In 2025, the Sony PlayStation 2 turned 25 years old—it’s the best-selling game console of all time, with 160 million units sold. The PS2 earned its status primarily thanks to its legendary game library. To mark the anniversary, we’ve compiled some of the most beloved titles, still deserving of players’ attention today.
The God of War duology
The adventures of the Spartan warrior Kratos, determined to avenge the Greek god of war and, subsequently, the entire pantheon, began in 2005 with the release of the first God of War. On PlayStation 2, the game sold 4.6 million copies, becoming one of the most successful titles of the era, cementing the franchise as a staple for Sony.
God of War’s gameplay centered on the player battling hordes of enemies. The enemy bestiary consisted of mythological monsters: centaurs, cyclops, harpies, sirens, and the final boss was Ares himself, the god of war.
Kratos had a decent array of weapons and abilities to combat his enemies, chief among them the Blades of Chaos. These were powerful swords on chains, gifted to Kratos by Ares. They attached to his hands and were used for close- and medium-range combo attacks. They became an integral part of the character’s appearance and carried over into the updated Norse series, a reminder of Kratos’s past.
God of War’s combat system is superbly crafted—brutal battles built on combos and spectacular finishing moves were a joy to play. Even a few control issues, which made traversing certain locations somewhat tedious, didn’t detract from the experience, and the groundbreaking combat sequences completely immersed players in the action.
In the second game, the Spartan’s enemies became all the gods of Olympus, while the main theme of the story was the alteration of the timeline—to achieve this, Kratos had to challenge the Sisters of Fate to rewrite his destiny. This game featured more plot twists and lore, and the ending served as a cliffhanger for the third game, which concluded the war against the Greek pantheon—though that game was released in the PlayStation 3 era.
I loved these projects for many reasons: great characters, an interesting mythological component and atmosphere, lively gameplay, and a mature style. The games featured plenty of violence, a sprinkling of sex scenes, and the main character became a legend thanks to his stern charisma and a difficult fate that was easy to empathize with.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and San Andreas
Following the colossal success of GTA 3 in 2001—a game that literally changed the way open-world games were developed, dividing the gaming industry into “before” and “after”—players were left wondering: what’s next? Rockstar responded convincingly, releasing Vice City and San Andreas in 2002 and 2004, respectively, expanding on the concepts laid out in “Troika.” And they did so in such a way that GTA 3 is now more often remembered as the game that changed the industry than as a great game in its own right. Unlike its two sequels, however, it’s a game that’s truly remarkable.
In Vice City, the developers established the series’ narrative concept, which remains central to GTA to this day. Vice City is a profound satire on modern society and its elite, set against the backdrop of the neon-lit 1980s, with Miami serving as the prototype for Vice City. This only enhanced the project’s atmosphere.
Gameplay mechanics were significantly expanded: the world became richer and more vibrant, and vehicle physics and weapon behavior were improved. Vice City also added various additional activities, such as building your own business, which complemented the overall story theme.
San Andreas went even further, becoming a full-fledged sandbox: extensive customization was introduced—from the protagonist’s hairstyles, clothing, and physical fitness to cars. The game also added role-playing elements—you could even build romantic relationships and decide where you wanted to live, buying houses across the map. Players could spend hundreds of hours in real time in San Andreas without ever getting bored, thanks to the variety of mechanics (the protagonist even learned to swim) and the rich world.
San Andreas’ story focused on street gang warfare, with many deep elements and a satirical take on racism, crime, gang culture, and street life, which was a huge hit with players.
Technically, San Andreas was a pinnacle of its time: the game featured a vast open world, encompassing the entire state of San Andreas, with three cities and numerous smaller towns. While it may not seem particularly impressive by today’s standards, back then, the project squeezed every last drop of juice out of the console!
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and Warrior Within
In the 2000s, Ubisoft was at its peak, releasing one hit after another, including the Prince of Persia trilogy. While the third installment, The Two Thrones, was weak, the first two, The Sands of Time and Warrior Within, deserve the status of gaming industry legends.
In The Sands of Time, players were treated to a story full of intrigue, drama, disaster, and tragic loss: the Vizier’s betrayal, the death of a father, and time travel in an attempt to restore everything to its former state. This offered hope for a happy ending.
