[chadbang]

I'm getting a PS2 for xmas. I've never had one before and I'm looking for game recommendations. The only kinds of games I don't like are ones that require too much time spent finding magic keys or trying for days to open doors - I just get bored with that. Also, any recommended games for little kids (age five and under). Thanks!

PS I once played this really fun James Bond game at an old friend's house. I remember that it started on a tall bridge somewhere -- you shot your way into this compound and down a tunnel to finally escape by plane. Then there was some part where you ran around in the snow at night from hut to hut. I forget what game it was. I'd certainly like to get that one. Anyone know it?

 

[minya]

Get Katamari Damacy. It's only $20 and I guarantee you (and everyone else in your family) will love it.

Also get Burnout 3: Takedown. It's the most fun "racing" game you'll ever play.

Also, don't forget Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

- Chris

 

[GokieKS]

IGNPSX made a list Top 25 PlayStation (One) Games, and while I may not agree with all of them, it's a good place to start.

PS2 recommendations:

Devil May Cry - Quite possibly one of the "coolest" games ever made, it oozes style. Not perfect or an easy game by any stretch of imagination, it's nevertheless a blast.

SSX/SSX: Tricky/SSX3 - Even if you don't like snowboarding, this game is great - pure fun. Tricky, a "SSX 1.5" of sorts, is a slightly updated version of the original that was released at launch years ago, and is probably still what I consider the best game on the console.

Metal Gear Solid 2 - If you've played the original (and you should if you haven't, BTW), you'll want to play this.

Xenosaga - If you like console RPGs, this is your best bet on the PS2. I personally disliked FFX tremendously... and the others just aren't quite as good.

ICO - An adventure with an action quotient of just about zero, this game is a bit of a cult favorite... and I can definitely say it's one of the best games I've ever played. If one were to describe the game, it'd probably be as "you're this kid who's dragging along a princess while the two of you are trying to escape a ephereal castle"... doesn't sound all that exciting, but the gameplay is amazing. And considering you should be able to get it for less than $20, you *MUST* give it a try.

Kingdom Hearts - Square and Disney. Would be perfect for the kids, except it's pretty long, and not all that easy to play...

Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec - It's not really a racing game, it's a car game. If you're into automobiles, this is as good as it gets (until GT4 comes along, anyway).

REZ (was OOP, supposedly to be re-released) - a music/shooter game of sorts, you really need to play it to understand the game. Liking or at least being able to stand electronic music is helpful.

That's about it that comes to mind at the moment...

As for James Bond games, there's been a ton... GoldenEye on the Nintendo 64 is probably *STILL* the most famous, but EA's recent ones (Nightfire, Agent Under Fire, Everything or Nothing) have been pretty decent as well.

~KS

 

[Elec]

The Ratchet & Clank series of games are great (and the first two are now available at $20 each). Kind of action/platformer style games, but they're cute, funny, and fun to play. If you like the kind of game where you have many large and improbable guns to blow up alien slugs with, you'll like these.

I also have to recommend Final Fantasy X. It's easily one of the best RPGs ever made. It's a long and invovled game, but not quite as tedious as the keys and doors you mention. It's very story-oriented, but mostly linear and moves you along at a decent pace. There is, of course, a plethora of hidden things and side quests to keep you busy, if you're a completionist. All important text is spoken and the game has a very cinematic quality to it. It's probably the closest thing you can find to playing a movie or good fantasy novel. This one is also a $20 greatest hits collection game.

I can only vouch for the Xbox version of Burnout 3, but it is a terrific game if you like more action-y arcade style racing. It has a few different racing modes for variety, and the gameplay can really get you pumped up. The cars seem very fast and there are a lot of near misses as well as crashes (quite often on purpose!). I also highly recommend Gran Turismo 3, if you want a more realistic racing simulation game. It's hard, but amazing, and includes many real cars and tracks. Yet another $20 greatest hits (really if you go to the store and look at the $20 greatest hits collection games, you won't go wrong with many of them). Or wait another week or so and pick up the brand spanking new Gran Turismo 4. I haven't played it obviously, since it's not out yet, but I assume it can only be better than the last one.

edit: Gah, forgot to plug Amplitude! It's a music/rhythm game...really not much out there which is similar. You use the controller to play beats for various tracks (drums, guitar, bass, vocals, synths) on a song (maybe one you know, maybe not) with all kinds of colorful psychadelic junk going on in the background. I'll warn you that some people think this game is stupid or simply don't get it, but it can be very fun and addicting. If you're musical or play an instrument, you're probably more likely to get into this one.

 

[roadtonowhere08]

I will always be a Twisted Metal fan at heart. TMII gave me so many good memories. Try renting TM Black or the old PS1 game, Twisted Metal II. Ah, the memories...

 

[null]

Don't forget Onimusha: Warlords and Onimusha 2. Also you can pick up all of the GTA3 games in the series (original, Vice City, SA). If you like fighting games with depth, try Virtua Fighter 4. Soul Calibur 2 is pretty good as well.

