Retro Gaming- Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance: (2002)

When it comes down to great fighting games of the 00’s one of the top titles that comes to mind is Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance.  When this game was developed by Midway Games and release in 2002 many people were impressed by variety of things that Deadly Alliance had added to the Mortal Kombat series.  The gameplay for Deadly Alliance had given characters multiple fighting styles with one of them including the use of weapons.  While giving characters different fighting styles was a cool feature it also meant that players had to know more about who they select in order to use them effectively during battles.  Another cool thing about Deadly Alliance was that Midway brought back the “Test Your Might” mini game from the original Mortal Kombat game which was not included in MK II-IV.  Along with bringing back the “Test Your Might” mini game Deadly Alliance had included two new game modes known as Krypt and Konquest mode.  Konquest mode was a tutorial that helped players master different characters in the game while earning coins.  Krypt mode allowed players to unlock different coffins that required a specific amount of coins ranging from gold to silver.

The fact that players were also allowed to earn coins after battles or following the completion of mini games was a nice feature.  Earning coins after winning battles or completing task made players feel like they were being rewarded for their progress. In addition, to earning coins to unlock a variety of new things throughout the game Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance had added some new characters.  Along with playing as some of the returning characters from previous games Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance features some new ones including Blaze, Frost, Bo’ Rai Cho, Mavado, Li Mei, Nitara, Kenshi and others.  Along with having new character two popular ones Liu Kang & Shao Kahn were killed in the intro after being ambushed by Shang Tsung and Quan Chi.  Since its release the game has sold over two million units for the PlayStation and close to one million for the Xbox.  While its debate on whether Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance is the best game or not many would argue that it was definitely one of the coolest games that Midway had released during the 00’s.

Classic Gaming- Tales Of Symphonia: (2003)

When it comes down to 3D RPG titles the early 00’s was probably one of the best times to be a fan of video games during the 128 bit era.  In relation to popular RPG titles of the early 00’s one of the games that was memorable during that time period was Tales of Symphonia which was developed by Namco Tales Studio and released for multiple game consoles including the Nintendo Gamecube, PlayStation 2 and the PlayStation 3.  There were so many things about Tales of Symphonia that was cool including the visual presentation and the gaming mechanics.  Tales of Symphonia allows both single & coop gameplay where characters can earn currency following battles along with becoming more powerful through the games level up system with the use of “EX Gems”.  The plot for this game is centered around Lloyd Irving and his friend Colette who is considered to be the “Chosen One” who plays a significant role throughout the game.

Colette’s role in this game involves traveling to multiple temples along with unlocking seals around the world which is apart of her journey of regeneration to replenish Sylvarant.  The plot for the story eventually becomes more interesting when players discover that another world parallel to Sylvarant called Tethe’alla exists and that they both via for mana from one another.  Players also discover that Sylvarant and Tethe’alla were both one planet and was eventually split into two with the Eternal Sword by Mithos who is the leader of an group called Cruxis and the main antagonist in Tales of Symphonia.  Not only do players have to defeat Mithos in this game but they also have to merge both worlds using the Eternal Sword which would cause the Great Seed to be more productive in providing mana after being in a disruptive state.    Tales of Symphonia is probably one of the most underrated RPG games of the early 00’s especially for game consoles such as GameCube since Nintendo’s main focus was on mainly Mario & Zelda games.

PS2 Games- Virtua Fighter 4: (2001)

When we talk about some of the best years ever in terms of gaming one cannot help but look back at the early 00’s when consoles such as the PlayStation 2 was released worldwide.  There were so many exciting fighting titles that were released during the early 00’s including Virtua Fighter 4 which was developed by Sega AM4 and released in arcade centers in 2001.  While Namco’s Tekken 4 might have been slightly more popular than Virtua Fighter 4 it was still considered to be a pretty solid fighting title for both the Sega NAOMI 2  system and the PlayStation 2.  Just about everything about this game seemed impressive from the intro to the graphics all the down to the actual gameplay.  Virtua Fighter 4 had featured several top characters from the previous games including Akira Yuki, Pai Chan, Lei Fong, Jeffry McWIid, Sarah Bryant, Jacky Bryant and others.  While many people enjoyed the original PS2 version of Virtua Fighter 4 some would probably prefer the Evolution edition that was released in 2003.

The Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution edition had included an excellent training mode which was very effective in helping players become better at the game.  Also, the Quest Mode in Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution  was probably one of the main features of the game that many people were impressed by.  The inclusion of a  ranking system along with the addition of a currency and an in game item shop were among many things that contributed to Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution being a significant improvement over its predecessor Virtua Fighter 3.  Even though, some people might argue that Virtua Fighter 4 was not quite as popular as Tekken 4 when it was first released they would also tell that it does not take away fact that it was still a great 3D fighting title for the PlayStation 2.  In fact, Virtua Fightter 4 for the PS2 was one of the best 3D fighting games of the early 00’s and would be considered a title that many people would include a classic.

Classic Gaming- Dragon Ball Z Budokai: (2002)

Throughout the 90’s many people enjoyed the Dragon Ball Z series considering the fact that it was and still remains to be one of the best anime shows of all time.  When Dimps developed a 3D DragonBall Z game which was released for the PlayStation 2 in 2002 many people were excited  about it.  Dragon Ball Z Budokai was one of the first games within the series to feature 3D gameplay & graphics.  The story mode in Dragon Ball Z Budokai was probably one of the main things that defined this game for being one of the coolest titles within its series.  Dragon Ball Z Budokai was probably one of the first 3D games in the serie  to actually feature cutscenes from Saiyan, Namek, Frieza, Android and Cell sagas.  Without a doubt the story mode for Dragon Ball Z Budokai was a blast but it was almost as challenging as it was fun.  Trying to defeat a Full Powered Frieza with Super Saiyan Goku on Namek was a lot tougher for most people than it seemed and was probably one of the toughest battles in the game.

A close second for probably being one of the toughest fights in Dragon Ball Z Budokai was the battle against Perfect Cell as Super Saiyan 2 Gohan .  Along with those battles players have the opportunity to relieve so many popular battles from the series all the way up to the Cell Saga. There were various characters from the series including Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Trunks, Piccolo and many more that people can play as in Dragon Ball Budokai.  The “What If” storylines featured in Dragon Ball Z Budokai was also a great addition to this game which made people enjoy the story mode even more.  Even though, its debatable among many people about which Budokai game was the best some would agree that the first game was very fun and had a high replay value.

Retro Games- Sonic Riders: (2006)

Sonic Riders was a futuristic like racing title that most of us remember from the mid 00’s which was developed by the Sonic Team and NOW Production.  Sonic Riders was a very fun and unique racing game that was released on various different consoles including Xbox, PlayStation 2 and Gamecube.   After its release many people who have been long time fans of the Sonic series were probably surprised and impressed by the concept of the game in regards to racing on hoverboards.  This game featured some of the main characters from the series including Sonic, Tails, Knuckles and Amy Rose.  This game was also very fun because it brought in some new characters including Jet, Storm and Wave who were all Babylonian Rouges.  In fact, the plot for the story mode in Sonic Riders was interesting because it allowed people to play as the Heroes as well as the Babylonian Rouges.  Each character in the game had a special attribute that made them stand out in some way within their respective teams.  Characters such as Sonic  & Jet were speed type characters while Tails & Wave the Shallow were known to be flying types.

Both Knuckles & Storm were power types so they were able to progress throughout most race courses with brute force by literally knocking down objects that got in their way.  Speaking of race courses the level design for some of the stages in this game were amazing such as the Babylon Garden, Desert Ruins and the Ice Factory.  Along with having nice racing levels and there were also many fun multiplayer stages that were available in game’s survival mode.    While Sonic Riders added some new characters to the series players also had the chance to unlock some hidden ones who were also popular in the Sonic series.  Players had the ability to unlock characters such as Shadow the Hedgehog, Rouge the Bat, Cream the Rabbit and Nights along with the ability to play as Super Sonic.  As fun as the story mode was some people would probably argue that Shadow and Rouge should have been apart of the story mode.  While introducing new characters such as the Babylonian Rouges was cool because people got to see something new having Shadow & Rouge in the picture would have definitely made for a more interesting story overall.  While some of the Sonic games of the 00’s have been heavily criticized by many people over the years Sonic Riders overall was a decent title that many people could easily enjoy.

