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    The 25 Best PS2 Games Of All Time

    Sony’s PlayStation 2 established a library of high quality video games throughout its run, build up a set of software program that has stood the check of time. Whether you had been searching for simulation driving at its best possible, wildly imaginative journey video games, or thought-provoking journeys into thriller, the PS2 had all of it. We’re having a look again at the very best of the PS2 library, and throughout the console’s monumental gross sales and the sheer quantity of video games launched on it, we have narrowed the record all the way down to the 25 finest PS2 video games.More PlayStation finest listsRead on to find which PS2 classics made the lower (within the alphabetical order).Burnout 3Burnout 3While Criterion’s earlier Burnout video games had at all times skirted with turning your automotive right into a harmful wrecking ball, Burnout 3 was the sport that absolutely embraced a destruction derby taste. Crash Mode was the spotlight of this arcade racer, a drive down Road Rage Boulevard as you set the pedal to the metallic in an try to trigger as a lot collateral injury as potential when you reveled within the slow-motion carnage. Being an absolute menace was the driving drive behind Burnout 3’s success, with the remainder of the sport being racing bliss as you earned crashes and money throughout your grand tour.Read our Burnout 3 evaluate.Capcom vs. SNK 2Capcom vs. SNK 2Bringing collectively most of the hottest characters from Capcom’s and SNK’s preventing video games for a rematch, Capcom vs SNK 2 was among the best 2D preventing video games obtainable on PS2 through the early 2000s. The follow-up added extra characters, options, and refinements to the bundle, creating the definitive crossover of its time that noticed it turn into a cult basic within the years after it was launched.Read our Capcom vs SNK 2 evaluate.Devil May Cry 3Devil May Cry 3After a lackluster follow-up within the type of Devil May Cry 2, Capcom went again to the drafting board for Dante’s subsequent demon-slaying journey. The answer to reinvigorate the sequence? A prequel that charted the early days of Dante, a brand new antagonist within the type of his equivalent twin brother Vergil, and an arsenal of demonic instruments that could possibly be used to banish devilish foes again to the underworld. Devil May Cry 3 did not simply recapture the magic of the unique recreation; it simply surpassed it with blockbuster ranges of motion and a narrative that wasn’t brief on twists.Read our Devil May Cry 3 evaluate.Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed KingDragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed KingDragon Quest VIII felt just like the sum complete of each Dragon Quest that got here earlier than it: a lavish and epic journey for the ages. It was a role-playing recreation with an absurd quantity of content material, giving followers a continuing provide of enemies and facet quests to grind by way of. At a time when Japan’s finest RPGs had been producing groundbreaking and experimental work throughout the genre–look at Square’s Final Fantasy video games from that time–Dragon Quest VIII was staunchly conventional, by no means wavering from its path and sharpening the weather of its system that had made it so in style over time. A protected RPG to dive into, however one which exemplified the easiest of the style.Read our Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King evaluate.Final Fantasy XFinal Fantasy XThe unique PlayStation period of Final Fantasy video games had raised the bar for what the sequence was able to, and for its first mainline foray on the PS2, Final Fantasy X had some hefty expectations to satisfy. The RPG rose to the event, crafting a narrative that will have been extra mechanically linear when in comparison with earlier video games, however was loaded with spectacular visuals, satisfying turn-based motion, and full voice-acting for its predominant forged. An underappreciated gem of a recreation compared to different Final Fantasy titles, Final Fantasy X continues to be an emotional odyssey that is full of pure character chemistry, imaginative world-building, and an authorized banger of a tune in its soundtrack.Read our Final Fantasy X evaluate.God of War 2God of War 2How do you reside as much as and surpass a recreation that’s broadly hailed as among the best motion titles of all time? If you are God of War 2, you ship an Olympus-smashing journey that smooths out any tough spots from the unique, offers its predominant character a superb excuse to