God of War 1 General Discussion

Got all the way past the 3 sirens in the dessert and stopped there. Playing the PS3 version.

I played it once before but stopped when I got to a part in the underworld, didn't know it was close to the end but something bugged me about it so I gave up, likely the platforming or something. Pretty sure the puzzles and platforming and some of the enemy encounters got too repetitive for me, just tons of mobs spawning.

Anyway I'm enjoying it more this time.

Call me a heathen but I don't like GoW 1 that much, I feel I'd enjoy 2 or 3 much more, something about the combat, enemies, bosses and such appeal to me more in those entries. I'm nonplussed about most of the bosses in GoW 1, granted I didn't get to Ares, he looks cool. Nothing wrong with the others but they are all large set piece bosses that don't interest me much. There aren't many bosses in 1, so it sticks out more.

2 is by far the best one, but 1 is - kind of like Splinter Cell for me - the first and thus as the most original ideas and you can really see it as a stand alone thing. Unlike 2 which is a clear setup for 3. Curious what you'll think of the Clones.

They seem cool, do they have your move set? If so that's like 4x rival fight at once.

They have a unique moveset from what I know, mostly based on Kratos's moves in his cutscenes I believe.

God of War 1 showed the series at its most fresh. It has some unique charm and daring missteps that aren't seen in the other games, and its story also works well even as a stand-alone game. So while it has its flaws, it was my favorite in the series for a long time.

Its speedrun is also one of the more challenging ones in the series. >_>

AKheon wrote:God of War 1 showed the series at its most fresh. It has some unique charm and daring missteps that aren't seen in the other games, and its story also works well even as a stand-alone game. So while it has its flaws, it was my favorite in the series for a long time.

Its speedrun is also one of the more challenging ones in the series. >_>

Quoted for truth, it is that rare combination of a stand-alone title that tries some new things in a genre that was pretty bloated at the time. Playing it now after having past my 'I'm too good for God of War' phase, I really appreciate it more and more, if only for how different it is. It will always have a special place in my heart, I consider GoW II the superior game in every facet almost, yet I like this one more.

Got all the way to the underworld. I think the problem I have is that it lasts too long, so much of it is pushing blocks around, wall climbing and backtracking, it got boring for me last time so by the time I got to the underworld I gave up. I find most of pandora island to look very samey.

So there is only 3 bosses plus the clones? For how long it is I'd appreciate 1 more, of course 2 has many more and far more varied. Minotaur was neat, I like that you have to break apart their armour with the giant stake launcher.

Anyway, I like it more this time, underworld is cool, I like the level design there. I'm not a big fan of blocking in games, it's not very engaging to me in all forms other than parries. I'll do it out of necessity but I'd rather dodge or parry, depends on the games emphasis on dodging/blocking. Also the dodge in GoW is whack yo! Why it gotta be so weird? Real goofy, is the dodge any different in other entries?

I prefer dodging it's more fun to me, like GH, it's just fun dodging in that game.

@AKheon; what's your favourite entry, if not the 1st?

Nowadays I like GoW 2 the most for its greater amount of refinement. It just has solid gameplay and design all over, and the story is pretty good as well. It's overall the most consistent game in the series, I think.

Beat it. I like how Kratos escaped the underworld into the graveyard the grave digger was making, must be Zeus being a shitty father again, that guy has like 50+ sons.

Ares was the best boss in this entry, only one that killed me, not very hard otherwise but I was playing on normal with lvl5 chains of chaos. The clones was a clusterfuck but I spammed lvl3 rage of Poseidon and s,s,t for the plume. I can see how hardy the clones fight would be on a NUR on any difficulty.

I respect the 1st for...well being the 1st GoW and being so competent, especially since western devs don't tend to specialise in these types of games, almost exclusively a Japanese made genre. One can't forget the immense influence GoW had, as for the longest time most western action games where based heavily on GoW or outright plagiarism. Respect the formula.

The game really starts to shine more and more the more you play it though. On Normal and with maximum powers it can be quite the cakewalk, the more you put in the more you get out of it. It's pretty cool to see the game not fall apart when you take mechanics away, the balance stays intact all the way through to the end (with the exception of the Clones which was really designed around maximum spellcasting).

