Support NeoGAF

[DracoBlade]

^nice haul! if you've really never played Katamari i say start there, some gems there but man, The Thing is this really interesting (and sometimes mean) little game, interested to see what you end of thinking of it.

I've played maybe 30 minutes of Katamri wayyyy back at a buds house but I remember how ludicrously unique it was lol. I'm surprised to hear The Thing (as a licensed game from a movie in the 80s) actually might have some promise. Will give you my opinon once I test it out.


Also all I've heard about Taiko is that its batshit crazy, does it actually require drums to play?

 

[MidgarBlowedUp]

Thanks for the advice. Sounds like I'll be buying a new PS2 and component cables soon

Xploder HDTV Player if you can find it really cheap and you have a few games that work with it. I think it comes with a set of component cables.

I use it for SH3, MGS3, FFXII and a few other games, but I also have a CRT so mileage may vary on other display types. Just use the 480p option to force the actual frame buffer, don't bother up-scaling it's awful. It can force some games to be 4:3 480p that were 480i 16:9.

 

[warheat1990]

Went to GameStop today, didn't expect anything PS2 to be there...

Spoiler

(CAUTION SHITTY PIC QUALITY!)

Longest receipt I've gotten at GS

Spoiler

$25. Worth it.

Nothing mind blowing but was surprised to find a few of these:

TOTAL HAUL:
Onimusha: War Lords
Onimusha 2
Onimusha 3
Obscure: Aftermath
Rampage Total Destruction
Jaws Unleashed
Samurai Legend: Musashi
Soul Reaver 2
Maximo
Dark Cloud
Inuyasha: The Secret of the Cursed Mask
The Thing
Capcom Classics Collection Volume 2
War of the Monsters
Destroy All Humans!
Katamari Damacy
Mark of Kri
Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus
Bloodrayne
Romance of the Three Kingdoms: IX
The Bouncer
Full Metal Alchemist and the Broken Angel
Godzilla: Save the Earth

and

Taiko DRUM MASTER

------
I literally have no foreknowledge about 95% of these games. Help me out GAF, which ones are good, which should I pop into the disc tray first?

Open to trades by the way if you been looking for some of these!

Play Dark Cloud

 

[Fezan]

Went to GameStop today, didn't expect anything PS2 to be there...

Play the thing. loved it way back

 

[Protag]

Should i go for a ps2 slim? How good and reliable are they?

 

[Fezan]

Should i go for a ps2 slim? How good and reliable are they?

mine worked for 7 years after which i gave it to my cousin he still plays on it

 

[Protag]

mine worked for 7 years after which i gave it to my cousin he still plays on it

Damn, that says a lot.

So it doesnt have overheating issues?

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

Should i go for a ps2 slim? How good and reliable are they?

PS2 Slim is great. The system is stupidly tiny, doesn't have a power brick of any sort, doesn't have reliability issues, and doesn't make much noise. The only issue is that it has compatibility issues with a select few games, both on the PS2 and PS1. The silver system, for whatever reason, has a few more issues than the black one. The list of incompatible PS2 games is:

ATV Offroad Fury 3 (Compatible with bugs)
Big Mutha Truckers
Big Mutha Truckers 2
ESPN NBA 2K5
Everquest Online Adventures: Frontiers
Formula One 2001 (video game)
Formula One 2002 (video game)
Fight Night Round 2
Final Fantasy XI (Requires the PlayStation 2 Hard Disk Drive)
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Jungle Storm
Jak X: Combat Racing (Compatible with bugs)
Major League Baseball 2K5
Street Racing Syndicate
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005
Ty the Tasmanian Tiger 3: Night of the Quinkan


So basically, nothing you would want to play.

That aside, it's definitely the version of the PS2 to get.

 

[Yuterald]

I've used GSM quite a bit, but I've only really tinkered around with 720/1080 and I know with those resolutions that if you can find a game it works with, it's beautiful. I should actually go back and try out some stuff with 480.

Also, props on the white slim. That was the slim I originally bought when my phat died on me the first time and it's beautiful.



