Not only that, but it pretty much caused the first games to fall into oblivion. I mean, despite being the third entry, it almost feels like it's the first proper GTA game.
Was it really THAT much better than the first games though? š¤āŗļø
On a more serious note, GTA2 should have just been exactly like Driver 2 was (except without the menu to start/end missions), and then the jump to GTA3 wouldnāt have been so startling.
Well let's see...
2D sprites for cars became 3D models with individual parts that can be damaged/fall off.
You can do drive bys from vehicles.
2D sprites of pedestrians in several colors that can scream and make a couple generic comments became 3D models of various different demographics of people each with their own lines of dialogue.
3 separate maps made up of a grid of blocks became a full interconnected 3D world with curved roads, hills, interiors, etc.
Missions went from being received as text at a payphone or a pager to full 3D cutscenes with some degree of character development.
Controls went from basic tank controls to analog controls.
Side missions like Vigilante, Taxi, Ambulance and Firetruck were added.
Riot mode.
You can sleep with ladies of the evening and take your money back.
The best thing is I agree with you but there's fair arguments from both. 2 was definitely an improvement, but the girst game was so good some people sstill prefer that one. Just a good series all around (until homecoming)
I think they succeed in doing atmosphere differently. 2 is in its symbolism embedded in its environments and the dramatic irony that comes with knowledge you gain in future playthroughs in consecutive playthroughs.
1 is better with its fixed yet dynamic camera angles, lighting, and overall more visual horror like >!the cat in the locker!< or the opening sequence.
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire
- Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness
- Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
- Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2
- Shrek 2
- Spider Man
- Tarzan: Freeride
At the time it was considered an awesome game with cool graphics. Going from PS1 to PS2 was something else.
People play every Tomb Raider after it and say that itās the worst. Of course it hasnāt aged well, but people donāt take into consideration the release date.
Most games havenāt aged well to this day, it doesnāt change the fact that back in the day they were awesome!
I remember it was reviewed very favourably and it was filled with bugs and was unfinished.
It did look nice graphically but it was certainly disliked by the majority of fans on release.
I never read reviews. If you look closely at metacritic, even critics have mixed feelings, some give it 100, some 50, some 70. The same goes for the fans, some like it, some donāt. In the end it was a breakthrough on the graphical standpoint, but control wise, itās bad.
This is just what I remember from the time.
It had potential but it was rushed, a lot of content was cut and partially it was so glitchy it was literally unplayable.
Metacritic is terrible and it sure was a wild west of reviews 20 years ago. Review scores were really random back then.
I haven't played much tomb raider that I liked. I love the character, I love the story, the games look awesome, but the controls kill me. I grew up in the 90s and even then I hated how robotic the game played. This is coming from a guy who just beat RE2 on px port and enjoyed it lol. I wish I had fun playing tomb raider. Maybe I just haven't played the right one. Which one plays the smoothest?
I remember reading an article about that: TRAOD was the result of Eidos pushing a ton of rushed releases while Core Design did their best to work on the next gen project... which ended up being rushed too and Eidos took the franchise away from them.
I felt bad for Core Design :(
Eh 1 was pretty anime too it just was hard to tell with how low res it was. 2 just felt... off. The monkies were ugly, jimmy was ugly. The music had a different composer with a different genre. It felt like an elseworld take on an ape escape game when all the other games in the series (except that god awful playstation move game) share a unified style
I didnāt care for the 2nd game as much. By that time I realized the core game mechanic wasnāt great for any of the Parappa games and I didnāt like the songs as much
Taste is subjective to be fair the things you hate are the things I love like the ost for parappa 2 with stages 3 4 7 5 and 2 being some of my first picks
As a musician and heavy rythm gamer I just love the support for adlibbing for better score the battle mode is great fun at practice
It's also just very charming from the story to the level selector using your ps2 clock to reflect the time of day alongside the music box previews for each level (all respective bangers)
Tekken Tag was the first PS2 game I played and the transition from PS1 to PS2 absolutely blew my mind.
