By Steven Cayer, Contributor
4/5
Whenever I think about getting back at the assumed big man, I think to myself, ’What would Kratos do?’ I’m talking of course about the newest instalment in the God of War series, God of War: Ascension (released March 12). The seventh game in the series, Ascension is an overall prologue, happening 10 years before the events of the classic game that started it all in 2005, God of War.
If by chance, you completely missed out on this amazing series, I will give you the basic summary. Kratos is just a normal warrior in an era of loosely-based Greek mythology. During a battle with barbarians, he thought he was going to die, and thus prayed to the God of War, Ares. Ares responded by destroying everything around him–an immense act that comes with, in classic Greek fashion, a very tragic price for Kratos and his loved ones.
Ascension is about Kratos trying to break his initial bond so that he can kill Ares in an act of revenge. The only way to do this is by destroying Ares’ henchmen, the three Furies: Megaera, Tisiphone, and Alecto—all of whom are also trying to find Kratos so they can punish him for disobeying Ares. The game bounces between different times, playing with the linear of the story as the player attempts to piece together the details.
The gameplay is basically the same as in previous God of War entries. I don’t know about you, but I’m getting a little tired of them, not just because I’m not a good button-tapper, but because I like to have full control of the protagonist. I don’t want to see Kratos cut a Gorgon in half, I want to be Kratos cutting a Gorgon in half. My next issue with the gameplay: the game has a fixed camera which you have no control over. Whenever you go into a new room, the camera drastically changes; half of the time, I’m suddenly going backwards to the room I was just in.
All finicky things aside, some moments in this game made me actually say “Holy crap!” I should’ve known I’d be saying that though, this being a God of War game and all.
There is also a new addition to the series in Ascension: online multiplayer. I actually found the multiplayer refreshing, surprisingly original, and fun. You pick between four Gods, or classes: Ares, Hades, Zeus, and Poseidon. They all have different abilities and powers that you can level up. (If you pre-ordered this game, you also got the badass armour from the 2007 movie 300 to use on your character of choice.) There are four modes: Team Favour of the Gods, Match of Champions, Trial of the Gods, and of course, Capture the Flag. What I like about all of these is that they are at least somewhat original in their execution, and I’ve been enjoying it so far.
What else can I say about God of War: Ascension? Go into the game with a lack of story in mind, but be overwhelmed by the beautiful graphics and mind-blowing action of a typical God of War game. And hey, when the multiplayer doesn’t weaken the single-player experience, it’s a good day for everybody.