20 PS2 Games Critics Were WRONG About

“Cold Winter” (2005)

While Cold Winter wasn’t critically panned upon release, perhaps the critics judged it a bit too harshly. Telling a story about covert operations and backroom deals, the story might not have been revolutionary, but the gameplay certainly was. Featuring more than 30 weapons, dismemberment and an impressive ragdoll physics system, Cold Winter also utilized improvised cover, allowing players to manipulate the environment and even find materials to craft explosives or gadgets. Many reviewers wrote the game off as bland or boring while players found quite a lot to enjoy in the game’s twisty narrative, solid gunplay and unique action setpieces. Had the reviewers been more open to Cold Winter’s gameplay mechanics and story, perhaps more players would have discovered this hidden gem upon release.

“Obscure” (2004)

Long before Until Dawn, Obscure was adapting the 80s teen slasher formula on the PS2. With five playable characters as well as the ability to play the game in co-op, players must navigate their way through all manner of horrific scenarios in which any character can die and must use everyone’s special abilities to solve puzzles. The game’s many characters are all as cheesy as you’d expect and all fit their archetypes nicely (the jock, the quiet genius, the outcast, etc) and the story is appropriately weird and over-the-top, feeling like it was ripped from a straight to VHS release in the 80s. While many critics loved the co-op aspect of the game, they derided the title for leaning too much into familiar horror tropes and not doing enough to innovate on the formula. Gamers on the other hand had an absolute blast with the title, and Obscure still has its dedicated defenders even today.

“Predator: Concrete Jungle” (2005)

For some reason, Predator has never had its “Alien: Isolation” game, where the devs manage to perfectly nail every aspect of their adaptation, but Predator: Concrete Jungle might be the closest we’ve gotten. Giving players access to all the Yautja’s arsenal and abilities, critics lambasted the game for its controls, boring and repetitive gameplay, and graphical limitations. Gamers however, accepted the game’s flaws and set out on the streets in search of their next hunt. Even despite the oftentimes awkward camera and controls, the game was still a blast to play, leaping around the city streets and sneaking up on unsuspecting prey proved to be a faithful recreation of what it must be like to hunt as the Predator. Hearing all the familiar sounds of the Predator’s growls and weapons powering up is enough to make any nostalgic fan overlook any of the game’s flaws and just get lost in the hunt itself.

“Gauntlet: Dark Legacy” (2001)

The Gauntlet series is an OG staple of arcades, so naturally that experience was ported to consoles. However, even despite the game being an almost perfect port of the arcade original, with new levels, weapons and even character classes, critics seemed to be expecting more than just a fun, hack and slash time with friends. While the game wasn’t without its technical issues, the amount of fun the game offered, especially if you could get a full party of friends together, far outweighed any inconveniences the abrupt graphical hiccup might have caused. Maybe they just didn’t have any friends to play it with. Honestly, come to think of it, that’s probably the most likely scenario. Being overcritical of something everyone else loves can really put a damper on the good times.

“The Getaway: Black Monday” (2005)

The Getaway was an ambitious open world game that not only recreated the streets of London with stunning accuracy for the time but also sought to create a far more cinematic approach to its storytelling than other crime sandbox titles of the time. However, while the original was lauded for this approach, the sequel Black Monday was widely criticized for the things that made the original such a critical darling. Reviewers were extremely critical of Black Monday, feeling more like an interactive movie than a video game, while others criticized the lack of innovation between the titles. Gamers however, loved the impressively immersive world and story Black Monday created and the more realistic approach to exploration, gunplay and driving. While everyone agreed there were some technical issues, Black Monday pushed the aging PS2 to its limits, gamers were more forgiving and allowed themselves to become immersed in London’s crime underbelly.

“Resident Evil Outbreak: File #2” (2005)

With online gaming still in its infancy on the PS2, some titles were simply ahead of their time, and the Resident Evil spin-off series Outbreak was unfortunately one of these casualties. While the first game was relatively well received, its sequel bombed with critics, despite notable improvements to the game’s formula. Considering File 2 was basically an expansion of the original, following the same characters just through new scenarios, many still unfairly compared the game to the obviously superior Resident Evil 4. For gamers however, more of the same isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Fans of the original applauded the improvements to gameplay and the new areas and appreciated the game’s classic approach to the Resident Evil formula while the main games were heading in a new direction. Of all the Resident Evil games for Capcom to remake, the Outbreak series deserves a second chance now that online play has become the standard.

“Echo Night Beyond” (2004)

Long before FromSoftware was demanding its fans “Git Gud”, they were creating some truly experimental titles across all genres. Echo Night Beyond dropped players on a haunted space station and let them uncover its horrors while running from their life from its ghostly inhabitants. The game’s unique approach to exploration through a first-person perspective as well as its complete lack of combat seemed to confound many reviewers used to the more typical “survival horror” games. The game was criticized for its slow pacing and repetitive environmental design. It’s a space station, what were you expecting? Las Vegas in the stars? Much like the early days of the Souls games though, gamers were the ones who truly appreciated this new approach to a familiar genre with its unique gameplay design and deep, well-crafted and rewarding narrative and atmospheric world.

