A fantastic delivery of GoW grandeur in a handheld size
God of War: Chains of Olympus is a prequel to the PS2 series. Although it doesn't take the series beyond what's available in the first two titles, it lives up to the reputation you would expect.
The action in the game is classic God of War. A mostly isometric, top down view of your character, Kratos, as he slices, maims, and dismembers bad guys with his twin Blades of Chaos. These stubby swords can be used as you would wield traditional swords, or Kratos can use the chains which tether them to his forearms to swing the blades in a variety of deadly attacks. There's a generous number of combos available, and you can upgrade them for even more devastating moves.
Along your quest you'll also acquire the Gauntlets of Zeus. An awesome weapon that, due to it's limited range, requires you to get a little more intimate with your foes, however it delivers a powerful punch. Some may be disappointed that this is the only alternate offensive weapon in the game, but at least it is one you'll want to use.
On the defence, you will get your hands on the Sun Shield, which can deflect projectile attacks back to where they came from, and offers up some counter-attack moves.
There are three magic attacks also available which provides some form of ranged or area attack. My preference was towards Efreet magic, which summoned a demon-like creature to pound the ground and cause fiery earthquakes. Like your weapons, all magic attacks are upgradeable. Even with the upgrades, I did find the other two magic spells somewhat limited, and it served me just as well to use my regular weapons, except when enemies stayed too far out of reach.
The camera work is as good as any God of War game, which is saying a lot. The controls are also responsive and easy to handle. The change in how you dodge (as there's no R-Stick on the PSP you need to press both shoulder buttons at the same time you're directing the L-Stick) did take some getting use to. It was the only thing about the controls that felt awkward for me; not that the developers had much other choice in the control scheme.
The variety of enemies, and layout of the stages were somewhat predictable. Of course Kratos finds himself battling through Hades as he has in all the other titles. As much as I love the series, even I was thinking "This is getting a little old". I will admit however that the fight out of Hades was one of the more emotional events of the series, considering the situation that was at hand.
The boss fights were of course large, and as fun as ever. And as much as I dislike quick time events (where you must press a button when prompted) God of War does manage to make the most out of them. The action overall is addicting, and the puzzle solving elements you'll come across, although not complex, gives just right balance you need alongside the intense excitement.
One you've completed the main story line, you'll be delighted to see that there's some bonus challenge missions to take on. And these bonus rounds do make for some heavy challenges, which can cause some of the most frustrating moments to be had with the title.
It doesn't add a lot to the series, but following the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" rule has paid off. Despite it being a similar experience to it's big brother counterparts, you'll appreciate the option to having a God of War adventure in the palm of your hand. There's no better way to take this kind of action along with you.Vollständige Rezension lesen
