The 10 BEST Things About Gaming in the 2000s

Gaming in the 2000s was a truly magical time. For this list, we’ll be looking at the gaming landscape specifically around the sixth generation of consoles, such as the PS2-Xbox-Gamecube era, as well as the early days of the PS3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii, and what made it probably one of the greatest times to be a gamer. Our list of the best things about gaming in the 2000s includes Couch Co-Op, a Lack of DLC and Microtransactions, Fewer Spoilers, Real Hype, and more! What was your favorite era of video games and what do you miss about gaming from your childhood? Let us know down in the comments.
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#Gaming #VideoGames #Games #2000s #Nintendo #Xbox #PlayStation #PC #Retro

[@mojoplays]

What was your favorite era of video games and what do you miss about gaming from your childhood? Let us know down in the comments. Subscribe for more retro gaming videos! wmojo.com/mojoplays-subscribe

[@marcusyates3044]

Spyro VS Crash! Orange and Purple II!

[@Leo-pd4fc]

Sly Raccoon, Sly Cooper 2 Band of Thieves and Sly Cooper 3 honor amoung thieves was the games of my childhood. Sly 4 thieves in time ruined my childhood... Still Sly cooper is always near of my heart, Super Mario wii games like galaxies and Pokemon ds games are important for me too. 🔥🔥

[@jeuryrabassa4724]

The 2000's game era. Because that is the era i was born in and I have played tons of fantastically and amazingly revolutionary games of that decade.

[@zakirstocks9514]

My Most Favorite Era of Video Games are Street Fighter, Mega Man, Resident Evil, Capcom's Maximo, Devil Kings (Sengoku Basara) and Devil May Cry. *Capcom's Maximo* is what I Absolutely missed playing from my Childhood Years. It has the Best Cutscenes, Voice Actors and Actresses, Stages, Enemies and Best Epic Bosses I've ever seen.

[@DragonKazooie89]

Trading Pokémon on the GTS in DPPt and HGSS

[@RicochetForce]

I agree, this era was incredible. The stretch from the mid 90s to the mid 2000s had an insane amount of variety, industry shifts, genre refinements, brand NEW genres, new controller methods, the birth of online gaming, leaps of graphics and performance... It was a heady time.

[@Theonetruewonderfly]

1996 to 2005 was the best 10 years in gaming.

[@Jak_The_Eco_Warri0r.]

Ratchet and clank, Sly cooper and Jak and Daxter are my favorite childhood game heroes of all time! Plus, they're the real reason why I love games.

[@bradtussey827]

same here those are my favorite from the ps2 era and I am glad the Ratchet & Clank is still on going I just wish Jak and Sly would keep on going

[@Ray.M.12345]

Same here.

[@Jak_The_Eco_Warri0r.]

@@bradtussey827 Hopefully in the future. I sure do miss them.

[@jaredgagnon7342]

Right on, bro! Along with Kingdom Hearts, Star Wars: Battlefront II (2005), Need for Speed: Most Wanted (2005), Crash Bandicoot, and Spyro.

[@kenterminateddq5311]

@@Jak_The_Eco_Warri0r. I'm a 90s kid but I LOVED the games you listed. Ratchet & Clank, Sly Cooper and GTA: Vice City are the games that I cherished as a young adult/teen.

[@victoresen2974]

The 2000s was a masterclass in gaming 💯.

[@hypedsnypes1227]

I would definitely say the graphics from the PS1 to the PS2 PS2, to the PS3 it was such a massive difference

[@James-gj8rn]

I really miss when games were released complete and ready, that's not always the case these days

[@ZeldaSam1]

More like that's almost NEVER THE CASE!!!!! GODDAMN CORPO FUCKS!!!!!

[@joltx9909]

I miss the early 2000's in general =[ gaming, music, tv shows... man it was such a golden era

[@eldeadkilljohnkennedy3946]

I was both in 2000s

[@devingiles6597]

Same here.

[@boodeesparx1192]

2000's, only second to the 90's 😎

[@silverwindfox15]

Jak and daxter was a real blast. Man I love this Era of gaming! They definitely need to bring jak and sly back!

[@EvanAdvent]

Being born in the mid 90s meant THIS was my generation of gaming. The thing I miss most of all was games having these cool manuals alongside them in the case. Full of cool art, character bios and gameplay tips these were little booklets of awesome and I'm always a little sad inside to open a new game and find just a disk inside.

