Assassin's Creed 2 elevated everything.
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00:00Sequels in gaming are more often a cause for celebration than anywhere else. We don't
00:04need to worry about a complete story being stretched out, or that lightning in a bottle
00:07magic being overextended. In gaming, a sequel means more of what you love. Base mechanics
00:12expanded on, a more confident developer, gameplay tightened up, more world building, and maybe
00:17even a new playable character with a whole new set of moves. Yes, there are clunkers
00:21and pointless returns, but play to the medium's strengths, and a sequel has the power to revamp
00:26the foundations in a fundamental way, something that can lead to some of the best games you'll
00:30ever play. Also note we're dealing with immediate sequels, which second installments really took
00:35things to the next level. I'm Scott from WhatCulture.com and these are the 10 best video
00:40game sequels of all time.
00:42Number 10, Halo 2. The very end of its campaign might be divisive, but there's no denying the
00:48seismic, jaw-dropping impact of Halo 2 at every stage of its development. The reveal trailers,
00:53the revamped theme now infused with Steve Vai's guitar work elevating Marty O'Donnell's original
00:58composition. The introduction of the Arbiter, fleshing out of the Halo world, and of course
01:02that exquisite multiplayer. Halo 2 took everything the original nailed and improved it. Dual wielding
01:08may have led to some overpowered combos that a lot of Xbox Live patches took to rebalance,
01:13but as a package of iconic maps, GOAT gameplay, and top-tier production value, Halo 2 is pure gaming
01:19royalty. Number 9, Batman Arkham City. Rocksteady's Batman debut could have gone down a different
01:26route. It could have bombed, much like most superhero games have over the years, but thankfully
01:30Rocksteady paid tribute to the source material and did it justice. However, in terms of scale,
01:35it was small. Arkham Island is a tight, isolated area that you'll burn through in around six
01:40to eight hours, unless you're hunting down every last Riddler trophy. For a sequel, Rocksteady
01:44needed to go bigger, and if you found Warden Sharp's hidden office planning a certain city
01:49expansion, then you already knew how. 2011's Arkham City is a violent playground for Batman
01:54to explore. Distinct districts add variety and life, rather than copy-pasted areas. Exploration
01:59and going off the beaten track was rewarded, and Batman's wider rogue gallery now needed to be taken
02:04down. Traversal was improved upon, new skills and gadgets became available, as well as fleshing
02:09out that Batman combat to factor in gadget combos, gun disarms and knife counters. Bosses
02:14too were far better, ditching the gimmicky likes of Killer Croc for a methodical showdown against
02:19Mr. Freeze. As for the story, it's a brilliantly rewarding setup with a twist you can spot from
02:24the beginning if you know where to look in Detective Vision, then ending on one of the
02:28most seismic plot twists and Joker scenes of all time.
02:31Number 8, Mass Effect 2. Mass Effect's trajectory is fascinating. The original a far more
02:37Star Trek-ian vibe with you planet hopping around, getting lost in a universe of alien diplomacy while
02:42trying to stake humanity's claim for existence. Mass Effect 2 then opened on a supremely shocking
02:47sequence of everyone you knew seemingly dying as Shepard themselves burnt to a crisp in space.
02:53This was a completely different tone and setup, framing Shepard as a literal specter to all
02:58around him, resurrected and aligned with the mysterious Cerberus to win the fight against
03:02the Collectors. Mass Effect 2 works because it feels like you're this intergalactic suicide
03:06squad of ragtags and misfits inside the world of the original. Its writing is award-winning,
03:12its characters iconic, and its many endings only blew out the possibilities for what could
03:16come next in ways none of us saw coming.
03:18Number 7, Silent Hill 2. The first Silent Hill was terrifying, focusing on Harry Mason's desperate
03:25struggle. It was great but gave birth to an easily overlooked aspect, the town itself. Silent Hill 2,
03:31the first entry on PlayStation 2, took that concept and ran with it. The town itself now really felt like
03:36an oppressive force, compounding that sense of loneliness and desperation protagonist James
03:41Sunderland was suffering as they explored every street and storefront. A mechanic born of the first
03:45game's limitations was now turned into a main feature, and this constant sense of dread is why
03:50Silent Hill 2 remains an essential horror gem. Pair all of this with a memorable ensemble cast,
03:55an interpretational plot, and villain for the ages, and there's a reason we'll never shut up about
04:00having access to this game on modern hardware.
04:03Number 6, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2. The first Tony Hawk's is the definition of a sleeper hit.
04:09Skateboarding wasn't mainstream in 1999, but it was getting there. Across movies and music,
04:14grunge was being replaced by pop-punk, and every other person seemed to be holding a skateboard
04:18regardless. Come 2000, Neversoft tried again, and this extreme sports boom now had its mascot.
04:24Insane tricks, crazy locations, and a banging soundtrack, Tony Hawk's 2 was life-defining for
04:30the time. Not to take away from Tony Hawk's 3, as that was a whole other Age Brackets favorite
04:34installment, but if we're talking immediate sequels, this was a huge improvement. Like any good sequel
04:39to something with already stellar core mechanics, it was the quality of life improvements that made
04:44it so satisfying to play. Skaters could now level off when leaving a ramp, manuals stitched
04:49everything together, and that overall feel across the board was so much more fluid.
04:53Tony Hawk's 2 was when we really started seeing the fanbase nail those multi-million point
04:57combos and insanely complex trick runs, only for you to attempt something similar because
05:02it all played so well.