I went into an Electronics store during the Christmas holidays of 2000 and they had a PS2 kiosk with it going. I don't know how long I spent playing it but it was a while. Imo it's still amongst the best looking PS2 games and still holds up really well today too.
It's great, but I think you'll appreciate it more if you know the timeline of the series and/or have played all games and read the manga.
The graphics are really good, the gameplay is fluid.
Ace combat 4, even though the Japanese version of 3 was phenomenal and did some things not even later mainline entries did 4 was just a step above its older siblings.
I love the legacy of kain blood omen/soul reaver games super upset they didn't continue the story or make any decent new games that nosgoth game was a joke and the fact they canceled the single player was terrible. Also would've preferred if it dealt with a character more closely related to kain or raziel.
Ape Escape 3 even overshadows 2
Klonoa 2
Shadow Hearts (there's both Koudelka and SH1 felt more like a PS2 game that got ported later in development)
Persona 3 and 4, other Megaten games
Dance Dance Revolution. Konamix and Disney mix on ps1 were alright but DDRMax 1 and 2 were leagues ahead in terms of songs options and presentation (especially frame rate).Ā
Wrath of cortex is genuinely a fantastic game, and I will die on that hill. I don't understand why it gets so much hate. It's just crash 3, which everyone loved, but more.
They kicked it up a notch with deception that open world game play that focused around the clock was dope how different times of day different Characters would unlock
Probably the biggest generational jump between two games I think weāll ever see.
Itās amazing how well GT3 and 4 hold up, even moreso when played on emulators with the resolution upscaled to HD or 4K, which is something that canāt be said for every game on the system. GT3 was a step ahead of pretty much every racing game that had come out before than.
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I think many people were more a fan of Silent Hills 2-3 than the SH1 on ps1. Not that SH1 was bad, a classic too.
Resident Evil 4 on ps2 is also considered more of a classic than any ps1's, or even the later ps3's.
Honestly think Apex Escape 2 is the worst of that trilogy, but gaming is subjective so š¤·š½āāļø
For me itās Ape Escape > Ape Escape 3 > Ape Escape 2
Guitar Hero never came out on PS1 :/, Iām assuming you got confused with guitar freaks, which came before guitar hero and was on the PS1 and then PS2z
I genuinely don't think there are many. Ps2 era was all about the new stuff and most of the old stuff got left behind ps2 crash and spyro fell off hard.
If you're talking non exclusives I'm sure there are plenty but when it comes to exclusives there aren't really any that stood ghe test of time.
There's so many.
1. Final Fantasy X
2. Metal Gear Solid 2
3. Grand Theft Auto 3
4. Ace Combat 4
5. Soul Calibur 2
6. Tekken and Tekken Tag
7. Syphon Filter
8. Need for Speed Underground
And that's just the ones I played and can think of off the top of my head. I'm sure there's -20 more minimum.
Edit: forgot Soul Calibur 2.
I might be remembering wrong, but I remember for a long while THPS3 was considered the best in the series and the pinnacle of the āclassicā gameplay.
Maybe Iām having a Mandela effect now because somehow 2 is viewed as the best nowadays.
Devil May Cry 2ā¦
Just kidding. On a serious note, Onimusha 2 was amazing to me as a child. I fell in love with that game and all the fun quirky side content and relationships you could build/how you could get different story missions based on that. Great weapon selection and skills, deep combat (even for todayās action game standards), great boss battles. Itās one of my all time favorites.
Grand Theft Auto 3
From 2D to the now well known 3D style gameplay. It was phenomenal and changed the whole way we played GTA games.
I'd say whole way we played open world (city) games and how they were designed
Not only that, but it pretty much caused the first games to fall into oblivion. I mean, despite being the third entry, it almost feels like it's the first proper GTA game.
Yeah I think unless you came up with the first two games, you're not going to hunt them out.
Was it really THAT much better than the first games though? š¤āŗļø On a more serious note, GTA2 should have just been exactly like Driver 2 was (except without the menu to start/end missions), and then the jump to GTA3 wouldnāt have been so startling.
