Changes: God of War: Ghost of Sparta

Revision as of 03:36, 26 November 2012

“	I am coming for you, brother.	”
–Kratos

NTSC God of War: Ghost of Sparta box art.

PAL GOS Box Art — PAL God of War: Ghost of Sparta box art.

Boxart-godofwar-ghostofsparta-1- — Rendering God of War: Ghost of Sparta box art.

The latest addition to the God of War Series, God of War: Ghost of Sparta is the sixth installment of the series, released on the Playstation Portable and the PSP Go. It was later released along with God of War: Chains of Olympus on the Playstation 3 in God of War: Origins Collection.

The story is the second interquel between the first God of War and God of War II, taking place after the events of Betrayal, and has Kratos visiting the long lost city of Atlantis.

Story

An oracle foretold that the demise of Olympus would come by a marked warrior. The Olympian Gods Zeus and Ares believed this warrior to be Deimos, brother of Kratos, due to his strange birthmarks. Ares interrupts the childhood training of Kratos and Deimos, with Athena on hand, and kidnaps Deimos. Kratos attempts to stop Ares, but is swept aside and scarred across his right eye by the Olympian. Taken to Death's Domain, Deimos is imprisoned and tortured by the god of death, Thanatos.

Kratos, the Ghost of Sparta, has taken Ares' place as the new God of War on Mount Olympus. Still haunted by visions of his mortal past, Kratos decides - against the advice of the goddess Athena - to explore his past and travels to the Temple of Poseidon, located within the city of Atlantis. Despite Poseidon's best efforts to prevent Kratos from reaching his city, including sending the monster Scylla, Kratos reaches Atlantis. Kratos eventually locates his ailing mother, Callisto, who reveals to him the identity of his father, with Kratos only hearing very weak and faint noises. When Callisto is suddenly transformed into a hideous beast, Kratos is forced to battle her, and before dying, Callisto thanks Kratos and beseeches him to seek out his brother Deimos in Sparta. Before departing Atlantis, Kratos encounters and frees the trapped Titan Thera, which causes the eruption of an underground volcano, destroying Atlantis.

After a battle with Erinys, Thanatos' daughter, Kratos arrives in Sparta and witnesses a group of Spartans, lead by the Last Spartan, tearing down a statue of Ares to replace it with one of Kratos. After an encounter with a ghost-like form of his younger self, he learns he must return to Atlantis and find Death's Domain. Kratos accepts his former weapons, the Arms of Sparta, as a gift from the Last Spartan, and departs.

Entering Death's Domain, Kratos eventually locates and frees his imprisoned brother Deimos. Enraged with Kratos' failure to rescue him sooner, Deimos states never forgiving Kratos, and attacks him, only for Thanatos to intervene. Taking Deimos to the Suicide Bluffs, the latter almost falls off the cliff. Kratos then saves his brother, and the two reconcile. After giving Deimos the Arms of Sparta, Kratos and Deimos fight Thanatos together. During the fight, Thanatos kills Deimos, but is then destroyed by an empowered Kratos. Kratos buries Deimos, using the Arms of Sparta as a grave marker. After being warned by the enigmatic Grave Digger not to alienate the gods, Kratos asked himself who he has become by the work of the gods. The grave digger responds that he has become "Death...the Destroyer of Worlds". This is believed that as Kratos killed Thanatos, instead of there being no death in the world (as a result of the absence of the death god), Kratos has become death itself, the ultimate destroyer that will bring utter chaos to the worlds of man and gods (reference to God of War 3, where Kratos brings only Chaos at the end of his adventure). Athena then begs Kratos for forgiveness for not revealing the truth, only to have the Spartan ignore her pleas. Kratos then returns to Olympus stating the gods will pay. As Kratos returns, Athena exclaims "Forgive me...brother", marking the first time Athena acknowledges they're siblings.

In a post-credits scene, the Grave Digger is shown laying Callisto to her grave, stating "And now...only one remains". A third grave is seen, leading to believe it was dug for Kratos. The scene then shows Kratos on his throne, in his God of War Armour, furious and determined to exact vengeance on the gods. It is widely assumed that this leads up to the very beginning of God of War 2, as Kratos, driven by the rage of the loss of his brother and mother, leads the Spartans into a vicious battle to take over the city of Rhodes. Zeus, who has been poisoned uncontrollably with fear after witnessing Kratos murder the God of Death, later tricks Kratos and kills him, fulfilling his statement that he was going to kill the remaining person in the family he should have never made.

Characters

Enemies

Common Enemies

Bosses

Scylla: The legendary sea monster.
Callisto: Kratos' mother, hideously transformed into a beast.
Erinys: Daughter of Thanatos.
Piraeus Lion: Gigantic Spartan beast.
Deimos: Kratos' brother.
Thanatos: God of Death, the final boss.

Items and Abilities

Weapons

Blades of Athena: The blades given to Kratos by Athena at the end of God of War.
Arms of Sparta: The weapons of Kratos; the Spartan General and the Coat of Arms of Sparta.
Thera's Bane: Thera's power can imbue the Blades of Athena with fire.

