Any PS3ers out there pumped for God of War III?

[JRD]

Or get a job on one of those game mag and they'll pay you to play and write about it!!  8)

[mmosu]

Yeah space, it was $99.00, I think it will be worth it since this is the only game series besides Metal Gear Solid where I have wanted to absorb every bit of material that is out there on it.

@JRD:  that is what would be known as "my dream job"  ;D

[spaceboy]

Hey mmosu - I finished up the first game - what a blast.  I really enjoyed it and am impressed how well the gameplay held up from when it was released.  Especially the ability for Kratos to vary his attacks and grabs AND combat in the air, while climbing etc.  I just started GOW II now and am fighting the Colossus from the first level.  I may not get it done before 3/16, but that's ok.  I really don't want to rush through this series.  I've waited this long to get into it, and since I've got a few games going on or about to be (Heavy Rain tomorrow!), I'll just plug along and enjoy it.

I'm not sure if the original had the Challenge levels, but the Collection has them plus lots of cool extras.  There is some stuff you have to unlock only through God mode (toughest setting) - probably won't happen lol.  But there was a cool unlock where you can see various scrapped versions of character models with some commentary - pretty funny to see what Kratos could have looked like.

[mmosu]

Yeah Space, those were in the original release and they were very cool.  Little known fact - even though the highest level unlockables say they are only released by completing God Mode, in the original game these could also be released by finishing Spartan Mode (the second highest difficulty).  I was never able to beat God Mode, so this was how I got to see all that stuff!!  :-X

[spaceboy]

Well to be honest I played on Normal all the way until Ares,  I was having a tough enough time I switched to Easy  :-[  Mind you I had already been offered to switch to Easy numerous times (there's even a trophy for it lol) but I'd always refused. But Ares was just kicking my butt and I wanted to move on so I conceded to Easy Mode.  I think completing even on Spartan mode would take hella-dedication for me.  I'd rather spend that time playing II and getting ready for III  :)

[mmosu]

It is tough, but once you complete the game the first time you get the alternate costumes that can be used in Spartan mode, and the Ares armor drastically reduces the amount of damage you take, effectively almost doubling the length of your health bar, and that makes Spartan mode a little less challenging - that's how I beat it anyway.  I actually made it all the way to Ares on God mode without any special help (just lots of dying, controller throwing, and cursing under my breath :-\), but I was never able to get past the nightmare sequence where you have to fight all the copies of yourself.  Consequently, can't honestly say I finished God mode  :'( 

[Art Blade]

geez, mmosu. I thought all the time I'd recognise you by your teeth. That tiny little OWG forum avatar of yours was completely unexpected  ;D What is it, "jakobs"?

[spaceboy]

ah, cool - thanks for the tip on the different skins and armor.   :-X   well the nightmare sequence was easy for me (cause I'd already switched to "easy" lol).  Maybe I'll try Spartan at some point afterall...

[mmosu]

@ Space:  well, that's officially the worst part of the game on the higher difficulties (if you can imagine a worst part.  All I can say if good luck!

@ Art:  Jakobs is one of the weapons manufacturers in Borderlands.  Basically, there were two "industries" on planet Pandora - prisons and arms manufacturers.  Eventually the weapons makers began to feel like they had made a mistake putting factories on such a crap planet, and some of them pulled out, leaving their workers essentially stranded there.  With nothing to do with the prisoners (who had also been used for factory labor) the prisons were closed and inmates set free on the planet, and this is where the bandit tribes that populate the borderlands came from.  But when alien technology was discovered on Pandora, many of the arms makers found renewed interest in the planet, and it's around this fact that the main story arc of the game takes place.  All of the different arms makers have certain aspects of their weapons that they focus on:  Hyperion weapons have extreme accuracy, S&S focuses on high magazine capacity, Vladof on rate of fire, Dahl guns are heavy and therefore absorb tons of recoil, Tediore guns sport quick-change magazines and are lightweight, and Maliwan weapons all have an elemental effect tacked on (fire, acid, shock, etc) just to name a few.  Jakobs focus is sheer firepower - their guns do more damage per round fired than any other gun on a similar level - which makes them highly prized for a character build that focuses on sniping, which mine does.  Thus the quote which can be heard at the various weapons vending stations "If it took more than one shot, then you weren't using a Jakobs".