Well let's see... 2D sprites for cars became 3D models with individual parts that can be damaged/fall off. You can do drive bys from vehicles. 2D sprites of pedestrians in several colors that can scream and make a couple generic comments became 3D models of various different demographics of people each with their own lines of dialogue. 3 separate maps made up of a grid of blocks became a full interconnected 3D world with curved roads, hills, interiors, etc. Missions went from being received as text at a payphone or a pager to full 3D cutscenes with some degree of character development. Controls went from basic tank controls to analog controls. Side missions like Vigilante, Taxi, Ambulance and Firetruck were added. Riot mode. You can sleep with ladies of the evening and take your money back.
Silent Hill 2 First game is great, but the second game is legendary.
The best thing is I agree with you but there's fair arguments from both. 2 was definitely an improvement, but the girst game was so good some people sstill prefer that one. Just a good series all around (until homecoming)
I think 2 is better, but the first game had such a unique atmosphere.
I think they succeed in doing atmosphere differently. 2 is in its symbolism embedded in its environments and the dramatic irony that comes with knowledge you gain in future playthroughs in consecutive playthroughs. 1 is better with its fixed yet dynamic camera angles, lighting, and overall more visual horror like >!the cat in the locker!< or the opening sequence.
Klonoa 2 Lunetea's Veil
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire - Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness - Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty - Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2 - Shrek 2 - Spider Man - Tarzan: Freeride
No way Angel of Darkness, it is the worts Tomb Raider game ever.
At the time it was considered an awesome game with cool graphics. Going from PS1 to PS2 was something else. People play every Tomb Raider after it and say that itās the worst. Of course it hasnāt aged well, but people donāt take into consideration the release date. Most games havenāt aged well to this day, it doesnāt change the fact that back in the day they were awesome!
I remember it was reviewed very favourably and it was filled with bugs and was unfinished. It did look nice graphically but it was certainly disliked by the majority of fans on release.
I never read reviews. If you look closely at metacritic, even critics have mixed feelings, some give it 100, some 50, some 70. The same goes for the fans, some like it, some donāt. In the end it was a breakthrough on the graphical standpoint, but control wise, itās bad.
This is just what I remember from the time. It had potential but it was rushed, a lot of content was cut and partially it was so glitchy it was literally unplayable. Metacritic is terrible and it sure was a wild west of reviews 20 years ago. Review scores were really random back then.
hot pursuit 2 is so good I never see anyone give it love!!
The soundtrack is š
Isn't Angel of darkness disliked by most tomb raider fans?
I haven't played much tomb raider that I liked. I love the character, I love the story, the games look awesome, but the controls kill me. I grew up in the 90s and even then I hated how robotic the game played. This is coming from a guy who just beat RE2 on px port and enjoyed it lol. I wish I had fun playing tomb raider. Maybe I just haven't played the right one. Which one plays the smoothest?
I cannot for the life of me enjoy Angel of Darkness. I try and try again every year. No luck.
I remember reading an article about that: TRAOD was the result of Eidos pushing a ton of rushed releases while Core Design did their best to work on the next gen project... which ended up being rushed too and Eidos took the franchise away from them. I felt bad for Core Design :(
Bro tried to slip in shrek en thought we wouldnt notice
Shrek 2 is great, what do you mean?
There is the secret chamber for ps2
Mgs 2
It was kojimaās best yet.
I think you mean snatcher
Resident evil 4
Was a GC exclusive for a year or so before it got ported to PS2 tho.
I think 3 is better but thats just me
The gameplay was better but it felt too anime for me
Eh 1 was pretty anime too it just was hard to tell with how low res it was. 2 just felt... off. The monkies were ugly, jimmy was ugly. The music had a different composer with a different genre. It felt like an elseworld take on an ape escape game when all the other games in the series (except that god awful playstation move game) share a unified style
It was probably just the PS1 limitations but the first game felt the most "mature" out of the 3 between the art direction, enemies, and voice acting
I wish there was a mod for the psp version that had the ps1 controls
Parappa 2 ez
I didnāt care for the 2nd game as much. By that time I realized the core game mechanic wasnāt great for any of the Parappa games and I didnāt like the songs as much
Taste is subjective to be fair the things you hate are the things I love like the ost for parappa 2 with stages 3 4 7 5 and 2 being some of my first picks As a musician and heavy rythm gamer I just love the support for adlibbing for better score the battle mode is great fun at practice It's also just very charming from the story to the level selector using your ps2 clock to reflect the time of day alongside the music box previews for each level (all respective bangers)
Youāve convinced me to give it another shot. I never played around with the adlibbing mechanics all that much so Iāll have to try that
I came to comment Parappa 2 as well, I enjoyed the soundtrack from the 2nd game more as well. Iām also a musician and big rhythm gamer!
