Retronauts Episode 172: PlayStation 2

So wait, you play Shadow Hearts music all over this wonderful episode, but you don't actually do a shadow hearts episode? Three games! 1 is good, 2 is amazing, 3 is a let down. Get an expert on there and do an hour episode please! Though I realize its tough when none of you have played them.

Ironjoe99

I'll go to bat for Killzone. I can understand if you had already played Half-Life or Halo when it came out that it probably didn't look that special. It also wasn't the smoothest running game on the Playstation 2 but, having played a lot a PS2 first person shooters, I found Killzone to be one of the best in the genre for that platform in terms of level design as well as replay value (you could play as different characters with different weapon loadouts). I played it a lot and greatly enjoyed my time with it. I found the second one to also be quite good but can't speak to any of the later entries in the series.

Paul Klockenkemper

I hope you guys do record a Sega Saturn and Dreamcast episode. That Saturn episode recorded in 2007 with Bettenhousen, Mielke, and 1UP company is my favorite of all Retronauts. Maybe even do a Shenmue or Mega Man Legends episode sometime?

Aaron

I’ll always be a little bitter about the PlayStation 2 because it was a factor in the early demise of the Dreamcast. To this day I’ve never owned a Sony console.

Milton Allemand

I hope Henry was employee of the month Dec 1999 and January 2000.

Alex Forsyth

Looking forward to the episode. The heyday of the PS2 was during a long phase of me not really playing games, so I'm interested to hear what I missed/should check out (especially as an awesome friend recently lent me his PS3, so I'm catching up on a lot of games).

Aleisha

After Timesplitters got a passing mention on this episode, I would love to see a full-on episode looking back at that series.

Curtis Bostick

I'll chime in with some Killzone love. It was interesting for its sci-fi WWII aesthetic and it had a heft that set it apart from every other FPS on the market. Killzone and its sequel are really the only two games that are special. They began to change the games to be like every other FPS on the market beginning with 3, and it just sort of lost everything that made it special by the time Shadow Fall came around. But I have so many fond memories of the first two Killzone games and the Helghast are some of the best designed enemies despite just being space Nazis. With all that being said, I'll be happy to never see Killzone again, and I'm stoked to see Guerilla finding such success with Horizon even if it doesn't appeal to me personally.

Phazonmasher

I remember my PS2 launch consisted of me working at an independent import/domestic game store here in San Antonio and going to pick up PS2s from Kay-Bee in the mall.... To go resell at our store because we didn't get our own shipment 🙄

RoryDropkick

I'd also love to hear a Micro on Team Buddies or Hogs of War - both superb and under-appreciated games, at least Stateside. Everyone and their dads played Hogs of War in the UK, to the point that they re-released it in two Greatest Hits versions and an Infogrames multipack, alongside Worms Armageddon and Worms Pinball. It was very British, but it also arrived in Europe six months before the PS2, as opposed to one month earlier in the US. A shame, as it's arguably the best Worms game ever made. Rik Mayall (Blackadder, The Young Ones) playing all of the characters also feels like our equivalent of a great, hidden Phil Hartman performance.

Alex Bullock

This should be ep. 172 right? At this point, I have nostalgia for wrongly numbered retronauts episodes.

Never mind, just got the link in my email!!

brownlantern

Hey guys, is there a way to add the early podcast feed to my podcast player?

brownlantern

Great episode. Very little to add except that FIFA, while a big draw, wasn't the biggest sports title in other regions - that crown went to Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer, which was the superior title for pretty much that entire generation. I felt like the Tiger Woods games were a huge get for PS2 as well, as I remember everyone owning those, but I'm not sure the sales figures back that up.

Alex Bullock