The Best RPGs on PS2

Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance

• Release Date — December 4, 2001
• Developer — Snowblind Studios
• Publisher — Interplay Entertainment, Black Isle Studios
• Review Aggregate Score — 87% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 83% (Generally Favorable)

Sure, Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance can be described as a bit of a Diablo clone, but it also happens to be the best console Dungeons & Dragons game for its time. While PC players were privy to classics such as Bioware’s Baldur’s Gate and Baldur’s Gate 2, Icewind Dale, Planescape Torment, and Neverwinter Nights, console players were largely left out of the D&D video game gold rush until Dark Alliance‘s arrival. Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance delivers the great story and atmosphere that you’d expect from a D&D campaign, but it does so while also incorporating some incredibly satisfying hack-and-slash ARPG combat and wildly different classes that make each playthrough a blast, especially when playing in local co-op with a friend. As far as two-player PS2 RPGs go, it doesn’t get much better than Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance.

Star Ocean: Till the End of Time

• Release Date — February 27, 2003
• Developer — tri-Ace
• Publisher — Enix/Square Enix
• Review Aggregate Score — 80% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 81% (Generally Favorable)

While it doesn’t quite reach the same heights as Star Ocean: The Second Story (which, coincidentally, is one of my personal favorite PS1 RPGs), Star Ocean: Till the End of Time is a commendable follow-up that more than deserves its flowers. The initial release of the game was plagued with a litany of bugs and performance issues, all of which would ultimately be ironed out in time for the game’s Western release as Star Ocean: Till the End of Time Director’s Cut. It also represents a bit of a bittersweet swansong for the Star Ocean series’ golden era before it took a sharp left turn into mediocrity, which makes going back and playing Till the End of Time all the more necessary to see what a great game it truly is.

X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse

• Release Date — September 20, 2005
• Developer — Raven Software
• Publisher — Activision
• Review Aggregate Score — 82% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 86% (Generally Favorable)

Probably my personal favorite action RPG on the PS2, X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse is a major improvement over its predecessor in nearly every way. Aside from the improvements to combat, progression, and level design, X-Men Legends II lets players finally live out their dream of teaming up the X-Men with their classic rogues gallery, resulting in a roster of playable characters that totally outdoes the original X-Men Legends. Throw in the unlockable comic book-style costumes from the late 80s/early 90s Chris Claremont/Jim Lee era of the X-Men books, and you have yourself one of the best comic video games ever made. While Raven Software would go on to expand on this formula with Marvel Ultimate Alliance and its sequel (which, admittedly, I also love), X-Men Legends II is the developer’s peak as far as comic-themed ARPGs go.

Dark Cloud 2

• Release Date — November 28, 2002
• Developer — Level-5
• Publisher — Sony Computer Entertainment
• Review Aggregate Score — 87% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 82% (Generally Favorable)

Truth be told, I debated whether to include the first Dark Cloud or its sequel on this list of best PS2 RPGs, which says a lot about both games’ quality. Ultimately, though, Dark Cloud 2 won out thanks to its improved visuals, worthwhile enhancements to the original’s city-builder/RPG gameplay hybrid, and major improvements to combat (including two protagonists who each have their own unique weapons, combat style, and progression path). The best part about Dark Could 2, though, is the ability to see the fruits of your city-building labors thanks to the game’s implementation of a sort of time travel where you grow to learn the future impact of your present decisions. And, lest we forget, Dark Could 2 happens to have one of the best fishing mini-games in a genre that is absolutely packed to the gills (get it?) with them.

Wild Arms 3

• Release Date — March 14, 2002
• Developer — Media.Vision
• Publisher — Sony Computer Entertainment
• Review Aggregate Score — 78% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 81% (Generally Favorable)

Ask any fan of the Wild Arms series to nail down a favorite, and most players seem to oscillate between the tradition of the first game in the series (which, admittedly, is one of the PS1’s best RPGs) and the innovations of Wild Arms 3. Of course, the stark deviations from its two predecessors also result in Wild Arms 3 being one of the series’ most contentious entries, but in hindsight, it’s a much better game than its detractors might let on.

Wild Arms 3 does away with a lot of traditional RPG mechanics in favor of an atypical approach to character progression and leveling, and its emphasis on dungeon crawling allows its excellent combat to shine. Perhaps the best idea put forward in Wild Arms 3, needing to continually push out into the map and scout locations to see it grow in size, really underscores the idea of the game being a true Wild West RPG, allowing players to have an approximation of life on the pioneer.

