Since I’m playing in release order, the next game up in the God of War Saga was Chains of Olympus.
God of War: Chains of Olympus was originally released for the PSP, and I could tell it was designed for a handheld system. Something about the gameplay just felt a little off compared to God of War II, a bit more suited for a small screen.
It’s also much shorter than the previous two games, and the story is structured differently. While both God of War and God of War II saw Kratos on a journey to get the power to kill a god, this felt more like an investigation: strange things start happening and Kratos follows the clues until he finds its source.
Chains of Olympus is a prequel, set during the ten years Kratos served the gods so that they would eventually take away his nightmares.
While God of War II shifted its focus away from tragedy, Chains of Olympus returns with another depressing story. Here, like in the original, we get to see how much Kratos cared about his family.
Now, a few things make the story seem a little inconsistent in regards to the first game, such as why Kratos in the first game seems so shocked that a mortal can kill a god, or how dramatic his return from Hades is when he already did it once before.
(I’ve come to realize that the developers must have really loved Hades, because so far every game has involved a trip to the underworld.)
Nevertheless, working with a prequel can be tricky if you want to keep the same sort of tone, and I appreciate what the story tried to do.
Chains of Olympus wasn’t quite as great as the previous two games, but I did enjoy it, especially the scenes near the end. Next, my journey through the God of War Saga will continue with God of War III!
What did you think of God of War: Chains of Olympus?
This is the only title from the old games that I skipped out on. It seemed weird to have it on handheld.Sounds like it is pretty different in a way though, which could be interesting.
It still plays pretty similarly to the others, but it was just different enough to notice.
[…] now played four games in the God of War Saga, since after completing Chains of Olympus, I moved on to God of War […]