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PS2 Appreciation & Celebration Thread, long live the King!

Haiiro Husky said:
Anyone have a game or games in their collection that they'd never part with under any circumstances whether it is due to value or sentimental reasons? As in, the crown jewel of your PS2 collection?

I'd say mine is REZ. I know it isn't rare and I think that the dreamcast version is the best version, but I just love popping in the disc and shooting around for an hour or so. Feeling the trance through my hands and zoning out!
Click to expand...

Probably Dark Alliance 2... when it was new, I was a broke college kid who couldn't afford new games. The price has stayed pretty high over the years, but I bit the bullet and bought a complete copy at a retro store. Good game, it improves on the original in a few ways like with weapon crafting.
 
Fafalada said:
You quoted the answer yourself:

GSM overrides display register settings of the GS - Ie. there is no "deinterlacing/upscaling" to speak of - for games that render ~480 internally, that's exactly what you'll get, others will be something lower-res (so you're actually getting a downgrade from standard output of the same game).
Click to expand...

I'm actually trying really hard to parse through what this means. If there's no upscalling at all, how does GSM get to 720p and 1080i or 480p for starters without either upscale trickery or increasing the native res of the game? I mean there's some contradictions here. The very quote that I used that says the program uses upscaling is now the same one you're telling me that it doesn't. It seems that what you say is that it does change the native res? But that seems to contradict the quote...

I'm so confused.
 
sixteen-bit said:
IMO the PS2 version is better because it's 60 fps and supports the trance vibrator. DC version was 30 fps.

Best version period would be Rez HD though.

My game I wouldn't part with is probably Katamari Damacy, funny enough. I loved it when it came out and it's still probably my favorite PS2 exclusive. That soundtrack is too good as well.
Click to expand...

Wow the DC version is only 30fps? Didn't know that but I'm glad my preferred version at least isn't the worst one.

And I totally agree on Katamari Damacy! That is my number 2 right behind REZ, that soundtrack is top!
 
Haiiro Husky said:
Anyone have a game or games in their collection that they'd never part with under any circumstances whether it is due to value or sentimental reasons? As in, the crown jewel of your PS2 collection?

I'd say mine is REZ. I know it isn't rare and I think that the dreamcast version is the best version, but I just love popping in the disc and shooting around for an hour or so. Feeling the trance through my hands and zoning out!
Click to expand...

Definitely SMT Nocturne.
 
Finally sinking into SMT Digital Devil Saga. Some of these early dungeons take a while.

Haiiro Husky said:
Anyone have a game or games in their collection that they'd never part with under any circumstances whether it is due to value or sentimental reasons? As in, the crown jewel of your PS2 collection?

I'd say mine is REZ. I know it isn't rare and I think that the dreamcast version is the best version, but I just love popping in the disc and shooting around for an hour or so. Feeling the trance through my hands and zoning out!
Click to expand...

Even if I quit video games forever, I'll keep my PS2 as a Persona 3 FES TV adaptor.
 
Tidus_Great said:
How many ps2 games all you brahs have? I'm up to 147 myself :) THere are always some great PS2 games to be had.

always wanted to try Rule of Rose but the price is pretty steep
Click to expand...

I'm now up to about 410... (95% PAL)

Currently on the lookout for reasonably priced Blood Will Tell, Sword of Etheria, Mana Khemia 2, Alter Code F and a few others.
 
Tidus_Great said:
How many ps2 games all you brahs have? I'm up to 147 myself :)
Click to expand...

I'm closing in on 650 now; about 350 in cases and 300 loose in a CD booklet. The GameStop 75% off sale helped to really bolster my library.

I don't mind loose games, honestly. I know some folks really don't like them, but as long as they play? I'm good.
 
My favorite PS2-game is probably MGS2, so I guess it would be that, even though there are definitely more replayable games on the system.
 
One underrated game on the system is Primal. The combat wasn't stellar, but the atmosphere, music and the story were decent. Plus Scree was an awesome character.
 
Boguester said:
Interesting to hear that because Klonoa 1 is the all-time classic for me, while K2 is really excellent but not on the same level. K1 is so pure and direct in its gameplay and level progression, it captures a special magic for me. K2 has extremely high highs diluted by missteps like the overdone snowboard levels and overuse of repeating levels under new conditions. I just recently beat Klonoa: Empire of Dreams when it was put on the Wii U GBA VC. It was nice, but more of a puzzle game than platformer and not in the same quality conversation as K1 and 2.

Anyone looking for brilliant and timeless platformers should check them both out, and Klonoa 1 is especially easy to find on PSN.
Click to expand...
I love the original as well, of course, but I found the sequel to be more imaginative and full of more interesting levels. They're both classics, though, no doubt.

