God of War III

God of War III
File:GoW-III-Teaser-Trailer-logo.png
Developer(s)	SCE Studios Santa Monica
Publisher(s)	Sony Computer Entertainment
Series	God of War
Platform(s)	PlayStation 3
Genre(s)	Hack and slash, action-adventure
Mode(s)	Single-player

God of War III is a forthcoming installment in the God of War series, currently in development for the PlayStation 3. The game was announced at E3 2008 and is due for release in March 2010. It is the fifth chapter in the series chronologically, after God of War: Chains of Olympus, God of War, God of War: Betrayal and God of War II.

Gameplay

God of War III is expected to feature gameplay similar to that of previous installments. Only two weapons have been confirmed so far: the trademark Blades of Athena, and the Cestus, a pair of fist gauntlets shaped like lion heads, that yield devastating damage. These new weapons appear to have the ability to smash through solid objects such as rocks, and sport a maneuvering fighting style similar to boxing. The Golden Fleece appears on Kratos' arm in gameplay trailers, and the Icarus' wings from screenshots, showing that he keeps both from his adventure in God of War II. In a recent screenshot Kratos is seen tearing off the head of the God Helios. In the game his head can be used in a similar fashion to those of Medusa and Euryale from previous games. Although where their powers revolved around stone, Helios's stems from light. Its functions include distracting undead soldiers, and as a lantern in dark areas. Developers have stated that more weapons will be announced and will be more user-friendly than the sub-weapons from previous titles. In addition, Kratos uses a FireBow;presumably Apollo's.Combos from previous titles will also make a return as well as new combos yet to be introduced. The number of enemies onscreen has been increased to 50 as opposed to the maximum of 15 in previous God of War installments. Game director Stig Asmussen claimed that the hardware capabilities of the PlayStation 3 would allow more flexibility in creating the characters of God of War III and to allow for further interaction with the environment. On March 26, 2009 a 1-minute Gameplay Trailer was released at the Game Developers Conference. The trailer showed Kratos fighting a group of soldiers briefly and taking control of a cyclops to quickly dispatch of the enemies, and ultimately killing the cyclops after the soldiers die. This has been the first Gameplay trailer released that shows Kratos as the way he would appear when being controlled by the player. At E3 2009, more Gameplay footage was shown live during Sony's press conference. The game play showed familiar game play from the previous installments as well as some new, for instance, Kratos can grab an enemy and use it in a battering ram-like action to push through other enemies. It also showed Kratos being able to control a Harpie for a short time to fly him by stabbing the Harpie a few times. This footage also showed the Cestus weapon in action. The Cestus are used in a boxing fashion to fight the enemies. It also showed the Cestus shoot chains from the ends of them and then use those chains to strike the enemy.

Plot

God of War III takes place right after the events of God of War II, with Kratos upon Gaia's back eager to exact vengeance on the Gods and make them "suffer". As seen in the trailers, the whereabouts of the Blade of Olympus is unknown, even though Kratos had been wielding the blade at the ending of God of War II. Little information has been released on the battle between the Gods and Titans that will explain the end of Greek Mythology. A more recent screen shot shows Helios on his knees with a bloodied face, Kratos is also in the picture grasping the god's head, about to tear it off with his bare hands. A game demo released at E3 2009 shows Kratos, with assistance from Kronos, bringing down Helios and his chariot and then ripping off the god's head. Helios' head is also shown to be a weapon that can be used to reveal secrets and to illuminate dark areas or blind enemies. Later on, Kratos uses his Wings of Icarus to be lifted from an updraft in the cave he was exploring. Seen in a gameplay trailer are iron or bronze boots with wings on them that greatly augment Kratos' acrobatic abilities. The wings and nature of the boots suggest that Kratos, at some point in the game, battles and kills Hermes, before taking his boots. It has also been said that Kratos is looking for a "back door" for his attack on Mount Olympus.

Development

God of War III was first discussed by Cory Barlog at a God of War II launch event. He revealed that the game would run at full 1080p HD resolution, and the game would support Sixaxis tilt and vibration functions. This was stated before the DualShock 3 controller was announced; therefore causing confusion as the Sixaxis controller did not support rumble. Barlog also expressed an interest in adding a cooperative mode "if we can do something unique with it". In 2007, God of War director David Jaffe stated that, "God of War explains, or ultimately will explain, why there are no more Greek myths." He has also stated that it will be "hell on earth" as the gods and the titans battle each other for domination. Though Jaffe and Barlog left Sony for other opportunities, they are still credited for the series and will possibly be involved in this installment. Jaffe has since expressed interest to be involved in development for God of War III.