commit some extra deicide, and awe-inspiring environments to discover. God of War 2 delivered on these concepts, pushing the PS2 to the breaking level with its formidable gameplay, and giving the console the sendoff that it deserved because the PS3 period started gathering steam.Read our God of War 2 evaluate.Gran Turismo 4Gran Turismo 4Gran Turismo video games are just like the Halley’s Comet of online game releases: uncommon, they take some time to seem, and so they’re completely value observing after they do seem. The sequence’ fourth mainline entry, Gran Turismo 4 pulled out all of the stops for its arrival on PS2. With the style getting extra aggressive now that Forza Motorsport had arrived on Xbox, Gran Turismo’s shift into a better gear noticed it take first place with a recreation that contained a whole lot of vehicles, improved driving physics, and an expanded profession mode. B-spec mode launched some managerial enjoyable to the title, making it one of many definitive driving video games to personal on PS2.Read our Gran Turismo 4 evaluate.GTA San AndreasGTA San AndreasGrand Theft Auto video games within the PS2 period helped kind the inspiration for the fashionable period of sandbox titles, and after a tour of Liberty and Vice City, Rockstar video games had been prepared to boost the bar in GTA: San Andreas. A playground of gangland violence modeled after Los Angeles and Las Vegas, San Andreas was a leap ahead that added RPG parts to the GTA system. Players got the chance to create a model of protagonist CJ that mirrored their very own playstyle, whereas the sandbox was in peak digital situation for all of the chaos that could possibly be brought about within it. Every GTA recreation is a basic, however San Andreas stands tall as the very best of the bunch on PS2.Read our GTA San Andreas evaluate.Guitar Hero III: Legends of RockGuitar Hero III: Legends of RockThe 2000s had been an period of plastic instrument peripherals, and you’ll thank Guitar Hero for making everybody really feel like a rock-‘n-roll famous person. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater developer Neversoft dealt with growth duties on this title, crafting a recreation that retained the essential and accessible gameplay whereas including a brand new co-op profession mode and aggressive challenges for grand rock-offs in opposition to the legends of rock. The soundtrack was pure fireplace in fact, and mastering solo profession mode would unlock DragonForce’s “Through the Fire and Flames,” a cruel gauntlet of sick licks and heavy metallic riffs that few gamers had been prepared for.Read our Guitar Hero 3 evaluate.Jak IIJak IIJak and Daxter’s introduction on PS2 was a vibrant and energetic romp by way of alien worlds, and for the sequel, developer Naughty Dog seemed to show all the things that labored as much as 11. Bigger and extra formidable in design, Jak II’s foundational gameplay was enhanced by non-linear exploration, terrific voice-acting, and satisfying motion. The story had just a few twists up its sleeve, the graphical design made it a showcase title for the PS2, and a always rewarding gameplay loop saved followers coming again for extra.Read our Jak II evaluate.Kingdom HeartsKingdom HeartsKingdom Hearts is likely to be finest recognized for having an overarching plot that is denser than a white dwarf star with all of its numerous narrative threads, however again in 2002, the primary recreation was heralded for being an formidable merger of worlds. Throwing Disney’s best characters into worlds inhabited by heroes and villains from Square Enix’s Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts was effortlessly charming and boasted some stellar design with its excellent visuals. Future sequels and spin-offs might have additional polished its numerous concepts, however so far as first impressions go, the unique Kingdom Hearts was exhausting to beat.Read our Kingdom Hearts evaluate.Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max PayneMax Payne 2: The Fall of Max PayneThe unique Max Payne was a game-changer within the motion style, merging bullet-time gunplay with a hard-boiled detective story of revenge and tragedy. For its sequel, Remedy Entertainment dialed up the noir influences, environment, and motion that had been a spotlight of the primary recreation, sprucing these parts right into a gritty gangland story. An admittedly brief recreation, Max Payne 2 continues to be a trendy and cinematic expertise that gives blockbuster enjoyable from begin to end.Read our Max Payne 2 evaluate.Metal Gear Solid 3: SubsistenceMetal Gear Solid 3: SubsistenceWhile Metal Gear Solid 2 was a