25 Years Ago, Two of the Most Influential PS2 Games Ever Released on the Same Day

The PlayStation 2 has, pound for pound, one of the most impressive libraries of titles in gaming history. Thanks to a robust roster of third-party developers as well as some impressive in-house teams working within Sony, the console racked up plenty of all-time great games. In fact, that legacy can still very much be felt today.

In fact, today is the 25th anniversary of two of the PS2’s biggest hits. Wildly different in terms of tone and gameplay, both of these games came out on the same day, and both have massive and enduring impacts on the larger gaming industry. A quarter of a century later, both of these games — strong examples of the argument that game design can qualify as art — remain some of the most influential things to come out of the PS2 era.

Ico Is An Important Example Of Games As Art

Developed by Sony under the leadership of game director and designer Fumito Ueda, Ico remains a great example of video games as high art. Purposefully designed as a minimalist take on the action-adventure genre, Ico follows a boy with devil horns who ventures into a mysterious castle to rescue Princess Yorda from her mother’s grasp. While the moment-to-moment gameplay may be somewhat simplistic in its design, Ico’s approach to puzzle-solving and evading capture introduces a good deal of natural tension to the adventure. The real draw of Ico has always been seeing just how much can be inferred from the minimalist approach to game and art design.

The game uses little dialogue, largely shown in a fictional language. The focus on lighting in terms of showcasing the world gives everything a moody vibe that captures the strangely hypnotic level design. While the game failed to connect with audiences, Ico landed with critics and became one of the most acclaimed games of the PS2 era. Described by some critics at the time (like Charles Herold of The New York Times) as a “game of perfect moments,” Ico was one of the best examples at the time of game design as art. In an era where notable critics like Roger Ebert were openly doubting the validity of the medium as an art form, Ico stood out for its use of light and shadow for aesthetic and emotional effect.

Even beyond the game’s direct influence on subsequent games like Shadow of the Colossus and The Last Guardian, the game put emphasis on the way artistic developers could use the medium to their advantage. Other minimalist efforts like Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons and Journey embraced that approach to artistic effect. Dark Souls director Hidetaka Miyazaki was so inspired by the game’s approach that he shifted careers and ended up reshaping the action genre in turn. Legends of the medium like Eiji Aonuma, Neil Druckman, Hideo Kojima, and Jordan Mechner have all cited the game as a key influence on their own approaches to game design and storytelling in the medium. Even if the game wasn’t a blockbuster success, that influence makes it more important than ever.

Silent Hill 2 Is Still One Of The Most Unnerving Games Ever

On the same day that Ico was showcasing how strong the art design of even a purposefully minimalist game could become a foundational piece of the industry, Silent Hill 2 used strong writing and an amazing sense of atmosphere to deliver an all-time great horror experience. Silent Hill 2 built on the tension and moody atmosphere of the first game while refining the storytelling. Shifting focus to James Sunderland, the game follows the widower as he follows a letter from his late wife to the haunted town that gives the series its namesake.

The title benefits from a tense sense of surreal mystery, with a haunting tone that felt more befitting the films of David Lynch rather than the typical approach to horror games of the era. It was a slow-moving and moody game, which could suddenly take a horrifying turn with the arrival of entities like Pyramidhead. The game’s true strength was its willingness to tackle heavy material, slowly unraveling the surreal story to reveal a haunting narrative about grief and guilt that is still one of gaming’s most impressive horror stories.

The psychological horror baked into the game is what makes Silent Hill 2 so enduring and effective, as the best stories always do. Similar to Ico, Silent Hill 2 earned rave reviews and massive acclaim upon release. The game did better with the broader audience than Ico, though, selling over 1.3 million copies. Silent Hill 2 was an effective enough success that plenty of developers took inspiration from how the game blended tense gameplay and immersive storytelling, with the likes of Alan Wake and Amnesia picking up major influences from the game. Both of these games highlight how, even in a medium like gaming where new fads can quickly overshadow one another, the best titles ensure that their legacy lives on.