All of this was enhanced by the stunning atmosphere of an Eastern fairytale, inspired by “A Thousand and One Nights”: ancient Persia, mystical artifacts, acrobatics through ruins, and time manipulation. These elements created the feeling of a magical yet dangerous adventure with hints of Eastern mythology and corresponding music, locations, and character designs—even the monsters looked authentic.
The game’s combat system was a typical hack-and-slash, with wall-running, puzzles, hordes of enemies, and boss battles. Time manipulation added a unique twist to the gameplay. You could rewind time if you lost a fight or failed parkour sections, slow down to overcome obstacles or traps, or freeze enemies in place. And no, you couldn’t use this all the time: the number of attempts was limited by the amount of sand in your dagger, which had to be constantly replenished.
“The Sands of Time” is still considered the best game in the entire franchise, which extends beyond the aforementioned trilogy. Ubisoft even announced a remake, which, unfortunately, fell into development hell: after a disastrous presentation in 2020, its development was completely rebooted. Whether it will release in 2026 as announced remains to be seen. However, the latest news is quite positive.
Warrior Within turned out to be the complete opposite of The Sands of Time: instead of a warm, hopeful story, the game’s plot became dark and terrifying. Following the events of the first game, the prince was hunted by a time-stream keeper named Dahaka, who intended to punish the protagonist for interfering with the timeline by destroying the trespasser.
Escaping from him, the prince finds himself on the island of time, where he can use special portals to travel between two times—the past and the present—overcoming obstacles and battling enemies. His goal is to find the Empress of Time, Kaileena, to prevent the creation of the hourglass and thereby destroy Dahaka. But things turn out to be more complicated.
The second installment was just as well received as the first: the game’s parkour and combat systems expanded, and its dark tone provided a significant contrast to the original. The soundtrack became Warrior Within’s signature soundtrack—powerful metal grooves and songs by Godsmack helped elevate the project to the pantheon of gaming legends. While it did spark some controversy among fans, who were expecting another dose of Eastern fairy tales, it’s a fitting tribute to the original.
Resident Evil 4 and Code: Veronica
The fourth Resident Evil game represented a major leap forward not only for the franchise itself but for the survival horror genre as a whole. The game took a much more action-packed approach to horror than before: the camera was moved behind the protagonist, and the pace of combat increased significantly—no longer a tedious shootout of monsters, but dynamic shootouts with close-quarters combat and quick-time events.
The game’s protagonist, Leon Kennedy, once again appears. This time, he travels to Spain to rescue the president’s kidnapped daughter, Ashley Graham. The Los Illuminados cult, which transforms civilians into aggressive zombie-like monsters using the Las Plagas parasite, is implicated in her abduction.
The PlayStation 2 version was far from the best of the generation: the frame rate was lower, the graphics were worse, the sound design left much to be desired, as did the controls. But this didn’t stop the project from achieving cult status and becoming a success: the original was released on the GameCube, where it sold 1.6 million copies, compared to 2.3 million on the PS2.
Code: Veronica, on the other hand, was closer to the classic trilogy, albeit with some innovations, such as a revamped camera. It still featured a fixed camera angle, pre-rendered backgrounds, and specific controls, but transitions became more dynamic and fluid, and the animations and lighting took a step forward. Code: Veronica is often called “the best fixed-camera game in the series,” praised for its balance of horror and action.
Code: Veronica’s story is beloved for its emotional depth, family themes, and epic twists that fit perfectly with the Umbrella Corporation lore. Fans cherish the game as a masterpiece of the survival horror genre, where the plot isn’t just a backdrop for zombie battles but a true drama about survival.
As with the “four”, “Code: Veronica” was originally released on a different console – the SEGA Dreamcast – but it was the PlayStation 2 version that became more successful: 1.14 million copies were sold on the Dreamcast versus 1.4 million on the PS2.
Silent Hill 2 and 3
Another cult horror series is Silent Hill from KONAMI. Unlike its rival, the Resident Evil franchise, it emphasizes psychology. Several installments were released on the PS2, but the best are the second and third, released in 2001 and 2003.
The protagonist of the second part, James Sunderland, received a mysterious letter from his wife, Mary, who died three years ago. In it, she invited James to a foggy and abandoned town called Silent Hill—the site of their last vacation. Upon arrival, strange things begin to happen to James, plunging him into a veritable hell. There, he encounters other unfortunate souls with their own skeletons in the closet—for each of them, this town has prepared its own unique punishment.