big leap ahead for the stealth and espionage sequence, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater took these developments and used them to craft a crafty prequel that put gamers within the footwear of a younger Big Boss. Codenamed Naked Snake, Metal Gear Solid 3 was a departure from the sequence’ conventions because it launched new camouflage, close-quarters fight, survival techniques, and harm gameplay mechanics to the franchise. Packed with a prolonged story and epic moments, Snake Eater’s Subsistence version is the definitive model of the prequel that irons out any lingering points whereas additionally including a formidable quantity of additional content material to the bundle.Read our Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence evaluate.OkamiOkami2006 was an amazing yr for the PS2, but it surely was Okami that helped shut the curtain on the PlayStation 2 with an unforgettable journey. While its core gameplay riffs on Nintendo’s Legend of Zelda series–complete with dungeons, boss fights, and puzzles–Okami was nonetheless very a lot a novel beast to play. On the floor, the cel-shaded aesthetic made Okami appear like a Japanese ink portray come to interactive life, however beneath that attractive veneer, there was a recreation that embraced the very concept of artwork, utilizing it to color a masterpiece of epic design.Read our Okami evaluate.Persona 4Persona 4Released on PS2 effectively after the PS3 had succeeded it, 2008’s Persona 4 hasn’t misplaced any of its magic over time. If you loved Persona 5, then Persona 4’s mixture of modern-day Japanese highschool drama, dungeons, and monsters that have to be taken down a peg goes to be an instantaneous dealmaker for you–especially if you add a prolonged murder-mystery story that drops plot twists in your head if you’re least anticipating it. One of the easiest Persona video games on the market, the excellent news is that you just will not want to trace down a PS2 console to play it, as its Persona 4 Golden version was ported to PC in 2020.Read our Persona 4 evaluate.Prince of Persia: The Sands of TimePrince of Persia: The Sands of TimeWhile a Prince of Persia reboot had popped up in 1999, it was Ubisoft that proved that it had the precise stuff for a contemporary tackle the enduring property. Embracing the third dimension, Prince of Persia was a groundbreaking fusion of parkour and time-bending magic that helped gamers survive quite a few deathtraps. Constantly difficult and full of exhilarating moments of triumph, Ubisoft’s first foray into the Prince of Persia sequence helped spawn a brand new franchise, one which’s due for a revival as quickly as the present remake of the 2003 basic lastly escapes from the event dungeon.Read our Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time evaluate.Ratchet and Clank: Up Your ArsenalRatchet and Clank: Up Your ArsenalNearly twenty years later, Ratchet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal continues to be broadly thought of to be one of many best possible entries within the sequence. That’s no small feat for the Insomniac-developed recreation, particularly if you consider 2021’s excellent Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart into the rankings, however Up Your Arsenal merely had the precise stuff again in 2004. The main gameplay pillars of the sequence felt higher than ever earlier than, the choice of weapons that Ratchet may wield in opposition to Dr. Nefarious made the motion always enjoyable, and the net multiplayer turned the sport into an all-time basic.Read our Ratchet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal evaluate.Resident Evil 4Resident Evil 4After the mainline video games had completely explored each nook of the Spencer Mansion and Raccoon City, Resident Evil 4 was a breath of contemporary air for the sequence. Transplanting the bioweapon horror of the sequence right into a Spanish village that was infested with a brand new breed of viral antagonists, Resident Evil 4 took a extra action-packed method however nonetheless had loads of terror to unleash on gamers with its assortment of spooky Los Illuminados enemies, atmospheric places, and a behind-the-scenes betrayal of Nintendo that makes for an enchanting story.Read our Resident Evil 4 evaluate.RezRezAn absolute mind-trip of a recreation from Tetsuya Mizuguchi and the group at United Game Artists, Rez had you hacking mainframes to the beat of the music and the movement of an on-rail shooter. Fighting again in opposition to hostile applications, studying the rhythm of a stage, and always upgrading your avatar as you labored your means up the digital