| God of War: Chains of Olympus | |
|---|---|
 North American box art | |
| Developer | Ready at Dawn[a][1] |
| Publisher | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| Director | Ru Weerasuriya |
| Writers |
|
| Composer | Gerard K. Marino |
| Series | God of War |
| Platforms | PlayStation Portable,PlayStation 3 |
| Release | |
| Genres | Action-adventure,hack and slash |
| Mode | Single-player |
God of War: Chains of Olympus is a 2008action-adventure game developed byReady at Dawn, and published bySony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It was first released for thePlayStation Portable (PSP)handheld console on March 4, 2008. The game is the fourth installment in theGod of War series, the third chronologically, and a prequel to the originalGod of War. It is loosely based onGreek mythology and set inancient Greece, with vengeance as its central motif. The player controlsKratos, aSpartan warrior who serves theOlympian gods. Kratos is guided by the goddessAthena, who instructs him to find the Sun GodHelios, as the Dream GodMorpheus has caused many of the gods to slumber in Helios' absence. With the power of the Sun and the aid of theTitanAtlas, Morpheus and the Queen of theUnderworldPersephone intend to destroy the Pillar of the World and in turnOlympus.
The gameplay is similar to the previous installments, with a focus oncombo-based combat, achieved through the player's main weapon—the Blades of Chaos—and secondary weapons acquired throughout the game. It featuresquick time events that require the player to complete game controller actions in a timed sequence to defeat stronger enemies andbosses. The player can use up to three magical attacks as alternative combat options. The game also featurespuzzles andplatforming elements. The series' control scheme was reconfigured to compensate for the smaller number of buttons on the PSP compared to thePlayStation 2'scontroller; Ready at Dawn's solutions for the controls were praised by critics.
Chains of Olympus was acclaimed by critics, and is the highest-rated PSP title onMetacritic.[2] As of June 2012, the game has sold 3.2 million copies worldwide, making it theseventh best-selling PlayStation Portable game of all time. Together with 2010'sGod of War: Ghost of Sparta,Chains of Olympus was remastered and released on September 13, 2011, as part of theGod of War: Origins Collection for thePlayStation 3. The remastered version was included in theGod of War Saga released on August 28, 2012, also for PlayStation 3.
God of War: Chains of Olympus is athird-personsingle-player video game viewed from afixed camera perspective. The player controls the character Kratos incombo-based combat,platforming, andpuzzle game elements, and battles foes who primarily stem fromGreek mythology, includingcyclopes,Gorgons,satyrs,harpies,minotaurs,hoplites, andsphinxes. Morpheus beasts, shades,banshees, fire guards, fire sentries, hyperion guards, and death knights were created specifically for the game. Platforming elements require the player to climb walls, jump across chasms, swing on ropes, and balance acrossbeams to proceed through sections of the game. Some puzzles are simple, such as moving a box so that the player can use it as a jumping-off point to access a pathway unreachable with normal jumping, but others are more complex, such as finding several items across different areas of the game to unlock one door.[3][4]
Kratos' main weapon is the Blades of Chaos: a pair ofblades attached tochains that are wrapped around the character's wrists and forearms. In gameplay, the blades can be swung offensively in various maneuvers. As the game progresses, Kratos acquires new weapons—the Sun Shield and Gauntlet ofZeus—offering alternative combat options.[3] Kratos only learns threemagical abilities, as opposed to four in previous installments, including theEfreet, the Light of Dawn, andCharon's Wrath, giving him a variety of ways to attack and kill enemies. He acquires the relic Triton's Lance—similar toPoseidon's Trident inGod of War— which allows him to breathe underwater; a necessary ability as parts of the game require long periods of time there.[3][5]
The challenge mode in this game is called the Challenge of Hades (five trials), and requires players to complete a series of specific tasks (e.g., Burn 50 soldiers with the Efreet). It is unlocked by completing the game. The player mayunlock bonus costumes for Kratos, behind-the-scenes videos, andconcept art of the characters and environments, as rewards. Completion of each of the game's difficulty levels unlocks additional rewards.[6]
As with the previous games in theGod of War franchise,God of War: Chains of Olympus is set in an alternate version ofancient Greece, populated by theOlympian gods,Titans, and other beings ofGreek mythology. With the exception offlashbacks, the events are set between those of the gamesAscension (2013) andGod of War (2005). Several locations are explored, including the real-world locations of the ancient cities ofAttica andMarathon, the latter including fictional settings of the Temple ofHelios and the Caves ofOlympus, and several other fictional locations, including theUnderworld, which features scenes at theRiver Styx,Tartarus, the Fields ofElysium, and the Temple ofPersephone.
