Getting a PS2...

[Windcaler]

Also, for buying online: Is Amazon really the best choice for old used games? There's got to be another site out there that offers better deals. Some of their prices are kind of silly.

Sometimes, and by sometimes I mean rarely, you can find some cheap ones on Ebay but the quality of the disks is often suspect (along with the shipping costs). Amazon is the only other retailer I know of that has a healthy PS2 market going.

Captcha: Jimmy horner

Who?

 

[KILRbuny]

snip

since you said JRPG and Fighting games, i will recommend to you legend of legaia (a psone game, but fun nonetheless) and legaia 2 (a ps2 game). they are JRPG's at first glance, but the combat system uses inputs like a fighting game would have (i.e. down, down right, right is an attack for a character). The moves translate into a very strange but oddly rewarding combat system behind a lengthy, very traditional JRPG. legend of legaia is the first game that ever got me into games, and kicked off my love of the JRPG genre. i hope you try both and like them even half as much as i did!

 

[Furioso]

Persona 3 and 4 are my all time favorite JRPGs, I highly recommend them, they are simply stunning. Word of warning though, if you plan to play P4 first it may ruin you for P3. The plots are unrelated, but the gameplay improvements in 4 make the issues in 3 really noticeable


Edit: Bear in mind, they are turn based games, so if you really hate that then maybe look up some videos on it, but the story,music, and characters are absolutely fantastic

 

[Roroshi14]

Always gotta promote Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2. Kingdom Hearts 2 is the better of the two, imho it is a perfect game.

 

[Baralak]

There have been alot of great games recommended on here so i wont bother re-listing them... but one of my favourite series on the PS2 was the Onimusha series. 1 and 3 have the same protagonist, 2 has a different one and the first game I ever saw with a scene path map (you need to replay it multiple times and do different things in order to see every scene with your companions)

They were awesome to play

Oh god I forgot about those games! I just wish they controlled, better. They need the HD Remake treatment, especially since it's a full trilogy.

 

[klaynexas3]

Ratchet and Clank, Jak and Daxter, team Ico stuff, Persona games, that's all I really played myself that are exclusives. Oh, and also, get Kingdom Hearts 1, if you think you are prepared to follow that game to the end of the earth, you can get the others. If not, just play the first one, as that stands alone well story wise, but if you get the others, you most likely have to get them all, no arguments.

 

[Lunar Templar]

snip

here's my suggestions

Shadow Hearts, and SH: Covenant

SMT: Nocturne
P4
SMT- Digital Devil Saga 1 and 2

Guilty Gear X2:Accent Core
Bloody Roar 3 (its more a personal guilty pleasure game then any thing else)

Zone of The Enders 2
Devil May Cry 3

The Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver2 and Defiance

 

[Grant Stackhouse]

Everything that the guys above already mentioned, then add Shadow Man: 2econd Coming to the list.

 

[kyuzo3567]

There have been alot of great games recommended on here so i wont bother re-listing them... but one of my favourite series on the PS2 was the Onimusha series. 1 and 3 have the same protagonist, 2 has a different one and the first game I ever saw with a scene path map (you need to replay it multiple times and do different things in order to see every scene with your companions)

They were awesome to play

Oh god I forgot about those games! I just wish they controlled, better. They need the HD Remake treatment, especially since it's a full trilogy.

Well, it started as a full trilogy... then they made the newest Onimusha for PS3 (wasn't bad but not my favourite compared to the other three)... there's also an Onimusha game for handheld, PSP I believe which was alright

Oh... and I worship the Legacy of Kain series so thats a definite... as long as we keep the original voice acting tracks since some of the VA's have died... those games wouldn't be the same without the original Kain, Raziel (sp) or the Elder God

 

[Vorpal Chill]

I believe no one mentioned Radiata Stories. I had a blast playing it and wish I still had it.

 

[dnazeri]

--silent hill 2
--deadly premonition
--res 4
--killer 7
--Grim Grimoire
--Okami
--Ico
--DMC 3: Dante;s awakening
--MGS3: Subsistence, and Snake Eater
--Guilty Gears x
--MGS 2: Sons of Liberty
--PoP Sands of Time
--Shadow of the Colossus
--Kingdom Hearts
--Jak 3
--jak and daxter

 

[Angry Camel]

Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks purely for the gameplay. The story is basically a reimagining of MK2, which isn't anything special, but the combat is just so much fun! There are some platforming sections that can be a pain, but you can deal with most of them quite easily.

Also: Grand Theft Auto San Andreas (probably already mentioned). Gameplay is great fun and the story works nicely.

God of War is a very fun game, but I really cannot vouch for its replay value.

Silent Hill 2 is a must play, especially considering how much they messed up the HD remake.

Simpsons Hit and Run will show its age if you play it now, but the gameplay is a nice parody of GTA games and the voice acting from the actual Simpsons cast makes it very easy on the ears. Don't use cheats! Even weak cars will be fine as long as you keep getting wrench icons.

(Captcha: can I love? Considering your increasing display of sentience captcha, anything is possible.)

 

[Saviordd1]

YOU NEED THIS.
I mean, god damn this game was awesome.

Also, Seek and Destroy (at your own risk)

 

[Vanitas likes Bubbles]

I can only remember two game series from the time I played my PS2 (Which was like 7 years). They are,*trumpet sounds* Kingdom Hearts 1 & 2 and the Ratchet and Clank trilogy. Seriously, these games were my childhood.

 

[major_chaos]

Ha, thanks Fappy I just got a PS2 myself (for the second time, long story)and I was thinking about making a thread like this, but you saved me the trouble

OT: I'll add another recommendation for the Xenosaga series as it is an amazing trilogy, although I would warn that the second game is by far the worst of the three.

somewhat OT: I see alot of people recommending the .Hack games and they sound very good, but does anybody know where I can find the damn things? everywhere I look they either don't have any copies or expect a hundred plus dollars for it.

 

[havoc33]

Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria (overlooked RPG gem from SquareEnix)
FFX
FFXII (best battlesystem of the whole series)
Silent Hill 2 (best in the series, scary as hell)
Silent Hill 3
MGS 2
MGS 3(another series best. Epic boss battles! And who can forget Eva, the most gorgeous Russina spy ever)
Dragon Quest VII
GTA:San Andreas