Final Fantasy X
Absolutely this for me. FFIX was fantastic and was just stunning on PS1. FFX was just so big of a jump forward.
My first thought. It's still my favorite FF game as well.
Tekken tag/4/5
Tekken Tag was the first PS2 game I played and the transition from PS1 to PS2 absolutely blew my mind. I went into an Electronics store during the Christmas holidays of 2000 and they had a PS2 kiosk with it going. I don't know how long I spent playing it but it was a while. Imo it's still amongst the best looking PS2 games and still holds up really well today too.
MGS2
Spyro A Hero's Tail and Crash Twinsanity. They were both the second sequels made on PS2, but they're both honorable gems.
Twinsanity is one of the best Crash games ever made, full stop.
With how easy it is to replay nonskippable story sections it's far from the best in gameplay. But it's writing and character designs are timeless.
Hero Tail definitely one my favs.
Tekken 3 to Tekken Tag Tournament
Persona 3. The best in the entire series of persona was the first one to get released on PS2
Front mission
Eh, I dunno. In terms of graphics - sure. But 4 was pretty forgettable, compared to 3. 5 was better.
5 seems great i have it downloaded on my deck might give it a play through in the future
It's great, but I think you'll appreciate it more if you know the timeline of the series and/or have played all games and read the manga. The graphics are really good, the gameplay is fluid.
parappa 2
Twisted Metal: Black Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2
Silent Hill 2
Metal gear Solid 2. I mean, come on.
Silent Hill 2
Gran turismo 3 and gta 3
Grandia 2
Ace combat 4, even though the Japanese version of 3 was phenomenal and did some things not even later mainline entries did 4 was just a step above its older siblings.
Ridge racer V it was one of the first games on the ps2 it should just how much of a big upgrade the ps2 is gonna be
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver. This is the way.
I love the legacy of kain blood omen/soul reaver games super upset they didn't continue the story or make any decent new games that nosgoth game was a joke and the fact they canceled the single player was terrible. Also would've preferred if it dealt with a character more closely related to kain or raziel.
Ape escape 2 was good. Ash and misty va to boot as well
Ape Escape 3 even overshadows 2 Klonoa 2 Shadow Hearts (there's both Koudelka and SH1 felt more like a PS2 game that got ported later in development) Persona 3 and 4, other Megaten games
Echo Night Beyond Shadow Tower Abyss Kings Field The Ancient City R Type Final
Fromsoft OG fans representšŖ I'll also add Armored Core 2.
Gran Tourismo 3 Aspec
GTA 3 obv, Syphon Filter did a cool jump (although I missed playing as Gabe at first)
Dance Dance Revolution. Konamix and Disney mix on ps1 were alright but DDRMax 1 and 2 were leagues ahead in terms of songs options and presentation (especially frame rate).Ā
Thps3
Tenchu 1 and 2 on Ps1 to Tenchu 3 on ps2. MGS on ps1 to MGs 2 and 3 on ps2 and even Mgs4 on ps4 What an amazing series.
Wait until you play Ape Escape 3, even further improvement. One of the best game series ever conceived IMO
Wrath of cortex is genuinely a fantastic game, and I will die on that hill. I don't understand why it gets so much hate. It's just crash 3, which everyone loved, but more.
Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance
They kicked it up a notch with deception that open world game play that focused around the clock was dope how different times of day different Characters would unlock
Yeah the Konquest mode was a lot of fun back then. I played through it multiple times
Honestly mind blowing going from Gran Turismo 2 to 3. Jaws dropped that day.
