Cult Classics: PlayStation 2

It is finished! Part five of the PlayStation 2 Cult Classics brings us to the end of our five-part journey [practically five-year -Ed] through one of the most extensive and enjoyable back catalogues in the history of console gaming. If you missed out on the others, check out parts one, two, three and four, and if you can't find something in there worth playing over a dull weekend, you're probably on the wrong website. Breathing the wrong air.

Mr Moskeeto

• Publisher: Fresh Games (Eidos)
• Developer: Zoom Inc.

Back in the summer of 2002, Eidos hit upon the idea of scooping up quirky Japanese games and releasing them under a specially-created Fresh Games label at mid-price. It didn't take long for minds to change, obviously, when games like Mr Moskeeto and Mad Maestro sold about eight copies between them, which is a shame, as Moskeeto had some great ideas. Played out from the perspective of a mozzie, it's essentially a flight-combat game where you were tasked with landing on specific parts of a resting human and sucking their tasty blood without alerting them to your presence. Of course it's not that easy, and the game often results in frantic chases where you're trying to evade your pursuer. It's clunky and it's tough, but it's mad as a lorry, and we love it despite all of its obvious deficiencies.

What we said: "It involves aerial acrobatic skills, stealth and cunning, quick reactions and, perhaps best of all, cute Japanese girls. But we'll try not to let that make our minds up... ahem."

Ebay price guide: Less than GBP 10

Kuri Kuri Mix

• Publisher: Empire
• Developer: From Software

Released by Empire in the barren early days of the PS2, this eclectic Japanese puzzler received plenty of critical acclaim for its innovation and wacky aesthetics, but few bought it, and so it ended up being cruelly forgotten about. Known by the rather more sensible name of The Adventures of Cookie and Cream in the US, the game involved guiding two bunnies, Cookie (known as Chestnut in the European and Japanese versions, inexplicably) and Cream, from one side of a level to the other, via trap-strewn paths. The main curiosity was that in single-player mode you had to control both bunnies at the same time using one stick each, giving rise to plenty of hair-tearing coordination. Best played with a pal, it was a true co-op game that remains a real one-off, and well worth hunting down if you fancy something timeless and original.

What we said: Not reviewed. (A byproduct of doing a multiformat site with two people. -Ed)

Ebay price guide: Around GBP 5

Airblade

• Publisher: Sony
• Developer: Criterion

Between Burnout and Burnout 2, Criterion snuck out this rather overlooked trick-based hoverboard title. Following on from the much-admired Dreamcast title, Trickstyle, Airblade was more playable and technically rather lovely, riffing heavily on the Tony Hawk titles but just about managing to carve an identity of its own. Gamers hung up on Neversoft's peerless title weren't really in the mood for a futuristic take on extreme sports though, especially at a time when the market was rammed to the gills with copycat efforts. And yet Airblade is a far better game than many gave it credit for, with tight controls, great visuals and a good soundtrack. Criterion has always made great games, and if you agree then you could do worse than to hunt this one down.

What we said: "It may be worth Criterion giving the franchise another chance should they take note of the game's shortcomings."

Ebay price guide: Around GBP 1 (!)

Shadow of Rome

• Publisher: Capcom
• Developer: Capcom

Back in the day we got excited about Shadow of Rome. It was Capcom heavweight Keiji Inafune's latest, which generally meant it was going to be big news, and, for the purposes of our Cult Classics series, this PS2-exclusive obscurity is definitely worth a mention - if only to celebrate some of the really good things about it. Forget, for a moment, that 50 per cent of the game is uninspired stealth nonsense, and instead revel in the glory of the excellent action segments, the rip-roaring gory action, memorable boss encounters and top-notch production values. It was also, lest we forget, one of the very first Capcom games where we didn't have to whine about control and camera issues. A flawed classic, like many of the games on this intriguing list.

What we said: "It builds into a genuinely captivating series of varied events and manages to present the futile bloodlust in an unsympathetic light, yet making the process of limb removal, beheading or carving someone's torso straight down the middle a thrilling experience."

