God of War 3 (PS3)

One of the most anticipated games to be sure. It is one of the few games I find that really stands out from the others. For those that don't know already, this game is set in Ancient Greece where a fued amongst the gods has insued. I won't get into every new changes made in the game, I will point out the major ones. So lets get onto the review of the game. The moment you pick up your controller and dive in, you immediate reaction is just 'Wow'. The first five minutes just give you but a taste of how epic the rest of the game is going to be. You are not stuck in some tedious flashback or 'XX Years ago' scenario but you are exactly where you want to be, battling and struggling up Mt. Olympus to reach Zues along with the Titans (And trust me, it's a struggle to be sure!). I found that the game opened up after this leaving with the player some new questions, making them eager to continue. God of War has always had a mix between battles and Puzzles set on truely fantastic backdrop, but in this game, at least visually, they have gone a step further. Puzzles don't usually require that much effort and are spread out far enough so it never seems to get too frustrating. It's only a matter of time before you step into another fight. A big portion of the game is fighting a ton of various creatures and undead soldiers, what the game developers like to call 'Grunts'. After playing the first two games to death I can honestly say that the combat seems more chaotic and ruthless. There are many more enemies this time so you are always on the edge trying to do your best without getting hit, whether from behind or that Minotaur about to charge at you. There is nothing more statisfying in this game than walking out of a fight without getting damaged, as the weapon system trully makes you feel like a god and is very appealing to watch. There are combat moves just about every action in the game; for example, after dodging an enemy you can follow up with a counter-attack. Blocking is also forgiving as you dont have to block the enemy directly facing them. There are various weapons in the game, ranging from the famous 'Chaos Blades' or in this game, rightly named 'Blades of Exile', to a massive brute force weapon called the Cestus. Out of the four melee weapons availiable, dissapointingly I found only two of actual any use in the game. The normal blades can adapt to any situation required in this game, making them my personal choice throughout. I found that the Cestus is another weapon I use frequently, as it offers a different fighting style and is required for quite a few puzzles and enemies. The other two act so similar to the Blades that I wonder why they are there. Granted, they do have their moments in a fight but it does seem like a rash re-copy of the Blades. It would be nice to see some different weapons that offer a different fighting style like the Cestus does in this game. All of the weapons can be quickly changed mid combo while fighting which makes for some interesting fights. Another unique and welcome addition to the game is that some of the items you find no longer uses mana or magic in order to use them like in previous titles. They use a seperate bar called the 'Item Guage' which recharges quickly. This is an awesome thing, as all of the items that use this gauge can be used in combat, not just for puzzles. The use of the items is instant (unless you charge it of course), and given the nature of combat in this game, it's a no brainer really. It adds alot more diversity to simple 'button mashing' as some of these types of games are prone to becoming. There are four Magic Spells in the game, one for each type of weapon. These are very appealing, I got quite a shock the first time I used the Blade's Spell as it crashes down onto the screen (I won't spoil any new things). All in all this is one epic game. However, is it perfect? No. There are some flaws in the game, as with any other game out there and God of War is no different. I have already picked up on the weapons, but some other aspects seem to waver too. The thing that dissapoints me most is the story. As with the previous titles, the story wasn't is exactly the best. This being the last title in the series, I thought however that they may raise this bar to a new level too, but unfortunatly it falls short, staying under the shadow of it's predecessors. Having played the game through all in one go, I can safely say that there are portions of the game where you simply just wade through fights and puzzles, with a short dialogue scene to nudge you in the right direction. I would of liked to have seen Kratos in a few more situations where it wasn't just smashing someone's face in. The game admittedly started to redeem itself towards the latter part of the game, which was a nice touch, but in my opinion was far too late in the series to have any lasting effect on me. The games also revolves around a very mechanical world, as nearly every obstacle in our way seems man made. This is not a bad thing, quite the opposite in fact. This is what makes this game and that is it's style, but seeing as we are on Olympus, home of the gods in this game, I would have liked to seen something a little more organic; at least for a small portion of the game, just to see what Kratos (us) would do if we didn't have to pull a lever or crank some cogs into place. A minor note to add is that not all of the Olympian Gods are not in the game (Dionysus and Artemis to name a couple) but given the scale and focus of the game, it is very understandable. In conclusion then, this is one fantastic game. The charcter and level designs are great, the combat is simply godly and is one of the most brutal cinematic experiences I have played in a game. This one cannot be missed. A few flaws that you may not agree with, but if they touched up on some of the issues, I would have given it a prefect number. For the sake of the rating system, I gave it 5 stars as the gameplay more than makes up for anything else the game falls short on. If i was to give it a number rating, a 9/10. Hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

