Every high profile game has its backlash now a days. Though the backlash is likely created due to the fact that all the positive reviews of a game are allowed to be released early and the more critical analyses come after the game has been released. This process itself says that it is not true backlash, but it sure appears to be when fan boys slam reviewers that do not give their favorite games perfect scores. What I really wanted to discuss is the disappointment that many people are associating with God of War 3. Now I am not trying to change anyone’s opinion of the game, instead I am just trying to relay my own. While I do not think God of War 3 stands up to the original, I do think that it far exceeds God of War 2 and this is why.
God of War 3’s preface retells the events of Kratos’ journey so far. As I watched it I was remembering quite a bit about Kratos’ past. The intro show when Kratos “cast himself from the highest mountain in all of Greece”. It displays his struggle coping with the loss of his family at his own hands, opening Pandora’s Box and the final fight with Ares. Then I realized that this intro had gone on for quite a long time and all the events they had shown so far where just from the first game. Finally the second games plot appeared. It showed Kratos’ with the sisters of fate, Kratos killing Athena and being stabbed by Zeus. That was basically just the end of the game. It just seemed to brush by God of War 2 as if it was not that important.
Now I really like God of War 2. I remember everyone was upset that it was not coming out for Playstation 3, until of course they played it. I remember having so much fun reentering the world of the Gods. But as I looked back, I did not remember much about that experience. I could remember the epic first battle and the end of the game, nothing more. There just was not the same amount of memorial moments as there were in the first game.
I believe God of War 3 succeeds in this department. Almost every hour of that game has a memorial moment and surprisingly I think that has a lot to do with the fact that this game is on a next gen system. Kratos is the most brutal he has ever been. In this game Kratos does not just kill the Gods, he makes them suffer. He pulls of heads; he rips people apart. At one point in the game, you see him beat a God to death from that God’s point of view. It is quite disturbing at time. You are playing the villain in God of War and in 3 it defiantly feels like it. There is one exception. Pandora tries to humanize Kratos which is the worst idea ever. I won’t talk much about her for spoiler reasons, but she is unnecessary and a terrible character
The other criticism I keep hearing is that the pacing is not as good as the other games. This I would agree with. There is about an hour towards the end of this game that just seems like it does not need to be there. While the basic gameplay is fun enough to not make it too much of a problem, it is still worth mentioning. This part is just so noticeable. The battles with the Gods are so well crafted that the lulls display the game as just a standard action game.
It is also notable that it is a God of War game. The gameplay has not changed much since the first chapter in the series. It is odd that the campaigns of games like Gears of War 2 or Halo 3 were not thought of as just more of the same as well, but the co-op in those games may have helped them.
God of War 3 is not my “Game of the Year” or anything like that. It was just a good time. It constantly wowed me with its scale, visuals, and brutality. God of War 3 is the farthest you can push that game style without making a drastic change and I am ok with that. Unless they make another, then it better bring something new to action games.
Jeff Silva
Pierce Arrow Blogger
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