God of War 2

Kratos is perhaps one character in video games that makes us think of the term "bad ass", but does his reputation hold up in God of War 2? Find out now in this review of God of War II.


image from http://media.ps2.ign.com/media/811/811719/img_4313769.html

nothing beats jumping on a Gryphon, cutting off its wings, and flinging it to the ground. image from http://media.ps2.ign.com/media/811/811719/img_4313775.html

SPOILER: When Kratos, a Spartan, defeated Ares in the last game he becomes the God of War to oversee Mount Olympus, and aid those in battle who beg for his help. Kratos' family was murdered by his rage, and he begged the Gods to erase these memories of his wife and child, so he could live on in peace. Ares set him up to destroy the village of his wife and daughter, as a way of having Kratos belong soley to him, as the Spartan begged for help during a great battle.He then became Ares' personal slave, to destroy and cause chaos to those who defied Ares. When Athena, the patron Goddess of Athens, and rival to Sparta asks for his help to bring down Ares, he is promised that all would be forgiven, and he could live with a clear conscious once more. Little does he know the Gods only promised to forgive him, but he had to still live with the memories of killing his family. When he realized that the Gods have given up on him, Kratos decides to commit suicide by jumping off a cliff. Athena stops him, and brings him to Olympus, where he becomes the new God of War, and claim the throne for himself. END SPOILER

image from http://www.nlgaming.com/games/3781/logo/logo.jpg
God of War 2 has about the same mechanics as before, but some new mechanics such as grappling have made the game more interesting to play. New bosses arrise in this game, as well as a return of some creatures prior to the last one. The mythological creatures are anatomically correct, which makes the game as realistic as possible. God of War 2 also allows the player to turn on and off the Rage of the Titans, which you receive releasing Prometheus. This is a step up when Kratos could not pause the Rage of the Gods. Instead of Athena helping him along this time around, it is Gaia who aides him in his quest. Kratos' quest is of course to seek revenge on the Gods, and kill the "King of Olympus" himself, Zeus. The one problem now is, he has lost all his godly powers when he was ricked to give them up by putting them into a sword that defeated the Titans. So Kratos start out as a mortal, and close to death. This is where Zeus kills him, and he seeks out the God for revenge.
God of War 2 makes you meet several Titans along the way, such as Gaia, Chronos, Rhea, Atlas, and Typhon. Much of the mythology sticks true to the actual mythology in textbooks, which makes the game quite interesting, and any mythology buff will like to see this story play out on the console game. Very few flaws are in this amazingly beautiful game. If played on an HD screen, it looks astounding at times, but can have the flaws show through in another, but the cutscenes are spectacular. For a PS2 game, this looks at times to be wearing a PS3's clothing, which adds just a little extra spice to the game's already amazing look. Speaking of technical specks, the sound on this game is amazing, in surround sound, it owns. The soundtrack is amazing, as well as the subtle ambience in-between. The environmental sounds could have been added into the ambience better, like a waterfall lightly splashing in the background may have sounded a little nicer in-between tracks; it does not take away from how well the music plays to this game.
This game is a must for PS2 owners who do not want to buy a PS3 or Xbox 360, in all honesty, this system has a lot of life left in it, and I don't see it dying out anytime soon. With several more very impressive titles still ready to launch, I am amazed at how well the PS2 is doing, I honestly think that the PS3 SHOULD have been released later on, since the PS2 is not even out of the race yet. To conclude, if you own a PS2, buy God of War 2, and if you never played the original God of War, buy that as well, it is a Greatest Hits now, and would only cost $20.00 or less. These two games are what owning a PS2 is all about, and are a must for those who love platformer action/adventure games.


Good puppy, a worthy adversary in God of War 2 image from http://www.armchairempire.com/images/previews/ps2/god-war-ii/god-war-ii-5.jpg