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PS 2 Backwards Compatible Games

The Playstation 2 is considered by many to be an electronic marvel. Developed by Sony, the Playstation 2, or PS2 has garnered a great amount of sales in large part due to the tremendous support of third-party game developers building and continuing huge gaming franchises on the system, as well as the many other functions the PS2 can perform. In addition to the hundreds of PS2 games, the console also introduced online gaming to home consoles, plays CDs and even plays Playstation 1 games. Having this as a feature effectively doubled PS2's library of playable games right out of the gate, with the PS2 backwards compatible with all PS1 games. Although numerous, there are a handful of PS1 games in each genre that really stand out.

Action/Adventure
- Story telling received an added depth with the PS1, with games now able to hold spoken dialogue, contain 3D environments and offer a new level of emphasis on storyline in many of the games, such as:
  Metal Gear Solid
  Tenchu
  Syphon Filter
  Castlevania; Symphony of the Night
  Tomb Raider
  Tomb Raider II
  Crash Bandicoot
  Crash Bandicoot 2
  Crash Bandicoot 3
  Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus
Role-Playing Games
- Squaresoft (now Square Enix) effectively put role-playing games (RPG) on the mainstream map, doing so on the PS1. Although it dominated the RPG genre on the PS1, many other solid contenders were released by other publishers as well, such as:
  Final Fantasy VII
  Final Fantasy VIII
  Final Fantasy IX
  Final Fantasy Tactics
  Star Ocean
  Chrono Cross
  Vagrant Story
  Breath of Fire III
  Parasite Eve
  Parasite Eve 2
Survival Horror
- At the time of PS1, this genre was relatively unexplored, but many landmark games and series were started. They include:
  Silent Hill
  Resident Evil
  Resident Evil 2
  Resident Evil 3
  Galerians
  Clock Tower
  Clock Tower 2
  Fear Effect
  Dino Crisis
  Dion Crisis 2
Fighting
- The PS1 had many fighting games, some of which took fighting out of the two-dimensional field where it had always been and brought the characters and arenas into the three-dimensional playing field. Those titles are:
  Tekken
  Tekken 2
  Tekken 3
  Dead or Alive
  Marvel vs. Capcom
  Soul Blade
  Street Fighter Alpha
  Street Fighter Alpha 2
  Street Fighter Alpha 3
  Battle Arena Toshinden
  Bushido Blade
Racing
- The PS1 explored more realistic handling in many of its racing games. Like:
  Gran Turismo
  Gran Turismo 2
  Need for Speed
  Need for Speed 2
  R4: Ridge Racer Type 4
  Destruction Derby
  Twisted Metal
  Driver
  Test Drive 4
  Test Drive Off Road
Sports
- The sports genre was given a major facelift with the PS1, as well, with much more customization available and voice commentaries. You'll find this in games such as:
  Madden '97
  NBA Live
  NFL Blitz
  FIFA '96
  King of Fighters '95
  NBA in the Jam
  Tony Hawk's Pro Skater
  Dance Dance Revolution
  Tiger Woods '99
  WCW Nitro

PlayStation 2