okami. That's all that immediately comes to mind, though I'm sure there's more.

[Pochipochi]

This post is deleted!

[SympathyX]

@Lazzie:

I'm with SympathyX. For example, Shadow of the Colossus is better than Disgaea: Hour of Darkness (this cannot be denied), but I like Disgaea more, so it's one of my favorites while SotC isn't, necessarily. Lots more examples like that.

Yeah depending on if bias is involved or not theres a definite difference between best and favourite.

For example I loved Rogue Galaxy to death but its noway near the best on the system

[Buuhan1]

Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King. One of my favorite games, if not THE favorite.

[Mr. Zoro]

In my honest opinion, it'd have to be MGS3, hands down.

Part of the reason why it was such a big impact was perhaps the fact that it was the first game in the series I played, and it was also the first very good game I played in a long time.

[Kitsune Inferno]

Okami, the entire Shadow Hearts series, Valkyrie Profile 2, Disgaea 1 and 2, Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2, Final Fantasy XI and XII, Persona 3 (have not played 4)

[Wagomu]

Two words: Psychonauts.

"Where's that second word," you say? Psychonauts.

[Sakonosolo]

Psychonauts originally came out on the Xbox didn't it?

And yeah, Kingdom Hearts series.

[deltabrain]

Since the other ones have already been mentioned

Beyond good & evil

sly cooper 1-3

[stephen]

Ico
Okami
Beyond Good & Evil
Rogue Galaxy
Kingdom Hearts (original only)
We Love Katamari
Ape Escape
Dragon Quest VIII
Tales of Destiny Director's Cut
Jak and Daxter (original only)
Simpsons Hit & Run
I'll give Psychonauts an honorable mention even though I really consider it more of an Xbox game.

I don't think I could stand to play anything on the PS2 that isn't on this list anymore.

[Gia Sado]

@SympathyX:

I'm confused. Are we talking about the best or our favourites? Some of the best games I've played on the PS2 aren't my particular favourites

Yea it could be either, its fine. As a matter of fact I am a great fan of the original .hack games, but they are nowhere near the best rpgs around. I loved them for the story and basically because of the concept. But, Yea i love MGS 3 as well and only the final mix version of KH 2 i was satisfied with (loved the terra fight). Okami had to be one of the most beautiful games ever made. Its bosses and environments were spectacular. The reason why i love ff12 is because of its challenges and time consuming quests ( I leveled everybody, not just 3 or 2 people). Some bosses were just insane in that game. Icos a given.

Oh and even though more of a gamecube game, Viewtiful Joe (the first one) was great.
Trying to play Rogue galaxy but my ps2 (oldest model) doesnt read duel layer disks.

FOR fighting games, would have to be for me MvC 2 and tekken 5.

[Pochipochi]

My favorite entry in the PS2's robust lineup is quite easily Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne (Maniax Chronicle edition just for being the most recently updated, best version). It's quite frankly everything I could ever enjoy in a Japanese RPG. It's roughly flawless from a design standpoint, too.

[Gia Sado]

^^^You know i'd like to give persona a try too. Never tried the original shin megami tenseis as well

[Pochipochi]

@stephen:

Kingdom Hearts (original only)

I loved the original Kingdom Hearts. It's charming and brilliant.

Its sequels and spinoffs remind me of how, like FFVII, the developers completely forget what made the original games appealing and enjoyable in the first place. It's like they lose their original product to fanfiction interpretations.

[Senshi Mizaka]

Most of the games I liked on the PS2 were RPGs, but there are still some other genres I liked, too.

Off the top of my head, there's:

Rogue Galaxy
Final Fantasy X
Dynasty Warriors 3 and 4
Jak II
Dragon Quest VIII
Dark Cloud 2
Odin Sphere
Metal Gear Solid 2

[stephen]

@Holy:

I loved the original Kingdom Hearts. It's charming and brilliant.

Its sequels and spinoffs remind me of how, like FFVII, the developers completely forget what made the original games appealing and enjoyable in the first place. It's like they lose their original product to fanfiction interpretations.

EXACTLY. There are two main entries to the series, one of which was a mess of bafflingly pointless babbleshit, and at least four games that are derivatives based on those two games, essentially churning the series' mythology into a turgid vat of filth. If I could barely bother to keep the narrative straight like, one-third through KHII, how do they expect people to care what the difference is between all the rehashes and character clones and mystical X dudes. It's an utterly shameful clusterfuck. I'm sure if you tried to construct a series map tying all the plot points together into one seamless construction, it would look like a dog biting its own tail.

[TakinawaTonfa]

Tough call, considering how robust and diverse the PS2 library is, you might as well just do a "TOP n" listing. But some of my faves I can say for sure…

Dragon Quest VIII

–This made a previous list of mine in the "Top 10 favorites" thread, and it still holds true. A grand colorful world, lots of exploration and things to see, a strategic battle system, and a beautiful soundtrack make it a must play.

Virtua Fighter 4

–Also on my top 10. Simple interface, complex fighting system, and a robust training mode that has yet to emulated in other fighting games.

Half-Life

–The PS2 port of this game is actually quite good. Damn good. Really gave me the experience of the HL universe and gameplay when I lacked a "proper" PC and interface on which to play it. Theres a lot of secrets and extras too, including the co-op mode Decay and Alien mode.

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

–Everything gameplay wise that defined MGS2 without the bullshit. I also got a kick out of the survival elements were fleshed out, CQC, and quite possibly the one of greatest boss fights (if not, THE) in the history of forever (The End).

