What are some good Xbox and PS2 games

The Game Room
1

I have a 360 and a PS2, and I have some points on goozex so I want to buy some used PS2 and Xbox games.

I really didn’t like the GTA series. Halo 3 is only soso. I got a lot of enjoyment out of Tom Clancy’s splinter cell series on Xbox, and I play his rainbow six and Ghost Recon games on PC. Hitman is also a fun game, but more on PC than on a console. Racing games don’t seem to do anything for me. On the PC, I enjoy things like team fortress or counterstrike, and I know there are probably some good multiplayer games on the 360 since I have a gold membership. I own Halo 3 but haven’t played online.

God of war is probably my favorite PS2 game though, of the dozen that I own.

Guitar hero is great, but I already have that.

So, does anyone have any ideas? I guess I’m looking into suggestions in strategy, simulation or role playing instead of action/adventure, which I normally play. Strategy games are actually a lot of fun and I have gotten alot of fun out of playing Civ2, Empire earth, warcraft 2 and Age of Empires on the PC.

So if anyone has any suggestions for Xbox or PS2 (or Xbox 360, but those are more expensive) that involve strategy, simulation or role playing that are good for a novice, or that are action/adventure and someone who likes games like TF, CS, hitman or the tom clancy games would like, feel free to post them.

I love being a guy.

2

Threads about games go in the Game Room, oddly enough.

twickster, Cafe Society moderator

3

Backward compatibility on the 360 is flaky (to put it mildly); a handful of games work well, a lot of games kind of work, and a significant pile don’t work at all. It’s easier to shell out the $30 for an original XBox. So I’m not going to offer any XBox suggestions.

So three PS2 games: for strategy Front Mission 4 is a decent tactical game, for role-playing the Persona games are hands down the best designed RPG’s to come out of Japan, and for action adventure you cannot beat Okami.

4

The best (and most difficult) PS2 game of all time is God Hand. This is not up for debate.

The second best PS2 game of all time is Okami.

Amazingly, they were both made by the same studio… before Capcom dissolved them. Thanks guys.

5

Most difficult? Perhaps. Best? Sorry but Katamari has that rolled up. :stuck_out_tongue:

6

Of the categories you cite, only role playing is what I would consider particularly strong in the console space, but I’ll do what I can. I also stipulate that I have really no idea what there was on the original Xbox, so any recs will be PS2 or 360.

Strategy:
Civilization Revolution is a 360 title. I haven’t played it, but it has generally gotten good marks. It’s also in line with some of the titles you mentioned having enjoyed on the PC.

Front Mission 4, already mentioned, is a PS2 title, and falls into the category generally referred to as “Strategy RPGs” - though “tactical RPGs” might be closer. Other entries in this genre include La Pucelle Tactics and the Disgaea series, the former of which I recommend, but not so much the latter. (YMMV).

Simulation:
Sad to say, I can’t really think of anything to put here. I’m sure there are some, but I’m drawing a blank. Maybe Ace Combat? I think there’s a 360 entry for that series.

Role Playing:
This category should be a little bit easier. The selection on the Ps2 is quite large and contains some strong offerings.

Persona 3 and Persona 4 - already mentioned, but extremely unique, well crafted, and engaging. The “daytime” gameplay is a turn off for some people, however, and some people find them a little “grindy” (I did not.)

Tales Of. Tales of the Abyss was bar-none my favorite PS2 RPG. It’s more “traditional” in style and scope than the Persona titles, but generally very well crafted. Some people find it too loady, but it didn’t bother me at all. It is definitely pushing the PS2 hardware a bit though. Tales of Vesperia is the shiny new 360 entry in the series. I didn’t like it as much as Abyss, mostly for story/character reasons, but it’s a fun play, and easier and cheaper to find than Abyss, which has apparently become something of a collector’s item (No copies on Gamestop, Amazon sells it for $93. o.o)

For a more ‘old school’ JRPG feeling, I really quite enjoyed Mana Khemia: Alchemists of Al-Revis.

I also quite enjoyed Star Ocean: Till the End of Time, but it has a plot twist about 2/3rds of the way through that puts a lot of people off it.

