God of War 3 worth the hype

By D.J. Ochoa

After three years in development and with gamers counting down the days until they can play God of War 3, the wait is finally over.

GOW3 marks the finale in Kratos’ search for vengeance towards the gods and the end of this exciting tale.

With the development team at Sony Santa Monica working countless hours on the trilogy, the big question is if GOW3 was worth the hype? The answer is, absolutely.

This is definitely a GOW game. The development team has not made any drastic alterations in the fighting mechanics, which is a good move on their part.

Like the old saying goes, “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.” GOW3 takes that to the core of their being by polishing the combat system.

If you have picked up any early versions of GOW, you will be happy to know that not much in the fighting sequences has changed.

The same hack-and-slash combos are still relevant, but seeing the Ghost of Sparta dismembering his foes on the Playstation 3 platform is a wonder in itself.

With no computer-generated scenes in the game, GOW3 is profoundly the best looking game to date.

The only game that can measure up to its visual stature would be “Uncharted 2: Among Thieves,” which is also a PS3 exclusive.

For those searching for revolution in the fighting design, you might be sold a little short. However, this latest installment in the franchise will have gamers in sheer amazement.

What has worked brilliantly for the franchise in the past still stands strong and ahead of any other video game. GOW3 has revolutionized the meaning of “scale” and brutality from beginning to end.

There are some moments in the game where Kratos scales titan creatures that are visually larger than any New York City skyscraper. The eye-popping visuals of these moments is nothing short of astonishing.

Playable sequences that take place in real time while riding these enormous creatures is both enjoyable to watch and play.

The first level will surely leave gamers with jaws wide open when the Ghost of Sparta climbs Mount Olympus on the back of the titan Gaia with an entourage of titans by his side. However, it will not be the last time you will be amazed by the game’s visuals.

The brutality gives GOW3 a well-deserved ‘mature’ rating.

Countless scenes of blood, gore, body parts being dismembered and Kratos’ body being stained with his enemies’ blood make this GOW game more gruesome than its predecessors.

The brutality takes a larger leap, as the player can perform moves on enemies that are stunning and will make you want more.

However, the brutality is nowhere near over-the-top because Greek mythology was a time filled with gruesome torment.

Combat in the game will have any action junkie coming back for a second helping.

Kratos has four primary weapons that he acquires down his path, and all of them work very well together. The weapons include his infamous Blades of Exile, the Nemesis Whip, Nemean Cestus and the Claws of Hades.

Each weapon is fully upgradeable and has its own unique magic powers.

The only weapon that works differently from the others is the Nemean Cestus, which looks similar to a pair of boxing gloves carved out of iron in the shape of a lion’s head. The rest of the weapons have different moves and looks, but each work the same.

One attribute that is very handy while dealing with a mob of enemies is the ability to change weapons in real time.

At one moment a player can be slicing and dicing advisories with the Nemesis Whip, and the next can be pummeling them with the Nemean Cestus.

This makes the gameplay extremely enjoyable as the player can rack up combo moves while switching between weapons.

There are also more enemies that appear on the screen for the player to battle against, and it’s very fun to grab one and use it as a battering ram to kill the rest.

With out-of-this-world visuals, a compelling story line and gameplay that will never be forgotten, GOW3 is undoubtedly the most memorable game that has been released this year.

GOW3 will make fans of action games save up their hard-earned money to play this classic fable.