[@Laz3rCat95]

It's similar to the charm of music CDs in their heyday. I used to also love looking through the booklets of those seeing images of the artists, special thanks, lyrics to the songs, etc.

[@STOPTHECLOWNS581]

The fact that so many of the great games we get these days are just remakes or sequels of games from the 2000s or late 90s just proves that gaming was better in alot of ways back during those times.

[@NinjaMario02]

The GameCube was what got me into gaming and I enjoyed playing the Mario titles, Super Monkey Ball 2, Kirby Air Ride, heck, even some licensed titles were amazing too.

[@jeremy19175]

i remember playing Taz wanted Pac-man world 2 and Mario kart double dash on the Gamecube

[@MrSpecialone0848]

PSX/N64 era is likely my favorite. It was literally breathtaking to play some of those titles in that era as they released. The first time Cloud jumped off the train, riding Epona across Hyrule field, Super Mario 64(yes the whole game), z-targeting, the amazing wrestling games, hiding in a box in Metal Gear Solid, playing Gran Turismo and getting good at it, dropping an AT-AT for the first time, seeing Crash Bandicoot talk smack to Nintendo outside their headquarters, DAYTONNNAAAAA!!!, Super Smash Bros for the first time(and that commercial), Jill sandwiches, Silent Hill and Dino Crisis, Oddjob making you rage, the opening CGI in Final Fantasy VIII and gunblades, the DK rap…okay I think I’ve made my point. Still, it was an incredible time for video games. Bonus: Demo Discs!

[@stefanloncar6868]

2000’s where golden Especaly if you where born in late 90’s like me

[@matthewvorwald7169]

I miss couch co-op. I can't count how many fun memories I had playing games like Medal of Honor Rising Sun, Serious Sam Next Encounter, The Simpsons Road Rage, all the WWE games on GameCube, and Conflict Desert Storm with my brothers and sister. It makes me sad that newer games don't have this feature anymore.

[@jeuryrabassa4724]

I was born in the 2000's and i had such a amazing experience with the games of that era. It was like the glorious age of modern videogames.

[@tahjvarela1518]

I grew up playing these games and the fun and joy with funs its unmatched today we had sleep overs just so we can all play as kids and that made our childhood fun

[@FastTquick]

It’s for these reasons that the 6th-gen of gaming will remain the greatest generation of gaming ever.

[@ClubbySnipez]

watch the fortnite/roblox kids say different

[@The810kid]

The 2000's is the last time where games innovated with the highest production values for popular titles yet took risks and experimented. So many genres still flourished and popular titles didn't take half a decade to make.

[@traytonvanderecken3311]

I'm glad to be a 2000s kid😊

[@easyfruitz3656]

I'm glad to be a early 2000s kid

[@traytonvanderecken3311]

@easyfruitz3656 I was born in 1999 so that's makes me a very lucky person.

[@krisellison6650]

Born in 89 the 2000s is the best time in gaming.

[@Ray.M.12345]

I was born in 1996 and i agree 2000's were best gaming era. ❤

[@NinusMaximus]

One of the best aspects for me was going to the news stand and finally seing the new edition of my fav gaming magazine and spend my afternoon reading everything

[@BigBoss15310]

I know it still exists today, and it may sound weird: I miss the days of gaming when games were only playable on discs that you could pop right in and play. No day 1 patches or anything because they didn’t need them

[@Charles-hy6gp]

That because optical drive are too slow to run games off the disk PS4 blu ray drive is only about 3x times faster than PS3

[@TheAndinator92]

I bet they had massive crunch time back before patches existed.

[@lovepets2781]

In early 2000's I got my video game news from XPlay with Adam Sessler and Morgan Web , not only was it very informative it had lot of first rate humour . XPlay was well done and the hosts were awesome.

[@ArmaBiologica35]

Game design was just... Better in the 2000's. Unlike now when every game has to be an empty open world.

[@cbgg1585]

Lmao, what a copout, rose colored lazy comment. There will always be good games, and bad ones, just like there is now, and will be in the future. I don't think anyone can make a blanket statement about the quality of all games related and tied to a specific time period. We could easily say the same for certain types of games that were more plentiful in the past such as the semi-open world, shooters and action games like Thief, system shock, Deus Ex. Fable, Halo etc.