“Chulip” (2007)

Chulip is an odd game, to put it modestly. And that might have been exactly what turned off so many critics from the game’s charm. With the seemingly simple task of retrieving pieces of a love letter, the game adds the truly strange dynamic of raising your social status by kissing everyone in the village. The premise is weird, the gameplay is oftentimes confusing, and the seemingly lost in translation Japanese humor turned quite a few critics against the charming little game. Many gamers however, fell in love with Chulip’s undeniable charm, unique gameplay mechanics and puzzles, and the design of the town and its many interesting characters. Chulip is a game you either love or hate, but it seems to have more than won over those willing to give it a chance.

“Ed, Edd ‘n Eddy: The Mis-Edventures” (2005)

Cartoon Network licensed games are a dime a dozen and most of them feel as though that was also their budget, but there was something special about The Mis-Edventures. While critics were naturally critical of nearly every aspect of the title’s gameplay, mechanics and graphics, gamers and especially fans of the show were much kinder to the Eds. The Mis-Edventures perfectly captured not only the look of the show but also the over-the-top zaniness of their adventures and offered enough gameplay variety to keep players entertained. While critics disliked the game’s repetitive nature and its short length, The Mis-Edventures felt like an interactive lost episode for fans who were able to look past many of the game’s shortcomings and just enjoy their time with the Eds in the cul de sac.

“SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom” (2003)

SpongeBob is not only one of the longest running series of all time, but he also has more video games under his SquarePants than any other cartoon. While a lot of these games were shovelware at best, Battle for Bikini Bottom was one of the most faithful adaptations of the fry cook. But for whatever reason, critics still couldn’t stand it. Maybe it was the fact it was based on a popular children’s cartoon and their inner child had long since died, but critics seemed overly critical of what was arguably SpongeBob’s best adventure. Thankfully, gamers were much more appreciative, and Battle for Bikini Bottom remains one of SpongeBob’s most beloved video game entries, even earning a remake that was so well received, it allowed the devs to create an equally well received spiritual successor. Take that, you bunch of boring sticks in the mud.

“Castlevania: Curse of Darkness” (2005)

For some reason, adapting the classic Castlevania formula to 3D has been one of the most challenging hurdles for developers looking to update the classic series, and while the most of them have been mediocre to downright awful, there have been some that managed the impossible. But not according to many of the uptight critics, however. Curse of Darkness was by far one of the better adaptations to 3D for the Castlevania series, but that didn’t stop the critics from cutting it down over every indiscretion. The repetitive gameplay and environments were the go-to critiques for lowering the score, while fans of the series and newcomers were simply having a great time killing monsters with the game’s many weapons and inventive upgrades. While it might not have been as great as its predecessor Lament of Innocence, at the very least it’s better than Castlevania 64.

“Pac-Man World Rally” (2006)

We’ll be the first to admit, this is kind of a weird one. Ever since Mario Kart raced onto the scene there has been no shortage of copy-cats and imitators trying to capitalize on the kart racer’s popularity. One of these adaptations by all accounts should have been yet another in a pile of wannabes, but for whatever reason, while critics naturally took issue with adapting Pac-Man to a kart racer to simply capitalize on the genre’s popularity, gamers LOVED this game. World Rally didn’t do anything especially revolutionary and even simply put a Pac-Man skin over most of the Mario Kart staples, but through solid gameplay, track design and above all else, fun, gamers had a great time with this bizarre combination of Pac-Man and kart racers. And you know what? Good for them. Fun is the most important thing in gaming and World Rally had more than enough to keep players racing.

“Extermination” (2001)

In the early 2000s, Resident Evil dominated the survival horror scene, and a lot of titles were unfairly compared to Capcom’s juggernaut series. Despite numerous interesting ideas such as the single upgradable weapon and the mutated creatures heavily inspired by John Carpenter’s “The Thing”, many reviewers simply wrote the game off as another “Resident Evil clone” that lacked innovation to move the genre forward. Gamers, however, were much more welcoming of a new entry in the survival horror genre and loved Extermination’s creatures, atmosphere, gunplay and campy horror story. While Extermination might not have moved the needle the way Resident Evil 4 would a few years later, there’s a lot to be appreciated in a genre classic that offers its own spins on familiar gameplay tropes, and that's exactly why gamers loved Extermination.