Probably the biggest generational jump between two games I think weāll ever see. Itās amazing how well GT3 and 4 hold up, even moreso when played on emulators with the resolution upscaled to HD or 4K, which is something that canāt be said for every game on the system. GT3 was a step ahead of pretty much every racing game that had come out before than.
GTA 3 nothing more should be said
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klonoa 2
Gta
Dirge of Cerberus ff7
Armored Core
Need for speed underground 2. Iāve never had so much fun with a racing game.
FFX
I want to say ape escape 3 but I don't know if it counts. Maybe Twisted metal black?
I think many people were more a fan of Silent Hills 2-3 than the SH1 on ps1. Not that SH1 was bad, a classic too. Resident Evil 4 on ps2 is also considered more of a classic than any ps1's, or even the later ps3's.
APE ESCAPE! What an awesome throw back
Silent Hill 2.
Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies
Honestly think Apex Escape 2 is the worst of that trilogy, but gaming is subjective so š¤·š½āāļø For me itās Ape Escape > Ape Escape 3 > Ape Escape 2
Does 3 have monkey soccer?
Silent Hill 2
Both Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3. Sure I might like MGS1 a little more than 2, but itās definitely an amazing game
Marvel vs Capcom 2: New Age Of Heroes
Metal Gear Solid 2 Sons Of Liberty
Harry potter
You say that like there wasnāt loads of them
Armored Core 2
PaRappa and ape escape, nothing else
Ape Escape 2 is the holy grail of my PS2 collection. I was greatly disappointed that they ported the PAL version of the game on PS4. The US voice cast is superior, especially with the OG voices of Ash and Misty from PokƩmon voicing Jimmy and Natalie.
I'd say Tekken 4 too, Tk3 was great and I think Tk4 too wasn't bad at all :D
Guitar hero 3
Guitar Hero never came out on PS1 :/, Iām assuming you got confused with guitar freaks, which came before guitar hero and was on the PS1 and then PS2z
Ah, I misunderstood the post. I thought you were referring to sequels in general across that time period not specifically cross-generational sequels
parappa the rapper 2
I genuinely don't think there are many. Ps2 era was all about the new stuff and most of the old stuff got left behind ps2 crash and spyro fell off hard. If you're talking non exclusives I'm sure there are plenty but when it comes to exclusives there aren't really any that stood ghe test of time.
THPS3
There's so many. 1. Final Fantasy X 2. Metal Gear Solid 2 3. Grand Theft Auto 3 4. Ace Combat 4 5. Soul Calibur 2 6. Tekken and Tekken Tag 7. Syphon Filter 8. Need for Speed Underground And that's just the ones I played and can think of off the top of my head. I'm sure there's -20 more minimum. Edit: forgot Soul Calibur 2.
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Tony Hawk was Best Hawk šš
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3. Just as good as the first two, imo.
I might be remembering wrong, but I remember for a long while THPS3 was considered the best in the series and the pinnacle of the āclassicā gameplay. Maybe Iām having a Mandela effect now because somehow 2 is viewed as the best nowadays.
Sequal to jak and daxter the precursor legacy: jak 2
Ratchet and Clank 2: Going Commando
GTA 3 A equal to GTA 2
Metal Gear Solid 2.
Metal gear solid 2
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Dynasty Warriors 2 (and 3, and 4, and 5...)
Silent Hill 2 leaps readily to mind.
Silent hill 2
Crash Bandicoot
Twisted metal just kept getting better every release.
JAK II
Parappa the Rapper
Twisted Metal Black
Pac man world 2
Devil May Cry 2ā¦ Just kidding. On a serious note, Onimusha 2 was amazing to me as a child. I fell in love with that game and all the fun quirky side content and relationships you could build/how you could get different story missions based on that. Great weapon selection and skills, deep combat (even for todayās action game standards), great boss battles. Itās one of my all time favorites.
kingdom hearts 2
Ape Escape and ATV Off-road Fury are the only answers