Retro Gaming- Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories: (2004)

Square Enix is best known for its affiliation with some of the most memorable role playing games that many people around the world have ever seen.  The original Kingdom Hearts game released for the PlayStation 2 in 2002 and since its release many people were anxious to see what the sequel would be like.  When Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories was developed by Jupiter and released in 2004 many people were interested in the fact that the game was released for the Game Boy Advance.  Releasing Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories for the Game Boy Advance seemed like a risky thing to do in the eyes of many people especially considering the fact that the original game was released for the PlayStation 2.   The gameplay, graphics and visual effects of the 128 bit PlayStation 2 console was far superior than the 32 bit Game Boy Advance.  However, just because the quality of the Game Boy Advance was not as great as the PS2 it did not mean that Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories did not make for a very exciting game.

There was so much creativity that when into the development in Chain of Memories in terms of gameplay especially concerning the battles.  Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories had featured a unique card based battle system which included characters having the ability to execute attacks in real time.  The battle system for Chain of Memories looks a bit complex at first but the great thing about this game is that there are tutorials towards the beginning that explains how everything works in detail.  Another great feature about Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories includes the 2D isometric view that is utilized in the game during travel along with various scenes that feature in game dialogue between characters.   The 2D isometric view was a pretty cool feature because it was reminiscent of some older RPG titles such as LandStalker, Final Fantasy Tactics and Super Mario RPG which were also very fun games to play back in the 90’s. Along with having so many great features Chain of Memories had featured several characters that were in the prequel including the main protagonist Sora & Riku along with familiar names from Disney such as Donald Duck, Goofy and King Mickey Mouse.

The CD soundtrack for Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories was a work of art because it featured songs such as “Dear Beloved” which was simply beautiful.  Another great track had included “Castle Oblivion” which was simply amazing because you can feel the emotion of this track along with the fact that it blended in nicely with game itself.  The final boss theme in this game was pretty epic however many people despised battling Marluxia from Organization XIII.  Even though the final boss battle was tough it was also fun once people really got into Chain of Memories and progressed throughout the game. Following its release Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories had reportedly sold over 100,000 units in Japan within its first week and has sold over 1.8 million units worldwide since its release in late 2004.  While some people enjoyed Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories for the Game Boy Advance many people thought that the PlayStation 2 remake was even better when it was released in America during late 2008.  Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories is considered to be one of the most memorable RPG titles of the 2000’s by some people around the world.   Even though, the gameplay for Chain of Memories was significantly different from most RPG titles during its time the amount to creativity that went into the development of this game was impressive.

Retro Gaming- Dragon Ball Z Budokai 3: (2004)

If you grew up during the 2000’s and was a fan of the fighting genre of gaming then you most likely are familiar with the  Dragon Ball Z Budokai series for the PlayStation 2.  The Dragonball Z Budokai series had originated in 2002 and continued up until 2004 before switching over into the Tenkaichi games  during 2005.  While some people would probably prefer the Teckaichi series more Budokai I through III were also very fun titles to play  for the PlayStation 2 during the early 00’s.  Dragon Ball Z Budokai 3 had such awesome cel-shaded graphics along with nice 3D gameplay where players can pull off all types of special moves in detail as seen in the television series.  Similar to first Dragon Ball Z Budokai title this game includes various seasons from the series including the Saiyan, Namek, Frizea, Android and Cell saga.  In addition to those arcs the Buu saga is also included in this game similar to its predecessor featured in Dragon Ball Z Budokai 2.   Dragon Ball Z Budokai 3 also features new characters that were not present in the predecessor including Broly, Omega Shenron and Bardock.

