Console: Sony PSP
Release Date: March 4th, 2008 (North America)
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Developer: Ready at Dawn Studios
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: M
This game is Rated M for gore and nudity. Buy at your own risk.
Chains of Olympus is that of a great game. You play it. You beat it. You put it down. With an engrossing storyline, precise controls, fantastic audio, and brilliant video, this game does wonders on the PSP. If someone ever asked you as to why Sony made the PSP, your sole answer would be "to make God of War: Chains of Olympus".
Kratos follows a rather unexpected turn of events after defeating the attacking Persian army. To him, he thinks the gods continue to take his freedom further away from him. In truth, some of his own actions lead him astray from his desires. The intricate layering of the plot line draws you deeper into this epic. Every once in a while you notice hints of actual mythology; how the gods came to be and in what relation they are to each other. Ready at Dawn pulls the package together so neatly that the game has you at the first cutscene.
"Is this all you would have me do? Is there nothing else?!"
This game lets you delve deeper into the the innerworkings of genius by letting you pilot kratos in an action game environment. You have objectives to fulfill, but only two things are necessary: kill everything, and complete the few puzzles that there are. Bad guys die bloodily and satisfyingly, but at the same time they are a challenge to defeat. The baddies know how to block and they will not let you just have cheap shots at them. Knowledge on how to block, parry, and dodge are a MUST.
Chains of Olympus also use the famously known "quick time events". These are times where an action can only occur if you hit certain buttons at exactly the right time. Some of these events are more lenient than others, but very often the can be extremely frustrating. Sometimes after failing at it for some time, putting down the game and coming back to it later can be a good idea. There is no way to by pass these situations, and can make a quite perfect game perfectly aggravating.
One great thing about the quick time events is the awesome stunts that Kratos pulls while doing them. With fluidity Kratos, in leaps and bounds, sets off a series of events that maim or kill his victim. You'll almost never notice frozen frames or any tears in the graphics. The game performs at it's peak constantly allowing you access to some of the best graphics available on the PSP.
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When you first look at the screen to play the game, you might wonder if you're looking at a decent PS2 game. Well obviously, you're not. Ready at Dawn created magnificent structures to kill in, atrocious and vile enemies to kill, and environments so brilliant you'll want to wander in them forever...killing things. Never will you want to look away from the screen. Every second is precious, every moment is a blessing. Likewise, the cutscenes are done with great detail and passion, the characters are lip synced extremely well to the voice acting.
The music set the mood perfectly for this game. It builds tension where needed, and relaxes when the action isn't present. The game also uses the music as plot development, as a mysterious tune that haunts the back of Kratos' mind. The tune is a perfect way to use music in the game. The background music is good enough to have the sound on for the entirety of the game, but it wasn't memorable. It served it's purpose, and that's about it.
The game puts a package together that is second to none on the PSP. Not only does it deliver a solid game, but there are an extra 5 challenges to go with it plus an unlockable God mode (very hard mode). You'll find yourself at the edge of your seat/chair/bed/floor/table/etc while playing this game.
Mind you, this game is rated M for mature, so please either be 17 OR educate a parent to what the game and rating is all about.
Linear Mode
