22 Years Later, A 2004 PlayStation 2 Classic Is Returning To Modern Consoles

Published Sep 4, 2026, 2:00 PM EDT Chris is a Gaming Editor at ScreenRant. He has been a professional writer since 2009, and has written for top TV, comics, movie, and video game outlets like Engadget, Polygon, Destructoid, and more. He brings with him an expertise in every game genre, no matter how niche or mainstream. You may know him as the former Managing/Reviews Editor of Destructoid, where he published hundreds of game reviews across every genre, including MMOs, sports games, and Metroidvanias. Find Chris on Twitter @_SRChris. Sign in to your ScreenRant account The PlayStation 2 might go down as the best system of all time for the foreseeable future. While the Dreamcast is certainly the top for many, the PlayStation 2 had the success and sales numbers to back it up, and it hosted countless games, many of which persist decades later as standout classics. But as the years go on, game preservation is getting tougher and tougher. It's not just technical issues holding back ports: it's rights problems and legal battles. Well, there's good news on that front, at least as far as one particular game is concerned. Thanks to an official confirmation from the PlayStation YouTube account, we know that an absolute classic is arriving on modern consoles soon. In Sony's State of Play stream this week, the publisher confirmed that Mega Man X: Command Mission will be heading to the PlayStation 2 Classics service on the PS5 "later this month" (no date was given outside of that window). For the uninitiated, Mega Man X: Command Mission is an RPG spinoff released in 2004 on GameCube and PlayStation 2, and a continuation of the Mega Man X series, which started on the Super Nintendo. Mega Man X: Command Mission introduced brand-new characters and a much more involved storyline that fleshed out the X series universe. It even had a secret demo of Mega Man X8 inside as an extra prize, leading to plenty of schoolyard chatter when it was released. Here's the full official description from the GameCube edition: "Cyborg superhero Mega Man X must protect the endangered Giga City from the lethal attentions of the Liberion Army. Fight across more than 50 missions in this full-throttle future-themed RPG. Joining the illustrious Mega Man on this colossal quest are familiar faces like Axl and Zero, together with a whole bunch of new characters. Combine with your team-mates mid-battle to perform dynamic combat techniques - with challenging side quests to master and devastating boss encounters to overcome, the success of this Mission is by no means assured." Mega Man X: Command Mission came at a time when the Mega Man X series was waning, and it had perfect timing. Just when long-time fans since 1993 started getting tired of the series, Mega Man X: Command Mission arrived firmly between Mega Man X 7 and Mega Man X8 to surprise everyone with something different. Although the Mega Man X series was put on ice for nearly two decades outside of mobile ports and spinoffs, Command Mission is fondly remembered by those same fans. Now, you can play the PlayStation 2 (and GameCube) classic on PS5 soon. Brand Sony Original Release Date February 4, 2000 Original MSRP (USD) $299 Weight 4.85 lb