All of these combat moves are easy to execute thanks to the game’s excellent and responsive controls. Everything is so fluid and responsive that you’ll be able to make the attacks that you want, when you want, without any slowdown, delay, or missed button presses. I fought many a sweat-inducing, heart-pounding battle in the game, but not once did I feel like I died because the controller missed a button push or didn’t move Kratos fast enough. It sounds like a simple thing, but many games do not get it right. Well God of War gets it so right that its developers should go on the training circuit and teach other programmers how it should be done.

You'll have some memorable boss battles like this one against the hydra.

The game is not all mayhem and combat, though, there are puzzles to be solved as well. These are primarily environment based, such as figuring out the right switch to pull, finding a destructible object, or moving an item. None of them are Myst-like brain workouts, but they never feel tacked on or cheap. God of War got the puzzle balance just right - you may have to pause for a moment or two to think about them, but then you can move on and get back to the carnage.

All of the game’s action is wrapped in some of the best graphics the PS2 has to offer. The environments are imaginative and fantastic, from a fleet caught in a vicious gale to the labyrinthine maze of a temple housing an ancient relic. All of these environments borrow heavily from Greek mythology and architecture, but also have an otherworldly quality to them that befits the game’s world of gods and monsters. The cutscenes are of the highest quality and have the feel of an epic movie. The sound in the game is also amazing – you know it’s good when just the noise a monster makes can put you on edge.

At this point I must add a warning to those of you who are parents deciding if you want to buy this game for your kids. If there ever was a game that deserved it’s M rating, then this is it. The game is brutal and very, very bloody. People and creatures are dispatched in some very vicious ways – beheadings, disembowelments, you name it. Also, Kratos is not you’re typical video game hero. He is very much the antihero and often will slaughter innocents when he needs something from them. Finally, Kratos loves the ladies and he spends some R&R in the game with topless, buxom beauties. There’s nothing here that a mature gamer will not be able to handle and in some ways enjoy, but please be careful when it comes to the kids, OK?

Every once in a while a game comes along that pushes the boundaries, that takes risks and innovates without losing the qualities that make games so enjoyable – God of War is one of those games. It’s a “best of system” quality game, game of the year material, and more. If you own a PS2, you really need to own this game.

In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated: 100%.  God of War is a god among mortal games, destined to become the stuff of legends.

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