Along with those characters Dragon Ball Z included many of its popular characters from every other game including Goku, Gohan, Vegeta, Trunks, Piccolo along with the main villains such as Frieza, Cell, Majin Buu  and others.  Dragon ball Z Budokai 3 was probably one of the first 3D games in the series to feature overworld travel where players can fly around the world to not only look for Dragon Balls but to initiate battles with various opponents to progress throughout the game in a story mode.  Dragon Ball Z Budokai 3 was an unforgettable classic for the PlayStation 2 mostly because the game felt like it was miles ahead of the original Budokai game both mechanically and visually.  Even though, Dimps corporation had developed some very cool Dragon Ball Z games during the early 2000’s for the PlayStation 2 the games would only continue to improve as time progressed especially with the Xenoverse series which many people think is awesome.

Retro Gaming- The King of Fighters 2002

The King of Fighters series was exciting for both Arcade and the  Neo Geo back in the 1990’s and was seen by many to be among the best in terms of 2D fighting games.  After the King of Fighters 2002 was developed by Playmore many people were probably surprised that the same 2D sprites were used for the design of each character similar to that of most the previous games in the series.  The old school 2D gameplay however  is what made King of Fighters 2002 enjoyable in the eyes of many people.  This game was  similar to many other King of Fighter titles but one of the main differences was that players had more options when  it came down to character selection. The King of Fighters 2002 had one of the largest rosters in series which made this game along with including so many familiar faces from the past King of Fighters titles which added to its appeal.  The King of Fighters 2002 gave people the opportunity to play as many characters including K, Terry Bogard, Andy Bogard, Mai Shiranui, Yuri Sakazai, Iori, Ryo Sakazaki, Mature, Seth and many more.  Along with having a variety of characters there were also many teams that people could choose from as well as battle against including Art of Fighting, Fatal Fury, K,  Orochi, Masters, Ikari Warriors, Psycho Solders and many more.

Along with having a variety of characters to choose from players can choose which order to battle their opponents in arcade mode. If one was really good at KOF 2002 they could pull of some insane chain combos when going against various opponents in arcade mode including the surprise battles against the likes of Kula who was one of the sub bosses of the game.  One of the most exciting parts of King of Fighters 2002 was the battle  in the end against Rugal. The cool thing about the Rugal battle was the cutscenes that occurred before the game.  Not much is explained prior to the battle against Rugal due to lack of dialogue but after defeating him people are almost certain that he was destroyed in the airship considering the fact that he was not featured in the sequel entitled King of Fighters 2003.  The fact that developers decided to retain the old school 2D graphics when the world of gaming was starting to focus more on 3D gameplay was very interesting.  During the early 2000’s games such as the  Soul Calibur and Tekken series was starting to become very popular and despite how fun this game was it arguably suffered from fierce competition within the fighting genre.  Many people from America have probably never heard of this game unless they are hardcore gamers or true fans of the King of Fighters series.  The King of Fighters 2002 was made available mainly in Japan during the early 00’s along with being released for multiple game consoles including the Neo Geo, Dreamcast, PlayStation 2 along with the original Xbox. Even though the landscape of gaming was evolving the 2D gameplay that the King of Fighters 2002 along with its dream roster of characters from the series was something that would be successful in attracting hardcore gamers of the fighting genre along with being seen as classic to some people who are fans of the KOF in general.

About these ads

Occasionally, some of your visitors may see an advertisement here

Retro Gaming- Guilty Gear X: (2000)

The Guilty Gear series was among the best in terms of quality when it came down to 2D graphics and gameplay. When Guilty Gear X was developed by Arc System Works and released in the 2000’s many people were impressed by the visual presentation this game had to offer. Guilty Gear X was also first in the GG series to be ported to multiple gaming consoles along with having an arcade release during the early 00’s. The graphics for Guilty Gear X was fantastic and resembled that of a high quality 2D Neo Geo fighting game. Along with having excellent visuals there were so many cool characters to choose from including Sol BadGuy, Chipp Zanuff, Millia Rage, Anjou Mito and others. Guilty Gear X had also featured unlockable boss characters such as Testament along with a new person named Dizzy. The boss fights were difficult for the end for some people while others probably found Testament to be less difficult in comparison to the first Guilty Gear game that was exclusively for the PS1.

