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Since God of War first debuted on the PlayStation 2 back in 2005, Kratos has campaigned against his enemies across three different systems now, and in this case, the PSP. The Origins collection brings the two adventures, Chains of Olympus and Ghost of Sparta, to the PS3, since before they were only found on the PSP.
And with the transition to the big screen comes a flashy new coat of high-definition for the games graphics, providing an impressive flair of visuals to both the game’s cinematics and gameplay. They may not be as lucrative as those in God of War 3, but they aren’t a sore sight for the eyes to gander at either.
But keep in mind that these games were made for a previous generation handheld system and aren’t going to give anywhere near the amount of high-octane thrills we’ve become accustomed to with many of today’s games.
You’ve got your short, five-hour ‘ish storyline for both games, the implementation of trophies, and stereoscopic 3D support, but I wouldn’t really write that feature off as a major selling point for the game, nor is it the type of feature that I’d need to have in my games either.
But underneath all the polish that went into the collection, Kratos is as brutal and savage as ever. He can take down the most hideous of mythological beasts Greek mythology can muster, traverse through the Underworld and reemerge in one piece at the end, and he can even defy the gods will when he chooses.
In Chains of Olympus, the game takes place before the very first God of War game, but after the upcoming, God of War Ascension, and follows Kratos during his ten years of service to the gods. Ghost of Sparta takes place after the first game and follows Kratos’s visit to the lost city of Atlantis.
But I won’t go off and delve into the fine details of things about these two games since they’ve both been out for ages, but if you’re looking for a fun game with some brutal combat, all for the cheap price of under ten dollars at your local Gamestop store, then you simply can’t pass up on this game.
The only clear gameplay mechanic I think is worth mentioning that is any different from its handheld counterpart is the evasive roll maneuver. Whereas in the PSP iteration you had to use the shoulder buttons, which I for one could never get accustomed to, the PS3 version of the two games uses the second analog stick, which effectively eliminated any complains I may have had for the feature before.
Closing Comments
As standalone games, both Chains of Olympus and Ghost of Sparta were fantastic games that defined the PSP throughout its generation. With the PS3 ports, you get to experience them all over again with HD visuals, trophies, DualShock controls, and even have the chance to play the games in 3D! Telling you to buy this game is easy because you should for its now dirt-cheap price tag.
Score: 4/5
Replay Value: Moderate