Oh My God of War

God of War is a game that transcends its genre. One so good that you’re almost guaranteed to like it regardless of what type of games you typically enjoy. It's the best PS2 game I’ve ever played, and a game that should make you seriously consider buying the console if you don’t own one. And to think I almost didn’t try it because it’s "not my kind of game!"

There are plenty of glowing reviews out there, so I’m not going to rehash what they all say. But I will say why I’m enjoying it so much. First the controls (and the onscreen result of manipulating said controls) are near perfection. There are a number of moves that Kratos can perform, and any one move can be strung into any other move in any direction. Once you become familiar with the button combinations, it becomes natural to perform the actions necessary to keep your fella alive. Second, the game is ridiculously generous with health and checkpoints. I have still died many times, but I haven’t had to replay large sections of the game over and over. And even replaying small sections isn’t a hassle, because the game is so damn fun! Third the level design is wonderful. Often times you’ll find yourself returning to an area you’ve been in before, but now you’ll have new abilities that’ll give you access to new doorways, etc. This integrated level design makes it feel like you are in a real place instead of just fighting through individually designed stages.

Finally, the game is just cool. It’s set back in ancient Greece with the gods in full effect (your goal of the game is to stop Ares from destroying Athens). You fight your way through centaurs, minotaurs, gorgons, cyclopes, harpies, and more. When monsters are nearing death, you can initiate a fatality mini-game that is unique per monster. And these fatalities are seriously gruesome; you rip heads off of gorgons, wings off of harpies, and chop legs and heads off of centaurs. Throw in some polygonal breasts (which admittedly seems out of place... not on the women, but in the game) and you’ve got a game that is seriously not for kids.

I'd say "you must buy this game" but I haven't even bought it! I rented it from Blockbuster (since I didn't know if I'd like it). I'm pretty sure I'll have it beat before it's due back, so... You must rent this game? How about: You MUST play this game!!!