Seriously. So much nostalgia.



I've never had a chance to play it, so I'm excited about dicking around with it for a little bit. I've been looking for Wizardry forever so I'll probably try that out too once I get around to ripping it to my HDD.

This came in the mail yesterday!

#332 - Tsugunai: Atonement

So, I was wondering if anyone here could give me some recommendations for some PS2 games that I'm missing in my collection. I only have a Backloggery list with my games, so I totally understand if no one wants to go through that, but if anyone does, feel free to recommend any niche games that I might be missing. My collection is really Japan-heavy, so I'm mainly looking for any quirky stuff that might have fallen through the cracks, but if there's a cool Western game that I'm missing out on, feel free to recommend those, too.

Right now, my want list looks like:

Disaster Report
Chulip
Graffiti Kingdom
Culdcept

Disaster Report...so much nostalgia. Love that series. Irem...=*<(

Tsugunai: Atonement is so under-core. Game's got a fairly interesting/cool battle system. It's also practically comprised of lost Chrono Cross tunes. Secret best Mitsuda album. Love that game.

Speaking of Mitsuda, he also did the music for Graffiti Kingdom. There's some decent gems hidden in that little guy. I played the balls out of that game for some reason (unlocked/maxed out/found everything in that game, lol!)

 

[Zhao_Yun]

I literally have no foreknowledge about 95% of these games. Help me out GAF, which ones are good, which should I pop into the disc tray first?

Open to trades by the way if you been looking for some of these!

The Onimusha games are great. Too bad Capcom abandoned that series.

 

[saveweyard]

These just came in:

Popped in Phantom Brave as I had no idea what to expect, and I'm already intrigued by the movement system. Terrain seems like it is super important.

 

[DJ Gunner]

Xploder HDTV Player if you can find it really cheap and you have a few games that work with it. I think it comes with a set of component cables.

I use it for SH3, MGS3, FFXII and a few other games, but I also have a CRT so mileage may vary on other display types. Just use the 480p option to force the actual frame buffer, don't bother up-scaling it's awful. It can force some games to be 4:3 480p that were 480i 16:9.

I have one of these! I actually found my first game that won't work with it yesterday; DMC3. I never actually made it to the gameplay to test, because every single menu was horked.

 

[Rhysser]

Xploder HDTV Player if you can find it really cheap and you have a few games that work with it. I think it comes with a set of component cables.

I use it for SH3, MGS3, FFXII and a few other games, but I also have a CRT so mileage may vary on other display types. Just use the 480p option to force the actual frame buffer, don't bother up-scaling it's awful. It can force some games to be 4:3 480p that were 480i 16:9.

Sorry I'm a bit confused. What is the point of this if not to upscale things?

 

[ascii42]

Sorry I'm a bit confused. What is the point of this if not to upscale things?

For games that don't natively output progressive (which is the majority of PS2 games), even 480p is an improvement.

 

[Rhysser]

For games that don't natively output progressive (which is the majority of PS2 games), even 480p is an improvement.

Ah I see, thanks.

 

[Orniletter]

I "overlooked"

Spoiler

haha, I know

the PS2 back in the day, I only had a GameCube through the 6th generation.

I´m now playing the classics, Silent Hill 2 right now....what a fantastic game !

I heard great things about Shadow Hearts: Covenant too, so that will be next.

 

[DracoBlade]

The Onimusha games are great. Too bad Capcom abandones that series.

I tried Onimusha last night.....WHERE HAS THIS BEEN ALL MY LIFE! It's much more than "Resident Evil in Fuedal Japan" love the pre-rendered backgrounds, hold up to today over a decade later. The combat system is satisfying/character mobility is intuitive and fluid if a bit limited due to d-pad control but still much less tank than any classic RE. All in all I genuinely think I'm going to play thru Onimusha now, I'm a sucker for Samuari tales too.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

I tried Onimusha last night.....WHERE HAS THIS BEEN ALL MY LIFE! It's much more than "Resident Evil in Fuedal Japan" love the pre-rendered backgrounds, hold up to today over a decade later. The combat system is satisfying/character mobility is intuitive and fluid if a bit limited due to d-pad control but still much less tank than any classic RE. All in all I genuinely think I'm going to play thru Onimusha now, I'm a sucker for Samuari tales too.