I can see how hardy the clones fight would be on a NUR on any difficulty.

Try hardly doable, think the amount of players that did it can be counted on one hand.

Beat the challenge of the gods for the costumes, worth it for the scuba kratos and cow kratos.

Gabriel Phelan Lucas wrote:Beat the challenge of the gods for the costumes, worth it for the scuba kratos and cow kratos.

I love those costumes haha! Wish they allowed you to use them without the buffs...
 

Chains of Olympus has a spud of war costume, don't know if that's in the others. Man got a lot of these games left, 6 of em!!

Ascension seems a lot different from the others, for better or for worse, but it's the only one that doesn't have a 60fps luxury version. Shame it never got a remaster.

Just started this. No idea if I'll have time to continue though.

Just got to some city by boat and fought a few minotaurs and some large ogre thing with spike balls.

So far I feel like staying at range and activating that move where he slams the ground with both swords. Not using grabs much as I've already encountered enemies that seem immune, at least from a standard standing grab. The minotaurs can be grabbed after being launched, but sometimes they won't launch. Enemies tend to have a layer of armor when they attack.

For example, the ogres get stunned by the slam, but not when they're attacking. This leads me to want to fight from max range at all times.

The launcher only works after a certain recovery period on the big guys, so only as a punish to certain moves (otherwise they'll just armor through). Grabs are best when used to ground-to-air (OH) regular foes into the big guys for massive damage. You can also launch a minotaur, hold down the button to auto jump (which has massive i.frames) and then grab him in mid-air. This grab throws him to the ground again but he bounces, so you can actually grab him again and again until he's dead; really cool to screw around with.

Doing Square Square Triangle from range is a bit of a beginners trap, it works, but it is really boring to play that way. The block of Kratos is godly, dodging is mediocre. Just stay close and destroy enemies while blocking when needed, only a few attacks in the whole game can pierce your guard. 

Damnit now I want to play GoW1 again, such a fantastic game.

This grab throws him to the ground again but he bounces, so you can actually grab him again and again until he's dead; really cool to screw around with.

Not long after my post last night, I started doing this.

Doing Square Square Triangle from range is a bit of a beginners trap, it works, but it is really boring to play that way. The block of Kratos is godly, dodging is mediocre. Just stay close and destroy enemies while blocking when needed, only a few attacks in the whole game can pierce your guard.

Been doing both of these.

It gets even better when you learn you can slam enemies into each other for massive damage, or OH them off ledges for an instant kill (you'll still get orbs even). Square Triangle is the best move you have, paired with Hold Triangle (the launcher). Triangle Triangle Triangle is also great (once you have it).

Some enemies can't be grabbed right away as you've seen, they need to be opened up (take enough damage), but this only counts for ground grabs. No enemy (with exception of the really big ones) is immune to air-grabs.

I've often heard the GoW 2 is considered the best. Why is this? I'm thinking of skipping to it because I just wasn't enjoying the first game. I don't know why. It's not even a bad game, I just have no motivation to continue. I'll try again later but can't promise anything.

By the way that snake enemy is quick. I'm scared to attack it with more than one hit most of the time lol.

For the snakes, use guard-cancel on your moves. Square Triangle and cancel with a guard is the way to go, but always be careful with them. You can also abuse the camera to get them out of sight and attack them off screen. But they are the newbie killer.

God of War 2 is heralded for a few things. It is not the type of sequel you expect to see these days, or ever for that matter. It doesn't innovate, it doesn't change, it is just better in everything. The story is better, the graphics are better, the framerate is (by some bizarre magic) better, the levels are bigger and better, there are more weapons, weapon switching is slightly added, the magic is more balanced, it has easily one of the best opening chapters in gaming, the enemies are better designed (more combat options), grabs are more fluent and even more impactfull and better incorporated. It is a prime example of a sequel grabbing the flaws of its original, fixing them and adding just enough new toys to make it interesting for fans.

That said, the foundation is the same. If you thought God of War 1 wasn't enjoyable, you won't enjoy this, period.

Yeah I use guard cancel. They are still really dangerous if you try to combo them. I'm playing on hard too.

