Tail-end gaming

I'm finding that one of the advantages of coming to a console at the end of its functional life - as I am doing with the PS2 - is that not only are the games all so much cheaper than they would otherwise have been, bought at the time of their release, but they've all been played and reviewed and assessed and scored so thoroughly that I can cherry-pick the best PS2 games of all time in the certain knowledge that nothing better will come along since nothing else is being made.

That's the theory, anyway.

In this vein, I have obtained and played some pretty nifty games since Xmas. God of War caught my eye back when it was first demo'd at E3 2004, and now has the distinction of being one of the very few games that I've played to completion. It was just hard enough to be engaging and challenging without being frustrating. It looked pretty, it responded well, and the story was a little less shallow than action games normally sport. And it has a sequel due in April for which I already have funds earmarked.

Not yet completed, but just as compelling, is Fahrenheit, which initially came to my attention as Indigo Prophecy. It has a unique interface that makes playing the game more like directing and starring in a movie, and has a plot to match. I'm looking forward to tackling it again soon, now that I have God of War out of my blood.

Another vaunted game to come straight from Sony is Ico, progenitor of the equally acclaimed Shadow of the Colossus. I've had the pleasure of playing Shadow, and still want to find the time to finish it, so grabbed the chance to try Ico. Right away, it's got my undying love. The completely unique - to my knowledge - game mechanic of shepherding a helpless, defenceless game character through a strange and challenging temple is not only clever and emotionally captivating, but so cleverly and smoothly integrated that you don't realise how much you've invested yourself in the characters until the first time you fail to protect your charge. I found myself out of my seat crying "Noooo!" and practically scrabbled in my haste to restore to the previous save point in order to get it right. That kind of compulsion is exceedingly rare, in my experience, and justifies my instant attraction to the game. Now excuse me while I feed my need.