"Tonight we dine in..."

Sorry about the cliche 300 lines, but just reflect on your experiences with mythology. What comes to mind? Zeus? Perhaps his son Hercules comes to mind? Or maybe Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom was your first thought. Whatever comes to your mind, chances are it was included in the atmospherically brilliant game - God of War. Enriched in Greek myth, God of War featured a dynamic combat system, luscious graphics, fleshed out storyline, and an involving atmosphere. Kratos makes his triumphant return in the much anticipated sequel. Triumphant should be emphasized. God of War II improves on its predecessor by cleaning up the minimal problems it had. Spartans are just too damn cool to not compare them to another contemporary work of art - 300 the movie.

After Ares' demise, Kratos ascended to being the God of War. But unfortunately, our friend Kratos isn't one who follows orders very well. The new God of War has become a nuisance to the rest of the Gods of Olympus. The Gods conspire against Kratos and strip him of his power. Being the badass that he is, he continued his rampage. Seeking revenge for those that betray him, Kratos is off once again to destroy all that is in his path.

Give Zeus nothing, take from him everything!

From the opening moments of the game, Kratos' sheer wickedness was shown immediately. After being shrunk down to size so to speak, the real action began. By wielding two unworldly blades with far reaching devastation, it showed once again the devastating effects of this unique weapon. Kratos' weapon is what ultimately separates the two God of War games from other action titles. Although our Spartan warrior wielded numerous weapons throughout the game, the blades ultimately allowed for better combos.

A common misconception about the series is the lack of depth. Misconstrue by blind fanboyism, the reality is God of War is packing with depth. When it comes to combat, God of War II isn't exactly Ninja Gaiden or Devil May Cry; it's an entity of its own featuring a plethora of combinations that a user can perform. Kratos has plenty of moves that allow players a variety of ways to crush and dispose of enemies – enemies that come in bunches for slaughtering. God of War II certainly has more depth than most action titles.

The combat system itself featured moves that felt like it was derived from Hades himself. It was brutal enough. The engine itself was a blend of a dial up and a free form system. There were certainly fixed combos for the user to use, but there were also situations where the user could engage in a more artistic style of killing his foes. For example, there will be times where our Spartan warrior will launch his foes into the air, and he can throw his blade like a grappling tool and drag that piece of meet right back to the ground. Furthermore, a player can choose to jump high above the ground and perform a mid-air slash to punish his opponent in mid-flight. Playing around with the combat system during the early parts of the game showed the incredible depth and precision of the system. The combo system had a great blend that allowed users both freedom and linearity.

To mix things up a bit, Kratos also has plenty of other tools at his disposal. Magic for instance can help aid you in battle. Throughout the game, Kratos will get sub-weapons and magic to aid his struggle against the God's of Olympus. For instance, Kratos can fry his enemies with a fury of lightning much like Zeus. Not to mention, the Spartan warrior wielded the power of a Titan and sent quakes from underneath. To make things more interesting, a player can choose to see how he/she can mix up the blades and sub-weapons together. If you launch an enemy into the air, you could shoot it with your arrows. If you prefer, you can strike your enemy with lightning and then unleash a powerful string of attacks. God of War II is really a magnificent creation that mixed and blended everything together so well and at the same time, maintained its cohesiveness without straying too far from its predecessors' successful formula.

The mistakes of the previous game (a minimal amount) have been rectified in this game. People complained about the length of the first one, and this one is noticeably longer. People complained about the lack boss fights, and this one is packing with intense and epic battles. The full package is offered in the epic, as everything you would come to expect from a great game is present. Ranging from glorious battles with beasts and Gods that reach the skies and block out the sun; it made the battles epic from the overwhelming beginning with the intensity involved to the satisfying end when you slay the wretched beats.

Then we will fight in the shade…

A new aspect added to the game is the fights involved with Pegasus. The giant bird took Kratos high above ancient Greece, where the God of War enacted his rage upon his enemies. During the battles in the sky, players can attack with Kratos. After a while, an icon indicated the beast was ripe for the killing. With one quick leap and a brutal stabbing with Kratos' powerful blades, the flying beast has its wings ripped from its sockets.

Kratos' death defying acts and amazing power sends fear to Olympus itself.

Of course, it wouldn't be a true sequel to God of War if there weren't any button sequences that left nothing but devastation behind. Much like the first game, there will be enemies and bosses that require the player to press a series of button to finish off its victim in brutal and gory fashion. Ah, the gore – it was such a beautiful thing as our Spartan warrior ripped body parts out, punctured flesh, and crushed his enemies' bones. God of War II was bloody, it was intense, and more than anything, it was cohesive.

Level design felt interconnected and cohesive. There was a nice blend of action and puzzles. Although the puzzles weren't hard, it was a nice change of pace from the brilliant action that God of War II offers. By having this nice blend of action and puzzles, the game had a great pacing throughout the game. Throw in the nice amount of bosses spread across the game, and you have an immensely well proportionate game with numerous aspects being covered. The bosses for the most part also felt well balanced. There were traditional boss fights, where it required Kratos to slaughter the wicked beast. But there were times, where the player had to devise a more unique approach to killing a boss (the button sequences).

War isn't easy…

Another particular thing that made God of War II stand out is its increased difficulty. Many complained about God of War being too easy, so the developers made a harder quest this time around. Unlike the first, save points felt scarce, as it forced players to manage their life and magic more carefully. Scarcity of save points were one factor in making the game more difficult, but the game's improved A.I over its predecessor was also a key element in this improvement. Enemies were aggressive and did a fantastic job at ganging up on the user. One particular thing that I noticed was some of the enemies were able to block and counter effectively. This forced the player to be more strategic in the approach to tackle the enemies.

From a technical standpoint, it couldn't have been better. Utilizing the Playstation 2, it produced gorgeous visuals. The animation ran smoothly. The graphics were effective in its intended appeal. It was extra gory, with beautiful animation to showcase the bloodbath that was inflicted by Kratos. There were some graphical hiccups, but for the most part, the game ran extremely well. Character models were also nicely depicted and filled with detail. Similarly, the musical score match every death defying move that Kratos did. Each powerful beat from the drums and an ancient Greece score that filled your warrior spirit with contempt to exact revenge on those that wronged you.

Another masterful God of War game?
This is Madness!

Just when you thought that God of War couldn't have gotten any better, a longer and harder sequel was introduced to PS2 owners. Packed with more puzzles and enemies to kill, God of War II has set the bar just like its predecessor has. It doesn't have the style of Devil May Cry, nor does it have the incredible A.I that Ninja Gaiden had, but what it did was challenge both incredible games in its best categories. God of War II was a dream sequel that offered more of what we loved. Even though the PS3 is out and the PS2 is on its last legs, God of War II certainly helps the system make one last push. This game may have been the last push to transcend the PS2 as perhaps one of the best consoles of all time. God of War II was simply a masterpiece that no one should miss.

This is God of War!

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 03/26/07