God of War III (2010)

Finally, an entry I could actually see myself replaying! After having an overall very unpleasant time with the first two games, I'm glad to say that this one was a lot of fun. Enemies didn't feel as annoyingly spongy, the weapons you have access to feel varied and enjoyable to use, and the level design was fairly straightforward and did a good job of pointing me where to go next.

The story is similarly straightforward; it picks up right where the last game left off and does some odd retconning of Athena's motivations before we're off to the races to try and kill Zeus again. It's still not a great story, and there are some rather sudden character developments with little buildup along the way. But it's enough to give Kratos a reason to dismember and obliterate another heaping helping of mythological ass, which is definitely what they were going for.

Gameplay has been improved over the first two entries in the best ways. The quicktime button inputs are still there, but they feel much more fair in how much time you get. They also now appear on the screen positioned relative to how they are on a traditional dualshock controller, which makes it way easier to hit them without needing to stop and process which to press. I kind of wish they'd go back and remaster the first two games with this in mind because they'd probably play a lot better that way.

I don't really have much else to say other than now I feel like I can finally check out the reboot games. Here's hoping they didn't get all that hype for nothing.

Una de las mejores entregas de la saga God of War siguiendo con el modo de juego hakkan slash de toda la vida, ver a kratos en hd en una ps3 nunca fue tan satisfactorio al igual que matar a todo lo que se te ponga enfrente, nada que decir de este juego, en su totalidad, jugabilidad, historia, lore de la saga, batallas normales y contra bosses, en todo sentido una verdadera obra de arte.

Mixed feelings. Had heard about it's fame of being the ultimate power trip - guts and death and revenge and glory. Wasn't expecting to feel so bad playing it though - GoW is known to be brutal but this gets a bit too much at times. I realize part of it is intentional and a comment on how far off the edge Kratos has gone - leading to it's ending - but it was hard not to feel like the game wanted me feeling like a badass at times when I was just feeling bad for slowly slicing a guy's leg off in a QTE. (Disclaimer: played the other games and didn't feel bad about the violence, but.. in some scenes it goes too far towards sadism for my taste). Maybe it's my age and what I expect from games, whatever. I did enjoy the trip into Kratos' mind in the end! Much needed for the character at that point. Still not sure how I feel about the whole Hope twist, and Athena in this game is just a lazy plot hole.

That besides; when it's good, it's GOOD. They really made the best of what new technology could add to the series. Amazing setpieces, detailed character and enemy models - Cerberus was a highlight - some awesome boss fights. Cronos in particular was a high point for bosses in general and straight-up exhilarating.

And that's one series I can scratch off my backlog. Loved the journey and the story behind the whole thing. Great series. Am dying to play the new one, but I don't own a PS4, and not sure if I should just wait for PS5 to come out. PS3 backlog is big enough as is, not sure if I can tackle a whole console's lifetime...

The graphics were out of this world for this game and I really felt like it was a huge step up from the previous two installments. The action was smooth and the game was filled with amazing characters and mythology. However, for some reason, this game felt a tad off for me. I thought it was not as inventive as the previous two. Not only that but the game just felt rushed towards the end, we had been building for this big square off and it just came off sort of meh. Even though the story did not have the emotional payoff promised we had a finale that made sense and really put everything together with a bow. This trilogy was a good one that shined with its gameplay and mechanics while faltering with character development and personality. God of War III, however, is the most playable out of this trilogy for the modern systems outside of the new God of War (2018).

The earlier God Of War games were never particularly thoughtful, but I can’t help but think that at some point in this game’s production it had something to say. Maybe something obvious about the worthlessness of Kratos’ quest for revenge, him finally taking responsibility for his actions, or more generally about toxic masculinity in modern society. Instead of leaving it as part of the text, or burying it as intentional subtext, it was instead confined to an indecipherable scribble in a margin somewhere before being swiftly erased and replaced with doodles of boobs and bloody entrails.

If that sounds harsh, let me clarify: I really like this game. The combat improves upon its predecessors in every way. Changing between weapons feels more fluid, while tying a magic power to each weapon encourages experimentation as you shift between them. I will always find thwacking fools with Hercules’ bigboy gloves immensely satisfying, and it was always exciting to unlock and try out new moves.

