Having just played the bombastic, grandiose to a fault God of War: Ascension, God of War: Chains of Olympus was a nice palate cleanser. Originally a PSP title (I played in on the PS3's God of War Origins Collection), Chains of Olympus is understandably God of War on a smaller scale. The action, cinematics and size are all toned down to a bite-sized portion. This isn't quite as challenging or engaging as the God of War titles made for the console, but it still succeeds at being entertaining.

I almost wish I would've played it on the PSP, since it feels underwhelming at points when played on a console. Yet I imagine I would've found it a nice experience as a grab-and-go title.

The most surprising aspect of Chains of Olympus for me is the way the game utilizes Kratos' backstory in a way I always feel the other games lack. There's a heartache at the core of the God of War franchise that is rarely seen, but in the final chapter of Chains of OIympus, the game plays around with Kratos' story with his child that I appreciated, and felt quite emotionally resonant, especially for a portable title.

If I had played Chains of Olympus on its own, I don't know that I would've admired its strengths the way I do when playing the entire God of War series in chronological order. It's not nearly as great as the other games in this series, but as a smaller scale rendition of this franchise, it's quite good.

This title is one of the most technically impressive and narratively engaging titles ever released for the PlayStation Portable. It serves as a prequel to the original God of War, delving into Kratos’s years of servitude to the gods before his rebellion against Olympus. The story follows him on a journey to save the world from eternal darkness after the sun mysteriously vanishes, leading him through mythological realms filled with danger, betrayal, and emotional turmoil.

For a handheld game, it delivers a remarkable presentation, the visuals push the PSP to its limits, featuring richly detailed environments, cinematic camera angles, and fluid animations that rival its PlayStation 2 predecessors. This was one of the most demanding titles for the platform, especially when it comes to the balancing between performance and battery life. The combat system remains faithful to the series’ core, fast-paced, visceral, and deeply satisfying.

Magic abilities and brutal finishing moves add variety, while the game’s boss fights stand out as both challenging and spectacular, so more of the same and if you already liked the previous titles, there is no excuse not to like this one too. What truly sets the game apart is how well it captures the tone and emotional depth of the mainline entries. Despite its shorter runtime, it balances large-scale action with moments of vulnerability, especially in Kratos’s interactions with his daughter, Calliope.

The orchestral soundtrack and powerful voice acting further enhance the cinematic experience, making it easy to forget you’re playing on a handheld device. In the end, this game stands as a masterclass in adapting console-quality gameplay and storytelling to portable form. It’s a thrilling, emotionally charged experience that proves even a smaller screen can contain epic tales of gods and vengeance.

After playing the first two games, I decided to hop into the next God of War release before jumping straight into God of War III. I played the PS3 version acutally on PS3 since Playstation removed the digital streaming version in the PS Now to PS Plus conversion, and it played quite well.

This game's story seemed more eventful to me than the original God of War, and close to "on par" with God of War II. I felt that the story actually had some developments, and that it had some emotional weight. The problem is knowing that this is a prequel, and having played the first two games, this PSP title fails introduce new concepts as opposed to the "Kratos still can't get over his family" moments that were in the first game. I do like the backstory of Kratos and Atlas' history, which was hinted at in God of War II.

The gameplay is simply another God of War. The game played very similar with just a little bit less depth which was expected coming from the PSP. I used primarily the Blades of Chaos and the Fire ability, but I did experiment with the alternate weapon gauntlet and the other magic abilities. Everything was fine enough, and the enemies were nothing special or unique coming from the previous titles. Overall this game felt easier on normal, and progressed quickly. I was also able to level up every ability to max and finish the game in 4 hours. If I had played this on PSP, I would have been impressed, but as a console game it was a good long gaming session.

I don't have much to say on the graphics. In some ways this looked good with the upscale for the PS3 version, while other textures felt flat. The music was also solid as always, but I don't recall anything notable to mention.

Overall, this is a great weekend romp or one long gaming session. The game offered some intriguing details in the God of War lore while in other ways being somewhat unremarkable. It's worth experiencing if you want to dive deeper than just the mainline games, but doesn't feel necessary to series as a whole.

7/10

God of War: Chains of Olympus is one of two prequels originally developed for the PSP. Kratos fights the major Greek gods in the canonical series, so in this entry, Kratos battles Greek mythology’s B-List. After defending the city of Attica against Persian invaders, Morpheus plunges the land into darkness after he imprisoned Helios. Kratos must travel to the underworld in order to free Helios to ensure the survival of both Olympus and the mortal world.

Set before the events of God of War and its sequels, this game fills out the story before Kratos began his quest for revenge against the Greek pantheon. As such, Kratos spends time serving Olympus, rather than seeking its destruction. Anyone with a basic knowledge of Greek mythology will find much to cringe about. While the game’s narrative demands concessions from the source material, a deeper interaction with the underlying myths could have improved the plot. Interaction with the underlying Greek myths does not extend beyond using names and basic biographical data of Greek gods and heroes. Most frustrating are outright mistakes, most obvious being Attica, a region and not a city. Even though this has no impact on the overall game, this carelessness demonstrates a lack of respect for the source material.

While ported to the PS3, the PSP roots of the game are clear. The game looks and plays like a PSP game. The graphics are rough and the control scheme is not naturally adapted for the Dualshock controller. The environments are limited, making the search for Phoenix Feathers and Gorgon Eyes relatively easy. Upgrading health and magic are vital in order to survive the fights late in the game. Upgrading weapons and abilities is likewise vital in order to survive the game’s conclusion. While there are a small number of environmental puzzles, the objectives are relatively straightforward. Save points are generously scattered across levels, which, along with checkpoints, lessens backtracking when one dies.

It would be unfair to be overly critical of the graphical and technical shortcomings on the PS3 of a game originally developed on the PSP. The wider availability of an entry in one of Sony’s best headline franchises is something to be commended. Considered on its own merits, Chains of Olympus tells an interesting story. The combat is fluid and satisfying. The difficulty progression is fair, as long as one is diligent to upgrade abilities and equipment. The most emotionally resonant moment, Kratos encounter with his daughter in Hades is a reward to those who have a fuller knowledge of the larger narrative.

Overall, Chains of Olympus is a decent secondary edition to the God of War franchise. On its own, relegated to a secondary platform, the entry was the best it could possibly be within the limits placed on it. But, these considerations aside, Chains of Olympus is still only a fair game. The success of this entry was not based on its own merits, but on the merits of the other games in the franchise.