Also, similar to the original Guilty Gear game for the PS1 this title had a pretty cool soundtrack that made the action more enjoyable. Some people would agree that Guilty Gear X was a significant improvement from its predecessor because not only was it released for multiple game consoles but it also included more characters with optimal 2D graphics. In terms of sales Guilty Gear X may not have lived up to the expectations of many people but that does not mean the game itself was not good. The Guilty Gear series was not as mainstream in comparison to many other 2D fighting games that was released during the late 90’s and early 2000’s. However, the fact that the Guilty Gear series was not a mainstream 2D fighting game was one of things that added to appeal of this game when it was released. Those who still own a PlayStation 2 or a Sega Dreamcast will probably have a hard time trying to find a title like Guilty Gear X in any used game store. If people do manage to find Guilty Gear X in a store or online it may cost a little bit more than some would expect.

Retro Gaming- Star Ocean Till the End of Time: (2003)

There were so many cool RPG classics that have been released for over the past twenty five years.  When it came down to three dimensional role playing games the early  and mid 2000’s stands out as a time period where so many great three dimensional role playing titles had emerged.  One of the great classics that emerged from the early 2000’s was Star Ocean: Till the End of time which was developed by Tri-Ace and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 2.  Even though, the Japanese version of Star Ocean: Till the End of Time was originally released in 2003 many people are more familiar with the Director’s Cut which was released a year later since they were aware of the glitches that existed in the first one.  This Star Ocean game has excellent gameplay along with a very interesting story.  The setting for this game takes place in the 29th century but the places you visit including Vanguard III and Elicoir II has civilization that reflects the 16th and 17th century in terms of technology.

This game mainly focuses on Fayt who travels to various worlds after Hyda IV is ambushed by the Vendeeni who ends up creating a war with the  Pangalatic Federation.   Throughout the game Fayt along with Sophia meets various other important characters including Cliff, Mirage, Peppita, Roger, Albel, Nel and others who help her out as the story progresses.  In Star Ocean: Till the End of Time players can have fun with various features aspects of this game including item creation along with the skill system included for each character.  However, some might argue that Star Ocean: Till the End of Time is more complicated than fun.  The item creation system in Star Ocean: Till the End of Time was far more difficult for many people to grasp in this game in comparison to “Second Story” which was released for the PS2.  The attack system in Star Ocean: Till the End of Time was pretty cool since characters could provide light & heavy offense against opponents along with being provided with a fury meter.

Each character is also provided with Health Points (HP) and Mental Points (MP) which can easily deplete if they are attacked or if they constantly use special moves, symbology or runelogy.  Players must be very careful during battle because if the run out of HP or MP they can easily lose their battles.  As far as in game battles are concerned there are various challenges that players will face throughout the game but in terms of boss battles. Some people would agree that the toughest opponents in the game include Crystal Cerberus and Robin Wind.  Although, tough if one was able to master the mechanics of the game they should be able to defeat each boss with slightly less difficulty. Along with having improved but complicated mechanics the story for Star Ocean: Till the End of Time becomes more interesting after learning that the universe was a fictional computer simulation in comparison to the 4D space that existed in the game.   While many people found the plot for Star Ocean: Till the End of Time  to be somewhat confusing at times others felt that it was an exciting fictional story with unexpected twists that adds more appeal to the game itself.

Since its release in the early 2000’s Star Ocean: Till the End of Time has sold at least 1.7 million units worldwide.  Not only did Star Ocean: Till the End of Time sell over 1 million units around the world but it also surpassed Star Ocean: Second Story which was released in the late 90’s in terms of sales which was impressive.  While some people might argue that Star Ocean: Second Story was far less complicated in terms of gameplay they might also believe that Star Ocean: Till the End of Time was more challenging and exciting considering the fact that the Director’s Cut had included multiplayer gameplay.  The early and mid 2000’s was such a glorious time to be a fan of three dimensional role playing games and many cool titles such as Star Ocean: Till the End of Time was the reason way due to the amount of innovation and creativity that went into developing the game itself.