Attica is a war-torn city under assault by thePersian Empire and their petbasilisk and is the site ofEurybiades' last battle. The city of Marathon is covered in the black fog of the Dream God,Morpheus. Just beyond the city is the Temple of Helios, which sits atop the Sun Chariot, which has plummeted to Earth in Helios' absence.Boreas,Zephyros,Euros, andNotos, the gods of thenorth,west,east, andsouth winds, respectively, reside in the temple and guide the chariot. The Caves of Olympus is a cavern below Mount Olympus and houses the dawn-goddessEos, the Primordial Fires, and a statue ofTriton. The Underworld is the underground realm of the dead and is host to the River Styx and the ferryman of the dead,Charon. Tartarus is the prison of the dead and the Titans where the massive TitanHyperion is chained. The Fields of Elysium are home to deserving souls that roam peacefully and are overlooked by the Temple of Persephone.
The protagonist of the game isKratos (voiced byTerrence C. Carson), a former Captain ofSparta's Army, and once servant to the God of War,Ares. He now serves the other Olympian gods in hopes that they will free him of his nightmares. Other characters include Kratos' mentor and allyAthena (Erin Torpey), the Goddess of Wisdom; Eos (Erin Torpey), the Goddess of Dawn and sister of Helios; Persephone (Marina Gordon), the Queen of the Underworld and the main antagonist; andAtlas (Fred Tatasciore), a four-armed Titan imprisoned in Tartarus after theGreat War. Kratos' deceased daughter Calliope (Debi Derryberry) briefly reunites with him in the Fields of Elysium and his wife Lysandra appears in a flashback. Minor characters include Helios (Dwight Schultz), the captured Sun God; Charon (Dwight Schultz), the ferryman of the Underworld; and thePersian king (Fred Tatasciore), leader of the Persian forces attacking Attica.[7] The Dream God Morpheus is anunseen character that affects the plot.[3]
About halfway through Kratos' ten years of service to the Olympian gods, he is sent to the city of Attica to help defend it from the invading Persian army. After successfully killing the Persian king, decimating his army, and slaying their pet basilisk, Kratos observes the Sun fall from the sky, plunging the world into darkness. As he fights his way through the city of Marathon, the Spartan witnesses the black fog of Morpheus covering the land. He hears a haunting flute melody, which he recognizes as a melody once played by his deceased daughter Calliope. Finding the Temple of Helios, Kratos learns from Athena that Morpheus has caused many of the gods to fall into a deep slumber due to the absence of light. Before she succumbs to slumber, Athena tasks Kratos to find Helios, return him to the sky, and break Morpheus’ grasp on the world. The Spartan eventually locates Helios' sister, Eos, who tells Kratos that the Titan Atlas has abducted her brother. Eos advises Kratos to seek the Primordial Fires, which he uses to awaken the fire steeds of Helios. The steeds take the Spartan to the Underworld, where he has two encounters with Charon at the River Styx. Although Charon initially defeats Kratos and banishes him to Tartarus, the Spartan returns with the Gauntlet of Zeus and destroys the ferryman.[3]
Kratos soon spots Calliope and chases after her. After locating the Temple of Persephone and confronting the Queen of the Underworld, Kratos is given a choice: renounce his power and be with his deceased daughter (at a cost to mankind) or proceed with his mission. Kratos sacrifices his weapons and power to be reunited with his daughter but discovers that Persephone is embittered by Zeus' betrayal and her imprisonment in the Underworld with her husbandHades, whom she did not love. While he was distracted by his reunion with Calliope, Persephone's ally Atlas was using the power of the kidnapped Helios to destroy the Pillar of the World, which would also end Olympus. As the resulting destruction of the Pillar will also cause the souls of the Underworld, including Calliope, to be lost, Kratos reluctantly abandons his daughter forever in order to save her life. Taking back his power, Kratos battles Persephone and Atlas, binding the Titan to the Pillar before slaying the goddess. Although victorious, he is warned by a dying Persephone that his suffering will never end. Atlas, forced to hold the weight of the world on his shoulders for eternity, also warns Kratos that he will eventually regret helping the gods and that he and Atlas will meet again.[N 1] Kratos then rides the Sun Chariot back to the mortal world and into the sky as Morpheus retreats.[3]
In apost-credits scene, Kratos is still riding Helios' chariot back into the sky and after seeing the return of the Sun, Kratos loses consciousness from the exertion and plummets to the ground. At the last moment, Kratos is saved by Athena and Helios, and Athena tells Helios that "He will live."[3]