[@vgbcp3rs0na41]

@ArmaBiologica35 Yeah. Shit.

[@Irrevenant_]

I count myself incredibly lucky to have experienced "would you kindly" as intended without spoilers and without figuring it out beforehand.

[@ronniedweetno891]

Man the variety in the 2000s was crazy

[@mjdf122]

Hope you guys make a list for the 1980s and 1990s

[@jamalvargas6146]

Gaming In The 2000's Was All Kinds Of Good Loved playing hidden gems Like Street Fighter 3 3rd Strike and Lethal Enforcers good times man !!!!

[@Arturelia]

This was my decade. Fun times.

[@ShinPepsiman]

I know I sound like a broken record but maaaaan the variety wad so good back then. So many wacky ideas and games that were just fun. I'll be forever grateful that I experienced this generation

[@redx1487]

Man I miss those days when videogames are meant to be played for fun, no DLC packs, no microtransactions, no Season Pass, and you don't have to have internet connection to play games (unless its online multiplayer). 2000's videogames was a great time for all kids back in the day.

[@jeremy19175]

i miss the replayability of the older games

[@argeniscanez9503]

I miss getting full games without DLC, buying games and not waiting for the instalment patches, single player focus, most games had great extras once finished, no streamers, longer campaigns, turn base JRPG and more

[@vgbcp3rs0na41]

STOP GIVING US INCOMPLETE GAMES OR WE KILL OURSELVES!

[@jeremyconner1827]

I think one of the best things about gaming back then was being able to buy a new game and put it in and start playing right away instead of waiting hours for it to install

[@theanimeguy13ify]

Gotta love 2000s gaming!

[@nichellejohnson7786]

What I miss about gaming in the 2000s is the unexpected stuff that game franchises had at most times. Spyro and Crash changing their styles was very unexpected and a bit cool. I was a kid at the time, so I have fond memories of that happening. Jak, Ratchet, and Sly Cooper had changed a bit unexpectedly too in gameplay... especially Jak. Seeing the graphics change from polygonal graphics to semi real as well as the crazy competition was so cool! That's a few of which I miss.

[@marcinprzybylski8302]

I feel like Nintendo with Switch and their approach to game development is like 2000s again. You do not wait long for releases, there is couch gaming, everyone is waiting for Directs, etc.

[@AllThingsInfamous1]

What a time to be alive

[@humblegrind8]

The golden age of anime inspired, Def Jam, and anime fighting games. As a Budokai and Naruto Ultimate Ninja gamer, I was a happy Blockbuster baby.

[@Ray.M.12345]

Ratchet&Clank, Sly Cooper and Jak&Daxter always and forever. The holy trinity of playstation. ❤️

[@Laz3rCat95]

I agree with so many of these the 2000s really was the golden age of gaming.

[@DragonKazooie89]

I will always remember the 2000s as being able to play Nintendo games online for the first time, especially Smash Bros. and Pokémon. The Friend Codes were annoying but it was fun swapping them. It as also the first time I could actually get event Pokémon, both online and in person.

[@weisburgh]

Old gamer here, started on the Atari 2600, my favorite generation was the ps3/xbox 360 era. Ps2/xbox close second

[@baller6016]

The thumbnail is my Big 3 of the PS2 Era ❤💯

[@anantkumar5376]

That spoiler thing really bothers me. Some dumb KZbinr thinks it's a great idea to post a plot twist in the title and in thumbnail.

[@Norg1]

getting a n64 for christmas and poping in mario 64 and just being amazed u can climb a tree and do a back flip off it was pretty much the greatest feeling up to that point along with ps1 and playing ff7 and feels like your playing a action pack movie and mgs1 and littlery spending 40 mins of listening the codex cus it was so interesting was also a feeling sneaking around by enemies not even firing a shot yup

[@sslocke]

Best part about this time is there really wasn't an internet yet. Some homes may have had it but most people didn't really start having decent internet and home computers til closer to 2010. So you couldn't just go looking up game guides or YT videos if you got stuck. You just had to find the solution on your own. You got so much more out of clearing a game

[@ConnorMiller417]

This was the golden age of gaming. I remember those were the days where the closest thing we had to social media was our video game consoles. Those were the best days! The music, movies, video games, and society in general were just way better and simpler. Good times! 😊

[@badcoolshadow]

This whole video felt very nostalgic 🔥🔥🔥

[@codafett]

I couldn't agree more with your point about real hype and how there weren't immediately spoilers everywhere. You can't really enjoy the vastness of a game anymore because so many people have it as a literal job to play the whole game in a day and then harvest the cutscenes.

