Not many years during the 2000s enjoyed better video game releases than 2004. The height of the PS2, Xbox, and GameCube helped usher in a whirlwind of iconic originals, incredible sequels to legendary games, and spinoff titles that spiced up their respective series.
Even the indie scene started to gain traction. These 2004 video games celebrate their 20th anniversary in 2024, and it might be time to pick them up and enjoy them all over again!
1. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door represents the perfect sequel. The game elevates everything about its predecessor while creating a legacy that feels impossible to match. The paper aesthetic mixes with the Mushroom Kingdom’s original characters to indulge gamers in a mirthful universe that most modern titles resist to replicate.
The game will be re-released with remastered graphics and sound in 2024 on the Switch.
2. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Every Grand Theft Auto installation alters the open-world gaming landscape, and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was no different. San Andreas moved the series in a pivotal direction by creating the Southern California/Western vibes emulated in sequels like Grand Theft Auto V. The game boosted the series’ potential with modern graphics and adherence to historical and human interest plotting.
3. Pikmin 2
Pikmin 2 goes under the radar now that the series spans two decades and more mainline titles. The game eliminated many odd quirks that fans disliked from the first game, like stressful time limits, while introducing new strategy techniques through the capabilities of novel Pikmin, such as purple bodybuilder Pikmin.
4. Halo 2
Halo 2 cemented the IP’s success by going grander and more ambitious than its predecessor. First-person shooters would take the throne as the most popular genre of console gaming during the mid-2000s, thanks to Master Chief’s heroic missions and movie-character qualities.
5. Gran Turismo 4
Gran Turismo separates itself from other racing games because it brought realism and attention to detail to the genre in the 2000s. Gran Turismo 4 didn’t reinvent the wheel, but it gifted gamers with all desired items, such as new vehicles and racetracks, in addition to top-of-the-line graphics.
6. The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
After the controversial, cartoonish vibes given by The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Nintendo leaned into the immature visual flair with The Minish Cap on Game Boy Advance. The game sticks to the series’ roots while differentiating itself from the console releases by scaling itself small, both literally and figuratively. The ability to transform Link into a tiny form of himself remains a favorite mechanic for longtime Zelda fans, making this title one of the most endearing 2004 video games.
7. Half-Life 2
Half-Life 2 didn’t reach the mainstream popularity of Halo 2, but first-person shooter fans who enjoy a more varied approach to the genre swear by this title as the best game in its category. The game requires more thinking than a typical shooter, with carefully designed puzzles and a daring sense of atmosphere and adventure.
8. Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes was Nintendo’s entry into the first-person shooter genre in 2004. The darker aesthetic compared to the first game may have turned some people off from the title, as well as the high difficulty, but no doubt Samus’s return to the GameCube represents the pinnacle of adventure gaming on the console.
9. Pokémon Fire Red/Leaf Green
Pokémon Fire Red and Leaf Green started the series’ tried-and-true trend of enhancing older games in the franchise for a new generation of players. Some of the most loved monsters in the series are featured heavily, helping the game serve as a connector between the Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance when playing Pokémon.
10. WarioWare: Twisted!
The WarioWare series relies on Nintendo’s willingness to let go of all creative restrictions and let wild ideas fly. The microgames in WarioWare: Twisted! revolved around the game cartridge’s built-in gyro-sensor. Turning the Game Boy Advance in circles worked better than anybody could have thought, and it previewed the motion controls of the Wii just two years later.
11. Cave Story
Cave Story revolutionized independent game development by touching gamers with the intimacy of a single person’s vision. Players explore caves, battle enemies, and gain new power advantages similar to SNES side-scrolling adventure games, giving the world a template for future Metroidvania indies.
12. World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft blazed through gaming vernacular in such a way that people who never played computer games before wanted to take a crack at it. The MMORPG genre would never be the same after this title, and the desire for more fantasy gaming experiences and online multiplayer games would influence Xbox Live and other similar platforms in the 2000s and 2010s. Of all the 2004 video games profiled here, this one might have the most revolutionary influence.
13. Fable
The action RPG genre needed to evolve after the top-down, hack-and-slash experiences of the 1990s. Fable went with a third-person perspective, and although not everyone loved it, the game offered a different category for folks who love parading through magical lands with swords and axes.
14. Far Cry
The original Far Cry stood out in the crowded first-person shooter genre with a more heroic, Jack Reacher-esque protagonist at the helm of the story. Being set in natural environments instead of space (like Halo or Metroid Prime) or war (think Call of Duty) made for a grittier game.
15. Burnout 3: Takedown
Burnout 3: Takedown aided the height of console racers during the 2000s, with other games like Gran Turismo, Mario Kart, and Forza also joining the top of the food chain. Burnout often became the choice for gamers who wanted a racer to make them sweat and compete with friends like their lives depended on victory!
16. Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones signified a change in the way Nintendo developed the Fire Emblem series. With sales dropping in America, the game’s easier difficulty helped popularize the strategy series in new ways. The Sacred Stones served as the stopgap before Fire Emblem: Awakening saved the series on the Nintendo 3D less than ten years later.
17. Kirby & the Amazing Mirror
Kirby & the Amazing Mirror didn’t reinvent Kirby’s games, but this GBA title focused on adventure and puzzle-solving more than the platforming-heavy doses in previous games. The open-ended exploration of the game never really received its due or appeared again in future installments.
18. Mario vs. Donkey Kong
Mario vs. Donkey Kong capitalized on the nostalgia directed toward a classic 1980s rivalry between the portly plumber and the awesome ape. The puzzle platforming action fits the GBA style perfectly. The game will be remastered for the Nintendo Switch in 2024.
19. Prince of Persia: Warrior Within
Prince of Persia: Warrior Within didn’t reach the peak that Sands of Time did, but the sequel refined basic aspects of the original game’s fun and tweaked the tone of the storytelling. Mature and violent battles made this more of an action game than an adventure title.
20. Super Mario 64 DS
Even though Super Mario 64 was only about a decade old at the time of the Nintendo DS’s release, Nintendo made the right decision in remaking it for their newest handheld console in 2004. Super Mario 64 DS also showed the relevance of Yoshi and Wario within the Mushroom Kingdom universe.
21. Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance 2
Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance 2 may be one of this biased author’s favorites of 2004, but it deserves a shoutout nonetheless. The top-down dungeon-crawling action reminiscent of Diablo expanded with more weapons and characters from the first game. Co-op mode makes this game even more fun, by the way!
22. Donkey King Jungle Beat
The bongo drum peripheral became one of Nintendo’s most-used toys during the middle of the GameCube’s run. After Donkey Konga got families rocking their plastic drums to the beat of classic pop songs, the lovable ape returned to the jungle for a platforming romp with Donkey Kong Jungle Beat.