“Winback: Covert Operations” (2001)

Winback deserved a lot more praise and recognition than it earned. As one of the first 3rd person games to offer players the option to take cover during firefights, Winback would go on to inspire games that would later refine and perfect the system such as Kill Switch and Gears of War. Reviewers however, couldn’t see how revolutionary this new approach to gameplay truly was and lambasted the game for its lackluster graphics, annoying controls and ridiculous voice acting. Thankfully, gamers could see the potential of these new gameplay mechanics and rightfully applauded Winback for its impact on 3rd person shooters and the game’s campy narrative. As a game, Winback is average at best, but as a landmark title for its innovation, it’s nearly unmatched.

“Crash Twinsanity” (2004)

Crash had a really difficult time finding his footing after parting ways with original creators Naughty Dog, but Twinsanity, at least from the player's perspective, stands out as one of his best 3D adventures. Twinsanity not only gave players a seamless open world to explore in any way they chose, but also a myriad of gameplay styles to keep the tried-and-true platforming formula from growing stale as well as a story full of gags and laugh-out-loud moments. And while gamers loved all these new additions, reviewers chose to focus mainly on the game’s flaws, pointing out the game’s sometimes unwieldy camera as well as the controls for the many different play styles throughout the game’s many levels. While gamers were able to look past Twinsanity’s many shortcomings and just have a good time, critics seemed to feel the need to knock Crash from his rightful place as platforming royalty.

“The Operative: No One Lives Forever” (2002)

The Operative: No One Lives Forever is still widely regarded as one of the best shooters of the early 2000s, leaning heavily into the campy nature of 60s spy movies like Austin Powers before it. And while the PC version was highly regarded by critics, the same can’t be said for the PS2 port. Critics were critical of the graphical downgrades made in the port and the title’s poor optimization of the game’s controls from PC to the DualShock. While the game remained relatively unchanged everywhere else, most couldn’t look past these surface level blemishes and give the port a fair shot. For those who’d been dying to play one of the best FPS campaigns since Goldeneye however, these were merely minor hiccups in an otherwise highly enjoyable experience that simply required a bit of patience to adapt to. Something critics apparently were in short supply of at the time.

“Way of the Samurai 2” (2003)

While the original Way of the Samurai earned a decent reputation with critics, the same could not be said for its follow-up. While many reviewers were critical of the game for simply being more of the same, albeit with tweaks and improvements to the game’s combat systems, they derided the game for its lackluster presentation, minimal improvements to the overall experience and laughably bad voice acting. Fans of the original however, loved the minor improvements and didn’t see the need for Capcom to completely overhaul what worked so well in the original. With multiple endings, branching narrative pathways, and NPCs that reacted to the character’s actions, critics might’ve been expecting something more akin to an Akira Kurosawa samurai experience, rather than a solid but campy samurai simulator.

“Rule of Rose” (2006)

Breaking into the overcrowded survival horror genre is difficult enough, but it’s even harder when manufactured controversy is actively working against your game. Amid rumors that many publications ran with of obscene content within the game, Rule of Rose already stumbled out of the gate, and critics took the opportunity to tear the game down for every minor inconvenience. Comparing the game, as they always do, to Resident Evil and Silent Hill, reviewers called the game bland, boring and uninspired. However, even with all this criticism, Rule of Rose endeared itself to players with its classic horror inspired atmosphere and narrative and slow burn that focused more on psychological horror than outright jump scares. Amid all the controversy, Rule of Rose became a cult classic and one of the most valuable and expensive physical PS2 games of all time.

“Metal Saga” (2006)

The PS2 was a beloved platform for JRPGs but considering just how many released on the console, not every great game was given a fair chance. Metal Saga, the first entry of the long running Metal Max series to release outside of Japan, received quite a lot of undue criticism from reviewers upon release. Nearly every aspect of the experience was chastised, from its dated graphics to the game’s lackluster story and poor presentation. Critics just overall seemed overly critical of the entire experience. While reviewers refused to give Metal Saga a fair shot, gamers fell in love with Metal Saga’s quirky humor, customization and upgrade options for the game’s battle tanks, the open-endedness of the game’s world and the game’s beautifully composed soundtrack. Plus, you have your very own doggo who accompanies you throughout the entire game! Honestly, what's not to love?

“God Hand” (2006)

The poster child for a game criminally misjudged, God Hand took such a beating upon release from critics, it likely led to the studio’s closure. Judging the game on everything from its graphics to presentation, gameplay mechanics and even the position of the camera, most sites were overly critical of God Hand calling it bland, humorless and just downright a struggle to play. While there has been retrospective re-evaluation in recent years, gamers knew how good the game was from Day 1 and loved everything the game was offering. The solid and impactful combat, hilariously over-the-top characters and writing and especially the unorthodox challenge the game offered when compared to its brawler contemporaries were all selling points. Gamers have long been critical of reviewers for being too hard on God Hand and rightfully blame the out of touch reviewers for the game’s failure.

Which video game do you think the critics were way off base on? Share your picks in the comments below.