The GBA games were fun but definitely not the same quality. They're just puzzle platformers. I also have the Wonderswan game which is what the GBA games were based off of.
 
radaxian said:
I'm now up to about 410... (95% PAL)

Currently on the lookout for reasonably priced Blood Will Tell, Sword of Etheria, Mana Khemia 2, Alter Code F and a few others.
Click to expand...
How are PAL releases, by the way? Aren't most games limited to PAL50 with huge borders and poor performance? Did they do many 60 Hz releases?
 
Haiiro Husky said:
I'd say mine is REZ. I know it isn't rare and I think that the dreamcast version is the best version, but I just love popping in the disc and shooting around for an hour or so. Feeling the trance through my hands and zoning out!
Click to expand...

A few people like the DC version because they think the sound is better (and the DC sound chip does have more channels to work with), but the PS2 has the "rezonator".
 
I was looking through a pile at a local flea market a few weeks ago. In a pile of loose burned discs, I happened to find a beat to hell copy of Rule of Rose. It was so bad off, I almost didn't buy it. When he told me he'd take a dollar for it though, I changed my mind.

I took it home and let my local retro shop work on it. He resurfaced it and while there are still some very noticeable scratches, the game now plays fine. The more I read about it, the more I'm not sure if this is something I want to play. I guess my question is, is it worth my time? Thanks!
 
Just bought King's Field IV after reading the glowing hardcore gaming review.

Man, the PS2 has so many interesting games.

I haven't played a single FromSoftware game aside from Dark Souls, but it will be interesting to see their ealier (less polished ?) roots.
 
Finally picked up Fifa14 for PS2. Ebay has a couple of the "rarer" hard to find NSTC-US copies. I believe these were only released in Latin America. From what I hear with it being the legacy edition, not much has changed over the past couple of years in terms of gameplay but it does include an updated roster and soundtrack. It's my first Fifa game on the system so It's a welcome edition to my catalog.

UQZSp3J.jpg


Oh and even though the package is all in Spanish, you can select English from the start of the game!
 
Riesenfass said:
Probably Dark Alliance 2... when it was new, I was a broke college kid who couldn't afford new games. The price has stayed pretty high over the years, but I bit the bullet and bought a complete copy at a retro store. Good game, it improves on the original in a few ways like with weapon crafting.
Click to expand...

A new complete copy for $45. Should I bite on that one?
 
I feel I should also mention that Champions of Norrath is a better "sequel" to Dark Alliance and is quite a bit cheaper and easier to find.
 
So Dark Alliance 1 and 2 and Champions of Norrath 1 and 2, are these the only games of this genre worth getting on ps2? I can't recall any other
 
Riesenfass said:
I feel I should also mention that Champions of Norrath is a better "sequel" to Dark Alliance and is quite a bit cheaper and easier to find.
Click to expand...

You can edit your posts you know, rather than triple-posting. :P

Tambini said:
So Dark Alliance 1 and 2 and Champions of Norrath 1 and 2, are these the only games of this genre worth getting on ps2? I can't recall any other
Click to expand...

The Bard's Tale is on the same engine and is more of a parody of the genre, but still quite good. The ones you mentioned are the best though, I spent a hell of a lot of hours playing DA1 and 2 with my friends.
 
Orniletter said:
Just bought King's Field IV after reading the glowing hardcore gaming review.

I haven't played a single FromSoftware game aside from Dark Souls, but it will be interesting to see their ealier (less polished ?) roots.
Click to expand...

I just beat King's Field IV: Ancient City last week and was absolutely blown away. I'm a huge fan of all three Souls games but otherwise hadn't played any FromSoft titles. I was initially only interested in KF from the historical perspective but it ended up far exceeding my expectations.

The control, especially turning speed is extremely slow. The running speed is still slow but not too bad and was necessary to allow for in-game loading and no loading screens (like Dark Souls). I would recommend remapping the movement buttons to the D-pad (forward, backward and strafe) and face buttons (look/camera movement) to mimic dual analog sticks, with magic on L1, attack R1, and run/interact as R2. It's surprisingly palatable once you get a feel for it.

I absolutely fell in love with the atmosphere and tone of the world they created. The music fits perfectly, the 1st person perspective really sucks you in, and the world and level design were first rate. The world design is a brilliant combination of Dark Soul 1's verticality and DS2's hub and spokes. You can go off exploring for hours through multiple new areas and then suddenly open a shortcut back to an earlier area, that same WOW moment from Dark Souls. It's also remarkable how well the feeling of Souls combat is already expressed here, the rhythm of stamina management and spacing yourself relative to the enemy. It's also crazy how many specific characters and areas were essentially reused in the Souls games.