The game has five endings, including a humorous one involving a UFO. The story is considered a psychological masterpiece, still relevant and engaging today—the 2024 remake received acclaim from players and critics.
Silent Hill 3 wasn’t as popular as the second game, but many fans consider it an underrated gem of the series. The game is praised for its balance of horror, beauty, and emotional depth, calling it “the most beautiful and atmospheric game on the PS2.”
The threequel’s protagonist is Heather Mason, a 17-year-old student from Shelby. She finds herself in an alternate, distorted world—Silent Hill—where the environment is covered in rust, the walls turn into metal bars, faulty high-pressure pipes protrude everywhere, and the floor is covered in blood. There, she is haunted by monsters, cultists, and hallucinations, and the game’s central theme is the struggle with imposed identity, false faith, and personal trauma.
The gameplay in both projects revolves around traversing linear and corridor-like environments with fixed camera angles and “tank-like” controls, where the character faces forward with a weapon. The focus is on exploring foggy and rusty versions of Silent Hill, collecting items, solving puzzles, and confronting monsters.
The third installment was slightly more advanced technically: smoother controls and transitions, a wide arsenal of weapons, and varied puzzles—all of which further developed the series’ foundational mechanics. While the third installment may have lost a bit of its soul, that doesn’t make it a bad project.
Final Fantasy X
The tenth installment of the famous JRPG franchise Final Fantasy was the first of three to be released on PlayStation 2, and it remains the most memorable for players!
The action of “The Ten” takes place in the fictional world of Spira, inspired by the South Pacific, Thailand, and Japan. It is an oceanic archipelago where people live in fear of a giant monster named Sin, who periodically destroys civilizations as “punishment for sins.”
The protagonist is a young man named Tidus, a star player of the underwater sport of blitzball from the utopian metropolis of Zanarkand. Faced with an attack by Sin and stranded in an unknown location, Tidus meets a young priestess, Yuna, who is embarking on a pilgrimage to defeat the monster. Tidus joins her team and helps them defeat an ancient evil, which turns out to be far more deeply rooted than previously thought.
This story has become beloved for its intense emotional intensity. The game explores themes of self-sacrifice, religion and its manipulations, family and loss of loved ones, identity and dreams, and, of course, love and hope for a brighter future.
The gameplay remained classic for the series, but with a number of significant changes. For example, the familiar Active Time Battle (ATB) system, which calculated the turn order in battle, was replaced by a Conditional Turn-Based Battle (CTB) system. It combined elements of ATB and traditional turn-based combat, but with an emphasis on strategic planning and visibility of the turn order. It was an evolution of ATB, adapted for 3D graphics and team-based gameplay.
The leveling system in Final Fantasy X is very different from the classic “leveling” system seen in previous games in the series. Instead of gaining experience and leveling up, it uses a unique spherical grid mechanic. It resembled a web of nodes, where characters “move” in various directions and develop stats, abilities, and roles, making leveling progression more fluid: you could transform a warrior into a mage, or vice versa. This was introduced to provide greater control over builds, although it could feel complex.
Need for Speed series: Underground, Most Wanted and Carbon duology
Electronic Arts’ iconic racing series, Need for Speed, is going through some tough times these days. But things were different back in the PlayStation 2 era, when the franchise’s best games were released!
The Underground duology focused on car tuning and nighttime racing. Most Wanted emphasized the police, spiceing up the racing action, adding an adrenaline rush and raising the stakes. Meanwhile, Carbon offered team racing, canyon racing with dangerous switchbacks, turf wars, and clan warfare.
The world in these games also evolved significantly—while in the first Underground, players had access only to linear tracks, the scale increased with each subsequent game. In the second Underground, a large city was available for driving, finding events, and collecting. In Most Wanted, the world expanded and offered more freedom, and in Carbon, the city was divided into several districts, control of which was fought over.
The plots in these projects also evolved: from a linear narrative through cutscenes in Underground, where the player had to go from unknown racer to king of the streets, to the theme of revenge and escaping from the police in Most Wanted. Carbon took a narrative similar to the previous game in the series, but diluted it with an abundance of characters and plot twists. The result was so-so, but for racing games of the time, it was a breakthrough.
