Castlevania: Curse of Darkness spun the monsters on a shelf thing into monsters in cubes, but really appreciated what it did with so little. I think having spent so much of this era playing weird Quake 1 and UT99 mods that felt like they were held together through sheer ambition made me appreciate how far you can go with simple geometry and a couple nice textures.
The chair thing and that bowling alley puzzle were top notch CV weirdness too.
I’ve been meaning to play through Nanobreaker too since I hear it’s more of the same.
MGS2 is easily still worth it just for its feverish implosion during its latter portions, set as it is against the rest of the game. It is also legitimately harrowing to play on XTREME mode where the seamy abstractions of the alert system and the level designs’ hard geometries (compared to Snake Eater, anyway) are reinvigorated
Mobygames credits do not list “Creative Director,” creepy investigative efforts into your current job stymied
Anyway I am totally jelly. Tell him that dudes on a tiny elitist snobby videogame criticism website think his game is the absolute top king shit.
EDIT: You know, I think sometimes about these underappreciated diamonds in the rough, and about all the people who made them, and how they must feel about these games’ lack of reception. Not even that people didn’t like them, but that people don’t even know they exist. I feel like I should send them all Christmas cards or something.
Shame about that Viking game. I mean, I never played it. But I guess I heard it wasn’t great. Then again, I love CA so much I should probably just buy it for the inevitable $4 or whatever it’ll be going for on ebay and give it a shot.
Yeah, it’s alright. Slower, closer, muddier, not as tight. I think they didn’t entirely realize what caused Spartan, increased the budget, and "huh?"d their way out of the room. (I think the secret of Spartan was one folk who really cared about TIGHTNESS)
Still, in terms of not-strategy games, you got Spartan, Viking, and Isolation. 2 outta 3 ain’t bad, in fact it’s better than most, and I hope they keep trying out realtime action games.
Yeah, Isolation was great! So safe, clear, and obvious – “Amnesia but Alien” design, “space corridor” visuals; almost impossible to mess up. I wonder if it’s too long only because they were so productive and hit no dead ends during production.
The PS2 is my favorite console and I could shit up this thread with shallow one liners about too many games. PS2 has the bulk of M2’s Sega Ages releases. It had Irem’s last hurrahs, peak Konami and peak survival horror. The first slim model is sleek and stylish but they overdid the gloss on the last revision.
From my pretty dim memory Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex is a dry run for Cavia’s Bullet Witch, with a great soundtrack (Don’t remember how much of it, if any, was in the show)
R-Type Final was part of Eidos’ Fresh Games series that included Mr. Mosquito. The sequel has you feeding on the same family while on vacation in the US
Haunting Ground refined what Clock Tower 3 did, but it can be frustrating getting the dog to follow commands
Wasn’t Road Trip one of the ChoroQ games? There is also Seek and Destroy which replaces the cars with tanks but is still fun
PAL region got a bunch of Simple 1500 games translated. I think only a few made it to NA.
It was! Road Trip is “Choro Q HG 2”. Seek and Destroy was called “Shin Combat Choro Q” in Japan, which is great to me. I love how there’s a sort of implied universe of vehicle people that branches out into different genres.
Every time I think of Sub Rebellion I want to adopt it into the Choro Q-verse.
Despite their weaknesses, I liked both of these games. I'm tempted to play 12 again when the remake comes out. I know next to nothing about 13 and 15, but I may try the latter at some point if I can convince myself that I have the patience for a JRPG anymore.
Super Bust a Move
This is my favorite version of Puzzle Bobble, between the music and that one creature that vomits on the title screen. (I always chose him.)
Klonoa 2
Though clearly inferior to its predecessor, this game was worth playing as well.
Ratchet and Clank 1, 2, and 3
I avoided all of the PS2's comedy mascot-oriented 3D plaftormers for years. It was only after playing Beyond Good and Evil and wanting more that I decided to try this series, hoping that it would have at least a fraction of the appeal. I found the action, upgrades, and colorful worlds compelling enough to make up for the irksome story and characters. The second game was my favorite of the three, and I played it through again on PS3 not long ago.
Beyond Good and Evil
I technically played this on GameCube, but I assume the two versions are nearly identical and it's hard to resist mentioning it. This was a game I bought used and somewhat blindly, and I was surprised at just how good it was. I played it again a few years ago on PS3 and it still held up. Maybe one day we'll see that sequel.
Silent Hill Origins
I already mentioned the other PS2 Silent Hill games, as have other people, but this is one that was probably overlooked more than it deserved. It was by the same team that made Shattered Memories, but more of a traditional Silent Hill game. Though I would rank this title below the others, it's still one I'd recommend.
Sub Rebellion
It's already been mentioned, but this was another game that really impressed me. I liked how tense it got when you went too deep and heard the creaking metal. Like pretty much every Irem game, this one had a lot of character.