God of War: Ghost of Sparta

Following after the heels of God of War 3 comes Ghost of Sparta, a bridge between GoW 1 and GoW 2. The story runs on a thread that was left dangling from the first God of War game, a concept involving Kratos' brother that was seemingly abandoned in further sequels--until now.

After taking the throne as the new god of war, Kratos is haunted by visions of his long lost brother Deimos. As it turns out, Deimos still lives but is trapped in the realm of the dead. Kratos must go and rescue him and kill a god or two along the way. The narrative carries a mythical simplicity where the protagonist must face his inner demons, as well as vicious Greek monsters.

What else can one say about the GoW gameplay template? There's combat, there's platforming, some puzzle-solving, and epic clashes between giant bosses. Ghost of Sparta delivers everything you expect from a GoW game with some wrinkles thrown in for good measure, the biggest of which is the spear and shield (popularized by the 300). It's one of the more satisfying alternate weapons to use in the series' history even if it is a little limited compared to the classic chain blades.

If I'm going to be honest, Ghost of Sparta is a better overall game than God of War 3. Don't get me wrong, the sense of scale from GoW 3 is unmatched, but Ghost of Sparta's design is more balanced and evenly paced. Everything flows together much more naturally. Kratos will traverse many locales from the legendary underwater city of Atlantis (and you will see exactly how it got submerged in the first place) to the realm of the dead. The level progression is seamless and organic in how it unfolds. The puzzles utilize Kratos' new abilities in clever ways. You can throw projectiles with the spears and by holding down the shoulder button, you can give your chains a little extra firepower (necessary to break certain objects).

The enemy encounters have a good mix of enemy types that force you to use all of Kratos' abilities. The game can be challenging, especially on the higher difficulty levels. The game lasts for about 8 hours at most, with skilled players beating the game well under that mark. Aside from some extra challenges, replay value is limited.

If God of War 3 left you hungering for some more Greek violence, Ghost of Sparta is worth a look, especially since it's going be re-released for the PS3 in HD alongside Chains of Olympus. This is one excellent game not to be missed.

God of War 3

No series is as epic as God of War, a franchise characterized by enormous landscapes, gigantic bosses, and massive scale. The conclusion to Kratos’ story is billed as “the beginning of the end.” Does this myth live up to the legend, or is it a just another fairy tale?

Taking off directly from the end of the second, God of War 3 follows Kratos’ exploits as a vengeful god-killing machine of destruction. The titans are climbing Mt. Olympus, and it’s the start of a full blown war between the titans and the gods. Taking a cue from Greek mythology, Kratos’ tale is a simple yet grand undertaking. The motivation: revenge. But the road itself to the very top twists and turns like the slithery scales of a gorgon.

The set up promises some insane moments, and while it delivers in the beginning, an uneven pace makes the ride a rocky one. Kratos’ characterization remains one-dimensional, driven purely by rage, but the presence of Pandora humanizes him a bit. For the most part, however, Kratos is all about killing things.

The gameplay descends from the mold of the original Devil May Cry, racking combos against enemies, blocking at the right moments, and dodge-rolling out of the harm’s way. Racking up combo hits rewards you with red orbs that can be used to upgrade various weapons and unlock new moves. The basic formula hasn’t changed much, but the flexibility of the combat engine will have you creating all kinds of crazy combos in no time. With the addition of real-time weapon switching (cue giant enemy crab), you can get creative with your killing, switching from the blades in mid-combo to the more powerful Cestus gauntlets. With the split of magic from items, the doors are opened further for more experimentation between Hermes’ rocket boots, the bow and arrow, and other magical spells. The famous QTE finishers return for spectacular finishes to mythical beasts and bosses.

God of War’s true strength has always been its blend of adventure, puzzle, and combat. The game takes you from the top of Mt. Olympus to the pits of Tartarus. Unlike previous entries, much of the scenery will be in dark caverns. The environments aren’t as varied, and the sense of continuity is interrupted with the use of “Hyperion Gates,” teleportation portals to different parts of the game world. The puzzles are not nearly as clever as the earlier games (although the Portal-inspired puzzle gets props), and it seems like combat has seen the most attention. The game is a bit of a let down in this category, which contributes to an uneven pace. It feels as if the game blew its load too early.

Aside from a frustrating giant scorpion boss, all the boss fights are dazzling. While some are mechanically simple, the sheer spectacle is worth the price of admission alone.

GoW3 is an amazing looking game, but it’s not without its flaws. On the upside, the games moves at a smooth framerate higher than 30, which makes for some fluid scenes, but the framerate is not locked, fluctuating between 30 to 60 fps. This results in some disappointing jitter that breaks the advantageous fluidity of 60 fps. On the plus side, the texture work is astounding, and Kratos’ model himself is the best model I have ever seen in a video game. The boss fights are some of the most impressive sequences ever concocted for a game. The use of MLAA creates impeccable image quality. The only flaws are the framerate, uneven texture work, and some bad character models. The game dips into its magic hat to pull off every shader trick available.

The soundtrack is not as distinctive as prior games, but the dramatic Greek chorus lends the proceedings the prerequisite dose of “epic” it needs. In the midst of a fight, it’s easy to get lost in the thunderous thuds of the Cestus against a chimera, hear the screams of harpies, and the sweet suction of orbs. Each battle is a cacophony of screeches, hard impacts, and slices. The voice-acting is appropriate, if off-pitch in some areas, but a cameo by Kevin Sorbo as Hercules renders every minor voice acting mistake moot.

God of War 3, like its protagonist, is a simple game. Bereft of any online or multiplayer option, most of the fun lies in the single-player mode. The first run might go anywhere from 8-12 hours, but its easy to come back for more. The game offers multiple difficulty levels and hidden relics to make replays more fun. There’s also a challenge mode that tests your reflexes and endurance in various settings.

God of War 3 is one of the most dazzling and spectacular experiences you’ll ever have, but it might feel a little bit unsatisfying. It’s a fine game, but not the best of all time like it could’ve been.