meals chain made for a novel journey that was unusually cathartic as effectively.Read our Rez evaluate.Shadow of the ColossusShadow of the ColossusShadow of the Colossus was a novel and thought-provoking masterpiece of its time, arriving through the remaining days of the PS2 to definitively show that video video games could possibly be artwork. Using each model and substance, Shadow of the Colossus hooked followers with its distinctive design and wildly formidable idea of touring the land to slay greater than a dozen titans. The recreation felt even higher to play, tasking gamers with understanding methods for coping with every Colossi and augmenting these epic battles with a elegant soundtrack. A colossal problem that also managed to ship a big twist close to the top. A remake would arrive in 2018, however the unique recreation nonetheless stands as developer Team Ico’s most interesting hour.Read our Shadow of the Colossus evaluate.Silent Hill 2Silent Hill 2Silent Hill’s first sequel nonetheless stands as a masterpiece of terror, taking the concepts of the primary recreation and executing them on a grand scale. It’s unnerving, and a long time later, it nonetheless has a razor-sharp edge that’ll stick with you lengthy after you’ve got put a sweat-drenched DualShock controller down. A nightmarish journey full of abominable monsters, plot twists, and a number of endings, Silent Hill 2 by no means offers you an opportunity to catch your breath because it always retains you in your toes. Plus, what number of different video video games can lay declare to having the very best ending of all time?Read our Silent Hill 2 evaluate.Soulcalibur IISoulCalibur IISoulcalibur II’s best triumph was that it leveled the taking part in subject for each preventing recreation specialists and novices alike. Striking a stability that allowed for anybody to really feel like a grasp of the blade, the top outcome was a recreation that allowed for flashy combos, hard-hitting assaults, and a few of the finest sofa co-op you would have on Friday nights with your pals. Each character had a mode that made them a viable possibility for fight, the sport seemed like one million bucks, and even the story mode was value investing your time in, simply to see who would resist the candy temptations of a demonic sword that was thirsty for souls.SSX TrickySSX TrickyThe early 2000s had been the golden age of maximum sports activities video video games, and when it got here to the high quality artwork of snowboarding, EA’s SSX was in a category of its personal. 2001’s SSX Tricky refined the system of its predecessor whereas making a benchmark for all future titles to be judged in opposition to, delivering pure downhill pleasure and amplifying the expertise with just a few neat tips. It was adrenaline-charged leisure, each combo you pulled off was a slap within the face of gravity, and every observe was sensible to replay as you hunted for extras.Read our SSX Tricky evaluate.Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4An ignored chapter within the Tony Hawk sequence, Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4 was an earnest try by developer Neversoft to create a brand new basis for the franchise. Gone had been the two-minute runs that had shaped the principle template for THPS video games, with Neversoft opting to embrace a extra open-ended design the place time was in your facet. Career and Free Skate modes gave gamers time to discover the fantastically crafted phases, the introduction of backbone transfers made the gameplay smoother than ever, and avenue tips obtained a much-needed improve with new grinding and lip trick enhancements. All that, and it had a killer soundtrack that added a terrific environment.Read our Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 evaluate.Viewtiful JoeViewtiful JoeWhat occurs if you mix the facility of cinema with pure Japanese Tokusatsu motion? You get among the best beat-’em-ups of the 2000s, a love letter to the artwork of movie that is written with punches, kicks, and visible results powers. Viewtiful Joe’s difficult motion made it stand out, however the instruments that gamers had entry to made overcoming every impediment an absolute blast. From slowing down time to zooming in to ship highly effective haymakers, Joe’s Viewtiful Effects arsenal made every run by way of a number of episodes an Oscar contender. It additionally seemed nice because of some colourful cel-shading, and clearing the sport on a sure issue would even unlock Dante from Devil May Cry as a playable character.Read our Viewtiful Joe evaluate.

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