PS2 Games We Love and Hate 2002 Special @ Gaming Target

Written by Matt Swider on February 14, 2003

Special: I love you... You hate me...

Adventure Game Award

Winner: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Rockstar once again steals the awards, but this year, the series comes dressed in the style of the 80s before to get the job done.

The Runner-Up: Onimusha 2

Action Game Award

Winner: Contra: Shattered Soldier
It's admireable to see Contra is still confined to 2D and even more extrodinary that it can compete any action game to date.

The Runner-Up: SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs

Platform Game Award

Winner: Ratchet & Clank
Spyro may be spinning out of control while in the hands of Universal, but Insomniac Games has has a tight grip this dynamic looking duo.

The Runner-Up: Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus

First-Person Shooter Award

Winner: TimeSplitters 2
Free Radical can't seem to shake that GoldenEye 007 connection with another fast-paced FPS that has everything except online play.

The Runner-Up: Medal of Honor: Frontline

Role-Playing Game Award

Winner: Kingdom Hearts
Square and Disney may be an odd match on paper, but playing the end result once will keep you hooked until it's been beat.

The Runner-Up: Suikoden III

Sports Award

Winner: Madden NFL 2003
EA Sports doesn't seem to be loosing a step on the field and online match-ups make this football game first string in our playbook.

The Runner-Up: High Heat Baseball 2003

Extreme Sports Award

Winner: Aggressive Inline
Acclaim made a big impact when Aggressive Inline took off earlier this year. In fact, it was enough to knock off Tony Hawk for one year at least.

The Runner-Up: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4

Racing Award

Winner: Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 2
In addition to speeding away with our prize for racing, Hot Pursuit 2 might have also taken first if we had an award for best commerical.

The Runner-Up: Burnout 2

Fighting Award

Winner: Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance
Midway has fought its way back to the top by creating a Deadly Alliance that remains undefeated on each current platform.

The Runner-Up: Virtua Fighter 4

Visuals GOTY

Winner: Ratchet & Clank
Spyro may be spinning out of control while in the hands of Universal, but Insomniac Games has has a tight grip this dynamic looking duo.

The Runner-Up: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Sound Effects GOTY

Winner: Medal of Honor: Frontline
EA was not only able to capture the sight, but also the sound of World War II from each bullet to every bombshell.

The Runner-Up: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Music GOTY

Winner: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Rockstar once again steals the awards, but this year, the series comes dressed in the style of the 80s before to get the job done.

The Runner-Up: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4

Storyline GOTY

Winner: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Rockstar once again steals the awards, but this year, the series comes dressed in the style of the 80s before to get the job done.

The Runner-Up: Kingdom Hearts

Online GOTY

Winner: SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs
The new war between seals and terrorists can be fought online with 16 players and a headseat, making it the ideal online shooter for PS2.

The Runner-Up: Madden NFL 2003

Surprise GOTY

Winner: Rez
Sega took a unique approach by combining both shooter and music apsects into one. Out of nowhere and unfortunately out of print.

The Runner-Up: Suikoden III

Disappointing GOTY

Winner: State of Emergency
Just months after Rockstar released GTA3, everyone looked down the release list to see this game. However, no one really saw all that much.

The Runner-Up: BMX XXX

Worst GOTY

Winner: Gravity Games Bike: Street. Vert. Dirt.
My. God. Worst. Game. This. Year. This awful game with an irritating name shouldn't be in stores for fear of contamination to other quality products.

The Runner-Up: Shifters

BEST GOTY

Winner: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Rockstar once again steals the awards, but this year, the series comes dressed in the style of the 80s before to get the job done.

The Runner-Up: Medal of Honor: Frontline

Continue with the Games to Love and Hate
GameCube ╖ PS2 ╖ Xbox ╖ GBA