Ebay price guide: Around GBP 10

Chaos Legion

• Publisher: Capcom
• Developer: Capcom

Chaos Legion is closely connected to the Devil May Cry series in all but name. Visually it's the same style (except a bit whiter), the core gameplay's almost identical, and even the central protagonist is a "master swordsman" with similarly chiselled features and flowing wardrobe. Where it differs is in the use of Legions to back you up when the going gets tough, with L1 bringing heavies into the fray to smash things up on your behalf, or R1 to form a defensive shield. It's all a bit more stripped down and simpler than DMC, with a much more obvious level-based approach, but shorn of the adventuring and exploration aspects, it was pure action all the way. A bit intense, but definitely worth checking out if you're obsessed by the DMC series and fancy seeing one of Capcom's more experimental efforts. It's better than Devil May Cry 2, at the very least.

What we said: "It's a great looking game, full of delightful architecture, great animation and bizarre characterisation."

Ebay price guide: Around GBP 2

RTX Red Rock

• Publisher: LucasArts
• Developer: LucasArts

This certainly wasn't LucasArts' finest hour, but if you were one of those people who thought Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis was a wonderful game, then you should consider hunting down RTX Red Rock. Written and effectively directed by the mighty Hal Barwood, it has the same otherworldly atmosphere and sharp writing present in every title he had a creative influence on - and it's almost enough that you can forgive the rough and ready feel of this totally ignored action adventure. Initially described as Tomb Raider in space, it wasn't too far away from that, with similarities drawn from its puzzle-driven gameplay and occasional forays into action. But while the puzzling element was rather excellent, and the visuals were often superbly detailed, frame-rate issues, dodgy auto-targeting and a fiddly inventory system conspired to make it rather irritating. Patience is definitely required, but it you're an old-school LucasArts disciple, this is effectively the last one connected to its adventure lineage. The world is still weeping.

What we said: "If you're prepared to stick with it and cast off your frustrations and the game's limitations, you'll slowly begin to enjoy what is actually a rather solid enjoyable, well paced adventure game... [Hal] Barwood's presence is felt throughout with an air of mystery and otherworldliness."

Ebay price guide: Around GBP 2

Resident Evil: Dead Aim

• Publisher: Capcom
• Developer: Capcom

Of all the millions of Resident Evil spin-offs, Dead Aim is by far the best - and that's including the recent Umbrella Chronicles for Wii. Sadly, Capcom's track record for putting out dismal Gun Survivor light-gun games was, at the time of Dead Aim's release in the deadzone of summer 2003, pretty much carved in stone. And yet this turned out not only to be a good gun game, but a good Resident Evil game full-stop. It wasn't a crappy old-school, on-rails shooter at all; you had the same degree of control that you had in any normal Resi game thanks to the G-Con 2 d-pad, and moved around levels picking up items and solving puzzles in the traditional fashion. The major difference was that you viewed the action from first-person, and hence shot at your enemies in a far more exciting, more accurate fashion than usual. It was the best of both worlds, and only suffered because it was short. And suffer it did: with almost zero promotion, it was a commercial flop and few bothered to champion it. If you consider yourself a fan of the series and never bothered with Dead Aim, you must now. Setting it up these days with all the G-Con 2's incompatibilities with modern HDTVs might prove bothersome, but if you've got all the old kit still, this is well worth a shot.

What we said: At its core, this is the most entertaining Resident Evil game we've ever played, and easily the best use of a light gun ever.

