Ah yes, the super chad of its console generation, tons of great games, dvd playback, and PS1 compatibility! What’s not to love about this legendary system?
What are your experiences with the PS2, what were your cherished games on the console?
Despite it being the weakest of its generation, you cannot deny they managed to craft some excellent games out of it with work arounds.
Back when it came out, it was so much better than everything else up to this point.
This, coupled with many games that started fanchises and/or were highly stylish and creative, and had new Equipment (GuitarHero, SingStar, EyeToy) make it the GOAT.
Jak & Daxter/Ratcher & Clank trilogy were goated. I know a lot of people throw around “they don’t make them like they used to anymore” but in term of those two franchises on the PS2, they really don’t.
As an aside, I picked up the newest Ratchet & Clank on PC and was disappointed. They tried making it so much more cinematic and story-focused with tons of scripted scenes. Also it lacked any of the satirical humor the original 3 had.
I could never get into the Ratchet and Clank games, except for Deadlocked which I know is generally disliked by fans. I was really into arena shooters at the time.
I’ve tried a bunch of the others and they are definitely good, but not my kind of game.
In terms of games, Kingdom Hearts and Guitar Hero were highlights of my childhood.
I thought the Dreamcast had the weakest technical specs of that generation? PS2 was also earlier than other consoles in that generation, so slightly lower specs makes sense.
Dreamcast was killed off so early and didn’t run alongside the others for most of the generation, so a lot of people consider it as more of an in-between system. Maybe not to someone who actually owned one, but given how poorly it sold the majority probably didn’t.
It has the weakest hardware of its generation. During those years you had the Sega Dreamcast, Microsoft Xbox and Nintendo Gamecube. All this consoles had a more powerful hardware than the Sony Playstation 2
And the PS2 was also reportedly the hardest to work with, especially early on in its life before the tools had matured. It proliferated purely on the install base (partly thanks to the DVD playback)
I still love the aesthetic a lot of PS2 games have, with smooth, bright textures instead of a lot of detail that gets stretched and blurry at low resolutions. The way metal surfaces look in MGS2 and Zone of the Enders is really nice.
But then there are games like Silent Hill 2 & 3 that use a lot of detail in the low resolution textures to create a grimy or rusted look. Those games really benefited from working within the limitations of the system, like the fog to reduce draw distance.
The PS2 was still being produced until PS4 was introduced, and its last game was released even after the production ended in 2013 (Nov 2013, but still…)
PS1 and PS2 were both masters of their generations. The OG Xbox was just really “Halo box” back then, and GameCube was awesome, but not as strong as PS2.
The GameCube was stronger than the ps2 it was just limited by the disc format. Compare Resident Evil 4 on the two. The GameCube version had hair physics for Leon and the cutscenes were rendered in real time, while they had to pre-render them on ps2 (which also made alternate costumes better on GameCube since Leon would wear them during cutscenes)
I played with my PS2 quite a lot when I was young, particularly because it had a much better version of a game I grew up with (NFS Hot Pursuit 2); it then introduced me to other games I quite liked, such as Test Drive Unlimited.
It sadly broke sometime around early 2018 because I didn’t take good care of it. Now I emulate it but still wish my console worked.
It’s more over-the-top and arcade-y. Things like volcanos exploding as you ride down the slopes and an indoor mall-like mountain in Tokyo with an air-lift you use to do laps. Note that it’s not free-ride, so there are pluses and minuses to it.
Same here. I find it isn’t powerful enough for a lot of modern PC games unless you drop the settings, but it’s amazing for retro and emulation. I’m living in 2004 again.
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The PS2 is the best Sony system to me.
Back when it came out, it was so much better than everything else up to this point.
This, coupled with many games that started fanchises and/or were highly stylish and creative, and had new Equipment (GuitarHero, SingStar, EyeToy) make it the GOAT.
Jak & Daxter/Ratcher & Clank trilogy were goated. I know a lot of people throw around “they don’t make them like they used to anymore” but in term of those two franchises on the PS2, they really don’t.
As an aside, I picked up the newest Ratchet & Clank on PC and was disappointed. They tried making it so much more cinematic and story-focused with tons of scripted scenes. Also it lacked any of the satirical humor the original 3 had.
I could never get into the Ratchet and Clank games, except for Deadlocked which I know is generally disliked by fans. I was really into arena shooters at the time.