I don't know, sometimes it's some weird thing that decides for me.

I really don't enjoy the climbing parts, though the mechanics involved are interesting.

Why do these western action games have that this strange feel to them? It's like they aren't fluid like the Japanese games and feel really sluggish. I'm not sure what it is. I'm getting a similar feel to Darksiders. Will give GoW2 a try tomorrow morning.

I explain that a bit in my GoW article, but the gist of it is that Japanese games focus more on being slick and avoiding blows. While in Western culture it is considered more cool to 'tank the blows headon'. In God of War emphasis is on staying in their face and tanking or blocking hits, while in titles of the eastern side of the world you are all about dodging at the last second like a slick ninja.

Grr, what is it? I can't get into GoW2 either!

They aren't bad games at all. Neither is Darksiders but I had the same issue. It's got to be something in the way things look and animate. It must be what you said Roy. I actually find myself using the dodge often in GoW.

It's not that I'm unfamiliar with cancelling stuff with guarding, because I love Onimusha and the PS2 Castlevanias which have guard and perfect guard.

Come to think of it, I didn't like the Lords Of Shadow games either, but I love the PS2 Castlevanias.

I think it is a big mental issue too, trying to play the game in a way that doesn't befit it (aka, rolling around). It is something BigVee and SBK slammed me hard for (and justly so) but it really took a lot of adaptation. Reminded me a bit of going from NGS2 to DMC3, just plays so wildly different in terms of style, really takes getting used to.

I agree about GoW2, it is a better version of GoW1, but if you like GoW then GoW1 is a really good GoW imo.

@Birdman: the trick to play GoW is to use the AoE attacks. Though, the AoE attacks are at the end of the chain combos, and the enemies will interrupt the chains. So, you have to stay out of the range of the enemies, direct your combo away from the enemies, then direct the last, powerful hit of the combo towards the enemies.

Example, basic Blades of Athena combo: S.S.S.S.S.S.T

Let's say enemies are on the right side of the screen, Kratos is in the left side. You hold the stick to the left, and press S.S.S.S.S.S (it's S six times) then you hold the stick towards the enemeis and press T. This will let you do the full combo without enemies interrupting it, then strick the AoE attack to them. The same can be done with the strong combo, I just don't remember the exact number of the inputs.

You also wanna throw enemies into enemies because this will inflict severe damage. Though, not all enemies can be thrown, some of them will trigger a different type of grab when you press O. Some of them are useful, though, just try to experiment.

See if using the AoE trick will make the game more enjoyable.

Though, Birdman, I agree on your rants about GoW.

About Darksiders, I played it when it came out. I remember it being extremely easy though. It has a more Japanese inspired combat system, with i-frames dodges and close quarter combat, so I prefere the feel of it to GoW, but overall I think GoW has better replay value because at least is way more challenging. Though, I didn't try Darksiders 2.

Btw, @Birdman, I get the passion for discovering hidden gems, but since you seem to be demanding when it comes to technical action games, why don't you go deep into the classics? Personally I think DMC, Ninja Gaiden and probably Clover/Platinum are the most interesting.

For DMC, I wouldn't tell you to get into DMC4 because it's quite of a strange game to jump into the series, but DMC1 and DMC3 are really good. Can't tell about DMC2. DmC:DMC should probably be considered as a non DMC game, but is good!

Ninja Gaiden: for something more old school I would say start from NG04. I started with NGB but that's very difficult so probably NG04 is better. If you want a modern NG then try Sigma 2 for defensive playstyle and a very accessible difficulty level, try NG3 Razor's Edge for more brutal and offensive combat. I would avoid NGII vanilla since it can be frustrating as a beginner game.

Clover/Platinum: I can't help here but I played a bit of Bayonetta (all the difficulty levels) and seems to be a good action game. Here I'll do something I generally try to avoid, which is recommending games I didn't play, and I apologize for that. But a lot of action game fans think most Clover/Platinum hack and slash games are really good. God Hand seems incredibly tasty, with that incredibly sweet retro feel. But Bayo, MGR and Transformer look more modern and frantic. I also think Korra looks incredibly sexy with those kung fu movesets.

