Best Game Sequels

[Thalzon]

Except for digital copies. It's on the PSN, at least.

[The Legendary Zoltan]

I forgot to mention that I'm crazy about Dragon Quest 8. As simple as it is, it's just beautiful and feels good to play. Yeah, it feels good. It's the "feel good RPG" of the Playstation 2.

[The Coop]

Thunder Force IV- It topped TF2 and TF3 in terms of visuals, sound and gameplay, yet wasn't bested by TF5 or TF6. It also wound up being one of the best (arguably the best) 16-bit shmups.

[Salluz]

The DBZ Budokai Tenkaichi series were a definite upgrade from the ol' normal Budokai style.

Castlevania Dracula X for PC Engine

I played the SNES version. Not sure which is more awesome.

Smash Bros Melee, f'sho.

Really, really, good sequels?

-Super Smash Bros. Melee

SSBM was like, the Jesus of transition. It's been 10 years and it still feels new. Everything from graphics to gameplay, and even the fun itself had upgraded in that game.

Man, lots of awesome games have been named in this thread. gotta play the ones that I missed out on.

[Modus]

Budokai Tenkaichi 2 was the bomb but 3 made me cry myself to sleep.

[Brycepops]

Budokai Tenkaichi 2 was the bomb but 3 made me cry myself to sleep.

3 is the only Budokai/Tenkaichi game I have, and I pretty much only bought it because Future Gohan was on the roster . What was wrong with it?

[Modus]

In 3 do you still set off special moves by wagging the nunchuck offscreen? I thought that was changed for some reason and I liked the offscreen activation thing.

And does it have those close encounter super-speed combat sequences? And the struggle sequence when kamehameha's connect? I'm trying really hard to remember what made me hate it so much.

[relyanCe]

Future Gohan

Future Gohan as in... the 30-second clip of one-armed gohan getting owned by the androids? He's a whole character in Budokai?

[Modus]

Oh man is this turning into a DBZ discussion? I'm getting all sweaty and excited

Unless it's about GT, which I never ever watched because I found the Furry Saiyans off-putting.

[Ghetto Lee Lewis]

I'm sure some of these have been said before:

Final Fantasy 3 (Famicom, Japan; FF2 was awful)

Final Fantasy 4

Final Fantasy 6 (FF5 was good, but wasn't stunning like this game)

Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link (the first really good zelda game in my opinion, with an RPG element)

Zelda: A Link to the Past (though technically it was a prequel, this game blew me away when I first played it)

Zelda: Ocarina of Time (probably one of the best game sequels of all time)

Zelda: Windwaker

Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest

Street Fighter 2 (who has actually play the original Street Fighter, anyway?)

Warcraft 2 (in my opinion, a much funner game than Warcraft 3)

Diablo 2 (also probably one of the best game sequels of all time)

Oregon Trail 2

Super Metroid

Bloons Tower Defense 3 and 4 (ninjakiwigames for Flash)

Gemcraft: Chapter zero and Gemcraft: Labyrinth (other flash games)

Dragon Warrior 3 and 4

[Jonnas]

In 3 do you still set off special moves by wagging the nunchuck offscreen? I thought that was changed for some reason and I liked the offscreen activation thing.

And does it have those close encounter super-speed combat sequences? And the struggle sequence when kamehameha's connect? I'm trying really hard to remember what made me hate it so much.

I only played the PS2 version, and I don't know what you mean by "offscreen activation", but everything else you mentioned was there.

Maybe it had to do with the single-player mode?

Future Gohan as in... the 30-second clip of one-armed gohan getting owned by the androids? He's a whole character in Budokai?

Future Gohan played a prominent role in one of the movies (the one that focused on the apocalyptic future), but I don't think the BT3 version of him makes much reference to that. Wasted potential, considering the one-armness.

Future Gohan wasn't the worst one, though. BT3 had King Vegeta, King Cold, random Frieza soldiers, and a few movie minions that never did much. But it also had Tao Pai Pai, Grandpa Gohan and General Blue, so character variety was many kinds of awesome.