Yeah, Onimusha series kicks ass. The first one is my favorite, but two and three are also excellent.

I absolutely hated the 4th one, because I played the busted US version of the game. I need to import the (entirely in English) Japanese version, because apparently, that version was a lot better. Capcom pulled a DMC3 and seriously broke the difficulty in the domestic release of Dawn of Dreams. In addition to doing way more damage, enemies took a lot more hits to kill. Boss fights took like 15 minutes, it was ridiculous.

 

[Count of Monte Sawed-Off]

I tried Onimusha last night.....WHERE HAS THIS BEEN ALL MY LIFE! It's much more than "Resident Evil in Fuedal Japan" love the pre-rendered backgrounds, hold up to today over a decade later. The combat system is satisfying/character mobility is intuitive and fluid if a bit limited due to d-pad control but still much less tank than any classic RE. All in all I genuinely think I'm going to play thru Onimusha now, I'm a sucker for Samuari tales too.

The second one is really good too, and it features the Japanese John Cusack. And for that matter the 3rd one is also good fun, if a bit different from the first two.

 

[DracoBlade]

Yeah, Onimusha series kicks ass. The first one is my favorite, but two and three are also excellent.

I absolutely hated the 4th one, because I played the busted US version of the game. I need to import the (entirely in English) Japanese version, because apparently, that version was a lot better. Capcom pulled a DMC3 and seriously broke the difficulty in the domestic release of Dawn of Dreams. In addition to doing way more damage, enemies took a lot more hits to kill. Boss fights took like 15 minutes, it was ridiculous.

The second one is really good too, and it features the Japanese John Cusack. And for that matter the 3rd one is also good fun, if a bit different from the first two.

Good to know. Looks like I made a wise decision picking up the series then! Have alot of gaming to do!


Tried out The Thing, really surprised how actually competent the game is. The AI trust facet of the game really supports the Movie's tension between characters angle. Pretty cool game!


SO far Katamari has been my stand out surprise alongside Onimusha. Its so bewildering and exotic I adore its charm! THE MUSIC IS BRILLIANT!

 

[sixteen-bit]

Yeah, I absolutely adore the Katamari Damacy soundtrack.

 

[Zhao_Yun]

I absolutely hated the 4th one, because I played the busted US version of the game. I need to import the (entirely in English) Japanese version, because apparently, that version was a lot better. Capcom pulled a DMC3 and seriously broke the difficulty in the domestic release of Dawn of Dreams. In addition to doing way more damage, enemies took a lot more hits to kill. Boss fights took like 15 minutes, it was ridiculous.

I didn't know that the Japanese version of Onimusha 4 included English language options. Will try to import as well then!

 

[vicoakland]

Quick plug for Romancing Saga if you like escapism. Just play it. It's not that serious a game, no need to hype it at all, or take it too seriously.

Just put the disc in, play it how you want to, think a little bit, avoid a few encounters (smart move!) complete a few quests, recruit some party members...and enjoy it.

While we're at it. Play Maximo Ghosts to Glory...and pretend it's a shmup. Once you make the connection between Maximo and R-Type (where the good players keep all their power ups and lives by memorizing the levels...and just keep building from there) it's actually fun and you can kind of enjoy it for the difficulty instead of hating it, you know, for the difficulty.

 

[Douche McBaggins The 3rd]

Should i go for a ps2 slim? How good and reliable are they?

Three years from now, this post will be quoted again. However, it will say "Should I go for an Xbox 360? How good and reliable are they?"

And we will all sit down and laugh in unison as the sounds of a billion red rings waft in the wind and millions of drives grind out in anguish while scratching discs. It will tear at their games and the box will destroy like one hand, one heart and one soul.

 

[sixteen-bit]

I didn't know that the Japanese version of Onimusha 4 included English language options. Will try to import as well then!