A teaser for God of War III appeared on the back of instruction manual of the retail version of God of War: Chains of Olympus, depicting the PlayStation 3 logo surrounded by the omega logo and stating below that the game is 'coming soon'. On July 15, 2008, a teaser trailer was shown at SCE's E3 press conference. It involves a monologue by Zeus regarding the rise to power of the Olympians and how their rule is now threatened. As Zeus urges his fellow gods to war, the scene cuts from the burning countryside around Mount Olympus to a ruined temple, upon which a shadowed Kratos stands. Zeus concludes his speech, saying "In the end, he will suffer! In the end, we will triumph! In the end..." at which point, Kratos cuts in with the game's tagline "There will be only Chaos!"

On December 14, 2008, another trailer premiered at the Spike Video Game Awards. It opens with Kratos saying "My vengeance is everything." Then the trailer proceeds with scenes of Kratos attacking groups of undead, harpies, a cyclops, and what appears to be a centaur. The trailer shows Kratos wielding two massive, fiery gauntlet weapons called the Cestus. Kratos' final words are "Everything must come to an end!" The official God of War III trailer was released on February 13, 2009, entitled Fear Nothing. This trailer is an expansion of the last one, featuring Kratos running through a forest-like terrain of Gaia's back, fighting several enemies, including a centaur and the final enemy, a cyclops, while destroying a chain that was keeping Gaia from advancing towards Olympus. While this occurs, Kratos monologues on who he is and how it all came down to this, with the final line being "I fear, nothing." All three trailers are currently available to download and view in 720p or 1080p from the PlayStation Store.

On December 16, 2008, Sony claimed that God of War III will be the last in the franchise. The script for the game is approximately 120 pages long. In a February 2009 interview, God of War III director Stig Asmussen mentioned the possibility of downloadable content and utilizing the Sixaxis motion sensor capabilities for interaction in the game. As of March 2009 during the Game Developers Conference the developers have stated that the Six-axis capabilities for the game have been removed, due to the fact that the developers "could not find a suitable situation to use Six-axis in the game effectively", and have decided to scrap the idea altogether rather than put it in and have it working poorly.

On March 23, 2009, it emerged that Sony were asking current PlayStation owners what type of content they'd like in a Collector's Edition.

On March 29 2009, A leaked combat game play footage video of the game emerged on the internet, showing Kratos landing on a balcony, and fighting soldiers, probably zombies, as they land on the balcony in two groups, both with different battle formations. First the camera zooms on Helios, who is severely injured, then a group of soldiers come to protect him. The first team, with each zombie having a shield, retreats and moves into a defensive formation, while the second team, also with shields, lands in front of Kratos. The player side-rolls and then rolls backwards before attacking the nearer fleet of zombies. The zombies, however, defend themselves with their shields, which glow with a dim blue color when hit. Next, a cyclops similar to the one shown in the 'Fear Nothing' trailer lands on the balcony, and breathes out a circle of fire. The player moves up to the cyclops, attacks him, and initiates a cinematic, in which the player dodges an attack from the cyclops, follows an onscreen prompt and presses 'square', swings onto the cyclops' head, and continually attacks him with the Blades of Athena and, now able to control its movement, finishes off the remaining zombies using the cyclops in a fashion similar to the 'Fear Nothing' trailer. This may mean that the game will have several cyclops enemies, perhaps as mini-bosses. The video ends with the God of War 3 logo appearing on the screen.

On June 2, 2009 during Sony's E3 2009 press conference, game play footage of the God of War III demo was shown live with Kratos fighting several enemies using some in a battering ram-like fashion to push through other enemies. The footage also showed Kratos using Icarus's wings as well as being able to control a Harpie for a short time to be able to fly Kratos. A couple of times during the footage, Kratos was shown using the Cestus weapon as well as in the final footage shown which are used in a boxing-fashion. Before the final footage, it showed Helios flying in his sun chariot shooting fire balls at the fiery Titan that's climbing Mount Olympus. Kratos then fights a chimera, killing it by using it's own horn to stab it in the eye. Kratos continues onward, using multiple harpies to cross a large pit to the next area of the mountain. He reaches an opening and see's Helios severely injured on the ground across from the area. Kratos moves forward and sees a group of skeletons using shields to surround and defend Helios. Kratos fails to break the skeleton Phalanx. Suddenly, a cyclops drops down and attacks Kratos. Through a button sequence, Kratos gains control of the cyclops and uses it to break the Phalanx. After all the enemies have been defeated. Kratos moves over to Helios and precedes to brutally tear his head off. He then obtains the Head of Helios, which can be used to find hidden treasures, light passageways, and blind enemies. Afterwards, Kratos explores a dark cave with a few enemies and then comes to an opening with a large updraft. Using the Wings of Icarus, Kratos flies up the shaft, avoiding wooden beams, falling rocks, and other obstacles.

External links

• Official Website
• God of War 3 at IMDb
• The Official Fan Community for God of War III
• DestroyOlympus.com - All the latest about God of War 3 for PlayStation 3