PS5 is doing well and Switch 2 is off to a great start. It's a good console generation to get excited about gaming, but with all the advances in the modern age, there are still some who miss the heyday of the PS2. From platformers to shooters to RPGs, there was something there for everyone.
Most of the major titles still hold up today on the original hardware and look and play even better with remasters. For some franchisees, the PS2 is where they peak. While these games may have had sequels past this generation, they haven't hit as hard. Some games aren't even considered the best of all time, but generally have great ideas that no one can deny are genius.
Def Jam: Fight For NY
Hip-hop wrestling
Def Jam: Fight for NY is the second game in the series, and it improves on everything that made the original great. The idea was a new one in the early 2000s: pitting rap stars against each other in a wrestling ring to the beat of hip-hop. There were more fighters, better mechanics and, best of all, more music to groove to in this sequel. There was another sequel, but it didn't do well, and now fans just want a decent port of this classic or for another company to attempt a hip-hop wrestling reboot.
Shadow Of The Colossus
A difficult game to describe
Shadow Of The Colossus is a consistent work of art as a standalone game. It's been remastered and remade, and each time it is, a new generation gets a chance to examine why this has remained an untouched classic.
The plot is mysterious with little story, and all players know to do is to explore a large world, find giants and kill them in the hope that this process will revive their loved one. It's beautiful, horrible, and a little trashy on PS2, but it's still one of the most unique boss-focused experiences, and no one has been able to replicate it yet.
Max Payne
A gritty crime thriller
There are plenty of noir police thrillers on TV and in movies, though Max Payne stands out in the gaming world. The titular hero narrates the entire game as he blasts his way through gangsters and corrupt cops who helped stage the murder of his family. Filled with bullets and pills, Max is on a journey of self-destruction.
He's not a hero, he's just a dad trying to get revenge one last time through stylish action before the angels carry him to heaven. The two sequels are good, although they didn't hit as hard as the original, but maybe the upcoming remake can revive Max Payne franchise.
Dark Clouds 2
Level-5 at their best
Dark Clouds 2 is level-5 at the height of their creativity, which is wild since this was early in their career. It is the second and final game in the series, which has upgraded so many mechanics to make it more convincing as an indirect sequel. It can be boiled down to an action RPG with two switchable protagonists, but there is so much more to it. There are randomized dungeons, city building mechanics, time travel, invention quests, monster transformations, weapon evolutions and so much more. Anyone interested can enjoy a stripped down version on PS4 and PS5.
X-Men Legends 2: Rise Of Apocalypse
Mutant Academy
X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse is the second game in the series, following the plot of the original. Players can form teams of four when entering dungeons, and the dungeons replicate Diablo-like action combat. Classic villains and heroes will team up to stop Apocalypse, and it's one of the best X-Men stories told in a game to date.
There were three spiritual sequels via Marvel: Ultimate Alliance games, which are also fun action RPGs. But the two X-Men Legends games, especially X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypseare better balanced between gameplay and story.
James Bond: All or Nothing
An original Bond story that hit
GoldenEye 007 widely considered one of the best Bond game ever, but it was based on a movie. There aren't many original games, so James Bond: All or Nothing had a bit of an edge, and EA went all out to make it a blockbuster game just like the movies.
It featured Pierce Brosnan, Judi Dench, Willem Dafoe and more. It even had a banger theme song “Everything or Nothing” by Mya, which also appeared in the game. Maybe in 2026 007 First light can finally outclass James Bond: All or Nothingbut right now Bond fans are waiting for a remaster.
Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly
Pictures of you
Resident Evil 4 is probably the best horror game on the PS2, and the one played by the most fans. But true horror fans know that Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly is superior in several ways, one of which is the central scare factor.
It is a disturbing Japanese story about young teenagers who get lost among old homes filled with ghosts. To fight them, players can use a camera to capture the ghosts' souls. The sequels were never as scary as this second game. There was a quick Wii remake in 2012, but fans are more excited about the big upcoming remake in 2026.
.hack//Infection
Four games in about a year is impressive
.hack//Infection is part of one of the most ambitious projects on PS2 and beyond. It is the first game in a quadrology about players investigating a fake MMO they are playing. Through action-based gameplay, players will search for clues as to why the game is causing some players to fall into a coma in the real world.
Between 2003 and 2004, all four games were released in North America, tied together by saves. There were accompanying anime and novels to tie things together like a big media blitz. Fans who were part of this movement know exactly how special this time in gaming was, and how it helped CyberConnect2 gain notoriety.
