Exciting compelling combat, but something is missing...
The story has you yearning for more details. As if though the Santa Monica just wanted to give you a game based on blood and not on a story. This would be fine, but that concept was already demonstrated in God of War III. Santa Monica was throwing to the public the idea that Kratos was not only a revenge hungry god murderer, but was indeed a man with a family. You see small glimmers of that reality, but not enough. One aspect of the story that might frustrate the player is that the timeline is not linear. Most of the game is played via flashbacks which do reveal some pertinent information but not enough. Due to all the advertisements, especially the realistic versions of Kratos and his daughter, makes you believe that in this game you will kill your family. That does not occur. Santa Monica hypes up the player with an expectation and does not deliver. They deliver a game with an underdeveloped story but enough to carry a titular console game.
Beyond the weak story, the combat of God of War Ascension is on par if not better than GOW3. What I really enjoy is that there is no other alternative weapons. You only have the blades of Chaos and some small helpful trinkets. Instead of different arsenal, the blades are given 4 different modes all unique and useful. Though I found myself only using the Fire and Soul version the most. You also obtain these weapons early on in the game which is extremely helpful. Compared to God of War 3, you obtain the Nemesis Whip fairly late in the game to the point where you probably use the Blades of Exile and the Neman Cestus the most as you already developed a strategy based on those weapons.
Enemies in the game are challenging enough but of course fun to defeat. I never found an enemy too difficult to defeat one on one. There was an introduction of some new enemies and variations of enemies of games past. Sadly there was not many bosses in this game as I was expecting. You have your huge intro boss a the beginning of the game, but not many in between the first boss and the very last. The final boss was extremely interesting, but could have been a little bit more unique.
Beyond the pleasant combat and the odd story, the game is very enjoyable. The only problem that many individuals struggled with is the Trial of Archimedes. It is challenging. To the point that button mashing and attempting to evade and block is not enough. You have to use some sort of strategy. This is a little deceptive as up to this point in the game, button mashing mostly did the trick. The Trials require you to use those trinkets you acquired through the game as well as carefully timed attacks and evade/block methods. But the interesting part is that the hardest part of the trials is the first part. Those gorgons and electric sirens are really annoying. Luckily after dying three times and modifying my strategy, I was able to beat the first wave of enemies. The next two waves of enemies are strong but nothing unbeatable.
I liked this game. No questions asked. Some reviews out there make the statement that there is no new formula to the game. I would agree that there is no real changes made here, but this series does not require it. The core of the game is there which is Greek Mythology and extreme gory entertaining combat. Even multiplayer in my opinion is not required but there to please the fans. If you have the funds, pick up the game and enjoy the legacy of Kratos.
PROS:
Fun engaging combat
No complex weapon configuration
Beautiful and stunning backgrounds
CONS:
Below Average and under-promised story.
Random spikes in difficulty during parts of the game.
Unnecessary multiplayer for the sake of saying your game has multiplayer
Solid 8/10