Kingdom Hearts

• Release Date — March 28, 2002
• Developer — Square
• Publisher — Square
• Review Aggregate Score — 85% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 85% (Generally Favorable)

One of Square’s greatest contributions to gaming during the 6th generation is Kingdom Hearts, which would eventually go on to inspire its own massive franchise within the Square Enix library. That first game, though, is still arguably the best, brilliantly mixing Tetsuya Nomura’s penchant for character design, storytelling, and world-building with the unmistakably iconic worlds and characters from a slew of Disney properties. While Kingdom Hearts 2 does arguably feature a better selection of worlds and a much more streamlined approach to the Gummi Ship, it’s hard to beat the impact that the first Kingdom Hearts had. Plus, any game that lets you fight Hades from Hercules and Final Fantasy VII‘s Sephiroth in the same arena is a winner.

Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King

• Release Date — November 27, 2004
• Developer — Level-5
• Publisher — Square Enix
• Review Aggregate Score — 89% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 86% (Generally Favorable)

Most longtime Dragon Quest fans point to Dragon Quest VIII as one of their favorite entries in the series, and it’s easy to see why. Following the overly long and drawn-out Dragon Quest VII on PS1, Dragon Quest VIII feels relatively brisk in comparison, even at 60-70 hours for just the main quest. Part of Dragon Quest VIII‘s brilliance rests on Level-5’s development, who would also go on to develop Dragon Quest IX and use their skill at crafting excellent RPGs to bring DQVIII‘s world and characters to life. And while Dragon Quest VIII incorporates some elements that bring it into the modern era of JRPGs (such as a fully integrated 3D world and speedier combat), it’s still classic Dragon Quest at its core, solidifying itself as one of the PS2’s great “comfort food” RPGs.

Shadow Hearts: Covenant

• Release Date — February 19, 2004
• Developer — Nautilus
• Publisher — Aruze (JP), Midway (NA)
• Review Aggregate Score — 85% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 87% (Generally Favorable)

There’s a strong case to be made for Shadow Hearts: Covenant being the best PS2 RPG that no one has played. Far lesser known than many of the other great RPGs in the PS2 library, Shadow Hearts: Covenant is a wholly unique experience that leverages fairly standard JRPG gameplay with a very compelling WWI-era story involving cosmic horror and Lovecraftian motif. But that’s not to say that Shadow Hearts: Covenant‘s story is the only thing it has going for it. Far from it, in fact. The Judgement Ring makes the random, turn-based encounters more engaging thanks to a Super Mario RPG-style timing of button presses to enhance certain attacks, and the latter half of the game incorporates an interesting transformation mechanic that allows the protagonists to morph into some of Shadow Hearts: Covenant‘s excellently-designed creatures.

Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht

• Release Date — February 28, 2002
• Developer — Monolith Soft
• Publisher — Namco
• Review Aggregate Score — 83% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 86% (Generally Favorable)

Following the release of Xenogears, Tetsuya Takahashi and his wife Kaori Tanaka (now Soraya Saga) would unsuccessfully pitch a sequel to Square. Unhappy with the lack of support for their creative vision, the husband and wife duo would leave Square to start their own studio, Monolith Soft, with the team’s first project being a 6-part spiritual successor to Xenogears embodying similar themes and ideas. The first game in this planned hexalogy is Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht (or, “The Will to Power”), and it’s every bit as dense and challenging as you’d expect a game named after Nietzsche’s work to be. That said, it’s also a great RPG that clearly lays the foundation for the studio’s future greatness with the Xenoblade series, and it’s also the best entry of the three Xenosaga games before the series was inevitably canceled.

Odin Sphere

• Release Date — May 17, 2007
• Developer — Vanillaware
• Publisher — Atlus
• Review Aggregate Score — 83% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 82% (Generally Favorable)

Following George Kamitani’s work on the Sega Saturn classic Princess Crown, the developer would branch out to form his own studio in Vanillaware, and Odin Sphere is its debut title. And what a debut it is. Odin Sphere is a sort of spiritual successor to Princess Crown, much like Vanillaware’s later work on Dragon’s Crown, blending elements of RPGs and beat ’em ups into a potent brew that’s hard to put down. The hallmark of Vanillaware’s games — their absolutely gorgeous, hand-drawn visuals — are on full display in Odin Sphere, working overtime to bring characters and creatures from Norse mythology to life all while delivering some of the best action RPG gameplay on the PS2.

Final Fantasy XII

• Release Date — March 16, 2006
• Developer — Square Enix
• Publisher — Square Enix
• Review Aggregate Score — 92% (Universal Acclaim)
• User Score — 75% (Generally Favorable)

For the Final Fantasy series’ 6th generation swansong, Square Enix would enlist the help of a team of franchise veterans to craft one of the most exciting and forward-thinking entries in the series, resulting in Final Fantasy XII being wholly unique among other Final Fantasy games. Rather than rely on the series’ traditional turn-based combat, battles in Final Fantasy XII play out as sort of automated, MMO-lite encounters where players get to set up their party’s battle commands and watch them succeed or fail. Dubbed the “Gambit” system, this new combat model allows players to get a sort of crash course in coding using “if/then” statements, and the amount of flexibility it affords in how you approach encounters is impressive.

