[Official Review] God of War III - Monday, March 8th

[ATB]

How do the graphics compare to Uncharted 2, will it take the crown in the graphics department?

They are actually superior in my opinion.  The animation and lighting engine is second to none.

Liar! And if Drake met Kratos, Kratos would start swinging his blades around and jumping and crap and Nate would just headshot him with his FAL.

Didn't you not even finish Uncharted?

[coopasonic]

I can't remember ever playing God of War 2. I think I sold my PS2 before it came out and after having to drop to easy to win the fnal battle in the original I wasn't excited about the sequel. I just may buy the third installment anyway.

Pick up the GoW Collection for PS3.  God of War 2 holds up amazingly well and deserves to be experienced.  The difficulty level is much smoother as well. 

Totally forgot about the repackage. 59 full package copies available on goozex. Should have it next week. Thanks!

[rittchard]

Sigh, that review is going to cost me $60!!!

If I haven't played the first 2, will I be missing a lot in terms of the storyline? 

[Kevin Grey]

If I haven't played the first 2, will I be missing a lot in terms of the storyline?  

A bit.  I think the storylines are rather good but they aren't exactly in depth so you should be able to get caught up in short order.

However seriously consider picking up the GoW Collection.  Both games have held up amazingly well (two of my all time favorites) and pretty much every review of GoW 3 I've read indicates it's just an evolution or refinement of the formula so it's probably worth putting Part 3 on hold while you catch up on the others.  

[Teggy]

How do the graphics compare to Uncharted 2, will it take the crown in the graphics department?

They are actually superior in my opinion.  The animation and lighting engine is second to none.

Liar! And if Drake met Kratos, Kratos would start swinging his blades around and jumping and crap and Nate would just headshot him with his FAL.

Didn't you not even finish Uncharted?

Dude, not only did I finish Uncharted but I platinumed Uncharted 2.

[ATB]

How do the graphics compare to Uncharted 2, will it take the crown in the graphics department?

They are actually superior in my opinion.  The animation and lighting engine is second to none.

Liar! And if Drake met Kratos, Kratos would start swinging his blades around and jumping and crap and Nate would just headshot him with his FAL.

Didn't you not even finish Uncharted?

Dude, not only did I finish Uncharted but I platinumed Uncharted 2.

Rats...

[leo8877]

Sigh, that review is going to cost me $60!!!

If I haven't played the first 2, will I be missing a lot in terms of the storyline? 

Yes, I'd say you would be missing quite a bit.

[semiconscious]

I think the storylines are rather good but they aren't exactly in depth so you should be able to get caught up in short order.

kg, you are just too kind ...

If I haven't played the first 2, will I be missing a lot in terms of the storyline?

imagine the biggest meanest seven-year-old you've never met throwing an endless temper tantrum because he feels he's been wronged. add some greek mythology, & then get outa the way...

[leo8877]

I think the storylines are rather good but they aren't exactly in depth so you should be able to get caught up in short order.

kg, you are just too kind ...

If I haven't played the first 2, will I be missing a lot in terms of the storyline?

imagine the biggest meanest seven-year-old you've never met throwing an endless temper tantrum because he feels he's been wronged. add some greek mythology, & then get outa the way...

And add Blades of Chaos chained to their flesh!

[CeeKay]

Don't forget the tits!

[coopasonic]

he feels he's been wronged. add some greek mythology, & then get outa the way...

Maybe some of it was rescinded in the second, but based on the story in the first... he's been wronged.

[Teggy]

he feels he's been wronged. add some greek mythology, & then get outa the way...

Maybe some of it was rescinded in the second, but based on the story in the first... he's been wronged.

Yeah, he gets screwed in a pretty extreme way.

Spoiler for Hiden:

You know, the whole wearing the ashes of his family, which he was tricked into murdering?

[leo8877]

he feels he's been wronged. add some greek mythology, & then get outa the way...

Maybe some of it was rescinded in the second, but based on the story in the first... he's been wronged.

Yeah, he gets screwed in a pretty extreme way.

