While the original PlayStation introduced many players to the world of strategy games for the very first time, it was during the era of the PS2 where the genre really started to become much more prominent within the industry. Many of the most memorable strategy titles released on the PS2 are actually sequels from games that were heavily praised on the previous console, but thanks to the upgraded hardware and improved multiplayer functionality, it led to some downright amazing games within the genre being released during this period.
While tactical-strategy games that featured small armies and battle arenas were still riding high in terms of popularity, large-scale warfare was gradually becoming much more synonymous with strategy titles throughout the PS2's life cycle. Therefore, this led to a massive selection of unique titles that strategy fans could choose from, with these entries listed below being among some of the best to be released on the system.
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Though the PlayStation 2 is long past its prime, many of the games released on the platform have held up incredibly well.
7 Future Tactics: The Uprising
While the game might be pretty straightforward in its gameplay, playing a lot like Worms where the player must gradually move their units around a map before attacking, it's the smaller features and mechanics of Future Tactics that make help it stand out. This includes the incredible level of destructibility in the game where virtually anything on the map can be destroyed which isn't only a lot of fun to experiment with, but also adds a deeper level of strategy since it's an easy way to open up flanks.
The fairly bland story does let the game down outside of combat, but the actual gameplay itself is where the game truly shines, especially since all the characters are so quirky and weird which makes them a joy to follow. There are also plenty of upgrades that players will need to make use of in between missions, including a weapon scope which is absolutely essential for popping off enemy heads from a distance.
6 Goblin Commander: Unleash The Horde
Goblin Commander definitely can't be considered a deep or very challenging strategy game, but what it lacks in game mechanics it more than makes up for in spectacle. After choosing from one of five unique goblin clans, players will load into a map with only a single shrine to build from. However, because of how quickly units can be trained in Goblin Commander, and how easily players can gain access to the menacing "Titans", it means that most matches become an all-out bloodbath in a matter of minutes.
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The fairly short single player mode is a lot of fun to run through, but the local multiplayer is especially fun to try out with a friend. The casual design of the game makes it a lot less stressful than a lot of strategy games which for some people, might be just what they're looking for, especially if they want to lead their army right into the action without having to wait around for too long.
5 Kessen II
Considering that the game came out in 2001 for North America, it's shocking just how amazing the characters models in Kessen II look, but it's equally impressive that the game managed to display so many of these units on screen at once for its large scale battles. The story follows a loose re-telling of the Three Kingdoms period of China as multiple different forces battle it out for dominance over the land, but there's also plenty of political intrigue and even romance featured in the cutscenes that make for quite a compelling story.
In terms of gameplay, rather than the player moving units around an overworld, they will instead be provided with a large bulk of units that they will need to lead effectively to outsmart and outplay their opponent. Mixed in with these regular units are Strategists who have the ability to call down fireballs and lightning storms thanks to their magical abilities. The game may not be as complex or methodical as many others of the time, but it's the sheer size of the battles and how incredibly chaotic they can become that makes it a joy to play through, especially since there's also several campaigns to complete.
4 Eternal Poison
Set in a dark fantasy world that has been overrun with mysterious monsters known only as "Majin", Eternal Poison is a game that might seem basic on the surface, but that offers so much replayability when really digging into the mechanics. At the core of the game is the ability to catch Majin which can then be used on the field, and since these creatures can also be customized alongside the characters, it allows the player to customize their party exactly to their liking.
6 Strategy Games With Fun Stories
Strategy games have got a wide variety of styles narratively, and many are extremely complicated, but some keep it simple and fun.
The game is known for being brutally difficult at many points, especially when trying to take down bosses who often have gigantic health pools, so keeping a few Majin as a backup in case any characters die is never a bad idea. While the gameplay is extremely unique and a lot of fun to toy around with, the plot can come across as a little basic, but since players get to see how events unfold from multiple different perspectives, this does help to make it a little more interesting.
3 Romance Of The Three Kingdoms 11
Romance of the Three Kingdoms is a grand-strategy series that first started in 1985 and is still going strong today, though because many of the early games were only released in Asia, it wasn't very well known internationally until the thirteenth installment for the PS2. The game follows a fairly standard grand strategy template where the player must harvest resources, build their base, and produce units to defend and attack their opponents, but the level of depth in the gameplay really was unprecedented for the time.
During a single game, players will need to make sure they assign officers, haggle with merchants, and gain as much influence as possible on the map to ensure they don't get surrounded by the enemy. Mix this with the traditional Chinese setting based during the final years of the Han Dynasty, and it comes together to create a long, difficult, but incredibly engaging strategy experience.
2 Dynasty Tactics 2
While there were plenty of Dynasty Warrior games released for the PlayStation 2 during its long life cycle, there were only two Dynasty Tactics games released for the system. While the first entry in this spin-off series certainly made an impression with its fairly complex and intuitive gameplay, Dynasty Tactics 2 improves upon everything that made the first game so great while also providing an extreme amount of content to enjoy.
With 84 stages to complete, 200 battle events to get involved with, and nearly 100 tactics to choose from, the game will easily keep players engaged for many hours, especially after they discover some of the deeper mechanics. Some of these include the Order Chain where morale is sacrificed to enhance friendly officers, and the Town Squares where officers can get some valuable battle advice while also enhancing their stats. This is just scratching the surface of what the game has to offer, so for any strategy fans who feel like digging their teeth into a classic title that provides them a tremendous amount of missions and maps to enjoy, Dynasty Tactics 2 is a must-play.
1 Front Mission 4
Front Mission 3 for the PlayStation demonstrated just how layered tactical-strategy games really could be, so by building upon everything that made that game so great, Front Mission 4 became an essential PlayStation 2 exclusive that every owner of the system needed to at least try. The mech-based warfare is even better this time around with plenty of new weapons to try out, and since units could now attack more than one enemy a turn, it became quite easy to turn a mech into an unstoppable killing machine after a few upgrades.
While the gameplay is Front Mission at its very best here, the game also features plenty of smaller details which make it much more immersive than would be expected from a strategy game based around gigantic machines. For example, a units chances of hitting their target will be affected by the time of day and weather effects, and ammunition plays a much bigger role in this game when compared to previous entries where it wasn't as much of an issue. Combine this with some jaw-dropping graphics for the time that still look good today, alongside an extremely captivating story, and it results in the most fun and memorable strategy game ever released for the PlayStation 2.