"Surpasses its predecessor"

God of War 2 follows up straight from the end of God of War 1. He takes the throne after (this will contain spoilers if you did not finish God of War 1) - killing Ares.

This has a ton of new features, a new look and feel. It feels a bit more free, then again God of War 1 DID feel very free. But you feel even lighter(which is good) Kratos has the same voice actor. But he has a more angry tone(which you will love).

Storyline 10/10

The storyline is awesome, it is more deep than God of War 1. Without giving it away, the main idea is Kratos journies to the Island of Time to seek out the 3 sisters of fate. In order to avenge his death and change his fate.

After the first hour of the game it will completely compell you in. While God of War 1 had a great storyline, it is just more deep here.

Sound/Music 10/10

The music is great. It fits the combat really well and there is a variety of soundtracks. Different areas means a different set of music. It keep your adenaline going.

Voice Acting 10/10

Kratos...has..the...best...voice ever!
There is alot of bosses with amazing voice acting. Very well done. Kratos has a more angry tone in this one(as I have mentioned) which is part of its different feel. Its the same Narrator, but the Narrator makes an appearance as a character!

Graphics 10/10

I don't want realistic graphics for this game. The game has more shiny effects, and is a tad bit upgraded. It has a more vibrant feel. As you are in outside WAY more. There isn't as much intererior. The more exterior makes the experience more enjoyable. Can't ask for more. There is still the high - res movies that play for certain cutscenes.

Gameplay 10/10(Oh my..)

God of War 1 & 2 has argueably the BEST combat system in any other game that is out there. There is 4 weapons, each one is unique with its own set of combos. I do not want to give the surprise away of course.They all look cool and have some bloody attacks, and are highly explotable. There is new magic too, but Posedion's Rage takes place in the beginning of the game. The magic has some pretty cool animations and each have its own uses.

Your weapons you can upgrade to do more damage and aquire new moves with red orbs from enemies, chests and the all special Fat Red Orb Chest.

Remember Rage of The Gods? Of course you do! Well you obtain Rage of the Titans here. It reduces the damage you take, does a fiery animation around you & gives some special attacks for Athena's Blades. Unlike Rage of The Gods you can cancel its use at any time, so you can save the rest of the use later. Enemies will yeild health orbs, magic orbs & rage of the titan orbs.

There are difficulty levels: Mortal(Easy) Spartan(Normal) God(Hard) Titan Mode(Very Hard) You can only play Titan Mode if you beat the game atleast once. This is harder than the Very Hard mode on God of War 1. The enemies do more damage, you take more damage. You get less mana orbs, health orbs & experience orbs.

You can upgrade your health & magic with Gorgon Eyes & Phenoix Feathers just like the first. However unlike the first there is more of them than you can upgrade all your health with. So as soon as you've upgrading health, they will be red orb chests.

There are Urn's you can find and collect in the game. Once you beat the game you can play in Bonus mode with all your stats you have whilst you beat the game. The urn's are availible in this mode. You can also use costumes you unlocked there is 7 or 8 costumes if I remember. They all look cool and have its own special powers.

There is one thing I will give away, the Amulet of Fates. You aquire this pretty early in the game. It has the ability to slow time if a glowing green statue or anything holding it is availible. It is used for puzzles, and to help with some battles( Its barley availible in battle though)

Ah yes, Puzzles!

Puzzles 7/10

Way less puzzles than God of War 1 and not as hard. The puzzles are pretty good not the greatest. But to me it is a break, so I give it 7/10. Some may take some thinking and don't get me wrong its great.

Unlockables 10/10

Remember Challenge of The Gods? Well. There is the Challenge of The Titans! It of course has different challenges and the option to save your progress so you dont have to do the whole thing over again to get to the challenge you're stuck on. You get rankings for each challenge, then your over all. God ranking gets a new costume. Titan ranking unlocks the Arena of Fates!

The Arena of Fates gives you the ability to play on YOUR terms. With an option of what enviroment to play in, you can spawn ANY enemy and set if they attack, move or respawn. You can just a certain number of them. And the choice of Infinite Mana, Health, Rage(if you want..)

So that covers the unlockables, pretty sweet huh? Way better than God of War 1!

Rent or Buy?

Buy! of course. If you loved God of War 1(or even hated it) you WILL love God of War 2!

Overall 10/10

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/13/07