# Recommend me one PS2 game **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 18, 2002, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630 "2002-12-18T19:41:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/1 "2002-12-18T19:41:56Z")
I bought **The Getaway** , and once the novelty of driving past bits of London I travel through daily wore off, I decided I really didn’t like it. I plan to exchange it if I can, but I’m not sure what for, since I can be quite picky. I have the two PS2 **GTA** games and love them to bits. I quite enjoyed **Hitman 2** and **Medal of Honour**. I don’t really go for “plain” driving games, sports games (since I don’t have a second controller for two-player action) or swords-n-sorcery epics. What can you recommend? I tend to like games with freedom to roam; violence is always good after a hard day at work, preferably with large firearms. Strategy is another favourite, but obviously not ideal for a PS2. The only vague ideas I’ve had are **Timesplitters 2** (but looks a bit cartoon-y), **Red Faction 2** (but I’ve heard it doesn’t have a life beyond the storyline missions, i.e. not much repeat value) and **Half Life** (don’t know much about). Ideally I want something as enjoyable as **Halo** on the X-box. Ideas? ---
**Author:** ![smam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/46a35a/32.png) [@smam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smam)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/2 "2002-12-18T19:43:14Z")
Silenthill2 MGS2 that is all ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/3 "2002-12-18T19:46:12Z")
D’oh, should mention I already had **MGS2**. The other one looks interesting but I spook easily! ---
**Author:** ![Avalonian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@Avalonian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avalonian)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/4 "2002-12-18T19:48:15Z")
“ **Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers** ” A friend of mine has this one, and I considered buying the system just for that game. Stunning graphics and awesome combat. ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/5 "2002-12-18T19:49:40Z")
I’m not sure that’s out here yet, but I’ll take a look. ---
**Author:** ![ElwoodCuse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/edb3f5/32.png) [@ElwoodCuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElwoodCuse)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/6 "2002-12-18T20:14:36Z")
You lucky bastard! The Getaway doesn’t come out in the US for a couple weeks yet. Although your assessment does echo what I’ve heard from gaming sites. Half Life is a good shooter, and should be pretty cheap by now (it’s been out a while). SOCOM, maybe? I’ve heard that’s a good game, even if you don’t play it online. I’ve also heard good things about Timesplitters 2. MGS2 is also a good suggestion for the price–it’s short, but it is a great game and (in the US anyway) costs only $20. ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/7 "2002-12-18T20:21:43Z")
**The Getaway** in a nutshell: very dark and gritty plot (hope you like swearing!); excellent degree of realism; fun to see real shops, landmarks and vehicles in a game; wide range of missions and characters. Down side: very poor out-of-vehicle controls; nightmarish difficulty level; lack of side and rear views when driving; realistic car performance usually means realistically slow, awkward vehicles; nightmarish difficulty level; long cut scenes that can’t be skipped; lack of a free roaming mode until you’ve completed the game, which has a… nightmarish difficulty level! I liked the style of MGS2, but not the tedious cut-scenes, messy plot and lack of “free roaming”. I like mission-based games within a less time-pressured framework - I prefer games I can complete at my leisure, rather than with a clock ticking constantly. ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/8 "2002-12-18T20:57:00Z")
If I ever have to recommend **one** PS2 game to anyone, it’s **Ico**. Stunningly beautiful game, with streamlined gameplay that’s perfectly integrated into the story. But if may be too “slow” or puzzle-based for someone who’s just looking for action. So that leaves **Devil May Cry** , which is so laughably over-the-top Japanese gothic horror/action that it’s hard not to find it interesting at the least. And using a pistol in each hand to juggle zombie puppets in the air while the screen yells “Bravo!” is one of the most satisfying things in any game. It’s as if they translated a wacky mid-80’s Hong Kong fantasy action movie directly into a videogame. > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Crusoe_ > Ideally I want something as enjoyable as Halo on the X-box. > … > I like mission-based games within a less time-pressured framework - I prefer games I can complete at my leisure, rather than with a clock ticking constantly. Sounds to me like **Half-Life** is the ticket. I’ve only played the PC version, not the PS2, but the PC version pretty much redefined the first-person shooter to actually have genuine content. And _Halo_ is more or less the direct “spiritual successor” to _Half-Life_, from the format right down to the presentation (e.g., chapter titles at each way point). ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/9 "2002-12-18T21:48:46Z")
Cheers for the suggestions. A quick trip to the shops is in order on Friday morning! ---
**Author:** ![Vanyel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@Vanyel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vanyel)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2002, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/10 "2002-12-18T23:57:38Z")
**Final Fantasy X** enough said ---
**Author:** ![bernse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2002, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/11 "2002-12-19T00:16:47Z")
The obvious one that comes to my mind is **Vice City**. Feel free to roam and create mahem to your hearts content. Gran Turismo 3 is still a great auto racing game, too. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2002, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/12 "2002-12-19T00:18:46Z")
**BloodRayne**. It’s superficially similar to Tomb Raider, but the main character is a vampire with big knives who swears like a sailor and violently kills everything. It’s actually a really good game. ---
**Author:** ![Vanyel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@Vanyel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vanyel)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2002, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-me-one-ps2-game/143630/13 "2002-12-19T00:23:57Z")
**Soul Reaver 2** isn’t bad, to add another vampire game, but I enjoyed the first **Soul Reaver** , even though it’s for PSX