Why is God Of War so great?

[nate1749]

I read in Game Informer that God Of War got a 10 (rarely given) and I even read from someone on this board who just finished it and loved it.

Now I've only played it for about 30 minutes so far, but it seems like every other game where you just button press to do various killing combos. Actually reminds me of a spiffed up version of Sword Of The Berserk Gut's Rage for dreamcast (which I think I liked better).

Now it's not bad or anything, but with all the hype I must be missing something. I even watched the opening storyline (which I rarely) and that was only about a minute long and after his dramatic suicide I was just like .... ok....

Should I keep playing or am I just going to be killing more zombies, pterodactyls, and the occasional pissed off gigantic sea horse that explodes from the ocean.

Nate

[NeoZeedeater]

I doubt your opinion will change if you play longer as it will be mostly the same beat 'em up/platform gameplay. I love the game because the action is well done and everything feels so epic but there's no way it deserves a 10.

[PS2Hawk]

Upgrade your weapons & read the instructions.

GOW has the best mid paced action ever!

[klausien]

I am an admitted skeptic when it comes to newer 3D action games, but GOW is incredible.

[shvnsth]

god of war is far from perfect, but it is a very very good game, but just as good as ratchet and clank and the jak's (although those are all very good games, just not perfect). it is def worth the 10 hours you put into it though, keep with it. i beat it 2 days after starting it, and just got hooked

[Gamereviewgod]

Everything God of War does, it does with flair and style. Sure, it's a beat-em-up at heart. That's mindless fun, but it keeps you going as you figure out new ways to take out enemies. Decaps, head slices, stabbings, etc. It keeps everything fresh.

The tone of the game is as dark as possible. The boss battles are nothing short of ingenious (shame there aren't more of them), the setting is perfect, and the way Kratos is established as a total bad ass is awesome.

I guess it's just the fact that it really doesn't do anything wrong except for a bit of repetitiveness.

[PDorr3]

I love it becuase everything about the game is done with quality. The controls, level designs, graphics, sound, everything about it screams high production value. A classic. If you do not like it as of now I guess these types of games just are not your cup of tea.

[FurinkanianFrood]

Now it's not bad or anything, but with all the hype I must be missing something.


Nope, not missing anything, it's just an everyday game done in a style that really floats a lot of people's boat these days.



Sword Of The Berserk Gut's Rage for dreamcast (which I think I liked better).


I like Berserk much better also. Less cheese, no hype.



If you do not like it as of now I guess these types of games just are not your cup of tea.


I love beatem-ups, but this is a 3rd person hackNslash (doesn't qualify as a beatemup), and I don't like generic badass + ultraviolence = game.

It would need decent theme and characters etc, as per other games of it's type, to be really good IMO.

Screams cheese to me. But it's not necessarily bad if that doesn't bother you. Just not anything at all special.

Rygar is much better. Great game.

Ninja Gaiden makes GOW look like a joke.

[nate1749]

thanks for the replies - I'll stop playing it now. I just thought maybe something major was going to change & I just hadn't played it long enough.

FurinkanianFrood - I agree w/everything you said. I'll have to check out rygar since I've never played it.

Nate

[FurinkanianFrood]

It just depends on how you feel about the game. It's not all bad.

It's really up to personal preference. But if you don't enjoy playing it that won't likely change.

There have been many games that I have played for hours on end trying to figure out why they were popular. It never seems to work.

Some of those games get really highly rated too.....

I couldn't force myself to like RSilvergun for instance.

[Ed Oscuro]

Actually reminds me of a spiffed up version of Sword Of The Berserk Gut's Rage for dreamcast (which I think I liked better).
Ha! Proving my observation (that...I kept to myself) that "as soon as you see a game for the first time, then you notice people talking about it. Yeah, that one looks quite good! I've yet to pick it up, but I'm looking forward to it.

[Cryomancer]

What's this I hear about nudity in this game? Could someone post some screenshots maybe? I'm curious as to how it's portrayed and used in the game, but not really interested in actually playing the game itself.