I have noticed that lots of Capcom games in that era are dubbed in English, even the Japanese versions.

 

[koopas]

Three years from now, this post will be quoted again. However, it will say "Should I go for an Xbox 360? How good and reliable are they?"

And we will all sit down and laugh in unison as the sounds of a billion red rings waft in the wind and millions of drives grind out in anguish while scratching discs. It will tear at their games and the box will destroy like one hand, one heart and one soul.

Not to mention three years from now if you plan on playing 360 games, the question won't be "should I go for an xbox 360" it will be "which 360 should I go for"?

Not really a whole lot of options regarding playing 360 games considering the Bone's stance on BC. And pc emulators for 360 seem like they are years away (we don't even have og xbox emulators yet).

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

I have noticed that lots of Capcom games in that era are dubbed in English, even the Japanese versions.

In the case of Onimusha 4, it also has a language option for the text, so it's basically just the US version with fixed gameplay.

 

[Douche McBaggins The 3rd]

Not to mention three years from now if you plan on playing 360 games, the question won't be "should I go for an xbox 360" it will be "which 360 should I go for"?

Not really a whole lot of options regarding playing 360 games considering the Bone's stance on BC. And pc emulators for 360 seem like they are years away (we don't even have og xbox emulators yet).

My answer for that will be this

Do you want to mod it but have it most likely fail? Get a Xenos/Zephyr/Falcon

Do you want something resembling reliability and is probably the most reliable of the bunch, but will still probably eventually fail on you? Get a Jasper

Want something that looks buttfuck ugly, but is a touch more reliable? Get the 360 slim

Want something that's that's even less reliable than previous iterations and still looks ugly? Get the 360 Slim S.

Do you want to play weird otaku games?

 

[The Bankslammer]

Also all I've heard about Taiko is that its batshit crazy, does it actually require drums to play?

All versions of Taiko will let you use a controller with the face buttons being equivalent to the inner portion of the drum and the shoulder buttons being the rim. In fact, for some of the handheld versions it's the only way to play, and it's still plenty of fun like that. For the full experience, getting the PS2 drum is actually surprisingly cheap. The game can still be bought new for $30 or less, so I'm sure used drums for cheap are easy to find. Plus it's compatible with the Japanese PS2 games, if you don't find the US version's song list satisfactory (but it does have Katamari on the Rocks!)

 

[Young Magus]

Got a JP PS2 Slim picked up Suikoden III, KOF: MI and VF4.

Anything I should look for regarding JP only games? Already have Tales of Destiny DC, Beserk and FF XII: International on my radar.

 

[Lee Chaolan]

I've been playing the hell out of my PS2 lately.

Why?

Resident Evil Outbreak Files 1 and 2 are back online!

 

[vicoakland]

Got a JP PS2 Slim picked up Suikoden III, KOF: MI and VF4.

Anything I should look for regarding JP only games? Already have Tales of Destiny DC, Beserk and FF XII: International on my radar.

Garou: Mark of the Wolves

Also: KOF Unlimited Match. Sengoku Basara 2 Heroes, and Psyvariar 2

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

Got a JP PS2 Slim picked up Suikoden III, KOF: MI and VF4.

Anything I should look for regarding JP only games? Already have Tales of Destiny DC, Beserk and FF XII: International on my radar.

There are a bunch of games to get from JP Land, but I'd recommend skipping Berserk. It's pretty clunky and not very fun. I was pretty disappointed, as someone who likes both the Dreamcast game and the anime/manga.

 

[Riesenfass]

I'm traveling, and happen to be in a city whose gamestop still has PS2 games.

Pickings were slim, but managed to get Champions of Norrath (already have a copy, will be gifting this to my brother in law), Summoner 2, Gauntlet Seven Sorrows, and Star Wars Jedi Starfighter. Cost less than $9 after tax for all 4. I feel like I did ok - all of the titles I really wanted were out of stock, but for anyone on the fence out there... there are still some good games around if you get the chance.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Got a JP PS2 Slim picked up Suikoden III, KOF: MI and VF4.