[@ARIXANDRE]

We are getting to that point of noatalgia for the 2000's and leaving 16 bit behind. The problem is that most games controls don't hold up.

[@YouthPotential]

Ah my teenage years

[@recht_voor_zijn_raap5506]

For me: Actually FINISHED games without the lootboxes, battlepasses and microtransactions.

[@UncleKratos]

Love the MGS3 music in the background!

[@marcusyates3044]

Spyro VS Crash! Sony Mascot Showdown!

[@Deknis]

Man those were the good ole days. Wish I could go back and experience the ps2, GameCube, and original Xbox days again.

[@zakirstocks9514]

Ryu from Street Fighter, Mega Man himself, Chris Redfield from RE, Maximo from Capcom, Dante from DMC, Yukimura Sanada from Sengoku Basara and Frank West are all my Favorite Childhood Capcom Game Heroes of All Time! They're the reason why I Absolutely love gaming.

[@adamantium4797]

Metal gear background music is a nice touch

[@KaponoMonster]

From someone like me born in 1997 playing these games was amazing

[@danielgilbert1684]

Early 2000’s era will forever be Unmatched

[@nathanielstoll4533]

Couch coop was my favorite

[@cwgmediaproductions2431]

They make a lot of good points!!

[@akstyles]

A watchmojo video with the MGS theme??? Perfection

[@Naruto0s44]

In the 2000s naughty dog, square enix and konami was on fire !! And capcom had the 2nd Renaissance with resident evil 4 and devil may cry

[@Matty_Ice3955]

Backwards compatibility was amazing in the 2000s. PS2 playing PS1 games and Wii playing GameCube games.

[@anayosmith9505]

So many memories from that Era like jak and Daxter the precursor legacy max Payne the fall of max Payne tekken 5 , tekken tag tournament and defjam vendetta and defjam ffny gta series resident evil sly Cooper series midnight club dub edition etc the list goes on

[@crimsonshadow1140]

the library of games for all of the 6th gen consoles seems almost endless, there are an abundance of obscure titles that I am finding even today, because devs were encouraged to take risks there’s always something new to try

[@danieldominguez5863]

I miss being able to play a game right out the box. Now you have to download it and even if you predownload it youre almost instantly given a Day 1 patch for all the things they didnt finish. Also games would tell you what the storage needed was gonna be but now a 60gb game could turn into a 90gb game

[@Jaysin412]

I started gaming in the 80s, nothing will ever beat gaming in arcades, head to head, plugging quarters for continues, waiting to see the next new game and upgrade or system to release, waiting for game magazines to release for new tips and tricks, or calling the Nintendo holine, the Sega channel and 16 bit in the 90s, it's been one hell of a treat to game through the last 4 decades. I started in the end of the atari era and quickly moved into 8bit gaming. Nothing today will ever be as revolutionary.

[@streamingvideo6654]

NES to PS2 era rocked big time.

[@Almighty_Sweetapon]

Born in 1997, but Experienced the PS2 and PSP is my golden Age of Gaming from the 2000s was outstanding. Actually Experimentation was my favorite, because LocoRoco, Patapon and Katamari were innovative at the time.

[@silvercast007]

Thank you for that MGS soundtrack

[@BlazerK1914]

My Favorite Gaming Era? Depends, really. There are video games that I grew to have a fond of from different years. For instance: • 2010s - Mortal Kombat 9, X, and 11, even Resident Evil 6 and some Batman Arkham games. • 2000s - Ultimate Spider-Man, Modern Warfare 2 (OG) • 2020s - Sifu, Modern Warfare 2 (reboot), Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart So yeah, I pick whatever game that suits my needs.

[@breezosenpai]

2000s was peak gaming

[@MrProjecthalo]

Pretty good list. I miss good couch coop games, there really isn't much anymore. Curious if a list similar of the 2010-23 could be done, in which well eSports. Gotta be a huge positive with how much money it makes. Might be more negatives in that range tho like microtransactions hah.

[@panterarosa4325]

project gotham racing 3 was my childhood with its high quality graphics and a badass soundtrack in 2009 on a house friend in chile❤❤❤❤

[@cdp619]

I love open worlds, but every game doesn't need to be open world. Even semi open world is fine.