 

[saint.panda]

My all-time favourites are Final Fantasy VII and Metal Gear Solid I on the original Playstation. Maybe it was the circumstances surrounding these games but there was just something special about them. Especially Final Fantasy VII exerted a certain atmospehre that is hard to describe. It was the only game where I felt sad about parting with the characters after finishing the game. However, the magic was gone afterwards, I couldn't play it twice somehow.
Technically speaking, both of these games are relatively straight-forward and porobably not up to date with modern games in terms of graphics, sound,effects and non-linearity.
But then again, I also think that Zelda for the Snes was the best game ever.

 

[GoRedwings19]

Metal gear solid 1 and final fantasy 10, Also gran turismo 3 a-spec. Also the wwf games are good for a laugh when you have a few friends over.

 

[null]

Hey saint.panda, I felt exactly the same way about FF VII that you did. It had a certain atmosphere and I also felt sad after finishing the game. You almost grow attached to the characters and enter their world. You're right, it does lose the magic the second time around. BTW, I still think FF VII has some of the most beautiful and touching music of the whole series IMHO.

Quote:

Originally Posted by saint.panda My all-time favourites are Final Fantasy VII and Metal Gear Solid I on the original Playstation. Maybe it was the circumstances surrounding these games but there was just something special about them. Especially Final Fantasy VII exerted a certain atmospehre that is hard to describe. It was the only game where I felt sad about parting with the characters after finishing the game. However, the magic was gone afterwards, I couldn't play it twice somehow. Technically speaking, both of these games are relatively straight-forward and porobably not up to date with modern games in terms of graphics, sound,effects and non-linearity. But then again, I also think that Zelda for the Snes was the best game ever.

 

[RYCeT]

The only games I played on my ps2 right now is Tenchu3. If you like that James bond's game, you'll like tenchu. It's old school, no guns. Your character is a ninja. You gotta to finish each mission undetected by the enemy if possible. The stealth kills is addictive.
I'll also recommend
GTA3 series.
Winning Eleven ------- if you are a soccer fans
Ace combat -------- for flight simulator game
Dynasty Warriors ------- Nothing beats slash them all game for stress reliever

 

[ooheadsoo]

Tekken 4 finally got put out on greatest hits so that should be a must if you want a good ps2 fighting game. Took them over 2 years to put it on greatest hits. Virtua fighter went on greatest hits in about 2 months. Pissed me off how I paid full price for a game I didn't really like. I takes good opponents to fully realize either game. Virtua fighter is a lot less technically oriented than Tekken as far as timing goes. Soul Calibur is also great but again, playing against the computer is no good. I haven't seen a computer that does mixup and wake up games convincingly yet. You'll have the most fun with these games if you can find a local arcade with active players and then use the console version to practice.

 

[noir]

about ps2 games...
i don't really know, i don't like mine that much.

Only memorable games i played would be ICO, Suikoden3, Xenosaga (altho i can't finish it because i started hating the Dub), then Star Ocean3 (again, dub issues).
Kingdom Hearts wasn't my thing.

Well, the only reason to get a PS2 is imo its backwards compatibility with the PS1... if you're the slightest bit into console rpgs, its the way to go ^^:
Xenogears, Chrono Gross, Lunars, Grandia1, valkyrie profile, vagrant story, the wonderful castlevania games, arc the lad, ff tactics... too many games to mention ^^

 

[noir]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ooheadsoo Tekken 4 finally got put out on greatest hits so that should be a must if you want a good ps2 fighting game. Took them over 2 years to put it on greatest hits. Virtua fighter went on greatest hits in about 2 months. Pissed me off how I paid full price for a game I didn't really like. I takes good opponents to fully realize either game. Virtua fighter is a lot less technically oriented than Tekken as far as timing goes. Soul Calibur is also great but again, playing against the computer is no good. I haven't seen a computer that does mixup and wake up games convincingly yet. You'll have the most fun with these games if you can find a local arcade with active players and then use the console version to practice.

thats why i do lots of soul calibur 1 (dreamcast) training... to prepare against the night-long epic battles when swiss or french friends visit me... i know they have trained lots as well. As for tekken4, i disliked it, for me its just a 2d fighting game done in polygons... 3d concepts like strafing are just not present enough. As for soul calibur, it lives by circling around the enemy at the right distance, and of guard impacts, which i like very much

 

[dhwilkin]

Quote:

ooheadsoo said... Virtua fighter is a lot less technically oriented than Tekken as far as timing goes.

I would disagree w/ this. High-level fighting in either game requires a good deal of timing (depending on which character you're using). Certain defensive techniques in VF, like triple throw escape + evasion, require much more precise timing and quick hands than anything in any other 3D fighting game. VF is definitely less newbie-friendly than Tekken, I wouldn't recommend it for somebody new to fighting games or not looking to seriously get into fighting games.

For fighting games, get Soul Calibur 2. Don't get Tekken 4... instead, wait for Tekken 5 (which is supposed to be out Q1 2005), it'll be worth it. For RPGs, Final Fantasy X is good, Xenosaga will probably bore you (though I liked it well enough), but the best by far (IMO) is Grandia II... simply amazing. If you like horror games, definitely get Fatal Frame 2. Silent Hill 2 would also be good.

 

[edisonmach]

We have gamers here too? This really is a cool site. I could'nt spare a breath without my PS2 and my favs are Tekken 4,GTA SA,and Snake Eyes.