I didn't find it very challenging and finished a totally blind playthrough in 25 hours but was absolutely engrossed the entire time. It revived that sense of mystery and exploration that was lost in the simpler level designs of Dark Souls 2. I would give it the strongest possible recommendation for any big Souls fan who doesn't get hung up on graphics and can adjust to the slow character speed. You might just fall in love like I did...
 
Boguester said:
I just beat King's Field IV: Ancient City last week and was absolutely blown away. I'm a huge fan of all three Souls games but otherwise hadn't played any FromSoft titles. I was initially only interested in KF from the historical perspective but it ended up far exceeding my expectations.

The control, especially turning speed is extremely slow. The running speed is still slow but not too bad and was necessary to allow for in-game loading and no loading screens (like Dark Souls). I would recommend remapping the movement buttons to the D-pad (forward, backward and strafe) and face buttons (look/camera movement) to mimic dual analog sticks, with magic on L1, attack R1, and run/interact as R2. It's surprisingly palatable once you get a feel for it.

I absolutely fell in love with the atmosphere and tone of the world they created. The music fits perfectly, the 1st person perspective really sucks you in, and the world and level design were first rate. The world design is a brilliant combination of Dark Soul 1's verticality and DS2's hub and spokes. You can go off exploring for hours through multiple new areas and then suddenly open a shortcut back to an earlier area, that same WOW moment from Dark Souls. It's also remarkable how well the feeling of Souls combat is already expressed here, the rhythm of stamina management and spacing yourself relative to the enemy. It's also crazy how many specific characters and areas were essentially reused in the Souls games.

I didn't find it very challenging and finished a totally blind playthrough in 25 hours but was absolutely engrossed the entire time. It revived that sense of mystery and exploration that was lost in the simpler level designs of Dark Souls 2. I would give it the strongest possible recommendation for any big Souls fan who doesn't get hung up on graphics and can adjust to the slow character speed. You might just fall in love like I did...
Click to expand...

Sounds like a cool game. One to add to the list.
 
I always loved Ace Combat 4 Shattered Skies. Never played Unsung war or Belkan War. How good are they? If I had to chose between the two, which one?
 
We had a good 4 player round of Culdcept the other night. First time I've used the multitap in seven years of ownership; took a while to find the box it was stashed in.
 
Gusy said:
I always loved Ace Combat 4 Shattered Skies. Never played Unsung war or Belkan War. How good are they? If I had to chose between the two, which one?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure which one is better, but all three Ace Combat games on the PS2 get a "hell yeah"

Dr. Black Jack said:
We had a good 4 player round of Culdcept the other night. First time I've used the multitap in seven years of ownership; took a while to find the box it was stashed in.
Click to expand...

I've been trying to buy a multitap for a few months, but I haven't found any of them in the area.
 
If anyone wants a copy of King's Field IV and doesn't mind a disc only copy, message me and I'll hook you up with a free extra copy that I've got.
 
pikablu said:
Finally picked up Fifa14 for PS2. Ebay has a couple of the "rarer" hard to find NSTC-US copies. I believe these were only released in Latin America. From what I hear with it being the legacy edition, not much has changed over the past couple of years in terms of gameplay but it does include an updated roster and soundtrack. It's my first Fifa game on the system so It's a welcome edition to my catalog.

UQZSp3J.jpg


Oh and even though the package is all in Spanish, you can select English from the start of the game!
Click to expand...

Nice. I picked up PES 2013 last year thinking it would be the last PS2 game. I guess it's still the last one released in the US. From what I can tell, FIFA 14 and PES 2014 are tied for the last PS2 game now. I may consider picking FIFA 14 up, but not for the $25 that it seems to be going for.
 
Dr. Black Jack said:
We had a good 4 player round of Culdcept the other night. First time I've used the multitap in seven years of ownership; took a while to find the box it was stashed in.
Click to expand...

PS2 Multitap gatherings is something I miss from that era. The game that we used the multitap the most was Twisted Metal: Black. 4 player split screen was so great, especially in the suburbs level. Pro Evo 4 player sessions were also fun.
 
Haiiro Husky said:
Anyone have a game or games in their collection that they'd never part with under any circumstances whether it is due to value or sentimental reasons? As in, the crown jewel of your PS2 collection?

I'd say mine is REZ. I know it isn't rare and I think that the dreamcast version is the best version, but I just love popping in the disc and shooting around for an hour or so. Feeling the trance through my hands and zoning out!
Click to expand...

Katamari Damacy, no question. We Love Katamari would probably be second.
 
dark10x said:
How are PAL releases, by the way? Aren't most games limited to PAL50 with huge borders and poor performance? Did they do many 60 Hz releases?
Click to expand...

It's a complete mix with PAL, very dependant on publisher. Lots of games are full screen PAL converted and don't have borders but some games simply play slower by 1/6 because of the slower refresh rate. There are lots of 60Hz games, particularly later in the life of the console, and by the big publishers.

