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Top 5 console games of last generation (PS2, GCN, XBox)

Grayman said:
Grand Theft Auto 3(series)[/B] - 3 was something never seen before when it came out so although VC and especially SA improved on it a lot those weren't nearly the jump up that GTA 3 was. Vice city brough a whole time period alive but in all respects of gameplay was trashed by San Andreas. This really is a series that should have been repeatedly sold as multipacks putting the older games into the newest engine and adding in abit more map to fit the new vehicles.
DOES.NOT.COMPUTE.

I think you got it backwards. :p
 

Jonnyram

Member
1. Rez
2. Lack Of Love (no, it didn't get ported from the DC, **** you)
3. Shadow of the Colossus
4. Chibi Robo
5. Gradius V

(and, by god, it pains me to not include a single FF or DQ on that list, but thems the breaks)
 

{Mike}

Banned
All consoles? I will try. And it is personnal :D

5. Devil May Cry 3 (Ps2)
The finest fighting system out there, with a rock solid framerate and very challenging missions. Cool story with some awesome cutscenes and epic Boss battles, especially Vergil. Blows away DMC and *cough* DMC 2 with many styles to choose from when engaging ennemies with all-new weaponry. Truly a classic - for the more hardcore of us.
normaldevilmaycry3dantevergil02ro2.jpg


4. Halo (Xbox)
Hate it or love it with a passion - Halo is probably the best first person shooter to ever grace a console since Perfect Dark and Goldeneye for the N64. Cooperative gameplay is a blast, and the sci-fi setting is well-done and very intriguing. The core - online multiplayer, is really fun (aside from the cheating). A pillar for Microsoft, and, IMO, better than the sequel.
halomj6.jpg


3. Resident Evil 4 (GC)
Truly what RE fans had been waiting for far too long. Not as scary as its predecessors, but this fourth installment focuses on the atmosphere - and is great at it. The village sequence is one to remember, as many other parts of this classic and gorgeous survival/horror videogame. Over-the-shoulder aiming with laser sight, a 3D map with plenty of info, everything is burning with details ready to make your jaws drop at every single turn.
re4sk0.jpg


2. Shadow of the Colossus (Ps2)
Talk about gaming meets the best part of art. SOTC is not only an epic adventure - it is a poetic quest of love and courage. Probably the most realistic animations ever done, with monsters as huge as sky scrappers - even more. Each is an enigma and a challenge. The world in SOTC breathes to life and is full of little details worth seeing. A classic for generations to come.
shadowat5.jpg


1. Grand Theft Auto III (Ps2)
You know a game is spectacular when countless companies try to recreate its formula - only to fail, in most of the cases. That's the sucess story behind GTA III, THE game that stormed the PS2 and took the world by surprise. For the first time, the franchise moved to the silly looking 2D to a big, fat and juicy 3D goodness. Hell, we are talking about "last" gen, are we not? GTA 3 let's you do virtually anything. Even if GTA: VC and GTA: SA offer more variety, it is still GTA 3 that did everything right in the first place. No one will ever forget this jewel in the industry. Yes, it got old, but I think it is still the Top. And it was so fun, back then :).
gta3nq5.jpg
 

Kangu

Banned
Oh shit I forgot about Mario Kart: DD


999,999,999. Mario Kart: Double Dash

Never has a franchise been so effectively killed in one instalment. The only thing that comes close is DMC2. Of course we got DMC3 after that, so maybe there's hope for one of my most played series ever.
 

Odysseus

Banned
Kangu said:
Oh shit I forgot about Mario Kart: DD


999,999,999. Mario Kart: Double Dash

Never has a franchise been so effectively killed in one instalment.

I agree with this post so much that I typed out I agree with this post instead of just abbreviating it.
 

Idioteque

Member
Kangu said:
Oh shit I forgot about Mario Kart: DD


999,999,999. Mario Kart: Double Dash

Never has a franchise been so effectively killed in one instalment. The only thing that comes close is DMC2. Of course we got DMC3 after that, so maybe there's hope for one of my most played series ever.

Mario Kart DS?
 
Tabris said:
DC was like mid-generation.

QFF (Quote for False, get it?!)