Anything I should look for regarding JP only games? Already have Tales of Destiny DC, Beserk and FF XII: International on my radar.

Earth Defense Force 2
Another Century's Episode 3 if you like mecha games

 

[DracoBlade]

All versions of Taiko will let you use a controller with the face buttons being equivalent to the inner portion of the drum and the shoulder buttons being the rim. In fact, for some of the handheld versions it's the only way to play, and it's still plenty of fun like that. For the full experience, getting the PS2 drum is actually surprisingly cheap. The game can still be bought new for $30 or less, so I'm sure used drums for cheap are easy to find. Plus it's compatible with the Japanese PS2 games, if you don't find the US version's song list satisfactory (but it does have Katamari on the Rocks!)

Cool thanks for letting me know, will give impressions asap.

 

[Fox Mulder]

I'm traveling, and happen to be in a city whose gamestop still has PS2 games.

Pickings were slim, but managed to get Champions of Norrath (already have a copy, will be gifting this to my brother in law), Summoner 2, Gauntlet Seven Sorrows, and Star Wars Jedi Starfighter. Cost less than $9 after tax for all 4. I feel like I did ok - all of the titles I really wanted were out of stock, but for anyone on the fence out there... there are still some good games around if you get the chance.

there's one gamestop around here that still sells them, but they only have 10,000 versions of guitar hero at this point. A store in my state had stuff like Robot Alchemic Drive, but I didn't want to drive 4 hours each way for it. They wouldn't ship a $2 game, even if I offered to pay like $20 for it.

 

[finalflame]

Just got these babies today. FFXII was a trade, and the two Harvest Moons + Innocent Life are building blocks in my Harvest Moon collection.

Can't wait to play em on my SNES/PS2 shrine:

 

[Loxley]

A massive thanks to koopas for his advice on the last page for my component cable issue, solution worked like a charm!

 

[koopas]

A massive thanks to koopas for his advice on the last page for my component cable issue, solution worked like a charm!

Awesome!

 

[Drago]

Shiiit, just decided to go on eBay on a whim and bam, I found someone selling a complete and in good condition copy of Gitaroo Man for $24. Score! I have very rarely seen complete copies go for less than $40 on average.

One of the games I was most interested in picking up for the new PS2, I am really happy right now. 4 games in the collection now!

Spoiler

oh god I've barely scratched the surface

 

[The Bankslammer]

Shiiit, just decided to go on eBay on a whim and bam, I found someone selling a complete and in good condition copy of Gitaroo Man for $24. Score! I have very rarely seen complete copies go for less than $40 on average.

One of the games I was most interested in picking up for the new PS2, I am really happy right now. 4 games in the collection now!

Spoiler

oh god I've barely scratched the surface

i hear that's a good game

also that's a good price

 

[Drago]

i hear that's a good game

 

[kick51]

whoa....i played about 10 minutes of ChainDive and promptly ordered it along with swapmagic discs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3eZSq_YRZI

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

whoa....i played about 10 minutes of ChainDive and promptly ordered it along with swapmagic discs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3eZSq_YRZI

Holy FUCK, dude. I've never even heard of this, and I'm aware of pretty much every PS2 import out there. This looks incredible.

 

[kick51]

Holy FUCK, dude. I've never even heard of this, and I'm aware of pretty much every PS2 import out there. This looks incredible.

$20 on ebay, there are more copies. do it!


i'm just gonna listen to this classy OST till it gets here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBbKs_3iAAc&list=PL30DF98FC12A402BD&index=1

 

[doctorcdcs]

$20 on ebay, there are more copies. do it!

silly question, but any chance of english options in the game?

 

[kick51]

silly question, but any chance of english options in the game?

not that I see, story is in japanese. controls + gameplay concepts seem easy to grasp--it's a 2.5D time/combo attack game.

with lots of diving and chaining

 

[Surfaced]

Surprised this hasn't been posted yet.

 

[Vincent Alexander]

^Damn, PS2 had a good season then!