Magic

Eye of Atlantis: An ancient relic of Poseidon that harnesses the power of Atlantis.
Scourge of Erinys: This artifact can unleash a power that no mortal nor god should wield.
Horn of Boreas: Horn that summons the power of the God of the North Wind, Boreas.

Items

The Skull of Keres: The key Kratos needs to gain entrance into Death's Domain.
Automaton Gear (x2): Automaton's weapon and key.
Key of Crete : A key that opens several doors throughout Crete.
Poseidon's Trident: Allows you to breathe underwater.

Relics of the Gods

These items grant bonuses in bonus play if activated.

Callisto's Armlet: Activate this item to automatically win context sensitive minigames.
Athena's Owl: Activate this item to help find treasures.
Aphrodite's Ambrosia: Activate this item to gain a brutal kick attack. (Might of Sparta)
The King's Ring: Activate this item to collect 10 times the amount of red orbs.
The Bonds of Ares: Activate this item to grant infinite magic.
Grave Digger's Shovel: The shovel unlocks a new costume in the Arena Combat Mode.

Bonus Costumes

God Armor: Slaughter your enemies while wearing the fearful God of War armor.

Deimos: Play the game as Kratos' younger brother, Deimos.

Kratos Legionnaire: Wear this classic Spartan armor to go all badass with the Arms of Sparta.

Robotos: If you thought the standard Kratos looks cool, prepare to eat your words.

Ghost of Sparta: You are Kratos, the Ghost of Sparta.

Grave Digger: Play as Zeus in the Combat Arena.

Cut Content

Dana Jan stated that fans wanted a "female version" of Kratos. Dana Jan presented this idea to the team. They designed a "Goddess of War" costume. Sadly, the costume never made it to the final publication.

Reception

God of War: Ghost of Sparta has received generally positive acclaim from various media outlets.

IGN (9.5/10) stated graphics are "better than a big chunk of PS2 games" and that it is the "best-looking game on the PSP thus far." In terms of gameplay, "there's nothing unique here, but that's not a bad thing."

Playsation: The Official Magazine (10/10) stated "Ghost of Sparta offers an immersive experience on par with many of the best PS3 games".

1UP (A-) claims the game is "a more personal story than the other GOW games, but one that still features the series' signature trademarks", with the sex mini-game "arguably the most over-the-top of the bunch".

Eurogamer (7/10) states the "game's primary problem...is in its in-built focus." The God of War series...is principally concerned with endlessly upping the ante. The battle system is strong, but nothing without the world and set-pieces it drives. There is a sense that Ghost of Sparta is a step back for the series if you've played the PlayStation 3 game. The set-pieces, while incredible within the context of this handheld platform, seem tired when set against, for example, the opening scenes of God of War III. And when you take away the sense of wonder in a God of War game, the remaining components struggle to carry the experience." Eurogamer also states the game is "best enjoyed by newcomers" or "those yet to play" God of War III.

Game Informer (9.5) stated that in terms of gameplay, "the other core fighting mechanics are familiar, but the tweaks go a long way toward improving gameplay". They also stated that "Ghost of Sparta doesn’t have any mind-blowing moments" but "this isn’t an optional side-story; Ghost of Sparta is a must-play for God of War fans."

Trivia

The Ghost of Sparta PSP demo was unleashed on the North-American PSN on September 28th, 2010, and a day later, on September 29th, in Europe.
According to the European PlayStation Blog, Kratos would be armed with the deadly chained Blades of Chaos". Since they were taken from him by Ares at the end of the first God of War, it is assumed they meant to say the Blades of Athena.
The Grave Digger is in fact Zeus. Selecting the Grave Digger costume and then entering the arena will show the Grave Digger lifting his shovel in the air and smashing it to the ground creating a shockwave of lightning. When the lightning clears, Zeus appears, holding the Blade of Olympus and wearing his gauntlet.
In remembrance of his lost brother, Kratos sports a red tattoo on his body, which closely resembles Deimos' birthmark.
When Deimos was snatched by Ares, Kratos tried saving his brother, only to have Ares punch Kratos in the face, sending him onto a pile of wood. When Kratos looked up, his right eye was hit, leaving him a scar.
Similar to the opening level in God of War II, the Blades of Athena in this game are bright gold in color with glowing blue glyphs, and even being leveled up, they keep the same shape throughout all the game, as in God of War III.
Similar to God of War III, Kratos can be covered with blood as he slaughters enemies.
The PAL retail cover displays Kratos wielding the Arms of Sparta, while the NTSC cover has him holding the Blades of Athena.
The opening of the game is similar to the opening of the first God of War game, since Kratos starts out on a boat and fights a sea based monster.
During the sequence where Kratos chases Midas through the volcanic caves, there is a golden chest and a golden Cyclops on one side. Both items cannot be interacted with, however.
God of War: Ghost of Sparta is the first game to break some traditions to the previous games.
- In the start menu of God of War: Ghost of Sparta, the left (tattooed) side of Kratos' face is shown opposed to the other games where his right (scarred) side is shown.
- All the previous games (except Betrayal) were released in the month March, but Ghost of Sparta was released in November 2010.
Athena only appears in person to Kratos once in the game. Besides that she appears three times in statues and once in flashbacks of the Spartan Raid. At the end of the game she refers to Kratos as "Brother" since they are both children of Zeus.