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

–Yeah, I know GTA probably ain't the most popular thing on these boards, but I honestly had some of the best times with this games. I loved the 80's setting, the Miami motif, the extra mechanics and vehicles that I had wished were in GTA3, and of course Ray Liotta yukkin it up as the humorously sociopathic Tommy Vercetti.

[loneassassin]

Here are some of mine favorites, and the only reason I still keep a PS2:

Dragon Quest 8 (Everything about it is amazing: the graphics, the soundtrack, the gameplay and the story is still one of the best in the history of RPGs.)

MGS3 ( basically MGS2 completely revamped and thrown into the 1960's, but a million times better. Seeing Ocelot as a young, cocky badass being completely owned by Big Boss, the entire boss battle with The End, the final showdown with The Boss and the final cutscene where Big Boss salutes his mentor in the graveyard full of fallen soldiers is still one of the greatest ending scenes in a game ever.)

Kingdom Hearts 1 (though KH2 was bigger and better, the first one has the better story in my opinion.)

GTA: Vice City and San Andreas (I could pull out either of these games right now and play for hours. Any game that can do that are automatically is tops in my book.)

Ico/Shadow of the Colossus/Okami (If anyone needs proof why video games are a form of art, these three are my picks. Plus, all three are pretty great games.)

[Cyber-Robin]

Dragon Quest VIII

Suikoden V

Kingdom Heart's 1

I played Okami on the Wii. Does that count?

[Buuhan1]

Everyone here has such good tastes. I love you guys.

[Hiroy]

Let's see.

Grand Theft Auto San Andreas: There was a ton of shit to do, even though they essentially contributed nothing to the game. I wasted endless amound of hours certain cheats, blowing up cars, pushing cars off buildings, flying around with the jetpack, declaring war in the hood or the city, shooting down helicopters for breakfast, crashing airplanes into trucks, murdering innocent people, murdering people that piss me off, driving cars with prostitutes off bridges, and flying a jet in hopes I collide with another bypassing aircraft.
Star Ocean Till the end of Time: The most amount of hours I ever put into any game. They story was bad, but the old school fast paced combat was not. Customization was nearly endless with possibilities with nasty results as well. What I liked about it was it had a real time battle system that wasn't a plain button masher, or plagued with enemies that were nothing but punching bags for long combo strings. It actually had limitations and stategy when it came to setups and mechanics. It's a shame the following game(SO4) didn't refine this battle system.

Okami: I needed something to wash the foul taste from Twilight Princess out of my mouth. And boy, was I in for a surprise! This game beat all my expectations. Definitely one of the best games in it's genre in the generation it was released in. The world was huge and filled with life. Every place you visit had a unique setting and goal. The story was just magical, despite it's weak conclusion. When I finished the game completely, I declared that this was going to be the last game of its kind. Unfortunately I'm still right on that.

Those are the only games at the top of my head. The rest were either good, or decent.

[Gaiyae]

So many great games to choose from.

But my personal favorites probably are;
Dragonquest 8, Persona 4, Okami, Ratchet and Clank 3.

[Ao Kiji]

persona 3 and dragon quest VIII.
guilty gear XX.

[roronoa3000]

God of War, God of War 2

[Gaiyae]

How could i've forgot God of War…

[vorlianis]

Well theres kingdom hearts (first still is the best to me) ratchet and clank series, GTA VC, first two GOWs, FFX and my absolute favorites are ironically enough the 2 last ones i bought. Being Persona 3 and 4, they showed me while square may have fucked up the JRPG genre aint just dead yet.

[Airflow]

Persona 3 and 4, Ico, Ratchet and Clank, Dynasty Warriors 3, Bully, Kingdom Hearts, Dragon Quest VIII off the top of my head.

Topic reminds me that I need to check out the MGS series some day.

[Selph]

@stephen:

Ico
Okami
Beyond Good & Evil
Rogue Galaxy
Kingdom Hearts (original only)
We Love Katamari
Ape Escape
Dragon Quest VIII
Tales of Destiny Director's Cut
Jak and Daxter (original only)
Simpsons Hit & Run
I'll give Psychonauts an honorable mention even though I really consider it more of an Xbox game.

I don't think I could stand to play anything on the PS2 that isn't on this list anymore.

Those games, and worth the mention is Final Fantasy X since it's the final fantastic game (XIII is OK)

The Grand Theft Auto series for PS2 were awesome, 3, Vice and SA.

Then there's god of war 1-2

I recall some two player godlyness in a game called War of the Monsters. Good times.

TEKKEN

That's it I guess

EDIT: Actually… what am I saying? Final Fantasy XIII SUCKS BALLS AND NOT ONE CUTSCENE IS WATCHABLE

[Manny]

Too many… don't want to make my brain explode.

[Maki707]

I really loved the timesplitters games….especially the second one ^^

[Conekiller]

Ratchet & Clank series, but 3 is superior until Crack in Time (but that's PS3)

[Lazzie]

Dragon Quest VIII, God of War II, Katamari Damacy, Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal, Devil May Cry 3, Shadow Hearts: Covenant, Tales of the Abyss, Okami are all great. Special awards below:

Best overall: Shadow of the Colossus
Lazzie put the most hours into: Disgaea: Hour of Darkness
Best multiplayer: Rock Band
Most underrated: Klonoa 2

Srsly, I have no idea why people don't LOVE Klonoa 2. That shit's fantastic.