God of War - April 13, 2005

The Daily Cardinal
By Jason Ducat

In an industry notorious for rehashing old ideas, making almost everything with the slightest success into a sequel and producing many licensed products, it is refreshing to see the beginning of a new franchise. When the franchise gets started with a game as good as "God of War," there is cause to get extra excited.

From the start, "God of War" shows off its unique gameplay. Few games grab you and suck you in as quickly as this game does. You'll feel more sense of accomplishment after 20 minutes of play than some titles offer as a whole.

In some games the tedium of having to dispense foe after foe wears the player down after a while. This is not the case in "God of War." The excellent fighting system makes doing battle a joy rather than a chore. Control is tight and responsive, and the combo system was actually designed by some of the minds behind the great "Street Fighter" series.

"God of War" features many impressive enemies. Each is perfectly animated and detailed to near perfection, and imaginative opponents constantly pop up on the journey to Hades and back.

The environments contain the type of detail and polish few titles have. In each area it is apparent the developers put a considerable amount of thought into where the platforms and traps exist. When opponents flood the area, it feels as though you're watching one of the most amazing fight scenes ever, only to remember that you're actually in control. When it's all said and done the next area offers even more spectacular action.

For the gamer that needs some motivation for dispensing mythological demons, fear not. The protagonist, Kratos, is very much an anti-hero, but he is also endearing in a macho tough-guy way. Revealing too much would spoil some of the twists and turns "God of War" throws into the mix, but the excellent story is on par with some of the best Hollywood screenplays dealing with Greek mythology and politics.

The reasons for Kratos's quest are explained in flashback form but are never so frequent and long to distract from the action. Despite the narrative, "God of War" remains an action title with a few challenging, but not impossible, puzzles along the way for variety.

Finding something wrong with God of War was not easy, but one thing did stand out. Though no flaw is ever welcome, a problem with a game's length has to be the best complaint a game can receive. Although it is disappointingly short, "God of War" is so rich in things to do that playing through multiple times will be worthwhile.

"God of War" combines the best elements of the best games from the past few years. The game makes use of "Prince of Persia's" platforming, a more user-friendly "Ninja Gaiden" style of combat and "Zelda"-esque puzzles. The graphics and load times actually rival the best that even the Xbox has to offer. It also rounds out as another early contender for 2005 game of the year.