Alright, let me tell ya ’bout some real strange games on that there PlayStation 2. You know, the kind that make ya scratch yer head and say, “What in tarnation were they thinkin’?”

First off, there’s this game called Katamari Damacy. Now, I ain’t never seen nothin’ like it. You play as this little fella, a prince or somethin’, and he’s gotta roll up all sorts of junk – pencils, cats, cars, even whole dang houses! You keep rollin’ and rollin’ till you got a giant ball bigger’n a barn. It’s goofy, real goofy, but somehow ya just can’t stop playin’. It’s got this weird charm, you know? Like a stray dog that keeps comin’ back for scraps.

Then there’s this God Hand game. Folks say it’s one of the best on the PS2, but it’s also one of the weirdest. The fightin’ is fast and crazy, and you got these special moves that are just plain bizarre. It’s like they threw a bunch of ideas in a blender and this is what came out. But hey, it’s entertainin’, that’s for sure. Keeps ya on yer toes, like tryin’ to swat a fly in the summertime.

And don’t forget about We Love Katamari. It’s more of that same rollin’ stuff from the first game, but now you got fans! Seems that little prince got popular rollin’ up all that junk, so his daddy, the King, sends him back to roll up even more. It’s just as wacky as the first one, maybe even wackier. I tell ya, these game makers, they got some wild imaginations. Must be somethin’ in the water they’re drinkin’.

Now, I heard tell of a game called The Adventures of Darwin. Never played it myself, mind you, but folks say it’s all about evolution and natural selection. Sounds kinda highfalutin’ for a video game, but I reckon they found a way to make it fun. Probably got all sorts of critters and creatures fightin’ to survive. Like a barnyard brawl, but with more science, I guess.

• Then there’s 10,000 Bullets. This one’s a shooter, like them cowboys in the movies, but it’s set somewhere over in Europe. People say it ain’t perfect, but it’s got style. And folks seem to like it, even though it never made it over here to the States. Guess some things just ain’t meant to be.
• And wouldn’t you know it, there’s even a game called Def Jam: Fight for NY. Now, this one’s got all them rappers in it, beatin’ each other up. It’s weird seein’ ’em in a game like that, but I reckon it’s kinda fun too. Beatin’ up folks you see on TV, that’s somethin’ ain’t it? Like watchin’ a cockfight, but with more rhymes.
• And this Whiplash game? Well, that’s just silly. Two fellers tied together, tryin’ to get things done. Like tryin’ to herd sheep with yer pants tied to yer neighbor’s. It’s a laugh, sure, but I don’t know how long I could put up with it. Reminds me of them city slickers tryin’ to do farm work.

See, the PS2 had all kinds of games, not just yer shoot-em-ups and yer racin’ games. They had these weird ones, these strange ones, that made ya think and laugh and scratch yer head all at the same time. And that’s what made ’em special, I reckon. They weren’t afraid to be different, to be odd, to be…well, strange. And in a world full of the same old thing, ain’t it nice to have a little strange now and then?

Folks even told me that the very last game they made for that there PS2 was a soccer game, Pro Evolution Soccer 2014. Now ain’t that somethin’? Endin’ it all with folks kickin’ a ball around. But that’s the way things go, I suppose. One thing ends, another begins. But them strange games, they’ll stick with ya, like a burr on a wool sock.

So if you ever get a chance to play one of them old PS2 games, don’t just stick to the ones everyone knows. Try somethin’ a little different, somethin’ a little weird. You might just find yourself havin’ a whole heap of fun. And who knows, you might even learn a thing or two about rollin’ up junk or beatin’ up rappers.

Tags: PS2, strange games, Katamari Damacy, God Hand, retro gaming, weird games, Def Jam, The Adventures of Darwin, Whiplash, 10,000 Bullets, We Love Katamari, Pro Evolution Soccer 2014