I’ve tried a bunch of the others and they are definitely good, but not my kind of game.
In terms of games, Kingdom Hearts and Guitar Hero were highlights of my childhood.
I thought the Dreamcast had the weakest technical specs of that generation? PS2 was also earlier than other consoles in that generation, so slightly lower specs makes sense.
Guitar hero for me was a 360 thing. I’ve always wanted to go back and try out the PS2 ones though, just not had the hardware.
Dreamcast was killed off so early and didn’t run alongside the others for most of the generation, so a lot of people consider it as more of an in-between system. Maybe not to someone who actually owned one, but given how poorly it sold the majority probably didn’t.
Huh?
It has the weakest hardware of its generation. During those years you had the Sega Dreamcast, Microsoft Xbox and Nintendo Gamecube. All this consoles had a more powerful hardware than the Sony Playstation 2
And the PS2 was also reportedly the hardest to work with, especially early on in its life before the tools had matured. It proliferated purely on the install base (partly thanks to the DVD playback)
I still love the aesthetic a lot of PS2 games have, with smooth, bright textures instead of a lot of detail that gets stretched and blurry at low resolutions. The way metal surfaces look in MGS2 and Zone of the Enders is really nice.
But then there are games like Silent Hill 2 & 3 that use a lot of detail in the low resolution textures to create a grimy or rusted look. Those games really benefited from working within the limitations of the system, like the fog to reduce draw distance.
Ackshually…………
The PS2 was still being produced until PS4 was introduced, and its last game was released even after the production ended in 2013 (Nov 2013, but still…)
PS1 and PS2 were both masters of their generations. The OG Xbox was just really “Halo box” back then, and GameCube was awesome, but not as strong as PS2.
OG Xbox had JSRF too though and it’s stuck there. Never had a re-release
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Ackshually…
The GameCube was stronger than the ps2 it was just limited by the disc format. Compare Resident Evil 4 on the two. The GameCube version had hair physics for Leon and the cutscenes were rendered in real time, while they had to pre-render them on ps2 (which also made alternate costumes better on GameCube since Leon would wear them during cutscenes)
Hardware power wise it was the least capable machine. Library wise, it dominated.
I didn’t own a PS2 until about 2006 when I lived with my girlfriend (now wife!) but even then it was replaced with an Xbox 360 the next year.
I’m a Dreamcast and GameCube kid and I do love the PS1 but just haven’t got any nostalgia for PS2.
I played with my PS2 quite a lot when I was young, particularly because it had a much better version of a game I grew up with (NFS Hot Pursuit 2); it then introduced me to other games I quite liked, such as Test Drive Unlimited.
It sadly broke sometime around early 2018 because I didn’t take good care of it. Now I emulate it but still wish my console worked.
Mine died after 10 years because I played the thing to death. At that point I went and got the PS2 slim and love that thing even more
SSX Tricky will forever hold a special place in my heart.
I never played Tricky but love SSX3 and On Tour. A lot of people fondly talk about Tricky, so is there anything about it that the later games lack?
It’s more over-the-top and arcade-y. Things like volcanos exploding as you ride down the slopes and an indoor mall-like mountain in Tokyo with an air-lift you use to do laps. Note that it’s not free-ride, so there are pluses and minuses to it.
My brother used to be able to get like 2,000,000 points with Mac at Tokyo Megaplex. That course was the best for tricks!
Kingdom Hearts I & 2, Final Fantasy X, Jak trilogy, the Ratchet games, GTA 3D trilogy. So many games I still go back to this day.
Persona 3 and 4 I found out at the back end of the PS3 era and dusted off my PS2 just play them as well.
Bought a Steam Deck, first thing I did was put a PS2 emulator on it. Loving every second.
Same here. I find it isn’t powerful enough for a lot of modern PC games unless you drop the settings, but it’s amazing for retro and emulation. I’m living in 2004 again.
I can’t help but hear this post in John Linneman voice.
DF Retro is so good.
Burnout 3, Midnight Club 3, and NFS Underground 2 were the best games to play on PS2. Such nostalgia.
I still have my slim PS2 and Magic Swap discs. It had the best library of that era IMO.
Bought a PS 2, Gran Turismo 4 and the GT4 Logitech steering wheel and pedals when I graduated college.
Just dug it all out to show my 6 year old how fun driving can be. Looked better than I expected even with component cables.