God of War 2

TxdoHawk

I wound up picking this up at launch, got stuck, and quickly got sidetracked by other things. Finally decided to pop it in again on a whim, was still stuck at the part after the first flying bit, and then found out through GameFAQs that you have to

use Rage of the Titans to smack the giant hand off your ride

which wasn't exactly obvious, unless I missed something.

So anyway, I think my favorite part of the sequel is the absolutely ridiculous over-the-top violence. Kicking demon puppies? Tearing the wings off of griffons? The end of the Theseus fight? Solid gold.

So yeah, even though 99% of you have already beaten this, let's talk about it. I find these lttp/discussion threads motivate me to finish games.

MegaMan001

This may pop the threads bubble, but I didn't even finish this game. It just didn't feel. . . right. I can't explain it any more clearly than that and I sorely wish I had enjoyed it more because I loved the first a ton.

Black Ice

When will this game become a Greatest Hits? Any ideas?

Radikal_Dreamer

I loved God of War 1, but I haven't played GoW2 at all. I waited so long to play GoW1 that I'm sure I can wait until GoW2 gets Greatest Hits before I play it. It'll save me a bit of money in the long run.

Xagarath

I hear from those who, like me, were unimpressed by the first game that this one somewhat improved on it.
However, it's still a long way from cheap.

KingGraham

I loved God of War from beginning to end, but the sequel just made me realize how annoying and uninteresting all the play mechanics in that game actually are...so I quit about half way through God of War 2.

It was definitely an improvement. The series just wore out its welcome really quickly for me. God of War 2 is also the only game to ever make my PS2 lock up for any reason, which probably didn't help my feelings towards it.

Noray

I don't really understand any people who liked the first game but disliked the second game, or even more puzzlingly, disliked the first one but liked the second. They are basically more of the same, which I personally think is in no way bad because I loved the first one. I did get an assload of v-sync tearing in GoW2 though, like, criminally much. But other than that, I loved it. They aren't the deepest brawlers, but I like the storyline, the art direction and the sheer brutality of it all. Hitting an enemy feels like a seriously weighty thing, unlike in some games where it's like you're cutting air (hello Prince of Persia). Much love.

sabyul

I loved God of War 2. A lot of it had to do with really well animated new attacks (especially love the feeling of weight and power from the blocking triangle (?) attack, so brutal and also vaulting and beheading the little Olympians) and the Golden Fleece mechanic, which adds plenty of fun to the game.

The new magic (sans wind bow) was kind of lame, I didn't like time-slowing puzzles, and the boss battles honestly got kind of old (though I never played on Normal, maybe the HP is more reasonable there). All in all more of the same, playing on the series' strengths and not having as much bad platforming. Great game.

Tigress

I like how they added puzzle-solving to the boss battles. The brutality was majorly awesome. And all the bosses die in a satisfactorily gruesome fashion.

My favorite moment:

Boss battle with Clotho. Pendalum to the FACE, you fat ugly bitch!

Seconded only by shoving a concrete walkway down the gullet of a Kraken and climbing around in the Colossus of Rhodes. And mid-air fight with Icarus.

Darmak

I love both of these games, especially the second one. It's one of the few games to make me giggle and just plain laugh out loud, not because it's funny but because it's so goddamned brutal that it's awesome. Kratos is so full of rage than he can't be arsed to waste his time fighting things, he just rips them apart with his bare hands. And if I ever got stuck on a boss battle when I finally beat it the gruesome death was more than satisfying.

Inzigna

My God of War II disc keeps fucking up and locking my PS2 up.

I hate that game.

But I love it.

muninn

I liked GoW2 but not the first one.
The environments were much more engaging, and the game really filled you with a sense of wonder at times. In my case, art direction can go a loooong way.

Majestros

Already mentioned this in the Combo Video thread but nobody saw it, plus i figure it makes more sense to post it somewhere that GoW fans might check.

God of War II Combo Video by Magnetro and me
(scroll down to the bottom and download the HQ x264 version or LQ WMV version)

It's been a while since the game was new so i'm sure most people have forgotten what most of Kratos' moves do, but we'd love to hear what you think of the video regardless.