GoW3 tries to one-up 2 in terms of scale, and in regards to bosses it is definitely successful. Every encounter feels epic – scaling and felling a titan in a shower of gore is the series at its over-the-top best. In comparison to 2 there are some problems. The game feels top-heavy, becoming less interesting as you progress. It doesn’t help that the environments aren’t as memorable (nothing on the level of the Steeds of Time), and did we really need another trip to Hades? They also felt the need to include a rhythm game where the button symbols are present in the environment, pulling you out of the game and destroying any sense of immersion.

Despite enjoying it, I mostly hated myself whilst playing it. Kratos is a reprehensible monster, to the point where I found myself apologising out-loud for the atrocities he was committing. The added visual fidelity in comparison to the earlier games made this more difficult to stomach than usual. The series treatment of women has always been woeful, but this game feels particularly gross and mean-spirited. There is a “puzzle” early in the game where you jam a box under a wheel to prevent a door from closing. Later you do the same with a scantily-clad woman who screams in pain before being crushed by the wheel. It is objectification in the purest sense of the word, and it is really fucked up and disgusting. It is indicative of the game’s immature desire to be “edgy”.

At its core, GoW3 is a pretty standard trilogy capper – bigger, but not necessarily better. It tries so hard to one-up the previous games that it not only emphasises their strengths, but also their many flaws. It is frustrating to see so much love and talent go into a product that is so misguided and nasty. My wife sat next to me while I was playing this, and there were times where I just felt embarrassed to be doing so.

It really is the God of War you know and love, but also the one you wish would just grow the fuck up. And please Kratos, modulate the volume of your voice. There’s really no need for all the yelling.

Going from playing God of War II to playing III right away, the immediate takeaway is just how massive and grandiose this game has become. I've enjoyed playing through this series, but the leap from II to III is astounding. Not even God of War: Ascension felt this huge, and that's a game attempting to be as large as possible. On purely gameplay, God of War III is by far the greatest game in the franchise, at least in its original run. This is now the sixth God of War game I've played in a row, and this is the first time that everything felt perfect. I felt in complete control of Kratos and the way he moves throughout the game. The weapons, power-ups and the battles all are perfectly calibrated to make this an incredible final installment.

But that's not what I cared about most. The gameplay in God of War has always been at the very least well done. What I wanted was story. After a pretty compelling introduction to this world with the first game, God of War II mostly kept Kratos's history and the reason for his revenge in the background. Like I said in my review of God of War II, Kratos doesn't even mention his family in the entire game - despite the anger towards accidentally killing them being his forward momentum for the entire series. What I truly needed from the story was for Kratos to come to the realization that everyone else had come to at this point: there is no amount of killing, no amount of vengeance, no amount of destruction that can bring his family back, and ultimately the person to blame is himself. While I had played this game before, I couldn't remember if God of War III actually addressed this obvious truth or not, but I truly thought it could go either way. Thankfully, God of War III does address this, but in the most ham-fisted way possible.

The final hour of this game is where the developers cram these ideas, and when they do, they do it under the guise of "hope," as if that was what Kratos was missing for all these years. The game pretends that hope is what kept him murdering thousands of people, destroying entire cities and seemingly heading the world towards the brink of annihilation. No, what Kratos needed to find was self-realization. Kratos needed to understand that his problem is with himself, not with the people that aided him in his destruction along the way. Kratos is essentially Scott Pilgrim.

The story of God of War is primarily the thing that has kept me interested in it for all these years. Even though the series often throws it aside, it's Kratos's core goal that kept me going. I don't think God of War II does a great job at coming to a stunning conclusion in terms of story, and I don't think it knows how to address the issues of Kratos's revenge in a way that is satisfying, I'm just sort of glad that they addressed it in any way. The game ends with Kratos realizing that he is the true monster that he's been fighting all along, and that's exactly what this franchise needed to do for years anyways.

Kratos returns for the third main story chapter in the God of War franchise, now with updated tech and a bigger budget than ever. Featuring more gods and titans to slaughter, a revamped magic and weapon system, and some of the most outrageous set pieces to date, God of War III follows up the extraordinary second installment in a truly worthy fashion. It's the same hack and slash gameplay that you're familiar with, but with a level of polish that overtakes its predecessors.