5. Guitar Hero (PlayStation 2)
4. Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King (PlayStation 2)
3. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (GameCube)
2. Katamari Damacy (PlayStation 2)
1. Disgaea: Hour of Darkness (PlayStation 2)
 

J2 Cool

Member
5. RE4
4. Ico
3. Shenmue 2
2. Metal Gear Solid 3
1. Grand Theft Auto 3

Honorable Mentions: MGS2, Halo, SotC, FFX, DMC1 & 3, Metroid Prime, KOTOR, and GTA:VC/SA
 

Kangu

Banned
AniHawk said:
250px-MetroidPrimebox.jpg


Oh- NO WAIT!
250px-JakIIbox.jpg

Jak was dead from the start. The original sucked donkeyballs.

And please do not mention that-of-which-we-do-not-speak-of in this thread, lest we invoke it's minions.
 
Kangu said:
Jak was dead from the start. The original sucked donkeyballs.

And please do not mention that-of-which-we-do-not-speak-of in this thread, lest we invoke it's minions.
**** that, it's the truth. MP was trash that ruined the series. If they wanted to turn it into an FPS they should have at leat attempted to make a good FPS.
 

klee123

Member
my top 5 in no order:



Resident evil 4 (GCN(
Zone of the enders: the second runner (PS2)
Virtua fighter 4 evolution (PS2)
Shadow of the colossus (PS2)
ICO (PS2)



Honorable mentions:

Fire Emblem (GCN)
Tales of Symphonia (GCN)
Metal Gear solid 3 (PS2)
Final Fantasy X (PS2)
SHin Megami Tensei digital devil saga 1/2 (PS2)
 
I don't like how you excluded Dreamcast, but anyways:


5. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty / Resident Evil 4 (TIE)

04.jpg


Mind****. Yes, a total mind**** it was. But damn was it an enjoyable one. The graphics were just incredible for its time, the voice acting exceptionally well done, the gameplay amazing. All the little touches, from shooting magazines out of the rack, to holding guards hostage, this game felt completely next-gen. Though it was a linear game, the amount of options it gave made it feel less like one. I didn't mind Raiden, sure Snake is a cooler character but playing as Raiden didn't really lessen the experience for me. It just gave another side to the story. Crazy ass story it was, but I understood most of it. And Snake jumping after Ocelot at the end was just one of the greatest moments in gaming ever. It was epic, it was crazy, it was awesome. MGS2 remains one of my most memorable gaming experiences ever.

resident-evil-4-20050103002225575.jpg


This screen always wows me. As does RE4 whenever I play it. The graphics are ****ing awesome. The best of this gen. A combination of a great art style, kick ass animation, and amazing tech behind it. But graphics are not the main reason why RE4 rules, no no no, its the gameplay. It just feel so fresh, so fun, so bad ass when you shoot a monk in the leg and then proceed to crush his skull with a suplex. The context sensitive actions are one of the best things about the game, they were used perfectly. Whether its kicking a Ganado in the face, ducking under a tree El Gigante tries to swipe you with, or jumping out of a window, it always feels cool, and its always fun. This is an action game, but it does quite a few things to make it feel unlike one. First is the Merchant. Upgrading your weapons, selling stuff, finding treasures, upgrading Leon's health, buying new weapons, this all goes a long way to give the game more depth and an RPG-like feeling. A great number of boss fights, all of them being awesome, and quite a few different enemies keep the game feeling fresh and exciting. The behind the back camera angle was genius, and the aiming system rocked. The game has a few problems though. It doesn't feel like an RE game, its rarely scary, the music ain't special, and the story is pretty weak. However the game is just so fun and replayable that its easy to ignore these things.

4. Super Smash Bros. Melee

smashmattsucks5.jpg


The best multi-player game ever. The best fighting game ever. My most played game ever. Yes, I give it quite a few awards, but it sure as hell deserves it. I bought a GameCube because of this game, in fact I bought a GameCube the day this game came out. I've unlocked everything, all levels, all characters, all trophies, and it took me a loooong time, and I loved it. The amount of depth in the game is barring on extreme. Tons of different modes, multiplayer and single player. 290 tropies to unlock, some quite easy, some extremely hard. The game is a complete and total blast with friends, I've busted up laughing at times just because the game is so fun and hilarious. There are countless legendary moments I've had playing this game, and I'm sure there will be a few more up until Brawl's release. Nearly 4 years after release and I still play the game quite a bit.

3. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

tww274qw9.jpg


You see that guy there? His name is Ganondorf, and he is the greatest game character ever. I don't care if you disagree or not, he is my favorite, and part of the reason why I enjoyed Wind Waker so much. They really fleshed out his character, and made him much more than the mindless power hungry villain he was in Ocarina of Time (though I like him like that as well). The story in TWW is by far the best in the series, however, the gameplay is also the best as well. Sure it has some problems, mainly being way too easy, but otherwise its extremely polished. The combat was vastly improved, and the puzzles were done extremely well. I loved sailing, I loved how vast the sea was, I liked how long it took to go from one place to another, it really gave a feeling that you could do anything you wanted. I wish they had made combat on the boat fun though. As for the Triforce hunt, the amount of complaining it recieves is overdone. Yes it was tedious, but it didn't really take that long. Lets not forget the graphics, which are just plain incredible. The most beautiful game of this gen (though I've yet to play Okami and Twilight Princess ain't out yet). One of the few games of this gen that will be looked back on 10 years after being released and it'll still look great. The dungeons, while not many, were all great except for the Stealth Dungeon. Tower of the Gods is my favorite dungeon in the entire series, I loved how it utilized everything you had, including your boat. The puzzles were great and I just loved the feel of it. The bosses, while easy, were all quite fun to beat. The final battle remains my favorite boss battle of all time. Overall, my favorite Zelda game.

2. Metroid Prime / Shenmue II (TIE)

metroidprimeguide57og7.jpg


First, I shall talk about Metroid Prime. What an amazing game this is. Its hard to believe that Retro Studios was able to create a game like this on their first try, I'm sure they got plenty of help from Nintendo, but still it always astounds me. Prime 1 is very similar to Echoes. They both share amazing graphics and art style, great boss battles, and are polished to perfection. Meta-Ridley stands as my favorite boss battle from either game, and I generally liked the areas in Prime 1 more (excluding Sanctuary Fortress), I loved the Ice Beam, and this game felt a lot more fresh than Echoes did. However I do have a few small complaints, the Plasma Beam was overly powerful, once you got it there was pretty much no reason to use the other weapons except for opening doors, fighting Fusion Metroids, or the first part of the final boss battle.

shenmue_083002_18.jpg


Perhaps the most epic experience I've ever had in gaming. This was better than the original in every way, and though the cliffhanger ending pissed me off to no end, I loved the game through and through. The best story in a game bar none, and it fixed the little annoying things in the original like having to wait around until a certain time passed. The jobs were more fun, there were more things to do, the cast was better (Ren FTW), more action, more fighting, and just overall was plain awesome. Only problems I had was the dub (while improved from the original) was still pretty meh, and carrying books around sucked. Otherwise, I loved it.

1. Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

metroid-prime-2-echoes-20041021102555515.jpg


Yes, most people seem to think this was a disappointing sequel, but not me. I loved it, it surpassed the first in almost everyway, and was gameplay perfection. Difficulty was set just right, graphics and art style utterly amazing, and some of the best boss battles of this gen. Some people complained about the Dark World, or other parts of the game, but for me I have pretty much no qualms with the gameplay at all. Its perfect, I'm in awe of how polished the game feels everytime I play it. The ammo system added some strategy to combat, and I loved the missile combos (though they weren't as useful as in Prime 1). Sanctuary Fortress is the greatest level in gaming, ever. The only problem I have is the key hunt at the end, however exploring the world with the Light Suit gave you a feeling of how far you have come ability wise. Multi-player was meh, but single player is just pure GREATNESS.

Honorable Mentions:

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Marvel VS. Capcom 2, Tales of Symphonia, Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat, Skies of Arcadia Legends.
 

Grayman

Member
AlanHemberger said:
DOES.NOT.COMPUTE.

I think you got it backwards. :p
It had the better setting but it had flaws that make it a lesser game retrospectively.

-targeting has never been great in a GTA game. I had trouble doing a mission where I had to shoot a barrel when I replayed the opening missions of the game this week. In SA I could manually aim at the barrel if targetting was being retarded.
-very flat map. not a lot of interesting stuff really. Nowhere good to go offroading on dirt bikes
- seaplanes, sea copters, lots of boats, and a game where you DIE if you touch water.

Those 3 flaws for me make the game lesser than SA.
 
Grayman said:
It had the better setting but it had flaws that make it a lesser game retrospectively.

-targeting has never been great in a GTA game. I had trouble doing a mission where I had to shoot a barrel when I replayed the opening missions of the game this week. In SA I could manually aim at the barrel if targetting was being retarded.
-very flat map. not a lot of interesting stuff really. Nowhere good to go offroading on dirt bikes
- seaplanes, sea copters, lots of boats, and a game where you DIE if you touch water.