[Promophile]

Two chicks you can have sex with in a minigame. I thought this game was boring as hell but I completed it because I wanted to complete the story. Someone said the game has innovative boss fights? Not really. Of the Whopping 3 or 4 boss fights in the entire game perhaps two of them were anything but "keep hitting boss till the game tells you to press X, then do timed combo". I found the single weapon you use through the game gets tiring as well. Sure you get a second weapon but it sucks so bad you never use it. Then you get to the box puzzles, which if you played Soul Reaver/ LoK your already sick of. One good thing I have to give this game is that it has really awesome voice acting. I also have to mention one thing about the creator guy. I was watching an interview with him where he stated at first he wanted to add 70s-80s rock as the soundtrack for the game. I know that that would be wrong even before I played the game. This isn't GTA:VC, its a game set in ancient Greece. How could you possibly think it would sound good? To me this game is DMC (which I already don't like too much) with puzzles and without the guns. And Jesus am I the only one that HATED Kratos? I'm supposed to feel sorry for him because he did *you know what* but he was a monster anyways. He really has NO redeeming factors at all. I guess the scenes where he kills innocent people were supposed to be funny? Hell Tommy Vercetii has more redeeming qualities than Kratos, at least he only kills people for a reason.

[Gamereviewgod]

Of the Whopping 3 or 4 boss fights in the entire game perhaps two of them were anything but "keep hitting boss till the game tells you to press X, then do timed combo"

Whoa... the fight against the giant metal minatour is so much more than that. Sure you have to hit him, but you need to react quickly, make it up some steps, fire a wodden log into his chest, etc. The Hydra fight required you to pin down the side heads before anything else.

Each boss, except for the last one, requires some though process. Just going in without thinking is going to get you slaughtered. There should have been more, yes.


I found the single weapon you use through the game gets tiring as well. Sure you get a second weapon but it sucks so bad you never use it.

I used the second weapon for the entire second half of the game. It swipes everybody in half with a few hits. It's an amazing sense of power. If you found the regular weapon tiring, you're not experiementing with the combo system at all. Just seeing what you can pull off is part of the enjoyment.


And Jesus am I the only one that HATED Kratos? I'm supposed to feel sorry for him because he did *you know what* but he was a monster anyways. He really has NO redeeming factors at all.

Nope, he's supposed to the biggest assh*ole you'll ever control in a video game. That's settled on early and often. How often do you see a game character with this much backstory? He never, even changes, not even to rescue someone. The puzzle where you need to push the guy in the cage into the fire was shocking as all hell, at least a small departure from moving a crate, which yes, are annoying and stupid.


Hell Tommy Vercetii has more redeeming qualities than Kratos, at least he only kills people for a reason.

Huh? So sniping that old lady from the parking garage is for a reason?

[maxlords]

Just got this game the other day cause of all the rave reviews. Frankly, IMO, it's nothing special at all. The camera drives me nuts about 1/4 of the time, the combos are cool....the first time you do them, and the enemies are tedious. I've just beaten the hydra level and am just into the gate to Athens. I doubt I'll play much more of it....just doesn't hold my interest. The timed button pressing is nice, but it gets trite incredibly quickly. Imagery is cool, but that's about it. And what's with the topless chicks? So lame. I felt like it was made for 12 year olds to get 18 year olds to rent for em...

[PDorr3]

it reminds me of shenmue. Everyone was hyping the game up, and once I bought it I was really bored with it.

[maxlords]

Reminded me more of Grand Theft Auto III....super hyped and you either love it or hate it.

[Crush Crawfish]

I, too, found this to be pretty overrated...I played up to the hydra part, and really didn't find it that enthralling. And I absolutely hate controlling an unlikable character like Kratos. He's too much of an asshole. Why would I want to help a jerk succeed in his quest? He's the type of character I'd enjoy fighting against, not playing as.

My brother, on the other hand, loves this game to death. Oh well, to each his own I suppose. Oh, and Rygar is a MUCH better, not to mention cheaper game that has similar aesthetics.

[kainemaxwell]

Everything God of War does, it does with flair and style. Sure, it's a beat-em-up at heart. That's mindless fun, but it keeps you going as you figure out new ways to take out enemies. Decaps, head slices, stabbings, etc. It keeps everything fresh.
my favorite way to get rid of enemies is tearing them in half and beating other enemies with the body parts of the one you just tore up. LOL

[shvnsth]

i liked it a lot (didn't love it), but it is way overrated. its just as good as jak or rachet

[Lemmy Kilmister]

I love it becuase everything about the game is done with quality. The controls, level designs, graphics, sound, everything about it screams high production value. A classic. If you do not like it as of now I guess these types of games just are not your cup of tea.


it reminds me of shenmue. Everyone was hyping the game up, and once I bought it I was really bored with it.

