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The rain, driven downward with torrential fever, washes over the decks of the wrecked ships. At one end of the stern stands Kratos, a Spartan warrior, tattooed, scarred but emanating ferocity and strength to rival the finest of Greek heroes. Rising from the deck is an army of undead, while through the shroud of fog and rain, the long necks of sea monsters smash onto the decks of the other ships. But this is not the beginning of the tale. These are the moments along the journey, driven by the gods, that put Kratos high atop a mountain, driven by the madness that prompted him to step from that cliff and into the abyss. A tortured soul, played by the gods, brought to ruin. God of War is a PlayStation 2 release slated for release in March. The first level of the game was sent to GameZone to preview, and with some eagerness, the adventure back into the mythological days of the Greek civilization was taken. What was found was a world that was both dangerous and fascinating, not to mention downright exciting. The story traces the life of Kratos, who makes a pact with Ares, the god of war, to save his mortal life. In typical Greek tragedy style, that decision works against Kratos, who is driven mad and eventually seeks revenge against Ares. But that was not available on this level. All that was here were the wrecked ships, undead, harpies and worse. Kratos has a pair of chain weapons, called the Blades of Chaos. He wields them with deadliness that will have enemies tossed around like paper dolls. But most of these enemies are supernatural, so merely whacking them once does not work. The first level presents a bit of a maze, in which Kratos can acquire new health and mana, and even a special attack – which is granted to him by Poseidon, who tasks him to kill the three-headed hydra. The hydra is just one of the special mythical beasts that dot this game, but it was the only one to appear in this level, and is the boss of the level. Fighting the hydra presents an intriguing problem. There are two smaller heads and the huge main head, which heals the smaller heads.
The game also has a different style of combat system. There are the typical attacks, the power-up specials (tied to the D-pad) and finishing moves that challenge players to match the hot buttons on the controllers. Do so successfully, and you can disable even the most terrifying of mobs. Also, as Kratos climbs the rigging of the ship, he can reach out and pull enemies off, slamming them against the netting and tossing them off. He can also grab enemies in his well-muscled arms. There is a minor puzzle, which entails moving across a deck while six archers are trying to dissuade you from doing so. … The smaller hydra heads have been dealt with and Kratos climbs the ship’s rigging to the crow’s nest platform. The giant hydra head is waiting, snarling, a fearsome sight. Kratos tenses, ready for the battle. And then …. “Coming in March 2005” pops on the screen. Great teaser.
The sound in the preview was very well done, and the graphics were wonderful. If there was any drawback, that would like on the fixed camera angle. You could not look around and survey what was about you, and they proved to be somewhat difficult at times. You knew there was danger, but the fixed position made it impossible to actually see it. At one point, the game actually seemed like a side-scrolling title because of the camera’s position. But even so, God of War was a solid combat/adventure outing that had the adrenalin whipped up. The limited look at this game was a ton of fun.
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