Those 3 flaws for me make the game lesser than SA.
I can agree with all of those. However, those just aren't deal breakers in my book really.

When I was saying gameplay, I meant boring, drawn out missions. That kinda stuff. SA had some awful missions and tasks.
 

Amir0x

Banned
1. Resident Evil 4 (GCN)
2. F-Zero GX/Gran Turismo 4
3. Pikmin 2
4. Metal Gear Solid 3
5. Metroid Prime

Although, Okami might have recently knocked MP to 'honorable mention', who knows! Gotta give that one time to settle.

Other honorables: Disgaea, Shadow of the Colossus/ICO, Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, Zelda:Wind Waker, Super Mario Sunshine, Virtua Fighter 4: Evo, Paper Mario: Thousand Year Door, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Devil May Cry 3, Ninja Gaiden, etc
 

Jefklak

Member
5. Super Smash Bros Melee
4. Tales of Symphonia
3. Zelda: Wind Waker
2. Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
1. PAPER MARIO 2 BITCHES

paper-mario-the-thousand-year-door-20040806015310566.jpg
 

Dizzy

Banned
My top three...

3) GTA: San Andreas
2) Metroid Prime
1) Resident Evil 4.

I can't do a top 5 as the 4th and 5th games seem to change daily. One of them would definitely be a Metal Gear Solid game though :)

Kangu said:
Oh shit I forgot about Mario Kart: DD


999,999,999. Mario Kart: Double Dash

Never has a franchise been so effectively killed in one instalment. The only thing that comes close is DMC2. Of course we got DMC3 after that, so maybe there's hope for one of my most played series ever.
I agree, I played the other MK games religiously. Even when my friends didn't want to play Mario Kart I talked them into it :p

Double Dash though....ugh. I tried hard to deny what this game was for a long time even though I barely touched the game. In the end though the haters were right - all thios game had going for it was the name.
 

AniHawk

Member
Amir0x said:
1. Resident Evil 4 (GCN)
2. F-Zero GX/Gran Turismo 4
3. Pikmin 2
4. Metal Gear Solid 3
5. Metroid Prime

Although, Okami might have recently knocked MP to 'honorable mention', who knows! Gotta give that one time to settle.

Other honorables: Disgaea, Shadow of the Colossus/ICO, Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, Zelda:Wind Waker, Super Mario Sunshine, Virtua Fighter 4: Evo, Paper Mario: Thousand Year Door, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Devil May Cry 3, Ninja Gaiden, etc

I really hate you Nintendo fanboys
 

Dizzy

Banned
Ninja Dom said:
Not too many mentions for F-Zero GX in these Top 5's.

I thought the game was fantastic, nobody agree??
It is fantastic, but unfortunately it doesn't quite make it into my top 5. It's defintely one of my favourites though.

I presume that others agree, it was crippled because it's a racing game :p
 

LCGeek

formerly sane
RE4
Soul Calibur (2 and 3 glitches ruined it for me) tied with Virtua 4
Fzero GX
PGR2
SOTC (really need to finish it.)
 
5th - The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker
4th - Metroid Prime
3rd - Ninja Gaiden: Black
2nd - Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
1st - Resident Evil 4

I realise 4 of those games are on Gamecube, but I own an Xbox and PS2 as well, so this is not a biased opinion. I just found Gamecube games to be the best (pity there wasn't enough of them), though I give honourable mentions to Shadow of the Collosus, F-Zero GX, Metal Gear Solid 3, KOTOR, Pikmin 2, Splinter Cell Chaos Theory, GTA 3, Viewtiful Joe, and God Of War.
 

totoro'd

Member
in order:
1. Dragon Quest VIII
2. Shenmue 2
3. Tales of Symphonia
4. Fire Emblem:path of Radiance
5. Shadow of the Colossus

Others I really liked: ICO, Star Ocean:Till the End of Time, MGS2 & 3, Disgaea, Radiata Stories.

This isn't including Dreamcast games. I'd have a whole different list then.
 

Grayman

Member
AlanHemberger said:
I can agree with all of those. However, those just aren't deal breakers in my book really.

When I was saying gameplay, I meant boring, drawn out missions. That kinda stuff. SA had some awful missions and tasks.
Ok what you are saying makes a lot of sense now. VC did have a lot of good memorable missions. Robbing the bank, jumping the bike through the city(but I used a chopter), the battles over the mansion. It's been 4 or 5 years but those ones still stick in my head. I think there might have been a golf cart chase too?