[@iwantanxbox8765]

Remember GameStop and the bins of used ps2 games, you’d just buy something random that looked good and it ended up being good

[@loganford3921]

I feel like that games in the 2000s like GTA3 and others set the standard for 3D gaming as it felt fresh and new. Nowadays you still get great games but mostly it's the graphics are improving but gameplay wise I feel your not getting anything that feels fresh or exciting like the games in the 2000s. Maybe it's old age lol.

[@greatolobayo7737]

Jak and dexter tri is honestly my best game

[@StewGuyMcRyan]

I’ve always recognised how unbelievably lucky I was to come to Bioshock for the first time, not knowing the twist… 3:07

[@cardman1031]

I like alot of video but have to say this is the best video you ever made. I agree with all your points and think that way too. Biggest problem today is lack of real innovation and competition. Just look at the sports game each of the major sports has one game by one company and thats it. Use to be games for gamers by gamers now its games for gamers by businesses trying to maximize profits and nothing else.

[@arturotorres5663]

I still remember God Of War yes all in one no promises of "ooh you wanna upgrade you're weapons gotta pay" no you just farming red orbs and when you killed a boss you would get thousands of orbs time to upgrade!!

[@PrincessRoseDru]

I agree with all of these but you might want to turn the volume of the music down a bit because there were parts where it was really hard to hear over it.

[@DynamiteNunchucks]

Medal of Honor Frontline was 🐐 it also has one of the best soundtracks of any video game.

[@herrypottier4201]

Honestly I miss getting together with friends, hook up two xboxes to two tvs, have snacks and just play bloodgulch all day, good times 😊

[@ninjasoft1130]

I literally feel sooo bad for the 2010 kids and 2020 kids while the 2000s people had the better decade for gaming

[@blueraccoon1088]

Sly Cooper is one of the best free roam stealth games. Man I miss the times.

[@12thMandalorian]

Writing down cheats on a huge piece of paper, now those were good times

[@SkandiTV]

I saw Playstation Move Heroes on the thumbnail, I got concerned

[@chrissnells2562]

remember when you paid for a physical copy of a game and all you had to do was go home open the case and put it in the console and play it right away. no install time and the only space you needed was for your save file.

[@crimsonshadow1140]

while online is definitely the more accessible form of multiplayer(to a degree), it doesn’t nearly have the same vibe as local multiplayer, either by split screen or lan multiplayer. Which is why I absolutely cherish arcade gaming, especially racing and fighting

[@krisellison6650]

I was born in 89 and miss going to a pawnshop to get games. I was able to get a new n64 and PS2 with new games, but if I wanted more games it off to the pawnshop. Haha

[@tombystander]

The switch from Ethernet to wifi. What a moment

[@stephenjacewicz4594]

It seems like in gaming back then you did not have to "Level Up" as much to make a mission that may or may not be that enjoyable easier. Like Assassins Creed: Origins I guess I got to level up for "End Of The Snake". Now what's enjoyable is trying to sneak around all the guards or having to take care of them just not sure how good the rest is but I am just loving the open world of Ancient Egypt. This is an incredible and very important video by the way.

[@Norg1]

i never left the 6th gen :P never even bought a XB1 or ps4 i remember the nes but i started playing games with the Snes and genesis that 4th and 5th gen of games that was wooo the golden age infact the entire 90's was just like a dream :)

[@Atrus999]

The gaming industry is going to implode on itself unless something changes soon.

[@riverswater5688]

#1 original games and little to no remakes.

[@abbybonilla4511]

When MICROTRANSACTIONS DIDN"T EXIST.

[@zzz43344]

Yeah

[@ilDSttaro]

What I've learned in the last few years is that to a great number of people you could give them exactly what they want and they will find a way to complain nonetheless. But at least they didn't had social media to harass everyone about it.

[@TheRealAnthony0]

Gaming in 2000s was fun. No installs, games came complete and more interaction with people. Now it’s the complete opposite and it’s a shame.

[@Charles-hy6gp]

Games on PS3 had installation You shouldn't complain about installation when the Xbox 360 has noisy DVD drive, disc errors

[@TheRealAnthony0]

@@Charles-hy6gp talking more about PS2 and Xbox era of gaming not ps3 or 360.