Gamespot Reviews - God of war iii video review

Kratos is one hard-headed badass. After his father Zeus momentarily killed him at the beginning of God of War II, he has been hell bent on returning the favor. But making your way to the king of the gods has proven to be a really difficult task. Lesser gods and tons of mythical beasts will stand between you and your ultimate target, making you drain gallons of gushing blood before you finally meet your all-powerful nemesis. The conclusion of this epic trilogy is jam-packed with the brutal combat and jaw-dropping sense of scale the series has been known for, creating an awesome ending for everyone's favorite man god. God of War III begins immediately after the events of its predecessor. Kratos is perched on the shoulder of his reluctant ally, Gaia, and you are urging her and her fellow Titans to climb Mount Olympus and destroy the gods who have tormented you so. It's an amazing setup for the epic adventure that lies in front of you, reintroducing you to this ancient world in stunning fashion. The sense of scale is absolutely ridiculous. The camera zooms way, way out to give you a view of the entire proceedings, letting you fully take in the towering mountain and the colossal beings climbing up it. And then, in a flash, the camera zooms to Kratos, and you stave off waves of enemies in bloody fashion. During this entire sequence, you are perched on the body of a living being, and the ground sways and moves realistically as you desperately try to hang on for dear life while still swinging your sword. It's an incredible effect and one of the highlights of this superb game. God of War III is one of the most violent games around. The series has been full of the ruthless attacks that make Kratos such an endearing hero, but the technical wizardry of this latest version makes everything seem that much more real, and that much more nauseating. When you gut a rampaging centaur, his entrails spill on to the ground, coiling sloppily under his fallen carcass. Plucking the eye out of a towering Cyclops is just as grotesque. You can actually see the optic nerve snap when you finally pry it lose. These stunning death sequences are some of the most satisfying moments in the game, giving you a thrilling way to finish your unrelenting enemies. It would have been nice if different weapons had different death sequences, though. Instead, every enemy has just one death scene. It is a bit repetitive, but it's still a lot of fun to disembowel your foes. Of course, you aren't going to get to the disemboweling bits until you weaken your enemies first in standard combat. This is the main focus in God of War III, and though it hasn't changed significantly from previous games in the franchises, it's easily the most refined and fun. A couple new moves add a bit of variety into the mix. You can now pick up an enemy and carry him around like a battering ram, which is an awesome tactic when you're surrounded by a group of teeming undead. You can also latch on to enemies far away and pull yourself toward them with a shoulder charge, which is a satisfying way to enter the fray. Your bow is no longer tied to your magic meter, so it's much more practical to whip it out in the middle of combat and pepper the cowards who are too scared to fight you up close. The bosses are also devastatingly brutal. They are merciless and relentless, forcing you to continually dodge their attacks or you'll end up writhing on the ground. When you do enough damage, a quick-time even pops up, and this gives you a chance to dole out some ridiculous punishment, turning the fight to your favor. And when you hack and slash them enough, you can finish them off in horrific and awesome ways. Even with the help of some devastating quick-time events, the bosses in God of War are no push over. You will need patience and execution to defeat them, which makes the demise all the more satisfying. The boss fights in God of War take a huge variety of forms, and they are always a blast. When you aren't engaged in bloody hand-to-hand combat, there are puzzles to solve as well. However, whereas God of War II continually mixed in puzzles with the combat, they take a bit of a back seat this time around. The focus is clearly placed on the amazing set piece battles, so the puzzles are not nearly as prevalent nor are they particularly difficult. Still, the few that do appear in the game do a good job of mixing up the pacing and are clever enough to make you stop and think for a little bit. This world is beautifully brought to life by some of the finest visuals yet seen on the system. This is an absolutely stunning game. The epic scale immediately leaps off the screen, but it's the meticulous attention to detail that really pushes this over the top. Kratos has a bevy of intricate animations, making all of his actions feel incredibly lifelike. While wrangling a wild Cerberus, you can see his arms clench and legs flex as he desperately tries to keep his balance. The monsters have the same attention to detail, making it a joy to slice them in half while they spill buckets of blood. And everything has been brought to life with a fine artistic touch. Torches flicker realistically in the background, setting an ominous mood for the cramped cave sections, and the moody classic score puts you in the right mindset to take down those pesky gods. God of War III does not veer far from its superb predecessor, but the lack of innovation is offset by fantastic execution. This game is simply a joy to play through. Every battle, every over-the-top set piece, and every boss fight is honed to near perfection, ensuring there is never a dull moment during your epic journey. It's not quite as varied as God of War II, but puzzles do a good job of mixing up the pacing nonetheless. This is an awesome game that should delight and excite players all the way through to the thrilling conclusion.