Most of what you get in God of War III isn't surprising. You might mythical beasts by chaining together combos and magic abilities just like in the past installments. That's not to say it doesn't change anything up, however. Instead of the traditional magic and subweapon system, where everything is separated, God of War III fuses each magic spell to each weapon. They're not really treated as subweapons anymore, either. The four weapons that you have are fully fleshed out, with their own unique movesets and advantages and disadvantages. Most of them are chain-based swords like the classic blades you start with, but still handle very differently. The huge advantage to tethering each spell to each weapon is that you no longer fall under the conundrum of having to upgrade weapons and spells individually. For me, this generally resulted in highly upgraded weapons, but weak spells, since spells are used more sparingly.

A new mechanic is also introduced in the item system. Now, utilities that don't really fall under magic or weapons use their own unique resource which regenerated automatically. This means using a bow no longer wastes precious mana reserves, and you can utilize it along with your other items a little more liberally. Quick time events make a return, as is expected, but with a few new queues to keep you on your toes. They're also revamped so the face buttons are displayed in each cardinal direction they represent. This makes it a little easier to react on the fly. Still, if you're not a fan of quick time events, it won't do anything to win you over. If you're the kind of person who needs a game packed with extras, this game does include the same gameplay altering costumes, bonus play, and challenge modes that the previous games included. The replayability is there, should you choose to indulge.

The actual world design is right up there with God of War II. Whether you're fighting inside a titan, travelling through the core of the Earth, or navigating the monolithic labyrinth, the memorable destinations will almost assuredly at some point leave you grinning. This goes along with the games excellent pacing. Previous titles at times left you feeling some intense combat fatigue, just waiting for the endless onslaughts to be over. God of War III does not have this problem, and leaves a comfortable, perfectly timed cushion of platforming and puzzle solving in between nearly every major encounter. The violence has been amped up as well, with some downright cringe inducing and exceptionally creative executions.

Continuing tradition, the story is just as enticing as it has to be. Most plot points and twists are delivered fairly heavy handed. However, for a game of this nature, that's not a bad thing. Leaving too much to the imagination would honestly feel out of place with the heavy hitting nature of the rest of the game. The animated cutscenes are absolutely gorgeous and the art style chosen holds up incredibly well. The ending of the game actually gets remarkably artsy, as well, without spoiling anything. Kratos remains the same anti-hero as always, usually giving you almost no reason to root for him. But that helps give the game character and a solid identity.

As a complete package, God of War III stands up with the titans of the hack and slash genre. There was never a point where I felt bored, or wanted to put it down. It draws you in and keeps you in its grip until you're finished. That, to me, is always the mark of a well made game. There are still the same issues that all the previous games have, but at this point, you shouldn't be surprised by any of them. Every type of game will have its signature quirks, and pure perfection would be a difficult thing to achieve. In the end, though, it's a must-play for the PS3. Just make sure to play the preceding titles first, as the story does chain together pretty closely.

Note: This review is for the remastered PS4 version

I played this game up until mid-fighting the scorpion boss. I guess I wasn't too good at the game considering most people beat it in 8-10 hours, while I myself spent 10 hours at this point.

Overall, it's a good game, but lately due to life getting busy and a long list of games to play, I just couldn't bring myself to come back and finish this game after not playing for a few weeks. However, here are my notes on the game:

Positives:

• Great set pieces - helped create a dark, violent, unsettling atmosphere
• Stellar combat and weapon variety, if a little repetitive. Smooth, easy to use combos were a joy to play.
• Thrilling boss fights
• Slick visuals, looks like a modern game.
• Amazing opening battle scene, loved the variety of monsters and the battles with the giant titans

Negatives:

• Wish I had control of the camera
• Even though I watched "God of War in 5 minutes" on YouTube, I still wish I had a better idea what was going on story-wise so I could understand why Kratos was so damn angry. Even without the context of the first two, the story clearly wasn't spectacular.
• Mediocre acting - I can't think of a single character that did a particularly good job
• The story lost steam for me after the opening hours of the game. In the beginning I felt caught up in the mad dash to kill Zeus, but I kind of forgot about it for some reason in the middle.
• As noted in the "positives," while the combat felt addictive to me at first and loved the easy to use variety of combos, it felt repetitive after a while.
• Really odd sex scene with Aphrodite that uses QTEs, I could have done without it.