[Brycepops]

And does it have those close encounter super-speed combat sequences? And the struggle sequence when kamehameha's connect? I'm trying really hard to remember what made me hate it so much.

It wouldn't really be a DB game without those, would it? ;o

[SleepyFroggy]

DOOM II - Just because its megawads have bought me so much entertainment

Just Cause 2 - The only game I've ever gotten all of the achievements on

Silent Hill 2 - Pyramid Head... Come on...

Sonic Adventure 2 - The best sonic game to date imo

Grandia 2 - So many improvements...

Fatal Frame 2 - Black and white + Ghosts = Scary

I couldn't choose a single game.. :/

[Modus]

It wouldn't really be a DB game without those, would it? ;o

Nah, but some games did them a lot better than others.

By offscreen activation I was talking about the Wii version. You would activate super duper moves by holding down two-buttons and wagging the nunchuck offscreen and back in a certain direction. As a person who sucks at executing large combo thingies, that was a godsend.

Besides all this cool stuff, everyone who's played a recent DBZ game knows that insta-teleporting to dodge attacks is the most fun you can possibly have in a fighting game. HIIIIIII YA! WHA-? *teleport* Behind ya, bitch! *insert "Oh" face*

Oh my god I need to play right now.

[Turtle]

I remember teleportations being really broken in Budokai 3, where they were introduced, since any character with a higher baseline Ki was usually guaranteed to emerge the victor in a teleport scuffle. And characters with transformations were broken because their baseline Ki increased instead of gradually draining, as in the previous two titles.

[Salluz]

Sonic Adventure 2 - The best sonic game to date imo

I'd get hurt by some Sonic fans, but I would agree.

I am the ultimate life, a flawless existence

Nothing is unpredictable to me, nothing can surprise me

I am the mystery of the world, I can tell it by their cold eyes

I am the warrior, it's my way to go

Give me your huge potential with your fluid motion

Just

Tell me the truth, are you really the ultimate life?

Just

Nothing is unpredictable to me, nothing can surprise me

I am the mystery of the world, I can tell it by their cold eyes

Just move, it's the time

Just move, it's the time for you

Just move, it's the time for you

Just move, it's the time for you

[SwordBreaker]

I know a lot of people hate this one because its radical change in direction, but I consider Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter for the PS2 to be a breath of fresh air among game sequels and JRPGs in general. I loved everything about this game, including its brutal difficulty. This game is so hardcore its save file is copy-protected. No lie.

Awesome battle system, excellent music (Mitsuda and Sakimoto's only collaboration I believe), great strategic play, and a nice incentive to replay it a few times due to its unique game plus option. Trust me, you've never played a game like it before. But I can see why BoF fans shoved it away. The only one I've played before it is BoFIII for the PS1, so I'm not prone to hating a sequel that broke all traditions, including giving Ryu dialogue.

[Modus]

I remember teleportations being really broken in Budokai 3, where they were introduced, since any character with a higher baseline Ki was usually guaranteed to emerge the victor in a teleport scuffle. And characters with transformations were broken because their baseline Ki increased instead of gradually draining, as in the previous two titles.

Transformations were completely unfair because of the restored Health/Ki. Especially Frieza.. transforming like 4 times.

I could have sworn teleportations were in Tenkaichi 2 and I loved them. In a scuffle, it was barely complex enough that someone would eventually screw up and get hit. But most people I played against sucked at teleporting and close combat so they felt it was too one sided. Psh! The one person who consistently beat me was a high school friend.. a girl. Her power level... was too high.

[Guest Chibi_Ma]

Metal Gear Solid 3

Uncharted Dos

Donkey Kong Country 2

FFX-2..."I couldn't stop dancing!"

(jk jk!!...except the dresspheres... >.> <.<)

[Dj Mokram]

I consider Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter for the PS2 to be a breath of fresh air among game sequels and JRPGs in general.

^ This. Luv'd BoF I, III and V, so in total agreement with you regarding the game, except maybe for this:

excellent music (Mitsuda and Sakimoto's only collaboration I believe)

The soundtrack for BoF V was composed in its entirety by Hitoshi Sakimoto.