Spoiler for Hiden:

You know, the whole wearing the ashes of his family, which he was tricked into murdering?

I always though the wronging was that

Spoiler for Hiden:

After all the years of service, the gods still wouldn't erase his memories.  Not that he murdered his family.  He did give his soul to Aries, the murdering was part of the deal.

[Sparhawk]

he feels he's been wronged. add some greek mythology, & then get outa the way...

Maybe some of it was rescinded in the second, but based on the story in the first... he's been wronged.

Yeah, he gets screwed in a pretty extreme way.

Spoiler for Hiden:

You know, the whole wearing the ashes of his family, which he was tricked into murdering?

I always though the wronging was that

Spoiler for Hiden:

After all the years of service, the gods still wouldn't erase his memories.  Not that he murdered his family.  He did give his soul to Aries, the murdering was part of the deal.

Spoiler for Hiden:

It was NOT part of the deal to him. He had no idea that he'd end up killing his family. 

From the GoW wiki:
Kratos served Ares loyally, raiding villages and spreading chaos in his name. However, during a raid on a village of Athena's followers, Ares tricked him into killing his wife and child in blind rage, an act he later describe as being done in order to make Kratos the perfect warrior. Stricken with horror and grief, Kratos left the bodies to be burned with the temple as he cursed Ares's name. The village oracle declared he is to be cursed to wear their ashes for all time on his skin to serve as punishment for his actions. From that day forward, he became known as "The Ghost of Sparta".

The reason for this was because of his skin, which was now "pale as the moon" from the ashes that coated him. Afterward, the distraught Kratos began to be haunted by terrible nightmares of the deaths of his family. Over time, the memories and nightmares of killing his family began to drive him into total insanity. Abandoning Sparta, Kratos traveled throughout Greece, only finding some solace in sailing the Aegean Sea. To find peace, he pledged his life and services to the other gods of Olympus in the hope that they would one day relieve him of his burden.

To other mortals, he was now marked by his white skin. The knowledge of his past actions have been shown to repulse normal people to the point where they do not allow him to save their lives. They would even kill themselves in the process. He was forever known as the "Ghost of Sparta" to all who saw him. He is seen as the personification of cruelty and selfishness.

Kratos would serve the gods for ten years following the death of his family. However, he always held on to the desire for revenge against Ares.

[leo8877]

he feels he's been wronged. add some greek mythology, & then get outa the way...

Maybe some of it was rescinded in the second, but based on the story in the first... he's been wronged.

Yeah, he gets screwed in a pretty extreme way.

Spoiler for Hiden:

You know, the whole wearing the ashes of his family, which he was tricked into murdering?

I always though the wronging was that

Spoiler for Hiden:

After all the years of service, the gods still wouldn't erase his memories.  Not that he murdered his family.  He did give his soul to Aries, the murdering was part of the deal.

Spoiler for Hiden:

It was NOT part of the deal to him. He had no idea that he'd end up killing his family.  

From the GoW wiki:
Kratos served Ares loyally, raiding villages and spreading chaos in his name. However, during a raid on a village of Athena's followers, Ares tricked him into killing his wife and child in blind rage, an act he later describe as being done in order to make Kratos the perfect warrior. Stricken with horror and grief, Kratos left the bodies to be burned with the temple as he cursed Ares's name. The village oracle declared he is to be cursed to wear their ashes for all time on his skin to serve as punishment for his actions. From that day forward, he became known as "The Ghost of Sparta".

The reason for this was because of his skin, which was now "pale as the moon" from the ashes that coated him. Afterward, the distraught Kratos began to be haunted by terrible nightmares of the deaths of his family. Over time, the memories and nightmares of killing his family began to drive him into total insanity. Abandoning Sparta, Kratos traveled throughout Greece, only finding some solace in sailing the Aegean Sea. To find peace, he pledged his life and services to the other gods of Olympus in the hope that they would one day relieve him of his burden.

To other mortals, he was now marked by his white skin. The knowledge of his past actions have been shown to repulse normal people to the point where they do not allow him to save their lives. They would even kill themselves in the process. He was forever known as the "Ghost of Sparta" to all who saw him. He is seen as the personification of cruelty and selfishness.

