2002-2004 was a JRPG golden era for the PS2. Dark Cloud 2, Unlimited Saga, Final Fantasy XI (online), .hack vol. 1-4, and Xenosaga Episode 1 all released in that timeline. All these games have fantastic art style, Star Ocean: Till the End of Time is no different.
Gameplay is dated by having to explore maps without a waypoint, and having to mash the X button through dialogue scenes can be annoying, but the characters are well-written and designed. The battle system also holds up as something unique.. but dying from losing all your MP is frustrating (yet all JRPGs kind of are). Looks great upscaled on PCSX2. One day I’m hoping some of those games listed above are remade/remastered bc they started a wave.