Mitsuda was lightly supervising from a distance (i.e. putting his name somewhere on the project).

But indeed, the music is excellent (reminds me of his work on Radiant Silvergun at times) and very underrated, much like the game.

Oh, and it's not Mitsuda & Sakimoto only collaboration btw.

They worked together on the soundtrack of Legaia Duel Saga (along with freaking Michiru Oshima!) among other things.

[SwordBreaker]

The soundtrack for BoF V was composed in its entirety by Hitoshi Sakimoto.

Mitsuda was lightly supervising from a distance (i.e. putting his name somewhere on the project).

But indeed, the music is excellent (reminds me of his work on Radiant Silvergun at times) and very underrated, much like the game.

Oh, and it's not Mitsuda & Sakimoto only collaboration btw.

They worked together on the soundtrack of Legaia Duel Saga (along with freaking Michiru Oshima!) among other things.

Interesting info. Didn't know about all that, especially that they worked together on other projects like Legaia 2, a game which I completely ignored when it was released. I remember enjoying the original Legend of Legaia, but wasn't interested in the sequel. Does it follow up well?

Anyway, I really need to get back to Dragon Quarter someday. I still have my save, which I SOL restarted back to the beginning because I got stuck towards the end by abusing my Dragon powers. I never got upset about it for some reason.

http://www.youtube.com/user/ARGCi#p/search/5/NJY6MU6X5xA

My favorite track of the pack. I really like it when Sakimoto blends some electronic sounds into his signature-sounding orchestrated pieces.

Nice to see someone appreciate the game as much as I do. I usually get a "meh" response when I mention Dragon Quarter during discussions.

[Wacky]

Baldur's Gate 2

Warcraft II (Not 3)

Super Mario World

Medieval Total War

All demonstrably better than their predecessors.

[Hawkwing]

The PSP remake of Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together is fantastic.

Got it 2 weeks ago, and I play it every free chance I get. I already beat it, twice. The World System that allows you to go back through and replay the game to make different choices is a great way to keep you hooked.

[DJ Mighty]

I know a lot of people hate this one because its radical change in direction, but I consider Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter for the PS2 to be a breath of fresh air among game sequels and JRPGs in general. I loved everything about this game, including its brutal difficulty. This game is so hardcore its save file is copy-protected. No lie.

Awesome battle system, excellent music (Mitsuda and Sakimoto's only collaboration I believe), great strategic play, and a nice incentive to replay it a few times due to its unique game plus option. Trust me, you've never played a game like it before. But I can see why BoF fans shoved it away. The only one I've played before it is BoFIII for the PS1, so I'm not prone to hating a sequel that broke all traditions, including giving Ryu dialogue.

i loved Dragon Quarter, i was also a big fan of 4. I dont know why but there was just something about 4 that won me over. I was ify about DQ when i first started it but it ended up being one of my favorite games at the time.

[CIaude]

I'm surprised no one's mentioned Grand Theft Auto 3.

It's not best entry in the series but it's hard for me not to romanticize it. The jump from the original birds eye view of the series to full 3D completely changed the context of the franchise. Streets didn't end in roadblocks, nor did alleyways lead to any invisible walls. They converged upon other streets that led to more streets with buildings that may in fact have been actual places (maybe). Cars parked on the street weren't superfluous environmental ornaments. They were things, real THINGS that could be driven (Into the ocean). Pedestrians were unlimited, they were plentiful and they seemed like they were going to real places and do things. Killing them had a consequences. The simple act of casually locking onto pedestrian and executing them with a shotgun could spawn a series of events that played out at random, you weren't just playing through a car chase, you were creating one and determining it's outcome. It was a religious experience. The world changed after you played that game.

I understand the criticisms that it's an overrated game in an overrated franchise. But that discussion skirts on discussing one's taste in games and their biases. For me, GTA3 oozes a succulent flavor that I crave when I play games. The game industry wouldn't be what it is now without it.