[Art Blade]

Thank you, mmosu :) Very good description of that aspect of the game  :-X Hehe, I think I'd use a Jakob's myself  ;D

[mmosu]

That's my prefered manufacturer - as the logo might imply there is bit of a "wild west" theme with these guns (each manufacturer has a general theme that gives some insight into what their focus is), so they all have wood stocks/grips, brass trim pieces sometimes, and they generally limit themselves to revolvers, shotguns, and sniper rifles - no machine guns, smgs, repeater pistols, or rocket launchers.  They are just hot, nasty, good old-fashioned accurate firepower and nothing else  ;D  They generally all cycle like revolvers too, so no magazines - my current Jakobs rifle is cycled via a pump under the barrel, but it breaks open and loads like a six-shooter.  Just seems to fit with my character and the way I play  :-X

[mmosu]

The wait is over GOW fans!!!!!!
After suffering through two more final exams yesterday I had the pleasure of swinging by my friendly neighborhood GameStop to pick up my pre-order of God of War III:  Ultimate Edition.  After getting the shoe-box sized package home and greedily ripping open the packing I was confronted with a scale model of Pandora's box containing the game disc and concept art book.  Also included was a card with a slew of codes for downloading exclusive content on the Playstation Store.  Anyway, five minutes after throwing the disc into the machine my mind was officially blown - I was confronted with graphics that were even tighter and more detailed than in the E3 demo (if those of you who played it can even imagine that!), dramatic lighting effects, and an enormous battle unfolding around me on the face of a sheer cliff as the forces of Olympus desperately try to prevent the ascent of the Titans to the mountains peak.  The game picks up at the exact moment GOW II left off (Kratos' first line in GOW III is his closing line from GOW II) as Kratos rides on the back of Gaia as she leads the Titans into battle.  Total mayhem ensues, multiple transitions of perspective occur as the camera zooms in and out between the battle you are fighting on Gaia's back and the larger battle as Gaia and the other Titans struggle to keep from being knocked from the cliff face, and several times your fight takes you from Gaia, to the cliff side, and back again.  Without giving too many details, this game has already redifined the word "epic" for me.  And the violence level has been wratcheted up several notches as well - one of the early foes perishes by being beaten to death with Kratos' bare hands, and the scene is especially disturbing as it unfolds from the point of view of the victim, with the camera finally cutting away when Kratos uses his thumbs to jab his opponents eyes out!!!!  I will write more once I'm farther in, but so far everything is  :-X :-X :-X :-X :-X

[PZ]

Congratz on the exams - I know the feeling well of having them behind me and then treating myself to something special - I'm envious!  I sure do wish that you'd be doing the game on the PC so you could upload screen shots though  ;D

[spaceboy]

ah man I'm so jealous mmosu,  I will be joining you on this epic quest in a couple weeks.  I'll be using my Amazon $15 credit from ordering Just Cause 2 to purchase GOW III, so when JC2 ships and I get my credit GOWIII will be on its way.  I'm using free shipping to cut costs so a few days will be added to each step.  But this gives me just enough time to squeeze in completing GOW II (I'm at the temple of Euryale).

I have heard similar comments that GOW III redefines what "epic" is.  So congrats on the game (and exams).  Looking forward to hearing more.

Oh and did you get the soundtracks with it (CDs or dl codes)?  Was it music from all 3 games?  I see that sumthingdigital.com has the soundtrack from III available (not sure if CD is avail or just download).

[mmosu]

Looks like everything is on one Blue-ray disc, so there's no separate soundtrack CD, but to my understanding there are two albums - one is the soundtrack of the game series and the second is called Metal & Blood and it's a heavy metal album inspired by the game.  Haven't really looked at the extra stuff much and I probably won't until the 2nd playthrough - I don't want to risk exposing myself to any spoilers (I briefly flipped through the concept art book when I first opened the box and accidentally exposed myself to a minor one already  :-[)
BTW Space - if you're at Euryales temple you've still got a way to go.  Better step on it man, I need someone else to talk to about this!  ;)

[Art Blade]

Have fun there, people... I know what waiting for a game means (months, between PS3 release and PC release of AC2)

On an aside, I don't know if I ever congratulated someone on suffering through exams, only did so on passing them :) I hope you did pass, mmosu mate  :-X

[spaceboy]

BTW Space - if you're at Euryales temple you've still got a way to go.  Better step on it man, I need someone else to talk to about this!  ;)

lol mmosu, will do!  Under my direction, Kratos' fighting skills are sometimes less than epic  :-[  but seriously I'm timing it ok I think as I unfortunately don't expect to receive GOWIII until the 2nd week of April.  The only way I can justify spending so much money lately is by utilizing the good deals I mentioned above.  The GOW universe will be a nice change of pace after spending some time on the island of Panau (JC2).