Game developerReady at Dawn pitched the idea for a PlayStation Portable version ofGod of War toSanta Monica Studio soon after the originalGod of War launched. This would be the first installment in the series to not be developed primarily by Santa Monica, although the studio provided assistance.[8] In February 2007, Ready at Dawn posted a teaser featuring "Coming Soon" in theGod of War font.[9] An editor from1UP obtained an early copy ofGod of War II and posted the game's instruction manual, featuring a one-page teaser with "PSP" in the Omega symbol and stating "Coming 2007".[10] On March 12, 2007,God of War II was launched at theMetreon: its Game DirectorCory Barlog officially confirmed the development ofChains of Olympus, stating "It is its own story that connects to the overall story.God of War,God of War II, and then if all the stars alignGod of War III will be the telling of a trilogy. This PSP story will be a further fleshing out".[11] An initial trailer forChains of Olympus was released on April 25, 2007, coinciding with the announcement of a demo onUMD—theoptical disc medium for the PSP.[12] The trailer was narrated by voice actressLinda Hunt.[13]
God of War: Chains of Olympus uses a proprietary, in-house engine referred to as the Ready at Dawn engine, which expanded on the engine created for their previous game,Daxter (2006), to include a fluid and cloth simulator.[14][15] Thecamera system was modified to cater to the fixed cinematic camera forGod of War gameplay,[14] and the lighting system was reworked to aid in presenting realistic graphics.[16] The game was originally designed for the PlayStation Portable's restricted 222megahertz (MHz) processor. Ready at Dawn repeatedly contacted Sony regarding increasing theclock speed of the PSP on account of the difference to the game and had developed a version of the game with higher speed.[17] Sony releaseda firmware upgrade that allowed games to use the full 333 MHz processor. The faster processor allowed for more realistic blood effects, lighting effects, and shadows as well as improved enemy intelligence. The upgrade, however, noticeably decreased battery life.[17][18] Furthermore, seamless loading was a challenge due to the PSP's hardware limitations. Ready at Dawn solved this by having a movie file ofDaxter's opening cinematic running in the background.[19] After the game's completion, Game Director Ru Weerasuriya stated multiplayer options and other puzzles, characters, and dialogue had to be removed due to time constraints.[14]
Two of the voice actors returned from the previous installments to reprise their roles, which were Terrence C. Carson and Linda Hunt, who voiced Kratos and the narrator respectively. Erin Torpey adopted the dual roles of Athena and Eos. Fred Tatasciore, who voiced different characters in previous installments, returned, and in this game, voiced both Atlas and the Persian King.Carole Ruggier andMichael Clarke Duncan did not return to reprise their roles, which were Athena and Atlas respectively. Voice actor Dwight Schultz voiced both Charon and Helios; Debi Derryberry voiced Calliope and continued this role in a later installment; and Marina Gordon provided the voice of Persephone.Brian Kimmet,Don Luce, and Andrew Wheeler provided the voices of several minor characters andKeythe Farley was the Voice Director.[7]
The soundtrack was composed byGerard K. Marino, but was never commercially released.[7] After the release of the demo disc, Ready at Dawn offered pre-order customers a music track on disc titled "Battle of Attica".Composer Gerard Marino stated that it was the first cue written for the game, based on concept art andscreenshots.[20] Marino composed roughly thirteen minutes of music for the game and re-worked other music from the previous titles. Three tracks from the soundtrack are included as bonus tracks on theGod of War: Ghost of Sparta soundtrack.[21]
Thedemo disc, officially titledGod of War: Chains of Olympus – Special Edition: Battle of Attica, was released on September 27, 2007. In the demo, Kratos battles Persian soldiers and a giant basilisk. The demo progresses through the city of Attica as Kratos chases the basilisk, culminating with Kratos fighting thePersian King. The disc also included a developer video and alanyard in the shape of the Greek letterOmega.[22] Following the demo's release, a downloadable version was made available through thePlayStation Store in North American and European regions.[23] Due to the delay of the game, Ready at Dawn offered a "special edition" version of the demo to pre-order customers,[24] with one Ready at Dawn developer stating that preparation of the special demo disc took up to 40% of the team's production time.[16]
God of War: Chains of Olympus was originally scheduled to be released during the fourth quarter of 2007,[25] but it was rescheduled[24] and released on March 4, 2008, in North America,[26] March 27 in Australia, March 28 in Europe,[27] and July 10 in Japan, where it was published byCapcom.[27] The game was a commercial success, debuting at No. 5 on the North American charts with 340,500 copies sold in the first month.[28] The game was re-released in Europe on October 17, 2008, as part of Sony'sPlatinum Range and was also re-released in Japan and North America in April 2009 under Capcom's Best Price and Sony'sGreatest Hits labels, respectively.[27] It became available for download from the PlayStation Store on September 30, 2009, in North America, October 1 in Europe, and November 11, 2010, in Japan.[27] Sony released a limited-edition bundle pack only in North America, on June 3, 2008. The pack included the game, a UMD of the 2007 filmSuperbad, a voucher for the PSP titleSyphon Filter: Combat Ops, and a red edition of the console imprinted with an image of Kratos' face on the rear.[29] As of June 2012,Chains of Olympus has sold more than 3.2 million copies worldwide.[30]
