What Are The Hidden Gems of the PS2?

[Tzen]

I know it was already mentioned, but Shadow of Rome is absolutely fantastic. If it weren't for the clunky stealth gameplay, it would be one of the best PS2 games of all time.

[racketboy]

Anybody have more to add?

[Funk, E]

I'm going to put another vote in for Zone of the Enders 2. One of my absolute favorites.

I'm also going to vote for the Way of the Samurai games, plus Kengo: Master of Bushido. It's loaded with busywork training games, but the actual combat is so freakin' intense, especially once you've learned a couple of other school's signature moves and are using actual steel swords, not just wooden training ones.

[Scooter]

A great quirky little title that seems to always fly under the radar is Mister Mosquito. It's pretty fun to play and has a great little storyline. The game has a great sense of humor about it and is frustratingly difficult at times.

Starsky and Hutch also has great subject matter and takes the typical drive and shoot game to a new place. It plays well and has a real challenge to it. It really shines, however, as a two player game with one player driving and the other shooting with a light gun peripheral. This one got next to no attention at release and was sold pretty cheap right off the bat for some reason. I got it for $20 new soon after it was released. Any game that includes video of the "real" Huggy Bear has to be alright.

I don't know if Ico qualifies as a "hidden" gem, but it didn't get much attention when it was first released. It is one of the best games ever on PS2.

[Mozgus]

I suggest The Red Star, from last year. It's often overlooked. It's actually very much like Cannon Spike on Dreamcast, which is one of the most unknown playable Megaman cameos. It blends third person shooting and melee with the shmup mechanics we all know. One of it's developers is the co-host for ChatterBox Radio.

http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/919429.asp
http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/redstar

[Niode]

Herdy Gerdy? That was from the very early days of the system. I thoroughly enjoyed playing the game, one of the last actually decent games made by Core Design.

Gregory Horror Show, grossly easy but it's got to be a shoe-in for hidden gems, very few people have heard of this game, but a truly unique visual style and characters combined with flawless gameplay and nice timed mechanic make it a great game to play. It's quite short though (but very cheap ).

[ott0bot]

Action/Adventure:
Well I would say Okami, but now that there is a Wii version coming it's got alot of press. So instead I'd say Odin Sphere. Beautiful looking, fun gameplay, infinately frustrating inventory system.

Shmup:
The Red Star definately deserves a mention. You know what I'm talking about.

RPG:
Growlanser Generations A Atlus realesed two in-one old school anime strategy/rpg.
Or Persona 3. It got alot press at first, but then it just died out and hardly anyone bought it that I know. But i did, dang it, I did!

thats all I got because really most PS2 titles got pretty good distribution and you could find most the titles anywhere. Working Designs died out and Atlus tried to take the torch, but their games are so hit and miss. The ones that seem more like "Hidden Gems" are the limited release and underrated games.

[RadarScope1]

I don't many to add, as the "gems" I've played are all pretty well-known by now: Ico, SotC, Beyond G&E. I second the Red Star - it's great. I've heard great things about God Hand from several sources, but haven't played it myself..

[Niode]

God Hand is awesome!

[ott0bot]

It's another great Clover title!!! With Okami, Viewtiful Joe, and God Hand I think Clover deserves a mention as one of the best companies to make PS2 games. (Even though Viewtiful Joe was on a couple other systems as well)