Majestros

Or if you like your videos blurry, you can choose from one of these:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=D9feUMHDJng
http://vimeo.com/1130552
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5ov7o_god-of-war-2-awesome-combo-video_videogames

Darlan

I loved 'em both. The action was deep enough to be engaging, the environments and use of classical mythology were great, and the plot, while not jaw dropping, is probably the best in any action game. Kratos may be a bit single-minded, but there is still a lot of interesting stuff going on, and they did a good job of integrating it into the gameplay.

Trying to protect your wife from the Kratos clones, ripping off Icarus' wings and using them to glide ala Symphony of the Night, manually changing your literal lines of fate, facing fucking Zeus...there are so many great moments.

spookymuffin

God of War is one of my favorite series, hands down. The setting, the combat, the story, the narration, every bit of it is perfect. GoW3 is the only reason I'm buying a PS3.

LeumasWhite

1 had a better feel to it, but I think the combat in 2 was a bit sharper. Mostly I didn't like the ancient hero name-dropping that went on, but otherwise it's a great game.

Haikira

I never actually warmed to the original, but ever since i played the demo for the PSP God of War and loved it, i feel like i may have just been prejudice towards the first. Can you easily start on the second?

spookymuffin

You can, it's not completely needed to know 100% of what's going on to appreciate the game. You really should go back and play the first one, though. Like, really. Seriously.

Raughn

I think GoW2 is among the most perfectly paced games ever made (alongside Super Metroid, the Half-Life 2 episodes, others). I cannot recall a single moment when I was not enjoying myself, nor did I ever wonder how much longer it was.

I need to play the GoW games again someday.

Majestros

I've been trying to get my brother to play the GoW games cuz i think they'd be perfect for him based on the games he likes to play. But he's kinda hooked on Xbox360 sandbox games at the moment. It's always kinda tough to go back to "last gen" once you've gotten used to next gen.

By the way, here's a transcript to explain everything that happens in the video above, in case anyone's interested in trying out some of these combos on your next (or first) playthrough. None of the combos were absurdly difficult to do, but a lot of them are kinda thinking outside the box.

redfield85

I am actually at the end of the first God of War game. I am impressed with myself. I have had this (and the second one) since they came out and haven't really touched them. I am about to beat the first one in less than a week. I never finish games. This is crazy.

I plan on going on a God of War break I think. I find myself not wanting to play this one (the first), but the story and cutscenes keep me going. I really like the story. I am excited to see the ending.

Little Jim

kratos dies

but he's okay, don't you worry 'bout a thing!

i loved gow 1 & 2

except for those stupid fucking rotating pillars of doom

goddamn them

redfield85

Little Jim wrote: »

kratos dies

but he's okay, don't you worry 'bout a thing!

i loved gow 1 & 2

except for those stupid fucking rotating pillars of doom

goddamn them

So pissed. I just looked at your spoilers, although they didn't really spoil anything for me since

Kratos already died once. I mean, I am walking through Hades right now. Haha.

Is GOW2 a large step up from the first or is it more of the same, just with some updates?

Little Jim

the combat gets a little tighter, the weapons and magic get a little bit more over the top and the story basically gets 10x more badass right from the get go

however

the ending for 2 will blue ball you so hard you might lose a testicle

redfield85

Little Jim wrote: »

the ending for 2 will blue ball you so hard you might lose a testicle

Are we talking about God of War 2 or Halo 2? :P

EDIT: Annnnd I beat GoW 1 and watched the extra videos online. I also browsed through the rejected character gallery. I thought that was neat.

Strifer

Little Jim wrote: »

the ending for 2 will blue ball you so hard you might lose a testicle

And that does not even touch home to how ridiculously they pull the curtain on this part. It's like they punch you in the gut, and then you fall balls-down. We're talking purple here.

Still, it is a great game in it's own right. I've recently replayed it, and I hardly ever play a game for the second time, so that must count for something. I think the biggest hook was that they made even better use of the environment. I hope they continue to hide things in the most obscure fashion possible, it makes for a lot of replayability.

