Kratos Brings Down The Mountain

2010-03-08T17:39:00Z

Words like “visceral” and “brutal” are used to describe many violent games these days, but they wield the fullness of their meaning in God of War III. No other terms so completely convey the gut-wrenching sensation of eviscerating a mythical beast, decapitating a deity, or carving up a titan. While moments like these have defined Kratos over the years, God of War III isn’t amazing just because it’s violent; it’s amazing because it conveys these experiences in ways you have never seen before.

Kratos’ stylishly elaborate combos and vicious context-sensitive kills have been adapted and emulated many times, making the video game landscape a bloodier and more epic place. In the years since God of War II, while others were chasing the shadow of Kratos’ fighting style, the team at Sony Santa Monica was elevating the scale and intensity to a level that once again proves Kratos is the undisputed king of the genre.

Something awesome is constantly happening in God of War III. Monsters slink from the shadows, titans break through walls, and gods launch divine assaults – and it’s all woven seamlessly into the gameplay. Just when you think you know what’s coming next, you’ll encounter a unique sequence or mechanic – if only to be used once – just to keep the experience fresh. Even the context-sensitive kills take on a new cinematic life, especially during the grisly deaths of the bosses (each of which will leave you picking your jaw up off the floor).

God of War III recaptures the one thing that God of War II was missing for me; it forced me to once again reconsider what I thought was possible for a video game to accomplish. I’m hesitant to ruin any of the moments here (spoiler: Kratos kills a lot of dudes), but let me put it this way: Remember the fight against the Colossus of Rhodes at the beginning of God of War II? At least three moments are just as astounding in God of War III, with cinematic camera work even more impressive than Naughty Dog’s feats with Uncharted 2.

God of War III takes the biggest strides forward in its cinematic presentation, but the nuts and bolts of the combat are also more refined. If you’ve played the previous games in the series, you’ll find everything you love about Kratos’ blade-slinging style intact, but even better than before thanks to the seamless integration of items. This new equipment (usually ripped from the dead fingers of a fallen adversary) allows you to dash, stun enemies, and perform ranged attacks – and they all draw from a rapidly recharging power source. This gives you the freedom to use these versatile tools instead of conserving them, opening new combo possibilities. Used in conjunction with the sweet new weapons (I love the Cestus!) and maneuvers (I love the ranged grab!), these additions make Kratos feel like an even more fluid and capable combatant.

The only area where God of War III didn’t blow away my expectations is the story. Previously, Kratos was driven by a thirst for vengeance against a single target – a concept that kept the narrative focused. In God of War III, that singular purpose is diluted by the number of characters, agendas, and objectives on the playing field at once. The plot isn’t bad or difficult to follow, but it also doesn’t have any standout revelations or developments; Kratos hunts down the gods, kills them, and steps over the corpse to reach his next target until Olympus is in shambles. It isn’t a major problem, however, because the real joy isn’t in the events themselves, but rather in the astonishing ways those events unfold.

The fury, destruction, and murdered gods – it’s all been leading up to this. When I first took up Kratos’ blades back in 2005, I thought I was embarking on a simple quest for vengeance. After leaving a trail of bodies spanning four games and three systems, that quest has finally reached its end. Not even in my wildest dreams could I have imagined such a powerful, cinematic, and breathtaking conclusion to the saga of the Ghost of Sparta.

Kratos Aims High In His Quest Against The Gods

2009-09-30T03:48:00Z

Kratos isn’t the kind of guy who sets reasonable goals. When he goes after something, he aims high and over-delivers with unparalleled zeal and overwhelming brutality. The team at Sony’s Santa Monica studio is adopting the same philosophy in developing God of War III, making sure that the final installment in the trilogy has Kratos performing the most barbaric kills and taking down the most terrifying foes of the entire series. If this really is the last chapter of the story, Kratos is certainly going out in style.

With one of the longest lines on the E3 show floor, the playable demo for God of War III showcased several new tricks Kratos uses in his continued assault on the gods and Mount Olympus. The core of the action is still using his flaming chain blades to tear apart mythological threats, but a few key improvements promise to make that process even more entertaining.

Where previous God of War games usually had Kratos fighting off advancing enemies, God of War III incorporates more mobility into combat, giving you more options to control the fight. When you grab an enemy, you now have a bull rush option in which Kratos holds the victim in front of him and plows forward, breaking through clusters of other foes. The combat grapple also has more utility, since Kratos can throw his blades out at an enemy and pull himself into them (or pull them over, depending on the enemy). This works whether your target is on the ground or in the air. Mastering these crowd-managing moves will be crucial, since this entry can have up to 50 enemies onscreen at once.

Like previous installments, Kratos can use weapons other than his signature blades, but the team has currently only revealed one: the Cestus. This pair of vicious gauntlets is ideal for close-quarters fighting, and they provide a distinctly different feel to the combat – something that alternate weapons in God of War games have struggled with in the past. To further encourage variety in combos, certain special items (like the fire bow) draw from a recharging meter instead of your magic reserves. This gives players more freedom to experiment with combining the blades with other attacks, since the bar will just refill in a matter of seconds.

As much as we enjoyed testing out the new mechanics, we were most impressed by how God of War III continues to up the stakes in an already epic setting. We saw Kratos pull out a cyclops’ eye, stab a chimera with its own horn, and gut a mighty centaur – and that was just during standard encounters. With the massive titans waging war, more gods entering the fray, and Kratos determined to topple Olympus, God of War III will be packed with jaw-dropping moments worthy of passing into legend.

God of War III - PlayStation 3

Kratos Brings Down The Mountain

Kratos Aims High In His Quest Against The Gods