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God of War II review
Exceptional
by bgsmith3

The consensus regarding sequels is proven right again, God of War II bigger, better and braver than its predecessor. Having defeated the God of War, Kratos takes his seat on Mount Olympus and lords over the battlefields of war. However, when he is betrayed in the most visceral and confrontational manner, Kratos must embark on a quest to change his fate and set in motion events that will bring about the end of the Olympians. The game is still an arcade hack-n-slash game. None of that has ever been lost in the first six games of the God of War saga. But this game definitely ups the quality of graphics and really makes the gameplay feel polished, refined and fluid. The items and abilities that Kratos obtains during this quest are probably the best in the series. I always complained about God of War Ascension and how there really wasn’t any inventive weapons and abilities Kratos picked up in that game. But here, there is quite the arsenal that can be deployed against endless waves of enemies. The story is fantastic and the setting (the Isle of Fate) is wonderful. As a side note, the God of War games always have this big set area where most of the game takes place. In the first game it is Pandora’s Temple, in this game it is the Isle of Creation, and in God of War III it is Mount Olympus. The enemies are all diverse and present new challenges to overcome. There’s also some pretty big voice acting names in this game. The late Michael Clarke Duncan, Linda Hunt (who is the Narrator of the series, but also is a main character), Harry Hamlin and other veteran voice actors lend their talents to this amazing game. There are also plenty of characters and creatures from Greek mythology that are featured as opposed to just creatures that populated the first game. It was kind of cool seeing that other “heroes” exist in this dark world of Ancient Greece. Overall, this game proves that a perfect sequel surpasses the original and sets the stage for future installments, or in this case the climactic finale of God of War…well….the Greek Saga of God of War.

Rating: 5/5
«Blew my mind»
«Time-tested»
«That ending!»
«Beaten more than once»

Other reviews11

Perfect sequel.
Better bosses, better weapons and bigger setpieces.
«Blew my mind»
«Beaten more than once»
Man, this game is a banger.

I loved the OST and cutscenes. The story is kinda one-dimensional, but considering the purpose of the game, I like this way. Kratos is always pissed off and this reflects in gameplay. The number of boss fights was way much compared with the first game, and I approved this decision. They were memorable in some way and the atmosphere matched it.

The gameplay was better than the first game. Since the two were released on PS2, there was not an actual improvement if we are talking about graphics, sound design, and game-changing features. But yeah, they made the first game mechanic more solid. The weapons are funnier to use - the skills as well. Oh, I cannot forget to mention how good the cutscene was. Amazing.

Hyped for the third game. Let's go.
«Can’t stop playing»
«That ending!»
BLEW MY MIND»
«Blew my mind»
The old titles are still the best. Especially those from the PS2 era.
After I have finished the 1st God of War a year ago or so, I finally started the second one and damn, I couldn't stop playing. I rarely stumbled across a perfect game so far, but this definitely ist one. They not only took everything already perfect from the first game and somehow even improved it, no, they have put new mechanics and aspects into the gameplay, which make the game THE example for how you have to make a great sequal.
The story itself is not spectacularly complex, but the way they presented it is movie worthy. Not to mention the incredible smart and beautiful designs for everything, especially the gods and titans.
All in all I'm more than happy to finally have played this master piece and can only recommend it to everyone.
A true Playstation and video game classic!

(5/5) with <3
«Blew my mind»
«Can’t stop playing»
Pretty much just a continuation of the first game's gameplay. Some nice changes to abilities and more+greatly improved boss fights. Really like the world and sense of adventure in these games. Good variety of locations. The puzzles are pretty solid and not tedious. Levels are well-designed with some nice small secret areas. In conclusion, I'm a big fan of these games. 
THIS is how you do a sequel
The sequel to one of my favorite games all time still lives up to its name. As God of War (2005), this game also has legit creative concept, gorgeous design and OST and fun and challenging play-ability. However, as its predecessor, it still has some logic flaws for the sake of puzzle and stages completion (especially with the time-travelling concept), but it is fun to play nonetheless. A timeless (as Kratos' curse) masterpiece.
8/10
«Can’t stop playing»
«Constantly dying and enjoy it»
Not much to complain, there’s an epic storyline, impressive setting (Kratos is dull tho), a solid fighting system. At some points the game makes you yawn repeating the same moves, but it’s a good thing to play for some days.
«Time-tested»
«That ending!»