DodgeBlan

I played through on hard but gave up at the final boss.

That sequence of corridors with ridiculous amounts of monsters in the sister's area took everything I had

Senshi

I'm playing through 2 on Hard with a friend, and we got to Theseus and missed one of the Gorgon Eyes so we must've played him at least 100 times--we finally gave up, restarted, and made DAMN SURE to get all those fucking eyes.

The God of War series is quite possibly the best action series I've ever played. Plus, I'm really fascinated by their twist on the mythology, and every boss is a pleasant surprise akin to waking up Christmas morning and finding a very big present addressed to you.

Nuzak

this game is pretty

really, really pretty

Chance

It took me a long, long time to figure it out and admit it, but God of War is easily one of the best series on the PS2. I didn't care all that much for 1, but when 2 came out for some reason I felt compelled to go buy it brand new. I'm glad I did, 'cause suddenly everything clicked and I hurried out to buy a copy of GoW1. I understood what all the reviewers were talking about - if the game were just an above-average combat system, we wouldn't give a crap, but it's tied together with the best damn production values this side of Metal Gear Solid.

The graphics, the incredible animation, the great writing, the phenomenal voice work, mind-blowing set pieces, a very cool story and a completely uncompromizing, savage, hate-him-or-love-him protagonist.

Oh, and notice what you never notice through each game? A load screen. Ever. In the words of Gabe & Tycho:

"Is this the last level?"
"This is the first level."
"Are you joking?"
"Every other game is the joke. God of War is just the punchline."

Majestros

It is utterly fascinating to me that in the 16 posts since i resurrected this thread, absolutely nobody has commented on the video. How does something like that happen?? Soy baffled.

Darlan

Majestros wrote: »

It is utterly fascinating to me that in the 16 posts since i resurrected this thread, absolutely nobody has commented on the video. How does something like that happen?? Soy baffled.

Combo videos, right?

...Eh.

Chance

Actually I just took a sec to watch that vid - it is pretty incredible - the players have clearly beaten the holy crap out of the game.

But I do get the same sense I do when I usually watch a combo vid. 'Wow, that's amazing - I'm sure glad I don't have to be that good to enjoy or beat these games."

Majestros

That's the thing though - a lot of it is really not that crazy. We tried to be as creative as possible in order to avoid repetition, but the overall difficulty level of the combos is relatively moderate. It may look chaotic and foreign at first glance but if you take a closer look, not only can you pick out combos to use in actual gameplay but also you can figure out how/why we built each combo - which will inevitably get your mind to branch out into your own variants and tangents.

I mean, i've never seen a really good combo video that didn't make me think, "Wow that's really cool but it makes me wonder if this other thing would work ..." Sometimes it takes multiple viewings though. Not that i watch every video twice, but sometimes you just gotta.

Vincent Grayson

I want to finish this game, but since my PS3 died and was replaced, I've lost all my saves, including my GoW2 save. I'm not sure I want to fight through the first half of the game again

Ravenqueen

I loved the first one, the detailed scenes were amazing. As well as the story, which always something I am looking for in a good game. I just finished God of War II and I am still impressed with the world they have created, but I was able to play through the entire game in under two weeks. It seems like it was not as much of a challenge as the first one, does anyone feel the same?

Chance

Ravenqueen wrote: »

I loved the first one, the detailed scenes were amazing. As well as the story, which always something I am looking for in a good game. I just finished God of War II and I am still impressed with the world they have created, but I was able to play through the entire game in under two weeks. It seems like it was not as much of a challenge as the first one, does anyone feel the same?

Aside from the last few boss fights, I suppose it is. You'll have an incredibly hard time beating GoWII on the harder difficulty levels if you haven't mastered reflecting attacks with the fleece.

Not counting the Sisters & the final, final fight though... maybe it just seems easier because we're so accustomed to the mechanics now. After a little time with 2 I was able to feel the moves so well I could toss a Minotaur into the air and just keep him up there 'till he was dead.

Good times.