💎20 PS2 Hidden Gems You Probably Missed
The PS2's library was so large that genuinely excellent games disappeared inside it. Mid-budget experiments got funded in that era, which is exactly why the hidden gems are so strange and so good.
These twenty are the ones we would put in front of someone who thinks they have already played everything on the console.
Overlooked PS2 action and adventure games
God Hand (2006)
- PS2
- PS3
A brawler with a fully customisable moveset and a difficulty that adapts as you play well. Clover Studio's funniest game.
Killer7 (2005)
- PS2
- GameCube
On-rails movement, cel-shaded assassins and a plot nobody fully agrees on. Suda51 at his least compromising.
Gitaroo Man (2001)
- PS2
- PSP
A rhythm game with a genuinely emotional story and one of the best soundtracks on the console. Very hard.
Michigan: Report from Hell (2004)
- PS2
You play the cameraman of a news crew documenting a disaster, filming rather than fighting. Utterly unique.
Shadow Hearts: Covenant (2004)
- PS2
A dark historical JRPG with the Judgement Ring timing system. Funnier and stranger than its reputation.
Freedom Fighters (2003)
- PS2
- GameCube
- Xbox
- PC
Squad-command third-person shooting in an occupied New York, with a Jesper Kyd score. Ahead of its time.
The Bouncer (2000)
- PS2
A short cinematic brawler with three playable characters and branching scenes. Flawed, but nothing else plays like it.
Underrated PS2 RPGs and strategy games
Dark Cloud 2 (2002)
- PS2
- PS4
Dungeon crawling plus town rebuilding, invention, golf and photography. Enormous and completely charming.
Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne (2003)
- PS2
- PC
- PS4
- Switch
Bleak post-apocalyptic demon negotiation with combat that will punish any lazy turn. The HD remaster is widely available.
Disgaea: Hour of Darkness (2003)
- PS2
- Modern ports
Tactics with absurd numbers, item worlds and hundreds of hours of optional depth. Comedy throughout.
Odin Sphere (2007)
- PS2
- PS4
- PS Vita
Vanillaware's hand-painted 2D action RPG with five interlocking stories. Leifthrasir on PS4 fixes the pacing.
Rogue Galaxy (2005)
- PS2
- PS4
Level-5's space-faring action RPG with a factory-building side system. Big, colourful and rarely mentioned.
Suikoden III (2002)
- PS2
Three interweaving perspectives on the same war, each recontextualising the others. Ambitious storytelling.
Strange and experimental PS2 games
Katamari Damacy (2004)
- PS2
- Switch
- PS4
- Xbox
- PC
Roll everything in the world into a ball. Five-minute levels and the best soundtrack of the generation.
Mister Mosquito (2001)
- PS2
You are a mosquito trying to drink enough blood from a family to survive winter. Exactly as odd as it sounds.
Fahrenheit (Indigo Prophecy) (2005)
- PS2
- Xbox
- PC
- Modern remaster
Quick-time cinematic storytelling that started the whole David Cage genre. The first two-thirds are excellent.
Rez (2001)
- PS2
- Dreamcast
- Modern Rez Infinite
A rail shooter where every shot is a note in the track. Rez Infinite is the definitive modern version.
Way of the Samurai 2 (2003)
- PS2
A short branching samurai drama you are meant to replay in different factions. Each run takes about two hours.
Okage: Shadow King (2001)
- PS2
A gothic-comic JRPG where you are the sidekick to a failing demon king. Early PS2 weirdness at its best.
Steambot Chronicles (2005)
- PS2
Open-world mech customisation plus a music career and moral choices. Nothing since has attempted this mix.
Gear that fits this list
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Retro-Bit Prism HDMI Adapter for Gamecube | AV to HDMI Converter/Upscaler for 1080P Support
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AV/S-Video/YPbPr to HDMI Converter,RetroScaler 2X Line Doubler with No Lags | Upscaler for Retro Games, Compatible with PS2/N64/Dreamcast/Saturn/NGC/SNES/MD1/MD2
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HDMI Cable for Nintendo Gamecube, Nintendo 64 N64, Super Nintendo SNES (3-in-1), GameCube/SNES/N64 to HDMI Adapter with S-Video Signal Output (Better Video Quality), HD Converter with 4:3/16:9 Switch
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TicKnot ODV-GBS-C Mini Video Converter RGBS Scart/YPbPr to HDMI & VGA Upscaler for Retro Gaming Console PS2/N64/Dreamcast/Saturn with Zero Lag (Tran Blue) (Tran Orange)
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Tengchi RCA to HDMI Converter, AV to HDMI Adapter | Composite to HDMI Support 1080P PAL/NTSC For PS1, PS2, PS3, STB, Xbox, VHS, VCR, DVD Players
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