I'm not sure what the PS2 actually does regarding internal rendering resolutions. Not sure if developers just render at whatever they can manage and then the video encoder will scale the output to standard PAL/NTSC?

Output signal wise I think that:

Analogue PAL is 625 lines / 50Hz but 49 lines are blank (originally used to allow cathode ray time to do vertical retrace for next frame) hence pal is 576i.

Analogue NTSC is 525 lines / 60 Hz with similar situation going down to 480i.

PAL60 is where a signal has the NTSC 525 lines / 60Hz setup but using the PAL color space.

Then here is some info specific to the PS2.

It says that the PS2 didn't support PAL60, so I guess the PS2 switches to output pure standard NTSC video when you select 60 Hz mode in PAL games?

(for reference the Xbox360 for example calls its 60 Hz output in the dashboard PAL60)
 
Ruruja said:
60 at the moment, but it's growing fast. Do you have a nice list of your collection anywhere?
Click to expand...

007 Everything or Nothing
Ace Combat 4
Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits
Baldurs Gate Dark Alliance
Beyond Good and Evil
Black
Blood Omen 2
Bully
Call of Duty Finest Hour
Castlevania Lament of Innocence
Clock Tower 3
Contra Shattered Soldier
Dark Cloud 2
Deus Ex The Conspiracy
Devil May Cry
Devil May Cry 2
Devil May Cry 3
Devil May Cry 3 SE
Digital Devil Saga 1
Digital Devil Saga 2
Dragon Quest 8
Drakan The Ancients Gate
Drakengard
Dynasty Warriors 4
Echo Night Beyond
Enter the Matrix
Fatal Frame 2
Final Fantasy 12 Collectors Edition
Final Fantasy Collectors Edition Hong Kong versions (FFX and FFX-2)
Final Fantasy X Black Label
Final Fantasy X Greatest Hits
Final Fantasy X-2
Final Fantasy X International
Final Fantasy 7 Dirge of Cerberus
God of War
God of War 2
Gradius 5
Grandia 2
Grandia 3
Grand Theft Auto 3
Grand Theft Auto San Andreas
Grand Theft Auto Vice City
Gran Turismo 3
Gran Turismo 4
Hack GU volume 1
Hack GU volume 2
Hack GU Volume 3
Half Life
Haunting Ground
Hitman 2
Hot Shots Golf 3 (no case)
Indigo Prophecy
Intellivision Lives (no case)
Jak 2
Jak 3
Jak and Daxter the precursor legacy
Katamari Damacy
Killer 7
Killswitch
Killzone
Kingdom Hearts
Kingdom Hearts 2
Legacy of Kain Defiance
Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring
Lord of the Rings The Two Towers
Lords of the Rings Return of the King
Lord of the Rings The Third age
Madden 2003
Mafia
Manhunt
Max payne
Medal of Honor Frontline
Mega Man anniversary Collection
Mega Man X Collection
Mercenaries
Metal Gear Solid 2 Sons of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid 2 Substance
Metal Gear Solid 3 Snake Eater
Metal Gear Solid 3 Subsistence
Metal Slug Anthology
Minority Report (no case)
MLB the show 2008
NBA live 2004
NBA Live 2005
NBA street (no case)
Odin Sphere
Okami
Onimusha 1
Onimusha 2
Onimusha 3
Persona 3 FES Collectors edition
Persona 4
Prince of persia SOT
Radiata Stories
Ratchet and Clank
Ratchet and Clank Going Commando
Ratchet and Clank: Up your arsenal
Ratchet and Clank Deadlocked
Resident Evil 4
Resident Evil Code Veronica
Rogue Galaxy
RPG Maker 3
Rygar
Shadow Hearts
Shadow Hearts Covenant
Shadow Hearts FTNW
Shadow of the Colossus
Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne
Silent Hill 2
Silent Hill 3
Siren
Sly Cooper 1
Socom 3
Socom Navy Seals (no case)
Sonic Mega Collection Plus
Soul Reaver 2
Spiderman
Star Ocean 3
Star Wars Episode 3
Star Wars Battlefront
Street Fighter Anniversary Collection
Stuntman
Suikoden 3
Suikoden 5
Tales of the Abyss
The Document of MGS2
The Getaway
The Matrix: Path of Neo
The Suffering
The Thing
Tiger Woods PGA tour 08
Time Crisis 2
Time Splitters 2
Valkyrie Profile 2
Viewtiful Joe
Wild Arms 3
X-Men Legends
X-Men Legends 2
Xenosaga Episode 1
Xenosaga Episode 2
Xenosaga Episode 3
XIII
Yakuza
Yakuza 2
Ys The ark of Napishtim
Zone of The Enders
Zone of The Enders The 2nd Runner

Any suggestions for my next games? :) almost up to 150
 
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