SA i played most of the story mode while I had the flu and couldn't do anything else so I don't remember if it was good or bad and I would have tolerated anything to occupy my day at that point.

I consider the GTA games more for when you are not working at a goal besides sandboxing. In that case I like SA the most then VC and 3 have traded spots a few times.
 

Feindflug

Member
That's a really tough one..only 5?

No order:

- Shadow Of The Colossus
- ICO
- Okami
- Resident Evil 4
- Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
 
Grayman said:
Ok what you are saying makes a lot of sense now. VC did have a lot of good memorable missions. Robbing the bank, jumping the bike through the city(but I used a chopter), the battles over the mansion. It's been 4 or 5 years but those ones still stick in my head. I think there might have been a golf cart chase too?

SA i played most of the story mode while I had the flu and couldn't do anything else so I don't remember if it was good or bad and I would have tolerated anything to occupy my day at that point.

I consider the GTA games more for when you are not working at a goal besides sandboxing. In that case I like SA the most then VC and 3 have traded spots a few times.
Hell yeah. The golfcart mission was awesome. I think we agree on the same things then.

And yeah, I play GTA for the same reason. I wouild never do the missions if they gave me access to all the cities and whatnot from the start.
 

psycho_snake

I went to WAGs boutique and all I got was a sniff
In no particular order:

Metal Gear Solid 3
Zone of the enders 2
Shadow of the colossus
Okami
Resident Evil 4

Since picking 5 is very difficult Im also going to include other games which i thought were some of the best of last gen.

Digital Devil Saga 1
Metal Gear Solid 2
Zelda: Wind Waker
Metroid Prime
Final fantasy X
Jak 3

A lot of people have picked Ico. The one amazing thing about Ico was
when you find out that those shadows you have been killing are the same as you, it was a big plot twist but the way you found out was genius. Instead of making you watch a cutscene you actually play through a plot twist
Other than that I didnt think Ico was as good as people make it out to be.
 

pswii60

Member
1) HALO
2) PHANTASY STAR ONLINE
3) METAL GEAR SOLID 2
4) JET SET RADIO FUTURE
5) ICO


...


6) PANZER DRAGOON ORTA
7) JAK & DAXTER
8) GTA3
9) KLONOA 2
10) SOUL CALIBUR
 

psycho_snake

I went to WAGs boutique and all I got was a sniff
AniHawk said:
250px-MetroidPrimebox.jpg


Oh- NO WAIT!
250px-JakIIbox.jpg
I never played a 2d metroid before I played Prime, but I cant imagine metroid games being any other way that metorid prime is. Ive played metroid fusion and thats pretty rubbish compared to metroid prime.

Im also a big jak fan. The first jack game was pants, it was like most other platformers. You just went around collecting stuff and the world was quite boring. Jak 2 was completely different. You were placed in a massive city and you had to complete missions. Its like a platformer version of GTA but naughty dog managed to pull it off incredibly and thewy created an amazing game.
 

Polari

Member
The list

1. Activision Anthology - Best. Retro. Compilation. Ever.
2. Resident Evil 4 - Best. Action. Game. Ever.
3. Shenmue II - I'm going to cheat as even though I played it on Dreamcast, it was released on Xbox.
4. Super Mario Sunshine - Probably the best 3D platformer to date.
5. We <3 Katamari - Because I <3 Katamari.

Okami, Yakuza, Twilight Princess, FFXII are all in with a shot, it's just that with the exception of Yakuza, they haven't been released here yet.
 
psycho_snake said:
I never played a 2d metroid before I played Prime, but I cant imagine metroid games being any other way that metorid prime is. Ive played metroid fusion and thats pretty rubbish compared to metroid prime.

It's called Super Metroid.

It's called Best Game Ever.
 

AniHawk

Member
psycho_snake said:
I never played a 2d metroid before I played Prime, but I cant imagine metroid games being any other way that metorid prime is. Ive played metroid fusion and thats pretty rubbish compared to metroid prime.

Im also a big jak fan. The first jack game was pants, it was like most other platformers. You just went around collecting stuff and the world was quite boring. Jak 2 was completely different. You were placed in a massive city and you had to complete missions. Its like a platformer version of GTA but naughty dog managed to pull it off incredibly and thewy created an amazing game.

There is no emoticon for what I am feeling.
 
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