The third instalment in the God of War series (bar the PSP spinoffs) and the closing chapter to the trilogy (before Sony decided to create Ascension), this is a stunning goodbye to a series that's revelled in it's scale and journey as much as it's accessible, yet rewarding and challenging combat. The previous GoW games squeezed every last drop of power from the Playstation 2, and GoW3 is no different in it's attitude on the PS3. Playing it now, some 3 years after it's original release, it's still got to be in the top 3 most impressive games I've ever seen, in terms of scale and graphical fidelity. From the pores on Kratos' skin to the screen filling bosses, this is stunning stuff and leaves me wondering: do we need the next gen yet? Music, always a strong point in the series, is strong again here. Sound effects are meaty and satisfying and the enthusiastic voicework is very entertaining. If you've played GoW1 or 2 then you'll be right at home here. The basic moveset and button map is the same, powerful, weighty stuff you've come to expect, but this time around there are new secondary weapons and magic attacks. You'll likely level up Kratos' famous blades and stick with them, and perhaps there's a little too many extras in the mix, but they're fun to experiment with anyway. Puzzles make a welcome return in a gaming landscape that tends to leave nothing to interpretation. You won't be stuck for long, but puzzles offer a welcome change of pace and pause for consideration. It's very much GoW but bigger and in high def. No reboot or big shake-up here. Just what I wanted.

A great game, enjoyed as mauch of it as i could play, but it got to a point where i couldnt, the audio went and weaponry vanished meaning i couldnt attack, this is not the quality i expected, makes it worse that another order from you was cancelled due the game being 'broken beyond repair', its a shame as up to this point my history with zoverstocks has been good, you are my number one choice when it comes to buying used games and dvds, i expect them to work!

I ordered the normal Version ofGod of war 3 on the Photo. I have got the Essetial version of God of War 3!

BY POPULAR DEMAND: SPOILER ALERT! Wow. I could end it there but that would be a pretty bad review so I'll continue! This game has been surrounded by a LOT of hype and for once, this is a game that delivers 100% on the promise of greatness. I must admit I didn't have extraordinarily high hopes for this game as I assumed it would be more of the same but with better graphics. In a way, this is true but the shear scale of the game means that even though you spend a lot of the time beating the snot out of hoardes of enemies just like you did in the first 2 games, you never once find yourself thinking "been there, done that". As an example of this scale, there are several instances where you are fighting off minions while scaling a living level in the form of a titan, including even a boss battle on the arm of Gaia. This means that the level itself is constantly moving and changing so you have to deal with this as well as a water god shooting stuff at you! The best example of the great use of the titans is the battle against Chronos, you are fighting off baddies on his arm while the titan himself tries to squash you and blow you away! In the past, other games that have tried this approach have usually just had a stationary face of a character in the background with no real interaction, here however, the titans are living breathing characters, not just there for show! In terms of additions to the tried and tested formula, there are the expected trinkets such as additional weapons etc. These weapons, which you acquire at various stages in the game (usually by killing one of the gods or titans)are however not the largely useless additions that were seen in GOW1 and 2. Each has their own strengths and as such you will find yourself using them for more than just puzzle solving. For instance, Hades' Claws are great for crowd control but not really quick enough for larger enemies where you have to hit and run to avoid getting squashed. For this purpose the blades of exile are best. And then for unbridled power there are the cestus. These are my favourite as they are capable of a limited amount of crowd control and they are strong enough to make even the largest of enemies stagger. The boss fight against hercules where you get these cestus is brilliant too. All in all it is a mixture of the scale and the the little touches in this game which I found really impressive. Following the Hercules fight, you find yourself in a sewer with his lifeless body floating on the surface of the water, just this little touch was brilliant. You even get to give it to Aphrodite! Go Kratos go! The addition of Helio's head is good too. I don't know about the rest of you but I didn't really find the gorgon heads very useful in the first 2 games. I think this is because the gorgon head was only really useful in combat and I preferred to just charge in with my blades. Helios's head however is based on using light rather than stone. This means that you use it in dark areas and to uncover secret items. It also plays a major part in the Chronos battle. Overall, the additions in the game just seem to have more meat to them rather than having additions for the sake of it. Just one gripe so far, the boss battles are very unforgiving, particularly Posioden (Hades is no push over either!). I am currently on the final battle with Zeus and he is an absolute git (making copies of himself like the spammy sod he is) so hopefully I'll find the right tactic soon! Another thing which will amaze you is the pure ferocity of Kratos's mission. In the first two games, the killing of a god was a once in a game thing (Ares in GOW1 and Athena in GOW2). This is not the case in GOW3. So far, I have killed Posoidon, Helios, Hades, Hermes, Hercules, Hera, Hephaestus, Chronos and had a damn good go at killing Gaia. All this on top of killing the other creatures like massive minotaurs, cyclopses, chimeras, centaurs, gorgons and huge scorpions. Zeus, you're next!!

