Games
The Playstation 2 didn't invent 3D gaming, the Saturn and Playstation had done that. It didn't even popularise it, the N64 did that years before the Playstation 2 was released. What it did was far harder than that. It revolutionised and redefined what was possible. As we all get ready for Grand Theft Auto 5, as we start pencilling in some time off to devote hours, even days, of our life to the next instalment of the widely popular series it's because of the Playstation 2 and Grand Theft Auto 3 that we have that game to look forward to. Grand Theft Auto 3 was truly ground breaking, for the first time we had a virtual playground, lovingly rendered in 3D in which to do our bidding. It was soon followed by Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. All three, at release were Playstation 2 exclusives and later ported to both Xbox and PC but it's the engines created for the original Playstation 2 releases which helped to popularise open-world non-linear story telling. Open-world non-linear story telling has become a genre in its own right since Grand Theft Auto 3, featuring, in at least some form, in most modern releases.
RPGs, a genre which had long featured open-world sections of the story, also took a leap forward with the Playstation 2. Final Fantasy X, the only Final Fantasy game I've ever completed, featured much improved graphics and for the first time in the series' long history, voice acting. It went on to become the 8th best selling PS2 game in all-time sales, but fell a long way short of the 10 million units that Final Fantasy VII has sold. It's also, arguably, the last great single player, Final Fantasy game, as all games since have drifted further and further away from the turn based combat which were once a hallmark of the series.
The Playstation 2 also marked the release of the criminally under-appreciated Beyond Good and Evil, the brilliant Metal Gear Solid 2, and also introduced the world to the idea of games as art with the stunning Shadow of the Colossus, a game which following a recent graphical touch up and re-release on Playstation 3 still stands up alongside most games that have come since. The Playstation 2 managed to revolutionise gaming by creating some truly memorably games and pushing graphics onto the next level. By redefining what a console should be, creating a new market of console owners, and being home to revolutionary games, the Playstation 2 was able to outlive its competition. The world will never forget the Playstation 2 and it never should. The Playstation 2 (in Japan) is dead. Long live the Playstation 2.