“Oh dear lord, this is enormous,” is a thought which comes to mind as muscled, one-note anti-hero Kratos ascends the back of the enormous Titan Gaia, who in turn ascends the enormous Mt Olympus, in turn looked over by the enormously powerful God of Gods Zeus and his enormously evil cavalcade of Celestial henchmen.
Running along the unsure terrain of Gaia’s arm while dispensing countless skeleton warriors, Kratos…“Oh my Gods, what is that?” – One of Poseidon’s horses just tore through her arm!
“You’ve defied the gods for the last time mortal!”, the Greek sea god booms as he raises his towering, watery frame above Kratos and plunges his TV-tower sized trident from on high, electrifying all and sundry.
The exhilaration of playing God of War III rarely lets up from this 20 minute opening act. It is simply one of the most polished, professionally produced games ever made, and alongside the equally stellar Uncharted 2 before it, succeeds in narrowing the gap between videogames and the full Hollywood blockbuster experience so much that you could barely sliver a postage stamp through it. It is no surprise really, being three years in the making and with an alleged budget of US$44 million (the aforementioned Uncharted 2 supposedly cost a similar amount).
The development team at Sony Santa Monica studios has excelled themselves with this title, at least when it comes to delivering a cinematic and absorbing experience.
Combat and Gameplay Controls – How Does Kratos Handle?
Gameplay-wise, God of War III is a subtle evolution of its PS2 predecessors, having refined its control scheme and pacing over two sequels to near-flawlessness. The game basically revolves around a triptych of combat, platform sections and puzzles, with combat taking definite precedence.
Like its predecessors, the combat can basically be divided into two styles; there are close-quarter melee battles against hordes of enemies, with light attacks, heavy attacks, jumps and grapples set to the four face buttons of the PS3 controller.
The right thumb stick controls dodging and the L1 button blocks attacks. The second system of combat relies on quick-time events, where the correct button must be pressed at the correct prompt in a pre-ordained sequence. This is usually relegated to boss battles, or for finishing off weakened opponents in spectacular, grisly fashion.
If you have played the series before, then it will all seem comfortably familiar.
God of War’s combat system stresses fluidity, and is more simplistic than the split-second insanity of recent Japanese cousin Bayonetta . This means it is easier to pick up and play for beginners, but if you are looking for more of a challenge, the unlockable Titan and God modes of difficulty should satisfy, as it ramps up the enemies’ ability significantly.
The Story of God of War III – How Does it Hold Up?
The story is ridiculously bombastic fare, with lines such as “THIS IS MY WAR!” or “WHAT HAVE I BECOME?” delivered with all the overenthusiastic pomp of a Shakespeare opening night at the Old Vic. Luckily though, it can be forgiven, as the strength of the source material is so solid that the revisionism of having Kratos become Death’s Hand against supposedly indestructible people – you will hear the word ‘REVENGE!’ screamed at least eleventy hundred times during the course of this game – is great fun.
It is also this attention to detail in the story which sets God of War III apart from its hack ‘n’ slash competition, whose stories often seem to have been given the ‘scribbled notes on a box of matches’ treatment (sample: ‘Ninjas have kidnapped the President’).
For fans of the series that have been waiting to see how this hokum ends, they should be mostly satisfied by the ending of God of War III.
Buy or Rent – Does God of War III Live Up to the Hype?
God of War III is shorter than its predecessor, clocking in an average between 10 to 12 hours on a first playthrough, which may disappoint some who perhaps expected it to harness the full space potential of the Blu-Ray format. However, it is more focused than its predecessor for this, and Kratos’ journey never becomes too repetitive. It should be fondly remembered as one of the rare games that defined what its generation could achieve.
Ewen Hosie - I'm a Scot who takes pleasure from heavy typing sounds, and thus writing is an appropriate catalyst with which to indulge in this obscure ...
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