The Blood, Sweat, and Guts of God of War 3

Kratos ready for action.

Story:

Kratos being shown as a speck traversing the Titan, Gaia.

The story of the third main installment of the Greek mythology influenced series begins where the second one left off with the vengeful Kratos continuing with his relentless quest to kill off the remaining Gods. After a montage style recap, the player is thrown in the middle of the epic battle with Kratos riding on top of one of the Titans, Gaia, who are climbing up Mount Olympus to exact their revenge. The godly/titanic war ensues as Kratos literally treads on the island sized Gaia to help her defeat Poseidon in the most brutal and hands-on display of maiming that would almost make you feel sorry for the God of the Sea. After taking a blast of lightning and dangling helplessly on, Kratos is dismissed by Gaia as a pawn claiming no further use for him as she lets him plummet to his death. After experiencing what happened to Poseidon, gamers can already conclude that nobody betrays and brushes off Kratos without a gruesome payback.

The goal of GoW3 is quite simple: escape Hades (again), regain your powers, acquire new weapons, and kill everyone you run into (Titans included) as you work your way to the top of Mount Olympus. Admittedly, the storyline may not be very intricate but it does not take away from the awesome cinematic effects of the game itself along with the breathtaking boss fights that will leave even the most hardened gore enthusiasts cringing for more.

Layout:

With such a violent theme like vengeance, it is no surprise that a protagonist like Kratos would take no hesitation in mercilessly disemboweling, decapitating, and maiming any that stand in his way. There are a plethora of recognizable Greek inspired monstrosities such as cyclops, chimera, undead soldiers, harpies, hellhounds, and many more which Kratos will plow through in each level along with traversing the artistically constructed landscape.

How can Kratos get out of this one?

The layout itself is by far one of the most impressive elements of GoW3. The graphics and texture is beyond excellent as well as the fluid animation of Kratos and NPC’s. The titan fights are beyond astonishing as the camera view will zoom out from Kratos in order to reveal a full shot of the titan he is battling, showing Kratos to be no more than a speck in comparison.

Interaction/Mechanics:

Kratos wielding the Blades of Exile.

Throughout the game, Kratos will acquire a multitude of new weapons, magic, and items as he makes his way to the top of Mount Olympus. Each weapon can easily be toggled by the press of a button in mid combat with each balanced out for players to easily favor one over the other based off of their own preferences. Magic is powerful but limited to a blue meter that can be refilled by collecting blue orbs either from enemies or treasure chests. Quest items, collected as the game progresses, will help Kratos overcome the obstacles blocking his path.

Quick Time Event used on a very unfortunate Cyclops.

The fighting system is based off of combos that can be unlocked by purchasing them in the menu screen through a currency of red orbs that can also be accumulated by killing off enemies and opening red treasure chests. The variety of attacks are so vast that every button will be used in each wave of enemies that will easily maximize gameplay. Quick Time Events (QTE’s) have always played a vital role in the series and continues to do so in GoW3, prompting players with button cues at specific times in the game.

Presentation:

Although the foundation of the gameplay is nearly identical to its predecessors, GoW3 refurbishes the Heads Up Display (HUD) enough to ensure loyal GoW fans of the amount of work put this game rather than throwing in the same game sprites and settings with a different scenario like most game sequels do. As mentioned early, the stunning cinematics of the game is what makes it stand out in the series itself. 

The music and sound complements GoW3 very well. The music is nothing short of epic with its ambient chanting that you would expect to hear from a character like Kratos. The explosive clanging of swords has always been an exciting sound to enjoy, but it is the realistic sounds of breaking bones and gushing blood that stands out the most.

Pros:

The play on Greek mythology works well with the story of one man on his quest for vengeance, unhindered by the grotesque abominations set out to kill him. The ruthless actions Kratos enacts on his enemies proves to Titans and Gods alike that he is not someone to mess around with.

Amazing

As far as improving from the previous installments, GoW3 is nothing short of amazing and far exceeds the expectations of a grand finale. The full 1080p HD resolution is fully utilized with the finely detailed graphics and settings. There will be times where players won’t be able to tell the difference a cinematic cutscene and actual gameplay, further enhancing the entertainment value of players and spectators alike. The story works well in giving the GoW series a momentous conclusion to Kratos’s quest, giving a grand send-off to the series.

Cons:

Despite the many accolades of the graphics, layout, gameplay, and story, GoW3 still manages to come with a few hiccups. The occasionally misplaced camera angles in crucial ledge-to-ledge areas can interfere with the flow of the game and some of the puzzles can be more laborious than stimulating, leaving most of them to be time consuming push and pull tasks. As vast as the backdrop and setting of the game can appear, it can feel encumbering at times due to the invisible walls and the strict linear path of the game itself. The length of gameplay can be considerably short (taking only one or two days to beat), leaving players to either replay the game on a higher difficulty with newly unlocked items or try their hand in the gauntlet of the challenges it provides.

Kratos in your face.