Kratos would serve the gods for ten years following the death of his family. However, he always held on to the desire for revenge against Ares.

I stand corrected, that was a good find, thanks Sparhawk!

[The Grue]

I loved how Kratos was supposedly so torn up over this, but it didn't stop his three-ways in the game.

[Teggy]

I loved how Kratos was supposedly so torn up over this, but it didn't stop his three-ways in the game.

Dulls the pain, man, dulls the pain.

[leo8877]

I loved how Kratos was supposedly so torn up over this, but it didn't stop his three-ways in the game.

Dulls the pain, man, dulls the pain.

Hahaha!

[Kagath]

My review is UP!   It is SPOILER FREE!   Enjoy.  I look forward to your feedback.

Haha, Kratos looks like he's pinching a loaf in that picture!

[CeeKay]

My review is UP!   It is SPOILER FREE!   Enjoy.  I look forward to your feedback.

Haha, Kratos looks like he's pinching a loaf in that picture!

either that or he's caught doing something similar to this:

[semiconscious]

he feels he's been wronged. add some greek mythology, & then get outa the way...

Maybe some of it was rescinded in the second, but based on the story in the first... he's been wronged.

well, just because you 'feel' you've been wronged doesn't necessarily mean you haven't been, right?. yeah, i agree, he did indeed get screwed - & he's been throwing one huge, continuous temper tantrum ever since... & i'm thinking you likely really needn't know much more than that, if you haven't played the first 2.5 games, to enjoy gow3 ...

[leo8877]

Eurogamer has a comparison of the visuals of the final game vs the demo....with the final game showing many, many improvements.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-godofwariii-demo-vs-retail-blog-entry

[leo8877]

GT made the Kotaku Frankenreview article

http://kotaku.com/5490011/frankenreview-god-of-war-iii

[Teggy]

GT made the Kotaku Frankenreview article

http://kotaku.com/5490011/frankenreview-god-of-war-iii

And operation "give Madden a crappy review, get noticed" is complete!

[Graham]

GT made the Kotaku Frankenreview article

http://kotaku.com/5490011/frankenreview-god-of-war-iii

And operation "give Madden a crappy review, get noticed" is complete!

I didn't write that Madden review to get noticed, just to give my honest view.  I thought it might get some attention, but I was surprised at how much it did get.

I do think Ron's writing and the fact Sony got us an early copy had more to do with it than anything.   

[leo8877]

[skystride]

Tom Chick finished it and hates it.

Doesn't affect my purchase decision, I just got the call that my copy is in!  It's going to be a really long 3 hours at work. 

I'll still be playing FF13 mostly but I'll dabble in it.

[leo8877]

Tom Chick finished it and hates it.

Doesn't affect my purchase decision, I just got the call that my copy is in!  It's going to be a really long 3 hours at work. 

I'll still be playing FF13 mostly but I'll dabble in it.

Oh man it's already in for you!?  Damn!

[Scraper]

Tom Chick finished it and hates it.

Doesn't affect my purchase decision, I just got the call that my copy is in!  It's going to be a really long 3 hours at work.  

I'll still be playing FF13 mostly but I'll dabble in it.

Does anybody take that guy seriously anymore? He's the the Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh of video game reviews. He intentionally tries to shock people.

[Kevin Grey]

Tom's a great writer and I enjoy reading his take on things.  HoweverI would say that his taste typically doesn't track much at all with "most" gamers (and that's probably a good thing).  So I'm always surprised when there is some major title that comes along, gets truckloads of great scores (including respectable outlets like Edge and Eurogamer) but Tom announces he doesn't care for the game and then all of a sudden people start rethinking their purchase. 

[Ridah]

Tom's a great writer and I enjoy reading his take on things.  HoweverI would say that his taste typically doesn't track much at all with "most" gamers (and that's probably a good thing).  So I'm always surprised when there is some major title that comes along, gets truckloads of great scores (including respectable outlets like Edge and Eurogamer) but Tom announces he doesn't care for the game and then all of a sudden people start rethinking their purchase. 