I would say, play these games, they are a guarantee of quality.

the trick to play GoW is to use the AoE attacks. Though, the AoE attacks are at the end of the chain combos, and the enemies will interrupt the chains. So, you have to stay out of the range of the enemies, direct your combo away from the enemies, then direct the last, powerful hit of the combo towards the enemies.

I'm familiar with this but never used it much. I'm not having an issue doing moves or dealing with enemies so far in GoW2, though I barely get off a full chain and I'm constantly guard cancelling my attacks. Gone back to S,S,T again because it's pretty quick.

Need to use grabs more I guess.

One thing I know I hate absolutely, is when doing the launcher, Kratos auto jumps in slow motion. The auto jump isn't a huge problem, but I really don't understand the slowmo thing. It feels weird.

Overall I don't find it a bad game at all, it just isn't clicking with me for some reason and I know it's largely due to the odd animations and weird movement. I plan to finish GoW 2 though. It immediately felt better than GoW1. I feel I must complete at least one of them.

I have GoW3 here but not Ascension. I heard many hate that one. That just makes me more interested in it. I'll probably end up liking it more than others lol.

As for you list, I play/played everything on there except for NG series. Never had a chance to get into it because we just never had Xbox. I have NG1 here so when I get time I'll start with that. I've played it a little, like the first stage and loved it immediately.

Absolutely love Clover/Platinum and have pretty much every they've put out.

Birdman wrote: I have GoW3 here but not Ascension. I heard many hate that one. That just makes me more interested in it. I'll probably end up liking it more than others lol.

I am almost the same haha, I really want to try that one.

On the rest of the discussion:

Saying the trick to GoW is to abuse the plumes (aoe's) is akin to saying Ninja Gaiden players should just izuna all day every day. It works, but it's tedious and boring as all hell. I can recommend it for your earlier run maybe, but after that you are better of learning throw-loops and setups and learning how to slam foes into each other and emphasise using smaller enemies are projectiles.

About the launcher, the auto jump is optional. Just let go of the button after you get the animation of the launcher, or just use s.t to launch and jump manually if needed.

I remember sometimes he would swing the enemy around or target other enemies which was something I liked but didnt play long enough to figure out.  I really liked doing stuff like that in Pandora's Tower. How do you do it in GoW2?

Will try the jump thing next time I play.

One more thing I've noticed that's similar in these western action games that I dislike is their use of color. GoW, Darksiders and Kingdoms of Amalur are prime examples. It's usually in things like the HUD, menus, and things like orbs, magic, etc. It's all so lurid and hard to look at. I find GoW to be slightly less of an offender in this regard. I wouldn't say it really hurts the games but it looks ugly and it's kind of consistent. Any idea why?

You do the grab>throw by grabbing a regular enemy and pressing Square (I think). While holding a regular foe in your hands you can beat on him for extra orbs, instant kill him or throw him. Works in all titles in the series I believe.

And yeah that is just culture. Western Culture, especially American, never had great graphic design - opting for more bombastic and hard contrasts to get the point across. Eastern graphic design is way more held back and clean, while European is more tightly designed and loves contrast in shapes (rounded and sharp corners for instance). There's a reason why most American design bureaus import their graphic designers from other countries more and more.

Damn it, I just don't have enough time to play everything. Barely a few hours on week days due to work, and only really get Saturday to seriously sit down with something.

Managed to get some play time in? I find that it is best to just focus on games you're sure you'll enjoy. If you don't think you enjoy God of War, stop! And play something you do like :) Or - like me with The Evil Within 1 - come back to it in a few years.

Yeah I did pretty much quit and forgot about it lol. I still plan to go back to it though.

Actually converted a action-fan who blasted God of War for being 'lacking in depth'. He tried it again and now loves it.

Original conversation: https://www.reddit.com/r/actiongames/comments/7m0u2u/the_action_gamer_list/drrsloo/

Him admitting he loves GoW now: https://www.reddit.com/r/actiongames/comments/7m0u2u/the_action_gamer_list/dvpd2zj/

Very interesting read. Looks like there may still be a microscopic glimmer of hope. Now just do the same with like 5 million others and we're good to go.

