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God of War III
(God of War 3)
GOD OF WAAAAAAR 3!!! Okay, it's hard
to do a Kratos interpretation with text and I'm sure quite a few gamers
got excited as I did, when they heard that God of War III was
finally being released and even better, it would be pure unadulterated
PS3 fun. So what's it all about, besides being one of the best damn
games of all-time? Well my dear gamers, it's the final chapter of Kratos, the powerful
Spartan warrior, who fuelled by vengeance, has “joined”
forces with the Titans in order to bring down the Gods of Olympus in this
larger than life game.
My burning bow of fire!
Once again our anti-hero is adorned with
his double-chained blades, new weapons and even magic to slaughter
anyone and anything that gets in his way to achieve his bloody
goals. At times, God of War III is reminiscent of Shadow of the Colossus
with its amazing game cinematography but where it stands apart is
through its over the top violence, quick time
events and some visually impressive monster designs to create a truly
visceral experience.
From
the very first opening sequence of the game, the gamers is treated to a
spectacular introduction as Kratos is being carried up Mount Olympus by
a titan as a small army of titans follows him in order to destroy the
gods. Gaia, the titan that Kratos is travelling on is gigantic and depth
perception plays a huge role in making the game quite epic.
With a
strong storyline, God of War III will definitely be enjoyed more if you
played the previous games but thankfully the developers have not
disadvantaged newcomers to the franchise who will just as easily be
drawn into this game. Even though Kratos is a violent and mean spirited
bastard, there is something likeable about his thirst of retribution
that is only highlighted by the epic story that I’m sure some ancient
Greek poets would be impressed at its scope. Just to spoil a small
portion of the story, the battle between Kratos and Poseidon is like
watching two gods duke it out, especially the bloody way that our
anti-hero beats him to a pulp.
Don't F with me!
It's not all about killing (well, yes it is) but God of War III contains
plenty of puzzles that need to be solved, even some with strange
PlayStation symbols. However, the main soul of the
game is the combat which is even more fluid than the previous games. As
you use your double-chained blades to enforce damage, the scope of
combination attacks is only limited by your imagination and the grapple
system works extremely well.
As you beat the crap out of your enemies to Hades and
back, the highlight of the original game was the finishing manoeuvres
that are even more explicit and gory, only highlighted even more by the
quick time events. The best part of these quick time events is that when the
buttons appear on screen, they are highlighted quite well and appear on
the screen like a virtual controller. Of course sometimes it's difficult
to pull them off, especially on the harder levels but this new system
makes it quite flawless in reality. One issue with the controls is
the jumping because at the start of the game, I fell quite a few bloody
times. It seems that the ledge detection in God of War III is a little
faulty and you need to compensate.
In terms of
these violent and thoroughly enjoying finishing moves, Kratos knows no
moral boundaries as he rips out the innards of his victims and even
tears the wings from a Harpy. Sickening yes… enjoyable… yes! The new
weapons are a godsend for this game and even the older weapons have been
tweaked, so swapping between weapons is not a chore or if you prefer to
use something from the environment, that’s also an option as well. The most
difficult aspect of the game for combat are the boss battles which does
require some strategy on the players behalf because you just can’t hack
and slash your way to victory as each boss has a weakness that must be
exploited.
Double-chained blades are so cool.
The
game does contain a variety of difficulty modes and if you play one of
the harder levels and find that your Spartan ass is being handed to you
on too many occasions, they game will suggest in changing the
difficulty. A nifty little feature, especially as you progress when the
monsters you encounter and bosses become more and more difficult.
Exploring the diverse and well designed environments is another treat in
the game as are the puzzles which give the player a break, although I
was a little confused at the ancient guitar hero puzzle! And if you’re
wondering whether nudity and those “sexy times” are back, yes they are
my violent friends, yes they are.
The
only slight and I should repeat slight issue with God of War III is that
once you have battled the various monsters and performed the devastating
killing blows, you will be craving for more because by now you’ve
already witnessed the grizzly nature of Kratos. That’s the only
unfortunate thing of God of War III, the player is rewarded early on in
the game but surprisingly enough, the developers do manage to
continue throwing those curve balls at the player. But after you've
killed a Minotaur or skeletons dozens of times, you want more.
Eye
candy! The visuals in God of War III are stunning and the attention to
detail is flawless. Not only have they captured the classic mythology of
the ancient Greeks but they have successfully merged it with the
gameplay that is almost perfect. Even though Kratos is human-sized,
there are considerably larger things in his worlds from Minotaurs to
lumbering Titans that makes you appreciate the game even more. The
backgrounds contain all the clichés and images you would expect to see
from ancient mythology but the stars of the games are the amazing
characters, from Kratos to his supporting cast and of course the
hundreds of enemies that he will face from grunts to gods.
Getting ready for kill number four million
and sixty two.
The texture
details add to the realism of the title as do they facial expressions of
all characters in the game that are well animated and sometimes quite
diverse such as the jerky movement of the undead to the charge of the Minotaurs. Unlike other games, you’re not just limited to the land or
the planes of the gods as you fly and swim which ensures that nothing
becomes stale for the player. Nonetheless, God of War III is a true
technological achievement on the PS3. We also need to mention the great
voice acting and the majestic soundtrack that makes this a perfect
gaming experience. Kratos is oozing with clichés but it suits the story
perfectly.
When
it comes to the crunch, God of War III delivers on many levels, just as
the previous two titles. However with the inclusion of next-generation
graphics and gameplay, God of War III transcends its predecessors with a
surreal and bloody gaming experience that makes you feel like you
are part of some Greek epic. Although a little top heavy with combat,
it’s well justified and goes hand-in-hand with the exploration and
puzzles of the title. The characters are larger than life and the story
is well written and from the very first moments of the game, you’ll be
immersed into this mythical battle and I’ve not had this much since the
original game and of course, Bayonetta which shares some parallels.
Play it now! |