Together withGod of War: Ghost of Sparta, the game was released for thePlayStation 3 as part of theGod of War: Origins Collection (calledGod of War Collection – Volume II in Europe) on September 13, 2011, in North America, September 16 in Europe, September 29 in Australia, and October 6 in Japan.[31] The collection is a remasteredport of both games to the PS3 hardware, with features includinghigh-definition resolution,stereoscopic 3D,anti-aliased graphics locked at 60 frames per second,DualShock 3 vibration function, andPlayStation 3 Trophies.[32]God of War: Origins Collection and full trials of its two games were also released for download on the PlayStation Store on September 13, 2011, in North America.[33] By June 2012, the collection had sold 711,737 copies worldwide.[30] On August 28, 2012,God of War Collection,God of War III, andOrigins Collection were released as part of theGod of War Saga under Sony's line of PlayStation Collections for the PlayStation 3 in North America.[34]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 91/100[35] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| 1Up.com | A[36] |
| Eurogamer | 8/10[37] |
| G4 | 5/5[38] |
| GamePro | 4.75/5[39] |
| GameSpot | 8.5/10[40] |
| GameTrailers | 9.3/10[41] |
| IGN | 9.4/10[42] |
| Modojo |  [43] |
God of War: Chains of Olympus received "universal acclaim", according toreview aggregatorMetacritic,[35] achieving the highest composite score for a PlayStation Portable title. The game's graphics were particularly praised, with Matt Leone of1UP claimingChains of Olympus is "a technical showpiece for Sony, and arguably the best-looking game on the system."[36] Robert Falcon ofModojo.com similarly praised the presentation, calling it "an absolute stunner, the pinnacle of PSP development". He also praised the visuals as "absolutely breathtaking," and that the "game moves beautifully throughout, with very little loss in detail or speed."[43] However,G4's Jonathan Hunt said that it "occasionally suffers from screen tearing and framerate drops."[38]
Several reviewers praised Ready at Dawn's solution for the controls and gameplay. Because thePlayStation 2 (PS2) controller has two analog sticks and the PSP only has one,GamePro stated "the lack of a second analog stick could have been problematic but it's not."[39]Modojo.com similarly stated that despite the lack of a second analog stick, "Kratos handles superbly on the PSP" and that the weapon and magic attacks are "mapped out perfectly around the PSP's control set-up."[43]IGN's Chris Roper even claimed the control scheme "works better than on the PS2." Roper further claimed that Ready at Dawn "has done a stellar job of keeping Kratos' move set intact," stating that "combat is extremely responsive."[42] Matt Leone of1UP similarly praised developers solution for the control scheme as well as the game's "fantastic" pacing.[36] However,GamePro criticized the relative lack of variety in enemies.[39] The puzzles were criticized, and G4 claimed that some "are so maddeningly difficult to solve",[38] whileGameSpot's Aaron Thomas noted the lack of puzzles, claiming that it "could have used more".[40]GamePro also criticized the fact that "You still have to lug boxes around to solve environmental puzzles".[39] Kristan Reed ofEurogamer also criticized Ready at Dawn for cutting some puzzles, as well as cutting co-op play, multiplayer, dialogue, and characters.[37]
GameSpot[40] andIGN[42] criticized the short length and minimal boss fights, althoughGamePro stated that it has "the same epic feel" as the previous installments and claimed that if it was the onlyGod of War title, "it would still stand on its own merits."[39]GameTrailers went on to praise the replay value for being able to "bring your powered-up methods of destruction with you."[41]
InIGN's Best of 2008 Awards,Chains of Olympus received the awards for "Best PSP Action Game",[44] "Best Graphics Technology",[45] and "Best Use of Sound".[46] InGameSpot's Best Games of 2008, it received the "Readers' Choice Award".[47]Diehard GameFAN awarded it "Best PSP Game" for 2008.[48] At the 2008Spike Video Game Awards, it was a nominee for "Best Handheld Game".[49] It was Metacritic's 2008 "PSP Game of the Year".[35] During the12th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards in 2009, theAcademy of Interactive Arts & Sciences awardedChains of Olympus with "Hand-Held Game of the Year", along with receiving a nomination for "Adventure Game of the Year".[50] In September 2010,GamePro namedGod of War: Chains of Olympus the best PSP game.[51]
| Video games (collections) |
| ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Universe | |||||
| Crossovers | |||||