Sometimes all it takes is to sit down with a game or see some good video guides. Other times they just won't have it. In the bizarre case of Transformers I've had people foaming at the mouth crazy at even the mention of high level mechanics videos. It's almost like people are scared that something might be good. Why? I'll never know lol.

One man at a time is all we need. It makes all the difference! I think the release of the new God of War might also change things, it might become 'popular' to hate it and see people get a much improved opinion on the originals.

skip to 13:37 lol.

Painful to listen to. The whole community taking a huge dump on the series is getting a bit tiring, especially with the new one coming out that's probably going to send a big message to the industry that we prefer that 'new direction' in the genre.

I really want Stinger to remain a bit ambiguous but I'm really considering making a topic "God of War wasn't horrible, here's why" list that we can just copy paste... I'll think on how to do this.

It's funny how you point out how you can just PPPPP Bayo or use whatever one move in any action game, and they'll accuse you of bad gameplay, yet for some reason GoW isn't allowed to say the same. WTF is up with this? It's like some secret contract was signed.

I honestly feel it's more about not being able to admit being wrong, and taking a second look at the game with the guidance of good players would just be too humiliating to them. Same goes for Transformers. It's amazing how some of the best players of certain action games are the dumbest, most narrow-minded people. You'd expect them to be able to discern mechanics by now, but they just can't. I can. Why can't they?

Edit: hahaha I saw your comment Roy. Couldn't help yourself eh?

Oh that was funny XD

Though, aside from personal preferences about specific games, I really enjoy Mike Kob podcasts and I'm really happy he did a new one. I would suggest to watch the other ones, and you'll acknowledge that DelusionaryKiller, a famous DMC4 player, enjoys God of War.

Do God of War titles have difficult button mashing sequences such as the torture one in MGS1-2 or PW ?
I have already played all old GoW (except Ascension) in the past but they were only casual runs on normal difficulty. Killer is Dead was another big problem, but on PC I can create a turbo button.

There is mashing, but nothing insanely difficult. Just a regular mash or a few button presses are fine. I don't recall Killer is Dead having one, when was that?

When you fight David.

Royta/Raeng wrote:There is mashing, but nothing insanely difficult. Just a regular mash or a few button presses are fine. I don't recall Killer is Dead having one, when was that?

Good, then I'll probably buy the hd collections on ps3 thanks to ps store deals.

Just started this game on hard difficulty and unlocked the third power. It's very good and responsive. I really like the enemies. On this difficulty I must be a bit careful with my moves. Launchers and grabs are needed and they give satisfaction.

Great stuff! Really one of my favorite action titles. The enemies make the game so much better than it should, very fun to fight and toy around with. The 'medusa' power makes the game really fun to toy around with too.

I've maxed out the blades and upgraded not much else. Their moveset is pretty good, Kratos has become unstoppable haha. It seems to me there aren't enough orbs to upgrade everything and I'm doing a good exploration. The game is very satisfying to play, it's never boring and it doesn't need many boss fights because enemy encounters are always top-notch. I'm near the Minotaur boss at the moment.

Gow is so good. After the minotaur, the difficulty really ramps up. I only used the Blades and electricity, but I had no problem upgrading everything. There are also a ton of VERY well hidden red chests. If you miss health or mana upgrades you won't get as many red orbs, the chests will just have the missed upgrades instead of red orbs.

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Good to know, I'll be extra careful with the exploration from now on.

There's enough orbs to max everything out, but it cuts it close. You really have to know your orb-collection methods. For instance against minotaurs you don't use the QTE for the kill, that way you get red-orbs etc.

As noted by Hedfone, there are more upgrade-chests than there are upgrades, so once you have them all you'll get a good chunk of red-orbs from them. But yeah you can get really overpowered by the end, hell you're already overpowered with the default moveset in some regards, it is nuts. Blade of Artemis also has some fun things to toy around with (though I prefer the Blades).

Glad to hear you're enjoying it!

I'm in the room with mobile platforms, archers and harpies. I have no magic so it's gonna be a bit hard haha.

Oh, wow, the clones are extremely tough even on hard difficulty. Any tips ?