I personally would stay away from Dragon Quest 8: Journey of the Cursed King, which I did find to be too grindy. Gameplay here was just a bit TOO oldschool and reminded me a little too much of the original Dragon Warrior on the NES, which was an exercise in Masochism.

I’d also suggest avoiding Infinite Undiscovery, for the 360, as it seems, from my attempts to play it thus far, to be a mediocre action RPG.

Stuff you should check out anyway:

Katamari Damacy is generally just considered to be universally fun.

Okamiis just brilliant in too many ways to describe, and should not be missed.

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I’d say the very best game is Okami.

Play it.

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On the PS2, I loved Shadow of the Colossus, and I played a bit of Okami, which was interesting.

I second Katamari Damacy - deceptively simple concept that in execution is quite challenging. And pretty funny too.

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Blue Dragon on the 360 is a great RPG in the Final Fantasy tradition.

Unfortunately, it’s also very anime-y and has some very annoying dialogue.

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God Hand was definitely tricky, but I don’t get why so many people say it’s insanely difficult. I got through it with no problems. Then again, I’ve always been a Tekken fan and that fighting game has way more complex moves. Lei Wulong alone has like five different modes where the moves are entirely different.

I actually consider Ninja Gaiden to be a lot harder. It’s been five years and I still haven’t finished the damn thing. Granted, I didn’t have a console for a lot of that time, but still. I’m slowly making my way through it again on my 360.

Ace Combat 4 for the PS2 is awesome. The fighter planes are great and the missions are fun. The last mission actually involves a Star Wars-style trench run where you fly inside a freaking military base 3 times. The best part I think is the story, it’s really quite creative. Instead of telling the lead pilot’s story, it’s actually a letter from a child caught behind enemy lines to the main character, sent long after the war is over. The child becomes the mascot to the main enemy squadron, so you can actually see the aftermath of your missions and how your enemies are affected by your actions. When one of the story’s characters gets KIA, I ended up thinking, “Damn, I wonder which of those planes I shot down was her?” The story isn’t interactive or anything, it’s just very well told.

Oh yes, it takes place in a fictional world which happens to have the same war planes as here, so you can happily fly both Soviet and US planes and never have to think about Abu Ghraib, which always ends up happening to me when I see a game with the US military as protagonists. There’s also Ace Combat 6 for the 360 but I haven’t tried it so I don’t know how it is.

As for PS2 RPGs, I’ve always loved Chrono Cross. It’s really great if you’re into Japanese RPGs. The battles get kind of exhausting after a while (a common complaint with this genre), but I still kept at it just to see how the story would unfold. It’s really quite involving with fun little twists and turns.

For Xbox RPGs, I dunno. Maybe Morrowind, but I’m only basing that on my experience with the 360 sequel, Oblivion.

11

I really liked Tenchu : Wrath of Heaven, but then I was majorly hooked by the first two games on PS1, so I’m biased there. The second one (with only Ayame and the fox mask girl) wasn’t as good. As murder simulators go, it’s no Hitman, but sneaking about for that sweet, sweet stealth kill is great. If you like the Thief series on PC, you’ll like Tenchu.

Shadow of the Colossus is wonderful and unique, but dang short. Rent it for a WE, don’t buy it.

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I’m one of the small number of people for whom Shadow of the Colossus did nothing. I found the gameplay tedious and a little frustrating, and the “storytelling” limited and bland. The game was pretty, and had a few moments of awesome, but mostly I was bored. The whole motif of “go and do errands of questionable reason and morality for the bodiless voice of dubious intentions” thing worked well for a couple of interations, but eventually approached the point of “blah blah, the kid is doomed and stupid, why should I care?” after ten or twelve repetitions.

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On the PS2: Persona 3 and 4, Disgaea 1 and 2
On the XBox 360: Earth Defense Force 2017 (even though it’s an action game). This is the most fun multiplayer game (i.e. two people in the same room, not online) I’ve ever played.

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Oh yes, Chrono Cross was the best PSOne game, I think, and it ran really well on my PS2. You sould be aware, though, that the graphics and so forth are PS1 level, but very beautiful anyway.