What More Can I Say About God of War 2?

It’s no secret that the God of War series have been kicking our asses since 2005. But since I never owned a PS2, I pretty much missed the boat entirely. Previous to this past week, I had only spent a few hours with the original God of War when I borrowed a PS2 from a colleague - I loved every second of it. It should go without saying that one of my first purchases since owning a PS3 was God of War 2. I also picked up Resistance: Fall of Man, but Kratos has completely won me over for the time being and I can’t put it down.

Going Back to ‘Last Gen’ Graphics

God of War 2

Since I picked up my Xbox 360 back in March of 2006, it’s been really hard going back and playing older games. The dated visuals really make the experience feel old and busted. Thankfully, God of War ships with widescreen and progressive scan options that can be enabled from the options screen. But even better, there’s a pseudo-hidden HD mode which can be triggered when you first start up the game. Now that is where it’s at! Suddenly, the jaggies are tamed, the colours are popping and Kratos is uglier than ever. I kid you not, there have been times where I stopped dead in my tracks to take a look around. Something I never thought I would see myself doing while playing a PS2 game. Some of the architecture is just gorgeous and the ever changing horizon leaves nothing to be desired. God of War 2 is a very beautiful game. Which, given its reputation for being insanely over-the-top gory, will probably come as a surprise to most.

Let the Blood Fly

God of War 2

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve felt the urge to jump up off the couch in excitement. This game is satisfying on an entirely new level. Whether you’re ripping the head off a Medusa, or tearing the eye out of a Cyclops, it’s ridiculously fun and satisfying every single time.

You Need To Play This Game

Don’t go as far to kill someone to get your hands on God of War 2, but find a way to play it. Every gamer should experience a game of this magnitude at some point. Obviously, it’s best played on the PS3 since you get the enhanced visuals, but a PS2 would cut it, I’m sure.

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Rockers Delight
Monday, July 30th, 2007 at 9:51am

This, along with Final Fantasy XII, has been tempting me towards picking up a preowned PS2 for some time.

I’m a bit of a graphics snob though, but it looks like God Of War satisifies that aspect better than expected. Hmm, might pop into town later :D

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Maguire
Monday, July 30th, 2007 at 10:12am

I actually picked up God Of War last week so I can finally finish it. I loved that game so much, but I’ve always been someone who has to finish the first game/movie/season of show before I move on to the next one, so I’ve never even SEEN God Of War 2, but I’m glad to hear that it seems to be up to par with the first game.

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Monday, July 30th, 2007 at 4:17pm

I’m trying to find a copy of God of War 2 for $20 or so. Thats about all i can afford this month. I got the demo from Cory (thanks to his blog) which was signed (awesome!) and it was a blast. This and FFXII just amaze me at how good they look and run on the PS2. If the publishers can make these games on the PS2, i have high hopes for the PS3 and 360.

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Wavey Davey
Tuesday, July 31st, 2007 at 6:05am

Way to go. I’ve held off on next gen for the last year and have not been bored. GOW2, FFxii, Okami, Res Evil4. There is still so much good stuff on PS2.

If you find your self struggling with GOW2 I found this site very handy:
http://www.nextgenwalkthroughs.com/

A few of those boss fights (there is a lot of them) can get tricky. The intro collosus boss was a great slam dunk intro to the game.

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Tuesday, July 31st, 2007 at 8:22am

Congrats on the PS3(thats new news right?).

I only have the original GoW, not picking up the sequel until it drops in price a bit more. Thats me stingy. :)

I’m not a graphics whore at all. Not really interested in next gen yet. Not enough quality games to play.

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Matt
Tuesday, July 31st, 2007 at 10:40am

@Maguire: If the original game had at least progressive scan, I would have grabbed it as well. I really have a hard time with shitty visuals at this point, though. I’m normally the same way, though.

@Wavey Davey: Okami is another PS2 game I might check out.

I stick with GameSpot for walkthroughs and such. Love their service. While I have referred to a walkthrough for puzzles, I haven’t needed it for boss fights at this point.

@Daniel: Yeah, got the PS3 last week. Only mentioned it in comments in my last post, though.

Not really interested in next gen yet. Not enough quality games to play.

You couldn’t be more far from the truth with that statement. Xbox 360 has a ridiculous amount of amazing titles well worth the full retail price. As well as dozens of good Xbox Live Arcade games that you can’t get anywhere else. PS3 and Wii are yet to prove themselves, though.

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Patrick T
Wednesday, August 1st, 2007 at 11:46am

I fully understand the temporary switch to PS3 since the Xbox360’s unreliable hardware got me to buy a PS3 in February of this year…

I’m fully satisfied with the PS3 despite the lack of AAA titles but keep the faith…it’s coming in the next 6 months.

I got Resistance, MLB 07 The Show, Ninja Gaiden Sigma, Planet Earth (yes!) and Tekken 5 as well as older PS2 titles such as MGS 2,3 - God of War 2.

The upscaling for unprotected DVDs on the PS3 is pretty awesome also…got rid of my old DENON 1080i DVD player.

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Soss
Wednesday, August 1st, 2007 at 2:22pm

Glad you picked up a ps3, i haven’t grabbed one yet since money is going towards computer and travel. But once the holiday titles start shipping i’ll be grabbing one.

I look forward to you giving some great reviews of the system and games, to tout the (supposed) excellence of the machine, and bring some love to Sony.

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Friday, August 3rd, 2007 at 12:51am

I spotted an Elite at Target today…had the cash to buy it…for 10 minutes I paced back and forth by it…gazing through the glass…then walking away, only to come back and gaze some more…there were 3 PS3’s to the side of it.

I left empty handed. I’m holding off til the Fall for a new Elite. Focusing on buying up games in the meantime.

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Friday, August 3rd, 2007 at 3:57am

I hear ya man, I’ve never been much of a PS2 gamer (never owned one), but when my brother got me God of War 2 for my birthday (he let me borrow his PS2 - he’s not that dumb), I was in awe.

The graphics are nuts for a PS2 title. I picked up the first one for around $20 at Target, and it still looks pretty good. If you find yourself itching for more of the same stuff, it might be worth “suffering” through the graphics.

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kas187 Subscribed to comments via email
Saturday, August 4th, 2007 at 2:10pm

I’m a huge fan of the god of war franchise. It’s absolutely one of the best games available on the ps2 and available to play on ps3. Heavenly sword demo is also available for download from the ps online store which has also similiar gameplay mechanic but nowhere near as fun as gow2.

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