God of War is a sensational epic masterpiece that will both challenge and entertain you to no end.
The storyline consists of completing life threatening quests for the higher authorities in Olympus to stop a mad man named Ares (“The infamous God of War”) from decimating the city of Athens. It just so happens that in order to defeat Ares, Kratos must retrieve a widely feared, Pandora’s Box. You’d be surprised at how much power this box possesses when the time comes…even the Gods themselves are afraid of it. In the beginning, the story doesn’t give you any reference on why Kratos is the way he is. But towards the end of your quest you’ll come to understand the mental as well as physical struggles he went through.
God of War’s gameplay is better than your standard, run of the mill hack ‘n slash game, with a variety of weapons and powers to obtain. The primary killing device you will use are called the Blades of Chaos which were burned into his flesh by a pair of chain attached to the blades around his arms. Although the Blades of Chaos is a useful tool for combat, they’re more where that came from. Along the progression of the game, you will once in a while come across some of the gods and goddesses of Olympus that will provide help to you in the form of magical abilities. For example, Poseidon gives a power called Poseidon’s Rage that gives you the ability to attack multiple enemies at once using a circle of electricity, Hades provides you with the Army of Hades which summons the souls of the dead to fight with you.
Now wouldn’t it be nice to upgrade this abilities, and yes you can. By capturing magical red orbs from your fallen foes, you can upgrade whatever you want from your arsenal. Each weapon can be upgraded a certain amount of times for better attack range and power until you are unable to go any further.
The abundance of fierce and creative enemies that you encounter in God of War are no joke, they range from simple undead evil soldiers to giant Cyclops. Some of these creatures are rather easy to lay waste to, but others can be a difficult chore to handle. The regular and mini boss fights are on a much bigger scale…obviously. These bosses are indeed monstrous, like the Three Headed Hydra you face in the first stage. Also, specific enemies can be disposed of faster with quick time button combinations Ala Shenmue and makes for a fun way of breaking them down to size.
The graphics are top-notch, the approach of the level, creature and puzzle design were very well conceived. Some of the best the PS2 has to offer, in terms of detail and technicality. Lighting, animations and textures were a bit sketchy in some areas, but still does a great job of convincing you that the world of ancient Greece looks real. What would a superb action adventure game be without it’s excellent puzzles? Not much in the way of a brain teaser, but God of War definitely has that. These puzzles are smartly conceived as well, challenging yet rewarding after you figure them out. I had my fair share of difficult ones, frustrating to the point where I almost decided to give up for a while, but I stuck with it and finished it. One aspect of this game that I did NOT enjoy, was the camera. At times I wanted to move the camera to an angle that I was more comfortable with, but I just couldn’t, especially in sticky navigating and combat situations.
Sound and Music of a game can certainly be taken for granted, but in this game it’s hard to miss the extraordinary orchestral score God of War delivers. Depending on what’s happening, the music will either speed up in dramatic form or stay calm like in most games of this genre. Voice acting too is exceptionally well done, bringing the characters to life and a realness to the atmosphere and storyline.
Overall, God of war is exciting at heart, and you will come from this experience wanting more.