Each year, the release of dozens of blockbuster games is predated with millions of dollars in advertising and promotion. The verbiage is always the same, they promise revolutionary this and that, groundbreaking something or another and sometimes something called liquid AI. Sadly though, these promises rarely seem met. Seems like a waste of money doesn’t it?

But God of War III is different.  Not only does the conclusion to SCEA’s Greek Mythology trilogy meet expectations, it shatters them completely.  From the opening to the game’s bloody and violent conclusion, the latest tale of Kratos VS Zeus is one you don’t want to miss. It’s engrossing, it’s satisfying and fun – in short, it’s the best reason yet why you need to drop $300 on a PS3.

Picking up right after the conclusion of God of War II, the third chapter finds Kratos riding on the shoulders of Gaia the Titan (think the weird tree monster from the Never Ending Story movies) as they ascend Mount Olympus to take on Zeus. As you’d expect, the gods don’t take lightly to this and begin to take the offensive against the coming invasion.  What results is one of the most intense and engrossing opening sequences in gaming history. If you play through the game’s first ten minutes and don’t absolutely need to finish the game; check your pulse.

"The combat in God of War is fast-paced and unforgiving, but dear lord is it fun."

Like the previous God of War games, this is a hack and slash at heart, but it’s one of the most fun hack and slash games I’ve played. Perhaps this is a result of each of the weapons being so satisfying to use, I never got enough of laying waste to a crowd of minions from hell with my blades of chaos. I would try to keep my combo meter as high as possible, and would unleash my magic and specialty weapons at just the right time. The combat in God of War is fast-paced and unforgiving, but dear lord is it fun.

The pinnacle of the game’s combat system is the quicktime event style finishing moves you’ll perform on your larger opponents. After you drain enough of an enemy’s health, an icon will appear over their head which will initiate a quicktime event and following the button presses will initiate some of the most gruesome and rewarding kills in gaming. Imagine ripping a Cyclops’ eye directly out of its socket, or literally grabbing the bull by the horns and snapping a Minotaur’s neck.  Things can get a bit overwhelming when you have a group of Minotaurs, minions and Harpies (seriously, you’ll find a ton of pleasure ripping off their wings) in a room, but when you clear them out it’s intensely rewarding.

I’ll admit it, I’m a scale whore – I absolutely love gigantic boss battles in games.  God of War excels here as the entire game presents a magnificent sense of scale. Though you are Kratos, Spartan warrior who has ended his fair share of both human and beast lives, you always get the feeling that you’re overwhelmed by these towering titans and beasts. As stated above, taking down these Titans is a blast and the boss battles are actually entertaining and challenging.

"...the mythological set pieces are absolutely breathtaking."

I’m not usually a technophile, but you’re not playing God of War III right until you play it in high definition with a booming sound system.  This is a game that thanks to a booming soundtrack and effects, demands it be played loud. When most people think of the God of War series, they don’t think of art, but God of War III is one of the most stunning pieces of evidence for the power of the PS3. The character models are magnificent and the mythological set pieces are absolutely breathtaking. It’s hard at times to not get caught staring at some of the detail found in the game while you’re getting attacked by beasts of the underworld.

If I had one complaint about the game, it would be the fact that somewhere between the start of the second act and the middle of the third, the gameplay seems to find itself in a lull. Thankfully though, the game’s thrilling final act begins before this lull really begins to turn people off from the game. There’s also the fact that God of War II had tons of innovation, while the third chapter rests comfortable on the laurels of its predecessors. This doesn’t affect me nearly as much as I thought it would as God of War III feels much like a tribute to the two games before it as it almost perfects the mechanics introduced in those games.

God of War III joins Uncharted 2, Ocarina of Time and Gears of War 2 on the list of games I couldn’t wait to play through again right after I finished. As a game, God of War III is nothing short of epic, but as an interactive experience it’s a testament to why we play video games. SCEA has created one for the ages here, and no PS3 library is complete without it.