Gamertell

Title: God of War: Chains of Olympus
Price: $39.99
System(s): PSP
No. Players: 1
Release Date: March 4, 2008
Publisher (Developer): Sony (ReadyAtDawn)
ESRB Rating: “Mature” for blood, gore, intense violence, nudity and sexual content
Pros: The same great elements from the console versions: fun slashing action, an interesting story, great voice acting and amazing sound and visuals. Even offers a few fixes and randomized context-sensitive attack button combos.
Cons: Old problems creep back as the game progresses including unnecessarily hard to find paths and overcrowded combat arenas.
Overall Score: 8.5/10

The God of War franchise has been providing great games for action fans, combing hack-and-slash gameplay with some puzzles, platforming, a gritty anti-hero and feature film-style elements.

Wisely starting with the PSP, the series is making its first foree into the handheld market where Kratos will try to kick countless minions’ asses on a much smaller screen (assuming, of course, you have something larger than a 4 in. TV at home).

Even with the amazing voice acting, stunning visuals and so much action, Sony did pretty well shoving this mighty game into the PSP.

Gameplay – 9/10

Like most of the other GOW games, the gods are greedy, Kratos gets pissy and a dungeon-crawler style adventure ensues. Kratos is armed with his dual Blades of Chaos, deadly knives that extend and retract from his arms with a few fiery effects to make them even more cool.

Attacking consists of rather simply buttons combos, with some bit of button mashing when in a particularly populated area. Some combos cannot be broken except by a direct hit from an opponent and, unlike most ninja movies, they do take turns swatting at the star. As the game progresses, more moves and magic are acquired, allowing more powerful attacks, more particle effects and much more blood splattering across the mini screen.

Also returning are plenty of puzzles return where Kratos must put in some manual labor moving boxes and bodies to activate switches to get tot he next room. Context-sensitive attacks also return here, though they have been shortened (less button presses) and an element of randomness has bee included to break up some of the ease found int he console versions. The rewards are, of course, even more gruesome deaths.

Though the game is mostly a platformish dungeon crawler, there is also some wall climbing and swimming (both on and, after a while, under water).

Design – 7.5/10

The graphics are simply wonderful, maintaining the series’ look without sacrificing character design or overly repeated rooms. Kratos is also proportioned very well (which cannot be said for many handheld or console games) for the small screen, making it easy to keep him in view since the camera is locked in place for each area.

One of the game’s main drawbacks are the context-sensitive moments which may be the fault of the PSP. One of the commands is to partially or completely rotate the mini thumbstick clockwise or counterclockwise, and the system does not always seem to register the full motion. Some of the button presses also seem to not take, which may also me a matter of too little time given to respond.

Otherwise, the hacking, slashing and brute force moves are all pretty easy to learn and fun to use. with all of the slashing and multiple opponents, the game never stutters.

The sound, voice acting, graphics and cut scenes live up to the rest of the franchise, periodically using some still frames to maximize game space, and then breaking into an innovative use of particles and blur to add a subtle sense of motion. Simply put, it looks and sounds great. The PSP was definitely the right choice.

My main gripe with opponents is not repetition but fighting them in unnecessarily cramped arenas. As you enter a boss arena area, exits are magically blocked off until you defeat every opponent, which will include the boss(es) and many lesser minions. A few arenas provide ample space for dodging and picking of a few opponents at a time. Later int he game however, and a couple arenas leave little room for anything but getting unrecoverably smacked into a corner. The round room with two giant brutes and faster minions as well as saw blades darting across the floor is particularly brutal.

Although the environments are beautiful and well textured, the franchise issue of unnecessarily hidden paths becomes more frequent as the game progresses. Smashing through a side wall you cannot see to get to a box you can hardly see to move it to a ledge you can seemingly reach with the double jump (or a powerful opponent-lifting attack which launches him even higher) is a bit silly.

Features – 7.5/10

There are several videos and images that can be unlocked while playing through the game as well as additional challenges. This is still a single-player game, so don’t even look for any multiplayer modes.

The game can also be played on four difficulty settings with the fourth available after you finish the game. On “Normal,” the middle of the tree available from the start, the game still offers a decent amount of challenge which progressively increases throughout the game.

Kratos’ weapons, magic and moves are also selectively upgradeable throughout the game using acquired red orbs. It adds a fair amount of customization but, let’s face it, most gamers try to max out everything they can. Fairly simply button combos, often including the L and R shoulder buttons, take care of the game’s many moves, which are not all needed since some sections become simple button mashing. Sure, a couple combos and some attack patterns will take care of most opponents that aren’t downed so easily by simple button mashing, but it is still pretty damn fun.

Also of note are the few extra pages in the game manual that offer some pretty nice concept art.

Overall – 8.5/10

Chains of Olympus does a great job representing the franchise on the small game system, reflecting the gameplay, art style and all the theatrics that made the console releases enjoyable. The only real drawbacks are that it suffers from some of the same difficult-to-find paths to the next area, a small quirk with the mini thumbstick for the context-sensitive attacks and the periodic overcrowded arena. Even so, it’s very enjoyable game and well worth the purchase price. Fans won’t be disappointed and newcomers to the franchise may be converted.

Editor’s Note: The overall score is not necessarily an average. Sections might have been weighted to reflect the importance of some features over others.