Twenty years. It’s been over two decades since Incognito Entertainment dropped a giant radioactive gorilla onto a digital version of Midtown Park, and honestly? Nothing has felt quite the same since. When people talk about "giant monster games," they usually default to Godzilla: Unleashed or maybe those weirdly stiff King Kong movie tie-ins. But if you actually grew up with a PlayStation 2, you know the truth. War of the Monsters wasn't just another brawler; it was a love letter to 1950s drive-in cinema that understood something its successors completely forgot.
Physics matter.
Most modern kaiju games feel like you’re piloting a slow, clunky tank. In War of the Monsters, you felt like a force of nature. You could rip a radio antenna off a skyscraper and javelin-toss it through a giant robot's chest. You could pick up a fuel tanker and watch the resulting explosion level an entire city block. It was fast, it was mean, and it was glorious.
Why the Combat Loop in War of the Monsters Still Hits Different
Most fighting games are stuck on a 2D plane or a very restricted 3D arena. Incognito Entertainment—the same geniuses behind Twisted Metal: Black—decided that the environment shouldn't just be a backdrop. It had to be a weapon.
If you're playing as Congar (the aforementioned legally-distinct-from-Kong ape) and you find yourself outmatched by Togera (the Godzilla stand-in), you don't just mash the square button. You jump. You climb a building. You wait for Togera to follow you, and then you jump off, grabbing a passing helicopter mid-air to smash into his face.
It’s chaotic.
The "stamina" system was the secret sauce here. Unlike modern games that use stamina to limit the player, War of the Monsters used it to dictate the rhythm of the destruction. You had to balance your long-range breath attacks or projectiles with the need to get in close and literally rub your opponent's face into the pavement. There was this tactile crunch to every hit. When a building collapsed, it didn't just disappear into a canned animation; it left rubble that you could actually pick up and throw.
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The Roster: More Than Just Movie Clichés
While the game obviously leans on tropes, the character designs by artists like Dan Leadbetter gave these monsters a soul. Take Kineticlops. He’s essentially a giant eyeball held together by electricity. He’s weird. He’s spindly. He plays completely differently than the heavy-hitting Robo-47, who feels like a clunky tin-man soldier from a black-and-white reel.
- Agamo: A literal Aztec head on a stone body. Slow as molasses but hits like a freight train.
- Preytor: The giant mantis. If you played as her, you were probably that one friend everyone hated because she could fly and spam air-to-ground attacks.
- Magmo: A multi-armed lava beast that basically defined the "boss fight" difficulty spike in the single-player campaign.
Each monster had "Skins" that weren't just color swaps. They were entirely new models. One Congar skin turned him into a giant yeti; another turned him into a mechanical cyborg. In an era before DLC and microtransactions, finding the tokens to unlock these felt like a genuine accomplishment.
The Lost Art of Environmental Storytelling (Through Destruction)
You remember the "Tsunopolis" map? Of course you do. It’s the one where the massive wave eventually hits and floods the lower half of the city. Suddenly, the gameplay shifts. You aren't just brawling; you're trying to stay on the rooftops because being in the water slows you down and makes you a sitting duck for projectiles.
This is where War of the Monsters outshines modern titles like GigaBash or the various Godzilla iterations. The maps had "events." In the "Atomic Island" level, you could trigger a nuclear meltdown that changed the layout of the arena. In "Baytown," you could knock over the bridge to cut off certain escape routes.
It felt alive.
Most developers today focus on "high-fidelity textures" and "ray-traced reflections." Incognito focused on interaction. They knew that if a player sees a giant UFO in the middle of a Las Vegas-style strip (the "Metro City" map), that player is going to want to knock it out of the sky and watch it squash their opponent. And the game let you do it. Every single time.
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The Tragedy of the "Missing" Sequel
So, why haven't we seen a War of the Monsters 2? It’s a question that haunts message boards and subreddit threads every time a Sony State of Play is announced.
The reality is complicated. Incognito Entertainment essentially dissolved, with key members moving on to form Eat Sleep Play (the Starhawk devs) or joining other Sony first-party studios. The IP sits in Sony’s vault, gathering dust. While they did release a PS4 "port" (essentially an uprendered emulated version with trophy support), they’ve never pulled the trigger on a full-blown remake or sequel.
Maybe they think there isn't a market for it. They’re wrong.
Look at the success of the MonsterVerse movies. Godzilla and Kong are bigger than they’ve ever been. People crave this specific brand of "giant things hitting other giant things." The problem is that modern games try to make it too cinematic. They take the control away from the player to show a "cool" cutscene of a building falling. War of the Monsters didn't care about your cinematic experience. It cared about whether you could timing a block perfectly so you could catch a thrown girder and hurl it back.
How to Play It Today (and What to Look For)
If you’re looking to scratch this itch, you have two real options.
- The PS4/PS5 Digital Version: This is the easiest way. It’s cheap, usually under ten bucks. It runs in 1080p and has trophies. The frame rate is steadier than the original PS2 hardware, which used to chug whenever more than three buildings fell at once.
- Emulation (PCSX2): If you have the original disc and a decent PC, this is arguably the superior way to play. You can crank the internal resolution to 4K, add some widescreen patches, and suddenly the game looks like a modern indie title.
When you jump back in, pay attention to the sound design. The way the screams of the tiny people below are muffled by the roar of the monsters. The way the music swells—that classic, brass-heavy orchestral score that sounds exactly like a Bernard Herrmann composition for a Ray Harryhausen flick. It’s a vibe that hasn't been replicated since.
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Master the Tech
If you're playing for the first time or returning after a decade, stop button mashing. The key to winning—especially against the brutal AI in the later stages of the Adventure mode—is the counter-throw.
Most players forget you can catch almost anything thrown at you. If you time the R1+L1 (or your platform's equivalent) right as an object hits you, you’ll snatch it out of the air. It’s the ultimate "no u" move. Also, learn to use the environment for health. Blue orbs are great, but standing near a glowing energy source or eating a literal ambulance can save your run when you’re down to your last sliver of health.
Real Talk: The Learning Curve Is Steeper Than You Remember
Don't go into this thinking it’s a casual party game like Mario Party. The AI in War of the Monsters is notoriously "cheaty." They will snip you from across the map with perfect accuracy. They will double-team you. They will run away to find health orbs the second they get low.
It forces you to learn the map layouts. You have to know where the "cloaking" power-up is in the military base. You have to know which buildings are "soft" (easy to knock down) and which ones are "hard" (take multiple hits but provide bigger projectiles).
It’s a game of strategy disguised as a game of mindless carnage.
Actionable Steps for the Kaiju Fan
If you want to keep the spirit of this game alive or just want to improve your skills, do this:
- Download the PS4/PS5 version immediately. It’s the best $10 you’ll spend this month if you value local couch co-play.
- Focus on the "Adventure Mode" first. Don't jump straight into free-for-all. The campaign teaches you the specific environmental triggers for each map, which is vital for high-level play.
- Unlock the "Secret" Characters. You can get Raptros (the dragon) and Zorgulon (the alien) by spending battle tokens. They have completely unique move sets that break the standard brawler mold.
- Check out "GigaBash" or "Terror of Hemasaurus" if you finish this and need more. They aren't perfect replacements, but they’re the closest modern equivalents we have to the DNA of Incognito’s masterpiece.
War of the Monsters remains a masterclass in focused game design. It didn't try to be an open-world RPG. It didn't have a battle pass. It just gave you a giant radioactive monster and a city that deserved to be leveled. Sometimes, that’s all you really need.