God of War III Remastered (PS4)

Kratos, very nearly videogame’s angriest resident, has returned once again for another round with God of War III Remastered, and like always, no one is going to get in his way.

Considered by many fans to be one of the best games in the franchise, God of War III originally released for the PS3 to great critical success, and it’s finally arrived on the PS4 – it was inevitable really.

Along with its transition to the more capable PS4, this particular remastered version brings with it a few enhancements.

The most obvious improvement is obviously its visuals, that’s a given. In that regard, the game looks a lot more vivid, and matches that with more detailed textures and a number of additional polygons thrown in for good measure.

Beyond merely upgrading the visuals, as perhaps God of War III Remastered’s biggest improvement, the game runs at 60fps at 1080p, greatly improving the general fluidity of Kratos’ reactions as well as the game in general.

Having never experienced the PS3 release, it’s great to finally be able to retrace Kratos’ journey against Zeus, a journey of vengeance, self-retribution and gratuitous violence.

As a result, Kratos, the brutal warrior who dared to challenge the gods, is on a collision with the Olympian gods and will dispatch any who oppose his pursuit of Zeus.

Typically, as is the way with God of War, Kratos has to start from behind and its achieved this time by tossing him off of Mount Olympus.

Kratos’ solution is to search for Pandora and that darn box of hers. With it, he can bring Zeus and the Olympian gods to their knees.

Expect to encounter creatures such as centaurs, harpies, chimeras, minotaurs, sirens, gorgons, titans and a lot more along the way – it’s one violent journey.

Fortunately for the player, Kratos is capable of rather incalculable levels of violence and mayhem, something the monsters of God of War III obviously didn’t expect – you should see their faces before you tear them a new one.

That means plenty of hack-and-slash goodness, paired with awesome creature, monster and character designs, along with the button mashing combos and quick-time event gameplay you’ve come to expect from God of War.

Like with any other God of War game, combat is much of the focus in the game. That said, there are occasional puzzle or platforming elements that break up the otherwise relentless pace.

So expect gameplay and general execution (pun intended) of God of War III to be in line with previous instalments in the series.

Expect combat to be combo-based with the player’s main weapon being the Blades of Exile, as well as a number of secondary weapons you’ll obtain by slaying bosses along the way.

When fighting bosses and stronger enemies, the game relies on quick-time events where you have to react in a timed sequence to utterly decimate the enemy, and come out winning.

While undoubtedly cool and oh so gruesome, QTEs aren’t the only way to take down larger foes. I would encourage it, however, as it usually provides you with health in return.

Alternative to the combo-based combat are a selection of four magical attacks and a power-enhancing ability which all help to spice up the combat so nothing gets stale, and things are kept fresh as a result.

There are many moves and combos that Kratos can pull of depending on the weapon he uses be it the Claws of Hades, the Nemean Cestus and the Nemesis Whip, with his primary weapon being the Blades of Exile.

The weapons all excel in different situations and vary your style of play. It’s a great way to offer various approaches to the game.

Visually, the game has made a beautiful transition to the PS4 from the PS3 version, and you can definitely see a graphical upgrade in the move.

In the audio department, the soundtrack, like in previous God of War games, is superb and helps to bring to the fore the truly epic nature of Kratos’ quest for revenge.

If you haven’t played God of War III before and own a PS4, this version is highly recommended.

Even if you have the PS3 version, God of War III is easily one of the best games to grace the PS3’s library and it’s hard to say no to another venture with Kratos.

God of War III Remastered is set to release for the PS4 on July 15th.