Ebay price guide: Less than GBP 10

Zone of the Enders

• Publisher: Konami
• Developer: Konami

Famous as the game which included a demo of Metal Gear Solid 2, this was a Hideo Kojima side project which nevertheless is a long-forgotten curiosity. Released in the infamously barren first summer of PS2, it looked like a more conventional take on Rez, where big robots battled it out among the stars. The main problem was that it wasn't very long, and nor was it especially challenging - which, when you're being asked to part with GBP 40 or more, is kind of a deal-breaker. These days though you'll struggle to pay more than about a fiver for it, and for that sort of cash it's the kind of left-field game development we wish we saw more of - especially pertinent for a game such as this which would look lovely in high-definition. A second, even better Zone of the Enders slipped out a couple of years later, but with no Metal Gear-shaped promo to help sell it, it slipped into even greater obscurity. Given you can pick up the pair and still have change from a tenner, quibbles over game length disappear. Essential cult fodder.

What we said: Not reviewed. [Too busy playing the MGS2 demo like everyone else. - Ed]

Ebay price guide: Around GBP 5

Firefighter FD18

• Publisher: Konami
• Developer: Konami

I know I was fairly mean to Firefighter FD18 when it came out back in spring 2004, but in the context of celebrating quirky, oddball, one-of-a-kind games, this definitely deserves airtime. The premise is simple: you're armed with a hose and an axe with a mission to rescue survivors, and have to work your way around a series of deadly locations with a mini-map and a strict time limit. The controls are a bit clunky, but it's tense, it looks great (with that same gritty effect beloved of Silent Hill games), and there's nothing else around quite like it. The fact that it's now super, super rare means its appeal has only increased with the passing of time.

What we said: "The kind of cult curiosity that only the true hardcore would ever dare parting cash for." [That's you lot, then].

Ebay guide: Very rare, so over GBP 30

Kuon

• Publisher: Nobilis/Indie Games Productions
• Developer: From Software

We were bafflingly mean to this archetypal Japanese cult classic survival-horror gem when it belatedly reached Europe in summer 2006, perhaps worn out with the clunky genre conventions and dazzled by sexier next-gen offerings. But with the benefit of 20-20 hindsight, Kuon is far better than some of the mediocre scores dished out (especially our 4/10, which was the harshest in the world) and probably closer to a 7/10 if you're a gotta-play-'em-all horror adventure fan like me. Played from the perspective of two young girls, you trot in and around a delightfully spooky manor, getting the bejesus spooked out of you while solving traditional collect-'em-up puzzles, and it still looks great for a PS2 title (especially upscaled on the PS3, if you have a backwardly-compatible version), retaining its atmosphere. The combat's tense, the story's interesting, and it's not annoyingly difficult. Few horror fans will be disappointed with Kuon - the only problem will be finding a PAL copy without having to pay over the odds for it, as this is definitely one of the most collectable PS2 games of all time. The NTSC version is easier to find, though.

What we said: "It's a good-looking game, but any amount of prolonged play makes it apparent that it's just a kind of sad 'creepy by numbers' approach."

Ebay price guide: Very rare, so over GBP 40

Echo Night: Beyond

• Publisher: Nobilis/Indie Games Productions
• Developer: From Software

Now this is a real curiosity. Another From Software-developed survival-horror oddity which only the most determined Asian horror fan will have bothered to track down. Actually the third title in the little-known Echo Night series, this one earns the rare distinction of being a horror title set on a haunted lunar colony. Terrific in terms of concept and atmosphere, you blunder around the remains of the desolate base, hampered somewhat by first-person controls which completely defy conventional thinking (by default, you look up and down with the shoulder buttons). With a bit of patience and a measure of tolerance, Echo Night: Beyond carries you on via suspense and the claustrophobic surroundings. The problems are initially obscure, but with a bit of FAQ guidance, this isn't as terrifyingly bad as it initially appears. For those of you starved of atmospheric adventure titles who want to check out the darkest corners of the genre, Echo Night: Beyond's undoubted clunkiness is worth tolerating for its overall freshness. There really is nothing else around like it - and what better way to round off the PlayStation 2 Cult Classics series than with something cheap you can't easily better.

What we said: "It's an off-path Japanese curio, but a little too hard to recommend to all but the most ardent and accepting of horror adventure fans."

Ebay price guide: Under GBP 10