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PS2 | Action | God of War II

Boxart for God of War II
God of War II 138 screen shots
  • GRAPHICS: 5.00
  • SOUND: 4.75
  • CONTROL: 5.00
  • FUN FACTOR 5.00
  • AVG USER SCORE 4.8
  • AVG CRITIC SCORE 4.8
Winner of the GamePro Editor's Choice Award

Preview: God of War 2: E3 Special Report

Preview by Chris Morell | 05/13/2006 | 13:46:04 PM PST

Sony unleashes Kratos's fury in a special E3 demo of God of War 2. Though it won't be on PS3 -- at least, not that we know of -- the 32-bit treatment didn't slow down this rampaging warrior in the least.

"Game of the Year" franchise God of War is back for a new installment, but new director Corey Barlow doesn't want people to think of it as a sequel. Corey gave us an in-depth look at God of War 2 at E3, and the new director thinks of the game as simply an extension of the first game's story...with a wealth of enhanced features, of course.

Barlow played through the E3 demo and chatted with the GamePro editors for about an hour in an sweltering Sony booth. Yes, tempers were short and bodies were tired, but the overall consensus was that God of War 2 is on the right track. And Barlow is even more excited about his new job.

God of War 2 picks up where the first game left off, after Kratos killed Ares and assumed the throne. Our demo picked up about a quarter of the way through the game on the Island of Fates. On this island, there are creatures that protect the Sisters of Fate, who determine the fate of events in the world.

The game will be packed with plenty of new weapons and enemies, many of which are expanded upon from the first game. Kratos will have plenty of new attacks at his disposal, too, including the ability to change weapons and magic in mid air. Weapon switching will be simple and controlled by one button, keeping inline with the same simple style of combat as the original. There is a new magic system that allows Kratos to lock on to an enemy and move around at the same time -- an awesome new feature.

There will be new combos and a few new air specials -- jumping attacks where Kratos swings his Blades of Chaos in a fiery fury of death. As well, there will be new grabs and plenty of new dismemberment moves. We even saw Kratos rip an axe-wielding enemy's arm off, and stab him with his own axe, hand still attached. Wicked.

The same button-pressing mini-game attacks are back, but will be more frequent this time around as there will be a lot more boss battles. Also, enemies will use each other to create even bigger attacks. For example, a smaller enemy jumped on a larger creature's back and began controlling his pounding attacks.

Grappling takes a big focus in God of War 2, and can be used to swing Kratos in many different directions rather than just front to back, as in the first game. Barlow eluded to the ability to fight on the ceiling, though we didn't get to see it in the demo. Of course, there will be plenty of puzzles to solve along the way, and now Kratos can pick up dead bodies to use in certain brainteasers.

God of War 2 will be at least at long as the first God of War campaign, though no exact hour amount has been revealed.

Expect God of War 2 to be as intense as the first, and even though it isn't making it to PS3 (at least, that we know of), it looks like it will give gamers a hell of a good time. Check GamePro.com after E3 -- we'll have much more to say about God of War 2.


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