Players loved these Need For Speed games for their street racing atmosphere, cool arcade gameplay, free car tuning, cool visual style, and magnificent music, which many listen to to this day, nostalgic for the PS2 era.
Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man Ultimate
Spider-Man superhero action games were a frequent guest on the PlayStation 2, with the best of them being Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man Ultimate.
The 2004 Spider-Man 2 game was a video game adaptation of Sam Raimi’s film of the same name, developed by Treyarch. The plot followed the film’s script: players played as Peter Parker, trying to balance school, work, his relationship with Mary Jane, and his superhero activities, while the main antagonist was Doctor Octopus, wreaking havoc across New York City. The game featured multiple endings, which greatly varied the familiar story.
Added to this are various side quests and moments that significantly expand the story: here you can find villains like Shocker, Mysterio, Rhino, and even the returning Green Goblin.
Fans loved the game for its perfectly balanced free-roaming gameplay and story-driven content, its cool combat system featuring combo attacks, dodges, and grabs with quick-time events, its excellent web-slinging ability across the city, and its fun “Hero” rank progression system that grants various perks. Before the release of the Batman Arkham series, Spider-Man 2 was considered the benchmark for open-world superhero action.
There’s a caveat, though: everything I’ve said above applies specifically to the console versions of the game. The PC version, developed by The Fizz Factor, fared quite poorly: it was a linear action platformer without an open world, aimed at a younger audience, which left players greatly disappointed.
Spider-Man Ultimate was also developed by Treyarch—a game adaptation of the comic book series of the same name, written by Brian Michael Bendis. He also wrote the game’s story, which represented an alternate take on the comic book story. It was a creative adaptation that took key elements of the Ultimate universe’s lore but added original story elements, thereby rewriting the original canon.
The project’s graphics were created using cel-shading technology, which allowed them to retain the comic book style and artist Mark Bagley’s drawing style. Cutscenes utilized frame-by-frame framing, which only enhanced the comic book feel.
The project was unique in that it allowed us to experience not only the familiar skin of Spider-Man but also one of his main antagonists, the symbiote known as Venom. And this was almost 20 years before the release of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2!
The gameplay alternates between playing as Spidey and Venom: each has their own missions, enemies, and goals. While as Peter Parker, we always try to save everyone we can, as Venom, it’s the opposite—he must constantly feed, consuming people, to maintain his health.
The game featured a fully fledged open world with all the usual content: collectibles, neighborhoods and gangs, random events, and so on. Players could explore Manhattan Island and some of its surrounding areas, such as Queens, Spider-Man’s home borough. Bosses included enemies such as the Green Goblin, Rhino, Beetle, Carnage, and even Wolverine.
Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory
Another famous Ubisoft franchise, the stealth series Splinter Cell, was also a regular on Sony’s console. While four installments were released on the PS2, Chaos Theory is considered the series’ pinnacle and one of the best stealth games of its time.
The game’s plot unfolded in 2007. This time, elite agent Sam Fisher had to investigate a conspiracy involving a North Korean general, Peruvian rebels, and corrupt corporations. The story is full of tragic twists: betrayals, sacrifices, and moral dilemmas, and the ending truly demonstrated how high the price of defeating one’s enemies can be.
Unlike previous installments, which emphasized rigid conventions and penalties for mistakes, Chaos Theory focused on flexibility, simulation, and interactivity in gameplay. This made stealth more realistic and replayable.
Among the other parts, the project stands out:
- Improved enemy AI—enemies began moving furniture to create cover, noticed changes to locations made by the player, and used various tactical tricks: setting up ambushes, using flares, and so on;
- an improved detection system – the alarm was not raised immediately after enemy bodies were exposed to light; the enemies had to discover them themselves while patrolling or see them through cameras;
- ragdoll physics for realistic behavior of opponents’ bodies.
The levels were non-linear, allowing players to experiment with using various environmental objects to complete the task. This was facilitated by a constant quicksave system, which reduced player frustration from failure and rewarded resourcefulness.
Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3
Another renowned stealth series created by renowned Japanese game designer Hideo Kojima, Metal Gear Solid, has won the hearts of many players worldwide, including Russia! The second and third installments of the franchise found a home on PlayStation 2, where they surprised players with their stories and gameplay.
MGS2 featured a major plot twist that completely upended the game’s original premise. The story’s protagonist, despite all the promotional videos, wasn’t Solid Snake at all, but his comrade Raiden, who the player controls immediately after the prologue.