05:045. Half-Life 2
05:06Half-Life, for many, changed perceptions on first-person shooters. No disrespect to the
05:11likes of Quake and Doom, but Half-Life upended how narrative and gameplay could even work
05:15together. What Half-Life 2 brought was more of that same ethos, but bigger and better. Bigger
05:20set pieces and levels better use of Valve's proprietary physics engine. Incorporating
05:24puzzles and progress into gameplay, Half-Life 2 continued Gordon Freeman's adventures, this
05:28time against the Alien Combine. It's been quite some time since a real technical showcase
05:33of a game existed where just watching it in motion, watching the physics of items interact
05:37with each other for example, makes you think of endless gameplay possibilities, but that's
05:41part of why Half-Life 2 was such a monumental deal in gaming.
05:464. Metal Gear Solid 2 Sons of Liberty
05:48Reportedly furious with the original game's western translation, injecting military speak
05:53and a grounded tone where Hideo Kojima was always a bit more out there, Kojima demanded
05:58full control. Leading to water-walking vampires, octopus-suited ex-presidents, and a white-haired
06:03protagonist hidden from marketing. All of this, though, made Metal Gear Solid as a franchise
06:07now feel entirely unique. Metal Gear Solid 1 will always be my favourite game, but it
06:12was that cinematic presentation, that boundary-pushing, Hollywood-aping ideology that only got enhanced
06:17here. Metal Gear Solid 2's opening alone hasn't aged a day, dripping in confidence and purpose,
06:23fully embracing its position as the tip of the spear for the PlayStation 2. With experimental
06:27stealth gameplay, unprecedented world interaction, clever AI, and a sandbox approach to how you got
06:32through each level, this might be the most divisive Metal Gear Solid in terms of a main character,
06:37but its grandiosity as a video game can't be beat.
06:41Number 3. Assassin's Creed 2
06:42The runaway success of the first Assassin's Creed was a pleasant surprise. Born of a failed
06:47Prince of Persia continuation, the adventures of Desmond and his acrobatic ancestor struck
06:52gold in 2007. What we got then was the epitome of when game sequels know exactly what to focus
06:57on, as Assassin's Creed 2 got everything right. New character Ezio Auditore da Firenze was a charismatic,
07:03lovable distinction from the stoic Altair. Switching to Renaissance Italy over the Holy
07:08Lands gave us more intricate cities and kill opportunities, and the game's colour palette
07:12was now more bold and definable than ever. Combat was tightened up and expanded with multiple enemy
07:16classes, and Desmond's story had more depth with an insanely cool payoff, as did Ezio's crusade
07:22against the Borges. Assassin's Creed is still able to turn heads today because of how incredibly on point
07:27this second instalment was. Number 2. Red Dead Redemption 2
07:31I will maintain that Red Dead Redemption 2 is the closest thing you can get to virtual reality
07:36without wearing a headset. So ludicrously meticulously realised is its depiction of the
07:41Old West, you'll feel pretty naturally compelled to relax down the local saloon, go camp out in the
07:46mountains after a tragic main story event, or just embrace your inner Jesse James and rob as many
07:51trains as possible. The point is, this embodies the original Red Dead's character-driven soul,
07:55fleshing it out in every direction. So expansive and hyper-detailed is the setting, it reinforces
08:00the story Dan Houser wrote about an age of lawlessness coming to an end. Rules and regulations,
08:05the formation of modern America was coming, whether those who made their living as cowboys
08:09liked it or not. Graphically, if we twin art direction and sheer rendering power, it may
08:13be the best-looking game of all time. But Red Dead Redemption 2's real unique quality is being the apex
08:18of the most lucrative game developer on the planet, funneling all their money and talent into a
08:23specific creative vision, regardless of marketability. Dan Houser's tenure at Rockstar
08:27is over. The company is a drastically different beast because of it, but he went out in magnificent
08:32style.
08:331. Resident Evil 2
08:35Survival horror as a genre had been around before Resident Evil. Check out the hilarious
08:42Alone in the Dark. It's fair to say though that Resident Evil 1 put it on the map. With a weirdly
08:47compelling, awesomely campy story, gross monsters and jump scares, how could Capcom possibly top it?
08:52Well, by moving out, taking gameplay from musty, stuffy mansions to Raccoon City, the hot spot
08:57for Umbrella's dastardly experiments. It wasn't just locales that felt bigger, as the game's design
09:02was based around two-player campaigns. Production values were notably higher, with far better
09:06character models, and Resident Evil 2 ramped up the gore. The variety of monsters and its
09:11boss battles, as well as the means to fight them. Customizable shotguns, flamethrowers, giant
09:15stun guns, this is the old-school Resident Evil to pick up that's the sweet spot between the
09:20original's exploration and puzzle-heavy layout, and Resident Evil 3's action focus. As the remake
09:25would embody, we also had the introduction to Mr. X, some terrifying lickers, and only fightable
09:30in Scenario B, the tyrant.
09:32And those are our picks. It has been tough picking a definable top 10 best sequels, and
09:38yes, I agree, Modern Warfare 2 feels like it should be on there, but what the hell do
09:42you swap out? Let me know down in the comments, and also please subscribe to the WhatCulture
09:46Gaming Podcast. For now, I've been Scott from WhatCulture.com, a massive thank you for watching,
09:51and I'll catch you soon.