God of War II

Written by Chris Reiter  on October 04, 2006

First Impressions: Who knew going to church would be so fun...and sacrilegious?

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With unprecedented effort to manifest an action-adventure so intense and graphically gratifying, Sony's God of War was for PlayStation 2 owners the grandest of all blood-splattering opuses that made an ancient Greek world its setting for one kickass revenge plot. Kratos, with his twin blades integrated into his arms, was an unstoppable killer caring about no one and nothing but his vengeful journey to rip the soul from Ares, better known as the God of War. His mission was fulfilled. Kratos has succeeded to become the new God of War. And somewhere across the planes of fate, blood shall spill once again.

Is there such a thing as fate? It seems there is, if Kratos is to meet the Sisters of Fate to turn back the wheels of time and change the destiny that once betrayed him. As one of the Gods now, Kratos discovers the truth atop Mount Olympus. They're nothing but a sniveling bunch of backstabbers, always scheming on one another and not looking out for their mortal man. Exactly why Zeus didn't help Kratos the day his family was murdered will unleash him forward on this new quest to set things right.

Merciless as ever, Kratos is going to bring about mass killings to mythological creatures yet again in Sony's forthcoming sequel. New stages, new enemies, and even new tricks are planned out for Kratos. Along with wielding twin blades wrapped around his arms like in the last game, Kratos can now fire arrows out of a newly implemented ethereal bow, courtesy of his godly powers. Kratos will come across the wings of Icarus at some point and take flight. He'll strike down demons coming after him in the air on griffins, as he leaps off his Pegasus to dispose of the wretched demon bodies and cut the wings off of their accursed transport. Kratos is going to challenge the likes of Cerberus, Medusa (didn't he do that last time?), and even those mightily terrifying Cyclopes from last round, who'll team up with small axe-carrying mutants that ride on their back and deal damage to Kratos when he's in their grips. Ripping out the eye of a Cyclops for a souvenir is just one of the gruesomely violent acts you'll need to "keep an eye out for," as these pieces will become the collectibles that butch up Kratos' health and magic meters.

How you would describe some of the most intricately beautiful murders on otherworldly monsters, is how you would describe the original God of War. Its graphics are astounding, and sharing an improved system, the sequel should be nothing short of that. What God of War II looks to offer best is more ways to thrash your opponents and in patterns that are even sicker than before. Heads will twist and pop, eyeballs will be plucked, and blood will squirt a guzzling rain as Kratos spins his glowing blades in his path of unflinching destruction.