Ummmm.. So do you like this game or not?

[CullJeff]

It took me 9 hours and something to beat it. Those are 9 hours that I never ever want back. Second to last fight nearly gave me a heart attack.

[shopkins]

I liked it. The gameplay is sort of familiar, but everything is so over the top it's more intense.

There are decent jumping sections where you avoid rotating spikes and such and puzzle sections later in the game, too. The puzzles are sort of easy or straightforward to figure out, which I found welcome in a game like this. I usually get stuck a few times in similar games, but in GOW the solutions made themselves obvious enough if you simply experiment or look around.

And as you get further your weapons gets more powerful and the combo system gets deeper. By the end you can deal death in an impressive variety of ways. And it has some amazing, challenging boss fights, and a few normal enemies like the Cereberus that would qualify as bosses in lesser games.

The story is no great shakes despite the impressive cut scenes, and Kratos is pretty unlikeable. If you can't grin and bear his being an asshole you won't like it. I started to enjoy it more when I knew what to expect. When he said "The gods require sacrifices of all of us," I knew what was coming. I think Kratos attitude is at leas appropriate for a game about often cruel and whimsical Greek gods.

I played, enjoyed and finished Rygar and Sword of Berserk: Gut's Rage, but I like this one a little better. I think I would rank them GOW, Gut's Rage then Rygar.

I can't decide if I like GOW better than Ratchet and Clank. It does so many things better, but the games are so different and I think I like the kind of game Ratchet is better. It's a closer call with Jak, though.

[Promophile]

Of the Whopping 3 or 4 boss fights in the entire game perhaps two of them were anything but "keep hitting boss till the game tells you to press X, then do timed combo"

Whoa... the fight against the giant metal minatour is so much more than that. Sure you have to hit him, but you need to react quickly, make it up some steps, fire a wodden log into his chest, etc. The Hydra fight required you to pin down the side heads before anything else.

Each boss, except for the last one, requires some though process. Just going in without thinking is going to get you slaughtered. There should have been more, yes.


I found the single weapon you use through the game gets tiring as well. Sure you get a second weapon but it sucks so bad you never use it.

I used the second weapon for the entire second half of the game. It swipes everybody in half with a few hits. It's an amazing sense of power. If you found the regular weapon tiring, you're not experiementing with the combo system at all. Just seeing what you can pull off is part of the enjoyment.


And Jesus am I the only one that HATED Kratos? I'm supposed to feel sorry for him because he did *you know what* but he was a monster anyways. He really has NO redeeming factors at all.

Nope, he's supposed to the biggest assh*ole you'll ever control in a video game. That's settled on early and often. How often do you see a game character with this much backstory? He never, even changes, not even to rescue someone. The puzzle where you need to push the guy in the cage into the fire was shocking as all hell, at least a small departure from moving a crate, which yes, are annoying and stupid.


Hell Tommy Vercetii has more redeeming qualities than Kratos, at least he only kills people for a reason.

Huh? So sniping that old lady from the parking garage is for a reason?

First on the bosses. You say the minotaur boss is innovative? Where you beat on him until hes stunned then you pull a lever to fire a projectile at him? Ever play Resdient Evil 3? Ever fight the final battle against Nemesis? Same thing. The Final boss i can give you as a "innovative" fight. Next on the weapons. If you used that sucky weapon though half of the game you weren't playing on Spartan/God mode, sorry. I didn't play the easy difficulty. Its a clumsy single target weapon in a game where 99 pct of the fights are against 2 or more enemies, you NEED the crowd control and range of the blades of chaos to survive on a hard difficulty. And yes Vercetti is a redeeming character. Sure, the PLAYER can snipe a old lady for no reason, but in the missions Vercetti only kills people if its his mission or they get in his way.

[Cryomancer]

I was always under the impression that you were not meant to like ANYONE in vice city since it was a big "we were all stupid in the 80s" thing, and the characters were intentionally unlikable, just that no one else seemed to notice that.

[shopkins]

The "Waste the Wife" mission in Vice City blows any likability you want to assign to Tommy. That's worse than anything Kratos does, except for that big spoilery thing that was kind of an accident.

[Promophile]

Waste the Wife = Paid hit. Thats not as bad as, say, Kratos throwing a guy down the throat of a giant sea monster because it wasn't his mission to rescue him.