I suppose by that time you'll be on playthrough #3, but I hope your excitement to discuss it won't have waned.

[mmosu]

Thanks for the good wishes on exams guys, feels good to be getting a breather  8)

I've got the same problem too Space - to many good games out there and not enough bucks in the gaming budget, so I have to choose my purchases wisely and with replay value in mind, and also look for good deals.  I splurged on GOW III because I've been waiting about 3 years for it to come out, and I wanted to do this one up right!

[spaceboy]

heck yeah, even me who is new to the series was checking out that Ultimate Edition.  But couldn't do it, I am very happy to find out though that the GOW III OST (official soundtrack) will be released on CD at Amazon for $14.  Sweet - it is in my cart awaiting something else to make it free shipping lol.  I could download it from sumthingdigital for $10, but it's not enough of a discount to forego the actual media.

btw, I kicked Euryale's butt  and made it past the little swinging puzzle area.  I'm on my way my friend.  I was doing some sweet battle against her - using rolls to dodge the best I ever have!

[mmosu]

Nice w@&k - nothing beats when you get into that rhythm where you're timing the attacks and dodges perfectly and it seems like nobody can touch you.  The controls for GOW III are essentially unchanged from II, so your skills will transfer over seemlessly.  I'm a good part of the way through my first playthrough now and the body count is mounting - 6 gods and 2 titans dead by my hand so far!  It's getting heated and I have to say, it's going to be hard to play "other" games again - I think my standards may be permanently altered after this.  I intend on writing a full review once I'm through the first time so stay tuned!

[Art Blade]

you make it sound rather appetising  :) Ever given it a thought to play Assassins Creed 2? For some reason, probably how you described dodging and timing attacks, I think that might interest you. And it's incredibly massive, I reckon 70 hours game play. I'm on it for about 40 and have like 60% progress.

[mmosu]

It's on my to-do list Art  ;)

Now, with playthrough number one safely behind me, I give pause to say . . . that was friggin' awsome!!!
I'll try to keep this a general as possible to not give away too much, but as far as gameplay, graphics, and sheer presentation goes GOWIII is top-notch genre-redefining stuff  :-X  The bar for linear action games has indeed been raised again (just as every previous installment in the series has done) and will undoubtedly be the unfortunate stick by which every other remotely similar game this year will be measured (sucks to be them!).  What this game does best should be no surprise - even though the game is very linear it makes you feel as though there is a huge world out there just beyond your borders, and continually reminds you that the conflict you are a part of is affecting every living thing on earth.  The action is HUGE - compare a literal fly to yourself and you'll get an idea of the size comparison between Kratos and the titans, yet the interaction between them is seemless and believable despite massive difference in scale.  The controls are intuitive and completely natural for veterans of the series and you can pick it right up and play like a pro.  And the gore . . . oh the gore!  There are some sick individuals working at Santa Monica Studios, and this aspect of the game was cranked up to 11, just as we would expect it would be for the series topper! 
There are a couple of negatives.  For starters, this game does not feel as long as GOWII.  I don't know what my official playtime was, but there is a foreseable end-point with this one unlike the first two, where you just keep going and going with no clue as to when the madness is going to end.  Might have something to do with the fact that you are literally climbing a mountain, and when you reach the top, well, you're at the top.  Also, the plot isn't as tight as the first two games.  Granted, that's not why many fans are here, but that aspect was mildly disappointing to me.  I also felt the final fight itself was a bit of an anti-climax, although the way in which said opponent is finished off is gruesomely satisfying, and will no doubt have many players screaming and laughing sadistically at the screen as the final foe chokes out his last breath.  The end of the game itself is presented in a unique way, and even though I dug it I could see how some might not.  There is also, of course, the required cliff-hanger following the credits, which has already sparked wild speculation about whether or not the series is really over. 
Overall it's two big, blood-stained thumbs up for me, but then again I was already a fan and was simply theirs to lose.  Let the next playthrough begin . . .

[fragger]

Thanks for the detailed mini-review mmosu :-X

If I had a PS3 I'd get into this game, as I love ancient mythology type stuff.

[mmosu]

I actually know a guy who bought a PS3 this winter so that he could play this game!

[spaceboy]

you're getting me even more psyched mmosu.   Your account of the game seems congruent to much of what I've read.  The ending is a little less epic than the beginning, but overall an extreme experience.