If you have played previous games in the series, it's more of the same hack and slash fighting and "on the rails" exploration. Puzzles are interesting and sometimes tricky. Boss fights are good. The very end section is frustratingly difficult to complete but rewarding, and the game finishes quite abruptly. Great game, but the original God of War game was better. Mature themes and violent, not suitable for young audiences.

I'd like to give a big thanks to everyone that worked on God Of War 1, 2 and now 3 for giving us what I can only describe as some of the best video game entertainment ever. The trilogy as a whole ranks up there and probably beats any video game series you care to mention, and the third chapter is utterly brilliant. This chapter shines in the same areas that the others did when they were released: It's raised the bar for what was thought technically possible on the console; its scale is unmatched; the soundtrack is once again worthy of a AAA movie; game play / combat controls / combat balance is nigh on perfect; graphically its the best I've ever seen. The opening battle with the Leviathan will live long in the memory. Its been a long three year wait to play the final chapter of the Kratos story, and unbelievably the team at Santa Monica studios have managed to meet expectations - and it didn't happen by accident - just take a look at some of the other video game titles out there to see how easy it is to get wrong. The entire team responsible for delivering this software product deserve a bonus / promotion / raise for their efforts. 5/5 Edit: Now that I've fully completed the game I can say that in terms of story telling God Of War 1 is best. The pace of the story feels right and it stands up on its own. For the best climax it's God Of War 2. The battle with Zeus I feel is superior to 3, it's a little unfair on 3 because they couldn't recycle the same thing (this I guess is a similar thing to Luke vs Darth Vader in both Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi). Also the cliff hanger of Kratos on top of Gaia climbing Mount Olympus was just such an awesome way to end it - the middle part of a trilogy has the advantage of leaving things up in the air without having to wrap up. Best opening is very close between the Collosus of 2 and Leviathan of 3 - but I would have to give it to 3 just because the sheer scale is like nothing that's been seen before. Graphics and best variety of weapons also goes to 3, I couldn't just go through the game using the good old square square triangle technique - I had to mix it up. So yeah to sum up - all 3 fantastic games in their own right - but they should be played in order as a trilogy to have the best experience.

Many other reviewers have left pretty detailed reviews for the game so I'll just put down a short list of pros and cons that this game gave to me. + Excellent visuals: graphics are very detailed and colour palette is pretty extensive (not just "bloom and gloom" like Gears of War, Call of Duty etc). Good framerate with no lagging at any point. + Gameplay: no tutorial stage which is a big plus, instead it shows you how to execute new actions when you come across them for the first time, ie if you have to swing across a cliff to get to the other side it explains how to do it the first time only. + Voice acting: I think that the voice acting is pretty good when compared to other games. Emotions come across quite strongly and are well matched with the in game character. - No free-look camera: the one gripe I have with these third person action games is the lack of free-look camera panning. If you have such great looking scenery why limit the angle we can see it in? - Story line: very simplistic - Kratos wants to kill Zeus and anyone in his way. Beginning is typical cliche of previous action games, start of very powerful only to lose your powers then you have to regain them. - Packaging: box is actually in the "Playstation Platinum/Essentials" box, which I've never liked having at all. So don't expect the original box as advertised. The game does have some replay value as you pick up boss items which are only usable after completion of the game. We'll have to see if they are worth replaying for.