TheXbox, and overall generation, had some killer hack-and-slash games. One of the best that started as an exclusive was theNinja Gaidenreboot series. Those games remain challenging to this day, rivaling that of theDark Soulsseries. Other honorable mentions include thePrince of Persiareboot games andThe Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind.
RELATED:Xbox Games That Never Received A Single Sequel
All of these games are known quantities and are still held as some of the experiences on theXbox. These other eight games are a bit more obscure or at least aren’t celebrated as often. Decades later, they do remain special to some, so let’s dive in and see what they’re all about.
8The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towersis a fine example of agood movie tie-in game. The first game was based on the book and was not well received. This one though was an action RPG with a pretty decent skill tree for all available fighters.
It also added events from the first film since that other game was book-based. So, it was like two games in one package. One of the coolest things at the time was the integration of gameplay with the movie footage. The sequel based onReturn of the Kingwas fun too and it had a better co-op setup.
7Hunter: The Reckoning
Hunter: The Reckoninghas a weird history as it began on the Xbox and GameCube. There were two sequels and they each hit exclusive platforms withRedeemergoing to the Xbox andWaywardgoing to the PS2.
Both Xbox gamesfeature a four-player co-opwhile the PS2 game only offers two players co-op. All three are not the most in-depth top-down action games, but they are fun in groups. It’s a great time to get into monster slaying during the spooky season but playing these games on consoles now is tricky.
6Samurai Warriors 2
Samurai Warriors 2was a high mark for the entire series. One of the coolest additions to the package was a mini-game calledSugoroku. This was essentially likeMario Partycrossed withMonopolywhich is a concept that has been used in Japanese games for many years.
RELATED:Canceled Xbox Games You Never Knew Existed
Wii fans might be familiar with the formula inFortune Street.Sugorokuaside,Samurai Warriors 2was a mindless action experience that was better with a buddy than alone. This series always will be considered the ultimatehack-and-slash franchisefrom the main entries to the anime spinoffs.
5Genma Onimusha
Genma Onimushais a port of the original game on PS2 but with new content. The majority of this series was exclusive to the PS2 during this era which was good for PS2 fans but bad for Xbox fans.
This game, and overall series, was likea samurai versionofResident Evilwith demons taking the place of zombies. There were puzzles to be had and an over-the-top cheesy story to entertain the masses. It’s not a pure action game but it is a satisfying survival horror game that got overlooked on the Xbox family of consoles.
4Castlevania: Curse Of Darkness
The 3DCastlevaniagames get a lot of flack for not being as good as the 2D Metroidvanias. That’s partially true but both 3D games released during this generation were good. The first, Castlevania: Lament of Innocence, was a PS2 exclusive whileCurse of Darknesswent multi-platform.
Fans ofthe Netflix animeshould check this out as it ties into that series and the third NES game akaDracula’s Curse. Hector, Dracula’s alchemist/demon creator, is the main character of it.
3Justice League Heroes
There were a lot of good co-op Marvel games during this era includingMarvel Ultimate AllianceandX-Men Legends. Both of those series are worth checking out as they are still fun. DC tried their hand at the action co-op RPG genre too viaJustice League Heroes.
RELATED:Biggest Mistakes In Xbox History, Ranked
It had all the right ingredients to be right up there with the Marvel games. However, the story, controls, hero choices, and several other things kept it back from obtaining that classic status. It’s not terrible though and deserves a second chance now.
2Star Wars: Obi-Wan
Star Warsgot ahuge gaming resurgenceduring the early 2000s as companies tried to tie in as much as possible to the prequel trilogy. There were movie tie-in games and spinoffs likeObi-Wanthat focused on the titular character.
It was a console exclusive for the Xbox which rarely happened forStar Warsgames around this era. The game is better than the movie tie-ins but only marginally so. Players aren’t going to get a massive amount of backstory for this Jedi or any cool gameplay moments, butObi-Wancan be another fun mindless action romp.
1Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtlesis a bad and confusing name for a game that shares its title with manyTMNTgames previous and after. There were three top-down 2.5D action games during this era that tied into the new cartoon.
The games used cel-shading to blend in better with the cartoon, making them all hold up visually to this day. The first is the best of the three but it doesn’t hold a candle to classics likeTurtles in Time. In a pinch, the game can be yet another fun co-op experience.
