Played on:
PS2
I'll be honest here: as much as I read about games and constantly play them, I had no clue that God of War even existed until other sites' reviews showed up heaping massive amounts of praise on it. Even though this shows how clueless I can be about upcoming games, going into a great new title with no knowledge of it is one of the ways I really enjoy it the most. There's no hype, no preconceptions, no months of poring over screenshots, interviews, previews, and trailers. It's just all about the game. While a little homework done a tad too late shows that Sony has tried to hype up people for God of War, it seems that it mostly drowned out by news of other major titles. It's not too often that Sony makes a game for their own console, and I hope that lots of people get a chance to play this one despite its low-key launch, because God of War is an incredible experience.
I've moaned and groaned before about how the PS2 platform is such an outdated technology and how it needs to be put to rest, but I'm not sure I believe that anymore after seeing this game. Either there's still some horsepower that was still hidden away in Sony's black box, or their own developers are miracle workers, because these graphics are some of the best I've seen on any platform - even the PC.
Sony has brought their vision of a mythological Greece together so beautifully, and with so many great ideas, it makes me wonder if I concern myself with game engines, frame rates, and pixel shaders a bit too much. Regardless of whether the PS2 is outdated or not, the end result here is that God of War runs at a smooth speed and delivers such a spectacular world full of brilliantly-drawn and animated monsters that I was left literally speechless by some of the visuals. And unlike many PS2 titles, this one does support 480p mode as well as widescreen televisions.
Once you get into God of War, though, you won't spend too long idly staring at huge temples or the burning city of Athens. You will play as Kratos, a Spartan warrior who has been cursed by his own gods yet has a new opportunity to work in their service. Before long, your task is laid out before you in no uncertain terms: brave the burning city of Athens, travel to a forbidden desert, recover Pandora's Box and use it to kill Ares, the God of War. It sounds like a pretty difficult task for a mere mortal to do, but this guy has history with the gods already and they will be giving him their powers. You see, the daddy of all gods, Zeus, has decided that they won't be killing eachother today, but he decides the right idea will be to empower a mortal to do their bidding. So Zeus himself, Poseidon, Artemis, Athena, and even Hades will be helping you out with weapons and abilities.
This is on top of your main weapons, called the Blades of Chaos. A weapon passed down from Ares himself back when Kratos was still serving the malevolent god, these sickle-style blades are attached directly to Kratos' arms by way of chains seared into his flesh; he couldn't remove them even if he wanted to. But then again, why would he? These things are pure destruction, and the whirling fury you can generate gives one a feeling of power most games can't even touch. Use the X and Triangle buttons to unleash quick and strong attacks respectively, and there are dozens of unique moves and combos you'll be able to do that match almost any situation.
And you're going to need all these combos and special moves to even remotely start to achieve victory. To defeat the army of Ares as well as the many popular mythical creatures that have been reborn and expertly created at the developers' hands, you'll need to be able to block at the right time, punch through enemies' defenses, take on half a dozen monsters of mixed types simultaneously, and maximize the amount of health, mana, and weapon powerups that can be had from killing your enemies. As you go through the game, you'll fight minotaurs, cerberi, cyclopes, harpies, centaurs, and legions of undead, and many of their attack styles are very different and will require different styles in return.
Another aspect of this game that Sony has put in is a sort of context-sensitive attack system. When enemies are low on health, you can use the circle button (usually designated for a throw during fights) to start a finishing move. Some of these require a button mash in rapid succession, while others will pop up the buttons on the screen that you'll need to hit quickly in order. This is an important part in getting the maximum amount of orbs from some enemies, and it helps you finish off some of the larger foes a bit faster. It's essential for the game's bosses as well; if you don't complete these little button combos correctly, you'll be thrown away and will have to try again. Overall, this feature may seem stupid or gimmicky when described, but it's really works in game. Kratos has many ways to kill enemies, and if you perform these little button dances and you'll see him rip stuff literally to shreds like you've never seen in a game before. It's so incredibly satisfying, you'll wonder why no one else has made animations anywhere near as cool as this.
It's not all combat, though, as God of War also includes many puzzles you'll have to work through. While the game rarely requires you to backtrack, you might sometimes wonder if that's actually what needs to be done in certain situations, as some of the puzzles are downright devious. I got stuck for twenty minutes at a time on at least a few occasions, but once I would stop and use a bit of logic to figure out what was needed, I managed to get through without too much further of a delay. What I like is that both the combat and puzzles are very satisfying to get through despite the difficulty, and both aspects of this game have had a ton of effort put into them.
The enemies you'll fight are very powerful alongside your own weaponry, so you'll need the right tactics and fighting styles to make it through some of your fights. For example, minotaurs block often, but their attacks are easily blocked themselves; defend yourself and counter attack, and pick the right attacks so you can keep up a combo without giving them a chance to start blocking again. Other enemies simply require a relentless attack, while others will hit so hard and with unblockable attacks that dodging is necessary. And dodging is so important in this game, Sony dedicated the right analog stick to it completely; just flick it in any direction, and you'll do a dodge precisely where you want.
The special abilities you have are limited by a pretty standard mana bar. You can fire off Zeus' bolts at far away enemies, electrocute them in an area around with Poseidon's Rage, turn enemies to stone with Medusa's Gaze, slice and dice them with Artemis' blade, and unleash Hades' army of undead souls to do your work for you. All of these abilites can be powered up alongside your Blades of Chaos if you've picked up enough red orbs to do so, and the dizzying array of combo opportunities when combined with these abilities is wonderful. Switching between these is easy, as a quick touch of the D-pad is all you need. Artemis' Blade is an alternative to the Blades of Chaos, and even though there are some great moves with this sword, I found the latter weapons, the ones you start the game with, to have longer range and more damage potential.
Throw in the possibility of aerial combat into this, and it just gets better. If you are in the middle of a combo, you can use a heavy attack and hold the Triangle button to send an enemy up into the air. Keep holding it, and you'll hop up in the air as well. From there, you can continue pummeling the poor creature, or even do a mid-air throw which can hurt other nearby enemies.
You might be wondering where the camera controls are on the PS2 controller if the right stick is for dodging, and here's where I tell you that there are none at all. And if this was your average game, this would be a major concern, as the camera in most games has to be constantly moved to make up for shortcomings in the automatic camera. But surprisingly, the camera in God of War is spot-on 99.9% of the time.