I always got the impression that Tom was like corporate news outlets; Reporting for ratings, not for accuracy.

[Kevin Grey]

I always got the impression that Tom was like corporate news outlets; Reporting for ratings, not for accuracy.

I don't think that is the case at all.  He has already had very specific tastes that tend to go against the grain and that can sometimes do him more harm than good.  He was fired from Gamecenter in 2001 for his proposed review of Deus Ex. 

I actually think Tom is a sign of what games journalism should be.  Gaming is unique in entertainment for this feeling that all reviews should align and any outliers should be disregarded.  In film it's not uncommon for respected film critics to be split on loving and hating a film with neither being disparaged as being objectively wrong.  But in game reviews if you go against the grain then you are labeled a troll or a fanboy depending on which side of divide you are on.  The result is this intense pressure to align on the 7-9 scale. Nothing wrong with saying "I really hated this game that everyone seems to love" as long as you can accurately describe why the game made you feel that way. 

[Graham]

I always got the impression that Tom was like corporate news outlets; Reporting for ratings, not for accuracy.

I don't think that is the case at all.  He has already had very specific tastes that tend to go against the grain and that can sometimes do him more harm than good.  He was fired from Gamecenter in 2001 for his proposed review of Deus Ex. 

I actually think Tom is a sign of what games journalism should be.  Gaming is unique in entertainment for this feeling that all reviews should align and any outliers should be disregarded.  In film it's not uncommon for respected film critics to be split on loving and hating a film with neither being disparaged as being objectively wrong.  But in game reviews if you go against the grain then you are labeled a troll or a fanboy depending on which side of divide you are on.  The result is this intense pressure to align on the 7-9 scale. Nothing wrong with saying "I really hated this game that everyone seems to love" as long as you can accurately describe why the game made you feel that way. 

When Ron introduced me to Tom Chick at E3 one year, he was a bit older than I had expected.  That might be a part of it too.  I'm not saying that's a bad thing, as I've become a bit more jaded towards games, jus an observation.

[Kevin Grey]

When Ron introduced me to Tom Chick at E3 one year, he was a bit older than I had expected.  That might be a part of it too.  I'm not saying that's a bad thing, as I've become a bit more jaded towards games, jus an observation.

I don't know, I've been following Tom's work since he was relatively active on Usenet a decade ago and I think his taste hasn't changed too much. 

[ATB]

Give it to Tommy, he hates everything.


Anyone know what he thought of the previous two?

[KePoW]

Give it to Tommy, he hates everything.


Anyone know what he thought of the previous two?

Yeah this is the more important question.  If he disliked the first two, then you can safely disregard his opinion of GoW 3.

However if he actually loved the previous games, then he should explain exactly why he thinks this one is now bad.

[denoginizer]

I can't seem to muster much excitement for this.  I loved God of War 1.  But somewhere in the middle of GoW2 I kind of ran out of steam. The game looks amazing graphically.  But the gameplay doesn't seem to have changed much.  I think I have just stopped being interested in these kinds of games.

[Teggy]

IN! on dropping down to easy to beat the final boss.

[leo8877]

IN! on dropping down to easy to beat the final boss.

I had a waaaaaaaaaaaaaay easier time with GoW2's boss on the GoW Collection than with the PS2.  I wanted to break my controller/tv/ps2 the first time I played it.  I had to stop for hours in between attempts I got so mad.  On the PS3 collection, it only took me about 3 tries.

For GoW1 I had to not try and mash buttons and actually block, which I didn't do at all the rest of the game @_@

[Knightshade Dragon]

You won't need to drop to easy to beat the bosses.   They are tough, but nowhere near as obscene as GOW1 or 2, and thankfully nowhere near as controller-snapping as Ares was.  *shudder*

As for Tom, his tastes are....unique.  When I write my reviews, it's my honest opinion of my experience, but I also try to look at whether or not the average person would like it.  It's why I play the game on Normal Difficulty for reviews, it's why I try to look at kid-aimed games like How to Train Your Dragon from the perspective of how a kid might like it.