This year I cleaned out my family’s old PS2 and got really into playing tons of games from the era I missed! The PS1/PS2 lineup is truly spectacular & has so many heavy hitters from big names & super unknown developers. Here are some of my favorites.

God of War (2005)

I’ve only ever played God of War 2018 so I really had no idea what to expect from this one. The opening hydra level is an amazing intro, and the game manages to use its dynamic camera to always show the most exciting angle of the action.

The story is a lot somber than I expected, leaning into it as a proper greek tragedy. Kratos is more introspective than purely angry, and I love how the story teased out reveals. The only real disappointment of the game was the 2nd to last area before the final boss. Some truly maddening platforming that felt more like a test of luck than skill. 8.5/10

Parasite Eve

One of my favorite games I’ve played this year, and easily one of the best PS1 games for me alongside RE2 and MGS. The game tells an engaging story at a quick pace, and manages to deliver new combat challenges you’d typically see in a full length JRPG at a lightning fast rate. The soundtrack alone is one of my favorites from Yoko Shimomura, with the police station theme “Out of Phase” being a highlight. If you enjoy JRPGs or Survival Horror, you gotta check out Parasite Eve. 9/10

Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal

My first Ratchet & Clank was a lot of fun. My partner knew more about the series than I did, so it was fun to see her relive & recognize iconic moments from this game. The shooting is a ton of fun, though some of the grindy challenges for upgrades got tiring after a bit. Also a huge difficulty spike at the final boss caught me off guard. Still, I enjoyed the experience. 7.5/10

Disaster Report

This game really surprised me! I went in expecting a light hearted survival game, and what I got were some genuinely meaningful character moments, branching decisions that matter, and tons of exciting real-time setpieces that would make Uncharted jealous. This is an earthquake survival game where you play as Keith, a reporter investigating an ongoing disaster in Capital City. Through your adventure you’ll meet other survivors, uncover a conspiracy, and make some narrow escapes. Unfortunately this game does have a frustrating gameplay shakeup near the end that you’ll want a guide to get through, but other than that it was a great time. 8/10

Raw Danger!

Okay I gotta tell y’all about Raw Danger, because I’m convinced this is the PS2 hidden gem. Holy shit. The developers took everything they learned from Disaster Report to deliver one of the most interesting survival games I’ve ever played. This game features six playable characters experiencing a massive flood in the city of Del Ray over the Christmas Holidays. You start as a waiter, Joshua Harwell, staffing a bigwig event held by the mayor when the disaster starts.

The game does an astounding job putting you into the shoes of your character experiencing the signs of disaster to come. Seeing water slowly trickle into the venue, increasingly nervous fellow staff as you tend to your duties, electrical problems, and soon ankle deep water begins to seep in! The survival is a lot more in-depth than Disaster Report, allowing you to customize your character’s whole outfit to maximise staying dry & warm (or looking goofy as hell). Heat management is crucial, and staying out in the rain too long can be deadly. The same real-time setpieces from Disaster Report return, with even greater scale.

The most mechanically interesting part of this game is how it handles its 6 playable characters. Each character has tons of dialogue with those around them, and key decisions they make or say can end up influencing what happens in other playthroughs hours later. You might shove some rubble out of the way, desperate to save your companion - only to curse yourself a couple hours later when that rubble you pushed causes a massive flood to sweep away your current character into a desperate situation. The game delivers on some genuine emotion, while also capturing some truly truly off the walls insane dialogue (shoutout Amber Brazil, my favorite character for this). If you have any interest in adventure or survival games on the PS2, Raw Danger is an absolute must play. 9.5/10 (The graphics/water can look real jank at times)