God of War grabs you immediately from the word go and doesn't let up until you finally get the best of Ares, the God of War himself. God of War's biggest strength is its ability to patch together familiar elements seamlessly and then polish the whole package to an incredible high gloss. The combat is vicious and engaging--it's an easy game to pick up, and the difficulty ramps up just gently enough to avoid much frustration. There are plenty of great quick-action sequences that give the game a cinematic quality, and visually the game is second to none, lining the typically white-marble take on Greek mythology with dark and violent undertones. There's a mature tone here, but it's measured, and rarely does it come off as crass or purposefully offensive. God of War is a little light on the storytelling at times, but over the course of this mythological revenge fantasy, the game takes the time to paint a very clear picture of Kratos, the grim yet sympathetic antihero, and it's hard not to want to ride shotgun on his further adventures. Action adventure games really don't get much better than God of War, making it our easy pick for Best PlayStation 2 Game of 2005.