[shopkins]

Doing evil for profit is better than simply screwing over someone in need? Kratos is a Spartan, and they don't tolerate weakness in any form. He wanted the key and had no use for the guy, so he just took what he needed. From his point of view it was the guy's responsibility to rescue himself. And he did it so he could get the key to try to rescue the women behind the locked door. Tommy murdered an innocent woman for a few thousand dollars.

Besides, none of nasty things Kratos does are at random. He kills that guy for the key and later screws him again to get to a platform, he fries a guy to make him let go of a switch so he can get somewhere and he sacrifices a guy because the gods require it for him to move on. He has just as much motivation for the things he does as Tommy.

[Promophile]

Doing evil for profit is better than simply screwing over someone in need? Kratos is a Spartan, and they don't tolerate weakness in any form. He wanted the key and had no use for the guy, so he just took what he needed. From his point of view it was the guy's responsibility to rescue himself. And he did it so he could get the key to try to rescue the women behind the locked door. Tommy murdered an innocent woman for a few thousand dollars.

Besides, none of nasty things Kratos does are at random. He kills that guy for the key and later screws him again to get to a platform, he fries a guy to make him let go of a switch so he can get somewhere and he sacrifices a guy because the gods require it for him to move on. He has just as much motivation for the things he does as Tommy.


how did he have to "kill the guy for the key"? Him throwing the guy to his death was more of a "Im a raving sociopath who doesn't give a damn about life and the gods didn't want me to save you so I'm going to throw you down this sea monsters throat so I can get back to doing the gods dirty work so I can get rid of these nightmares that I diserve having since I'm such an evil heartless bastard". Vercetti at least could care about people / make friends (Lance Vance, the lawyer, all the property owner people).


Doing evil for profit is better than simply screwing over someone in need?

I think so. At least someone who does evil for profit has motivation for doing the evil.

[cr0n0]

I guess most people thought the Sony Playstation 2 needed more games with a 10 (or gold award). My friend bought it and I got a chance to play it. I think it looks great, but it's just a "button smashing beat-em up if it moves" game. I personally do not think it deserves such high praise.


I found it boring actually. Maybe it's the naked chicks that helped push the score up with geeky reviewers.

[Raedon]

Freak'n awsome game. Just finished it and I must say that it's an easy top 10 for the year.

[hezeuschrist]

My friend bought it and I got a chance to play it. I think it looks great, but it's just a "button smashing beat-em up if it moves" game. I personally do not think it deserves such high praise.
.

I need to refer you to the open letter to fanboys:

"Playing a game on a different console for ten minutes at a friend's house qualifies you as an expert on that game and console."

And really, everyone that played the game through the TRAINING level and gave up, don't bother. The game has so much variety in it but it's well paced. Theres an amazing number of combos you can do with just the blades alone, but adding magic and other stuff it rounds itself out as one of, if not THE best action game of this genre. It borrows heavily from Devil May Cry and Ninja Gaiden, so if you enjoyed either of those games there's no reason you wouldn't enjoy God of War, unless you played the training level and felt you'd experienced everything the game had to offer.

If you don't buy the story or the theme or whatever, fine. But strip all that away and you've got an amazing action game. The engine is so intensely refined and the environments are incredibly varied, always presenting a new challenge.

But what really captures the core audience of this game more than anything is the scale. But if you don't think it's cool as hell how you actually kill the Hydra, then you may as well give up on the fast paced action genre all together, because it likely won't get any better than this game. You're charged with killing a god for chirst sake, and I personally didn't see how pandora's box was going to let me do so, but when I found out it just... don't want to spoil anything, but theres a good chance most of you won't make it that far once you're done with your 10 minute judgements.

As far as the character goes, there have been badass characters before, but none with so much of a storydriven purpose. It's obviously not totally clear at the beginning, that'd defeat the purpose. The reasons why he's having his nightmares, the reason why he's so up for killing Ares.

As Pdorr said, the game just screams high production values, and if you can't embrace titles like this then I fear you've hit your action gaming plateau. It simply doesn't get any better.

[nate1749]

I completely forgot about this game, glad someone revived my thread. I haven't played it since, but maybe I'll try to play it for another hour to see if I get hooked. I really do want to like this game.

Then again maybe not since I have tons of other games that I have yet to play that I will hopefully like right from the start.

Nate