The PS2 can sometimes get a bit of a bum rap from fans of other systems. Sure, there’s a whole load of crap in its large library, and focus groups evidently had their way with some portion of what remains. But then you remember bold, innovative games like Frequency and remember why it was such an important system.
Frequency is essentially Guitar Hero’s grandfather, and it doesn’t look dissimilar – but with that game and its descendents like Rock Band, you play a role. If you do well, the bass or drums or guitar track will play fine, but that’s all you do. Frequency is a bit different in that regard, as there’s a certain plate-spinning act you have to perform – play a few notes of one instrument successfully and you’ll activate it, keeping that piece of the song going as you activate the next one. Individual tracks can also harbour power-ups, influencing which you choose, and changing scoring strategy – do you deploy an Autocapture on a difficult track, or choose an easy one in an attempt to play the hard ones properly for better score?
The game also has quite the soundtrack, too. While my favourite band’s contribution to the game isn’t the strongest, there’s an excellent array of electronic stuff here. Frequency later got a sequel in the form of Amplitude, which had a slightly more diverse soundtrack, and there’s a new version of Amplitude incoming after Harmonix’s Kickstarter was successful last year. I’d definitely advise you to check it out when it hits!