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God of War III: The Spirit Within Preview for PlayStation 2 (PS2)

God of War III: The Spirit Within Preview for PlayStation 2 (PS2)

A Spin-Off of Galactic Proportions

April 1, 2008 – The God of War series is one of the greatest video game franchises created in the last few years. Developers and publishers seem scared to invest their cash and resources on new stories and characters that may never pay off. However, God of War demonstrated that there’s still plenty of imagination out there, and that creating a new game series from the ground up is still possible. Once they create a successful series, they gotta take advantage of the new creation and release as many sequels as possible before the flame goes out. That’s the case with God of War.

God of War III: The Spirit Within screenshot

Just a couple of months ago it was confirmed that a new sequel of God of War is on the way. We didn’t know much about it until now, but finally light was shed on the highly anticipated title and we bring you everything there’s to know about God of War III. Read on!

As always, the story is centered around the fearless Spartan warrior named Kratos. He said at the end of God of War II: “The time of the Gods has come to an end.” He sent Gaia (Mother Earth) to destroy Olympus. Gaia does reach Olympus but instead of attacking the gods, she speaks with them about Kratos’ bragging arrogance. The gods of Olympus have lost their patience with him, especially Zeus. Vengeful as always, the gods have decided a new destiny for Kratos: he’ll be doomed to live in the darkness of the deep galaxy, at least until he redeems himself for his past sins. The gods feel it’s time for Kratos to learn what’s out there. There are plenty of dangers living out in the cosmos, and some day those evil forces could present a major threat for the planet Earth. It’s in Kratos’ hands to fight his way back to Earth and return as the ultimate intergalactic hero. No foolin’ around this time!

He accepts his new destiny without hesitation. All he wants to do is prove he’s stronger than the gods. Before you know it, Kratos will be aboard the Eagle ship, flying into the silent and mysterious outer space. Lots of fantastic creatures with three eyes and six legs await. He must be surprised, considering the most unusual creatures he’d seen were Cyclops, with just one eye and two legs!

Luckily he still has his badass Blades of Keops, which he can’t live without. In case you didn’t remember, Kratos obtained the Blades of Keops at the end of God of War II. Many of you might have missed the alternative ending: when you try to kill Zeus, if you press R1 multiple times, you’ll enter a mini-game of tic-tac-toe. If you win, Kratos will be sent to Egypt to find a secret scroll. If he manages to find it, he’ll learn where to obtain the Blades of Keops, a weapon even more powerful than the Blades of Chaos and Athena combined. You’ll see they shine with purple fire instead of red. That’s because they’re charged up with spiritual orbs.

God of War III: The Spirit Within screenshot

The combat system has changed a bit this time around, but for the better. In addition to blue (magic), green (life), and red (currency) orbs, you’ll now obtain purple orbs when fighting enemies. These represent your spiritual energy. During combat you’ll be able to use the blades of Keops as long as the spiritual gauge has some “juice” in it. You can also perform strong magic attacks as always.

As I said, the difference in God of War III is the spiritual attacks. Holding R1 and L1 at the same time will make Kratos start a mini-game of Concentration. You can choose the theme: birds, girls, or enemies. Each of them has its own advantages. For example, when you select birds, a blue halo will appear over Kratos’ head and he’ll grow Pegasus wings in his back. He can then fly for a few seconds, while throwing sonic attacks at the enemies. His squawks will stun the enemies and he can then finish them with the Blades of Keops. If he chooses to focus on enemies, he’ll have a green halo and will simply mutate into one of them. They will all start fighting each other, making the job easy. The most rewarding choice is the ladies, represented with the pink halo. Kratos will enter a “naughty” mini-game where he needs to choose which one of the three available girls is the best. The trick is he’ll be blind-folded. Depending on the buttons we press, only one part of their body will be revealed. Players are only given two tries, which means after that you have to decide which of the three girls is hotter. The hotter the girl, the more damage you’ll cause to the enemies.

God of War III: The Spirit Within screenshot

We’ve only been able to see a few screenshots, but I’m sure the graphics are going to be great, rendered in full 1080u (ultra HD), for those lucky ones who already own one of those amazing and ultra-realistic TVs. The game looks a lot like a movie, but without losing the fantasy feel that characterizes the series. One thing we noticed is Kratos’ red tattoo is kind of purplish this time around, which many of you might hate. It shouldn’t affect the overall quality of the game though.

There’s also a multiplayer mode this time! Up to four players will be placed in a random arena seen in the story mode. Kratos’ tattoo will glow in different colors, to make it easy to distinguish each player. Players will be able to use all of the game attacks against the enemies, including the spiritual attacks. However, in order to obtain different color orbs they’ll have to attack their enemies with the Blades of Keops first. The survivor will be the winner.

God of War III: The Spirit Within screenshot

Are you ready for the next installment? You better be! God of War III will be released sometime in 2008, probably towards the holidays. Both PlayStation 2 and 3 owners should be happy because the game will be available for both systems. What better stocking stuffer than a copy of your soon-to-become favorite video game ever?

Game Features:

  • The God of War series goes where never before: The gods of Olympus send Kratos deep into the galaxy so he can redeem himself for all his past sins.
  • New combat system includes spiritual attacks in addition to magic and the famed Blades of Keops.
  • Multiplayer mode will include epic fights for up to four players.
  • Screen Resolution: Up to 1080u (Ultra HDTV, Widescreen).

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