The story revolved around Raiden’s mission to save the US President from the terrorist group “Sons of Liberty.” But as the mission progressed, oddities arose that changed the narrative. The game explored themes such as fake news, surveillance, and loss of identity, and the ending still raises questions: was it all real?
MGS3 served as a prequel to the entire franchise: set in the 1960s, the game cast players as Naked Snake, who would later become known as Big Boss, the franchise’s primary antagonist. The game told the story of how a dedicated soldier—an ideological patriot—changed his views during a mission, ultimately leading him to the opposite side of the conflict.
The series stands out for Hideo Kojima’s unique approach to both story and gameplay, which surprises and endears players, despite the high degree of absurdity in various story elements and character development.
As an example, consider the boss named End from MGS3—a legendary sniper who would push the player to their limits. But instead of a fair fight, you could do something else: simply put off playing the game for a couple of weeks, then log in and discover your opponent has died of old age. Or you could advance the clock on your console—the result was the same.
Devil May Cry 3
The PlayStation 2 era saw the birth of another iconic gaming franchise: Capcom’s Devil May Cry. Three installments in the series were released on this console, but the third is considered the best.
DMC 3 is essentially a prequel: set 10 years before the events of the first game, it followed a young Dante through his first encounters with demons, his conflict with his brother Vergil, and the founding of his demon-hunting agency. The plot was simple but gripping, focusing on two characters:
- Dante is the icon of the series: a sarcastic and cool protagonist with a signature sense of humor that makes the game light and fun;
- Virgil is the perfect antagonist, with a tragic backstory and an interesting philosophy that has spawned numerous memes.
DMC 3 is a hack and slash game that emphasizes big, flashy combos, which is why it has a special ranking system: D, C, B, A, and S. Ranks are calculated based on five metrics: time spent on a mission, damage taken, number of healing items used, completion of hidden objectives in missions, and the collection of currency—red orbs. To achieve an S rank, players had to achieve at least four of the five metrics with a perfect score or all with a good score. This motivated players to develop their skills and replay the game, improving their stats.
Boss fights are another element that sets the game apart from the rest of the PS2 trilogy. Many players consider the battles with Vergil, Arkham, and Beowulf not just fights, but emotional and narrative climaxes that immerse the player in the game’s world and atmosphere.
Praise was also given to the gothic aesthetic, which contrasted with the gameplay, where dark, gloomy locations contrasted with vibrant battles. And, of course, the soundtrack, which made the gameplay and battles as exciting as possible. Both became important components of the universe’s style, making it iconic.
Max Payne and Max Payne 2
The duology, which tells the story of a former New York police officer named Max Payne, from Finnish developers Remedy Entertainment, quickly gained cult status.
The first part told the story of a man who lost what mattered most to him—his family. Afterward, a grief-stricken Max goes underground and begins to seek revenge: he infiltrates the ranks of the Punchetti mafia to get to the people who ordered the murder. Along the way, he uncovers a conspiracy involving a government project to create supersoldiers, corrupt officials, pharmaceutical companies, and even the media. All of this turns out to be partly connected to his personal tragedy.
The game’s cutscenes were rendered in a noir comic book style, adding to the dark and atmospheric feel of Frank Miller’s Sin City. Rather than animated videos, these were static illustrations with a first-person narrative, narrated by Max himself. It was practically an interactive graphic novel!
The combat system was also unique—the standout feature was the ability to engage bullet-time mode, which slowed down time and allowed for effective and dramatic dispatch of enemies. For the PS2, this mode was a lifesaver—it compensated for the project’s problematic optimization, allowing players to complete even those sections of the game where the frame rate plummeted due to the sheer number of enemies on screen.
The second game continued the plot of the first. Max returned to the NYPD and continued his investigation into the experimental drug that had been the focus of the first game. He met a hitman named Mona Sax, who assisted Max. A romance ensued between them, filled with betrayal, passion, and inevitable tragedy—a classic noir romance.
The sequel expanded on the gameplay concepts of the first game, making it more dynamic and varied: Remedy improved the physics and enemy AI, and added new elements. Levels became more vertical, shootouts more dynamic, combos were added to bullet-time mode, missions were more varied, comics in cutscenes were now animated, and the game’s graphics were upgraded.