Of course, no Final Fantasy is just about its gameplay, and the story of Final Fantasy XII is, admittedly, the one area where the title falls behind its predecessor. While the return to Ivalice is an exciting prospect for fans of Final Fantasy Tactics, the disconnected feel to Final Fantasy XII‘s story results in many of its major plot points lacking the impact they might have had otherwise, even if the game’s narrative is smartly written and features some mature and complex themes that are atypical for the series.

Rogue Galaxy

• Release Date — December 8, 2005
• Developer — Level-5
• Publisher — Sony Computer Entertainment
• Review Aggregate Score — 83% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 79% (Generally Favorable)

Sci-fi, space pirates, a young farmer thrust into a heroic journey…you’d be forgiven for assuming Rogue Galaxy was an RPG version of Star Wars, but it unfortunately never became the blockbuster it was so clearly designed (and deserved) to be. At the time of its release, Rogue Galaxy was developer Level-5’s largest and most ambitious project to date, and it still stands as one of the now-legendary studio’s greatest works. Essentially, Rogue Galaxy is what you would get from blending Skies of Arcadia with Star Ocean, and its combat, storytelling, and progression systems are arguably better than either of the series it so clearly takes inspiration from. It’s not hyperbole to assert that Rogue Galaxy is one of the PS2’s greatest overlooked games, and it’s as criminal as the crew of the Dorgenark that more haven’t played it.

Tales of the Abyss

• Release Date — December 15, 2005
• Developer — Namco Tales Studio
• Publisher — Bandai Namco
• Review Aggregate Score — 78% (Generally Favorable)
• User Score — 88% (Generally Favorable)

Getting a solid consensus from Tales of… fans regarding their favorite entry in the series can be as difficult and contentious as the franchise is prolific, but it’s a safe bet that, for many, Tales of the Abyss will land somewhere near the top. Tales of the Abyss is a classic Tales, introducing players to an initially unlikeable protagonist surrounded by a likeable cast of characters, and then watching them grow into the hero they were always meant to be thanks to the relationships and bonds formed with their allies over the course of a grand adventure. Combat in Tales of the Abyss, which uses a modified version of the LMBS system similar to Tales of Symphonia, is some of the best in the series, and the game’s story is surprisingly heartfelt and comforting, even if it occasionally plays it too close to genre convention.

Persona 4

• Release Date — July 10, 2008
• Developer — Atlus
• Publisher — Atlus
• Review Aggregate Score — 90% (Universal Acclaim)
• User Score — 88% (Generally Favorable)

Choosing between Persona 3 and Persona 4 to include on a list of best PS2 RPGs is a tough call to make, but the crown ultimately goes to Persona 4 thanks to Persona 3‘s definitive version arguably being the PSP re-release. Persona 4 is perhaps where the series really starts to come into its own, taking the radical reinvention of the spin-off series’ mechanics that came about in Persona 3 and further refining them into the compelling loop fans know and love today. The calendar system and social elements are practically perfectly balanced with the dungeon-crawling gameplay; which, thanks to Persona 4‘s “TV World” setting, features some of the most inventive and bizarre dungeon designs of any game in the series. Persona wouldn’t really achieve mainstream success until Persona 5, but if you ask me, Persona 4 is still the series’ peak.

Final Fantasy X

• Release Date — July 19, 2001
• Developer — Square Product Development Division 1
• Publisher — Square
• Review Aggregate Score — 92% (Universal Acclaim)
• User Score — 89% (Generally Favorable)

From both a story and gameplay perspective, Final Fantasy X is both one of the PS2’s best RPGs and one of the greatest games in the Final Fantasy franchise. It follows what’s arguably the most important trilogy of Final Fantasy games and somehow manages to meet (and, in some ways, surpass) those games’ excellence to become one of the series’ most iconic and heartfelt entries. The story of Yuna and Tidus as star-crossed lovers working together to defend the people of Spira from the all-encompassing destruction of Sin ranks among the best stories in a series that’s known for delivering some of the all-time greatest RPG narratives, and its conclusion brings one of the most cathartic and emotional payoffs of any Final Fantasy game.

But the story is far from the only area where Final Fantasy X shines. The game’s visuals and soundtrack are equally as impressive, with the former still holding claim to being some of the best on the PS2 and the latter ranking among legendary composer Nobuo Uematsu’s best compositions. The introduction of the Sphere Grid is a unique approach to character progression that clearly lays the groundwork for the licenses of Final Fantasy XII and allows some flexibility in how players build out each character and the optional endgame grind for obtaining all the Aeon’s ranks among one of gaming’s greatest challenges. Simply put, Final Fantasy X is a masterpiece that embodies almost everything players love about the franchise and RPGs in general, and it’s the face of the genre on the PS2.