God of War is a videogame for the Sony PlayStation 2 console released on March 22, 2005. The game is an action/adventure game based off Greek Mythology.

Story

The game begins with the hero of the game, Kratos, abandoned by the gods, casting himself off the highest cliff in Greece. The game itself then goes back three weeks prior, showing the events leading up to his unfortunate fate as he is sent on a mission to save the city of Athens by slaying Ares, the God of War.

The plot involves many characters from Greek Mythology, but includes new stories about them, such as an alternate imprisonment for Cronus, a new use for Pandora's Box, and different versions of the Hydra and Minotaur. Regular foes include Gorgons, Harpies, Cyclopes, smaller Minotaurs, Centaurs, Satyrs, and Cerberus-like dogs.

Gameplay

The gameplay is similar to other 3rd-person action games, such as the Devil May Cry, Ninja Gaiden, and Onimusha. God of War's combat system is context-based, meaning that Kratos' actions are often determined as much by the enemy's position around him as the button pressed. Like other adventure games, such as Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, it involves a fair amount of puzzles that require completion to progress in the game. Also like Prince of Persia, the puzzles are mostly mechanical in nature and often coincide with combat to make them more challenging.

Throughout the game, the Gods aid Kratos by bestowing their weapons and powers upon him. Kratos gains the ability to unleash a storm of electricity from Poseidon, thunderbolts from Zeus, the souls of the damned from Hades, wield a giant sword from Artemis, or even turn enemies to stone using the head of Medusa.

Kratos

Kratos was born in the Greek city-state of Sparta, where combat was a way of life. At the time, children were tested to determine their strength and potential for becoming a soldier. The weaker or inept children were either caged or killed. Out of this cruel childhood came a man who would become a warrior of great renown. Kratos was feared throughout the civilized world as relentless and even invincible, infamous for his murderous battle tactics. Countless men, women, and children alike fell to his blade. It was said that his wife was the only person who could stand up to his fury. When she questioned his actions, he claimed to be fighting for the glory of Sparta. She thought differently, feeling that he fought more for himself than any noble ideal.

Then came the day that Kratos could never have foreseen - the day that he met his match on the battlefield. His army, which had grown from a mere fifty men to a force of thousands, faced off against the barbarian hordes from the northeast. In these new enemies the Spartans found their own brutality surpassed, and in a mere few hours, the battle seemed to be lost. Kratos himself lay at the feet of the Barbarian leader, seconds away from being bludgeoned into oblivion. It was at this critical juncture that he called out for help from the gods. He called the name of Ares, pledging his eternal loyalty if only the God of War would destroy his enemies.

Ares, having seen the potential of a god in this mere mortal, answered Kratos's plea and ripped the Barbarian hordes apart in seconds. He gave Kratos the "Blades of Chaos", phenomenal weapons forged in the fires of Hades. They consisted of twin wide-bladed swords fastened to the end of long metal chains, which themselves were wrapped around Kratos's arms and fused to his flesh. In the blink of an eye, the tides had turned. Kratos, instantly an expert with his new weapons, decapitated the Barbarian leader.

True to his word, Kratos did Ares's bidding from that day forth. His former savagery paled in comparison to what he would do under the God of War's watchful eye; he sacked and burned villages and towns that dared to offer prayers to any other god. The destruction of one village in particular, one loyal to Athena, would become the turning point in his life. As the village lay in ruins, Kratos made his way to the temple at its rear, where aging Oracle warned him not to proceed. She claimed that the temple was forbidden to him, that he must not enter. Kratos ignored her pleas, his curiosity and arrogance getting the better of him. He carved a path through the temple attendants who dared to stand in his way, blinded by his bloodlust. As he struck his final two victims, however, everything changed.

Kratos fell to his knees, the bodies of his wife and daughter lying before him, slain by his own hand. But what were they doing here in this obscure village? He had left them in Sparta. It wasn't long before he realized the truth. Ares, who had once saved his life, had elaborate designs for him. The image of the God of War appeared before him, and explained that the death of his wife and child were meant to sever the last vestige of his humanity, to forge him into the greatest warrior the world would ever know. It was at this moment that Kratos decided he could no longer serve his master, and in the years that followed he sought absolution from the other gods.

Ares himself attacked Athens, his sister Athena's patron city, as a testament to his superiority. By Zeus's law, the gods could not fight amongst themselves, and so the task of stopping Ares would have to fall to a mortal. The only way to stop him, however, was to kill him. Although he was their kin, the other gods did not favor Ares, and sought the aid of Kratos - the one person they felt capable and willing to take on the challenge. This would be his final task - completing it would grant him their forgiveness for his past transgressions.

Thus did Kratos set off on his quest, which would take him through Athens, across the Desert of Lost Souls, and climaxing with his trials in the Temple of Pandora. There he was to secure Pandora's Box, the only weapon powerful enough to kill a god...

Screenshots

External links

• Official Site
• Metacritic Reviews
• Blog of Game Designer David Jaffe
• Website of Game Programmer Thomas Miller IV