God of War Collection Review

By Kristan Reed Published 29 November, 2009

Past remaster.

Version tested: PlayStation 3

"I don't care about innovation - I care about fun." So said God of War lead designer David Jaffe in a typically brash interview in the run up to the game's release in March 2005.

But, to address the dangling implication, Sony's PlayStation 2 exclusive was the best kind of blatant rip-off. It might well have been an attempt to do Onimusha with Greek mythology, but the way it wove ICO's enigmatic ambience alongside multi-layered puzzles ensured that its appeal went much deeper than hand-mangling combo mastery.

Perhaps it was Sony Santa Monica's cocksure belief that it could "execute this better than anybody" that drove it from a stylishly knockabout homage to Ray Harryhausen movies, into becoming one of the most complete action-adventure games of all-time. But whatever the explanation, the results were astonishing.

Still, evidently not everyone agrees. The other night while I was playing through the God of War Collection, my girlfriend spluttered incredulously: "Why do people get so bloody worked up about God of War anyway? It looks really irritating." Coming from someone who has slogged through hundreds of hours of Monster Hunter Freedom Unite, I found this simultaneously irritating and hilarious, but anyway.

"Because of everything!" was roughly my response. Playing through both games all over again had merely underlined why the series got me so excited in the first place - and few games have ever felt so enjoyable second time around.

'God of War Collection' Screenshot 1

Horse business.

It was all about the execution. Every single element of the game was brilliantly realised from front to back, and hit the sweet spot every time. Whichever part of the game you looked at, whether the combat system, the puzzles, the boss encounters, the narrative, the technology behind the game, or even the audio, it was absolutely outstanding.

And Jaffe was right to care about the fun above anything else. Fundamentally, God of War is accessible in everything it does. Playing it through again, it still feels irresistible; it still compels you to finish it. Something that's often overlooked in games is pacing, but Sony Santa Monica evidently understands that ebb and flow and variety is as important as anything else.

Its many contrasts all work within the general framework and transition seamlessly - to the point where the game starts to feel like an epic journey rather than a series of level and tasks. It never lingers on one element for very long; as soon as you've fought a few battles you're off exploring, leaping athletically around the environment or figuring out the next puzzle.

The pay-off is the inevitable epic boss fights, of course, but even these are handled with a degree of finesse that's hard to resist. Not so much screen-filling as area-filling, these multi-stage battles see Sony Santa Monica throwing everything into the pot, tasking players with using all the things they've learned in combat, lateral thought and platform dexterity to kill a vast enemy in stunning fashion.

'God of War Collection' Screenshot 2

God of War Collection is only out in the US at the moment, but hey, PS3 games are region-free. It's the future! Of the past!

And like the best videogames, something new and exciting threatens to appear at any moment. You don't just do the same old thing in slightly different-looking environments; the game evolves quite dramatically, offering you new weapons and abilities as well as a large procession of radically contrasting enemies.

But none of this would mean anything if the game didn't feel right, and it's something that strikes you from the word go. It's tempting to dismiss the combat as a typical button-masher, but that would be to underestimate the game's combat depth entirely.

While the games do initially allow you to stab triangle or square to swish your blades in a swashbuckling blizzard of fury, the longer they last the more enemies appear that take advantage of such a ham-fisted and lazy approach. Switching between blocking, evading, comboing, magic attacks, grab attacks and specific weapons gives you a pleasing amount of flexibility at all times - and without overwhelming players with needlessly complex commands.

Employing an automatic camera system was also a smart decision for numerous reasons - not least because it allowed the developers to enhance the cinematic impact of the game in ways that you lose if you're busy with the camera. Even better, by ignoring direct camera control the game frees the right analogue stick for rolling out of the way of enemy attacks. It's one of many potentially divisive decisions that you understand, and rarely if ever resent.

It's hard not to warm to God of War's tortured take on Greek mythology, either. As Jaffe once admitted, it's hardly a history lesson, but it's rather appealing, largely thanks to the excellent voice casting that lends each vicious, dishonourable and vengeful character fearsome authority. In Kratos especially, Sony created possibly the most pissed-off protagonist imaginable - a surly beast of a man with a chip on his shoulder so large it can be seen from space.

Unlike most horribly clichéd gaming narratives, I found myself actually enjoying it more second time around, dimly aware of all the grim truths to come. Told in hellish flashback, it gradually unravels the torment that prompted the Spartan warrior to hurl himself off a cliff in the first place, and none of the revelations are exactly joyous.

Rarely has violence in a videogame felt so immensely satisfying and, at times, wholly justified. Played back to back, it's quite mentally draining to go through Gods of War 1 and 2 without some light relief. Even Kratos needed naked ladies.

Speaking of eye candy [oof - Ed], one thing that's impossible ignore about God of War's impact was how spectacularly easy it was on the eye when it first came out in 2005, and then how much further Sony subsequently pushed it with the sequel two years later.

'God of War Collection' Screenshot 3

Some of the Trophies have been inspired by bottlenecks and difficulty spikes in the originals. Cute.

Often when you return to a beloved old game a few years later it can be sobering to gently peer over those rose-tinted spectacles and witness the merciless ravages of time. In the case of God of War, of course, it helps that it was so outrageously opulent in the first place, sporting improbably detailed environments, vast bosses and chaotic battles that most games today still struggle to match. It was essentially an HD game squeezed onto a system that had no right to be pushed to such stratospheric heights.

It's hardly surprising, then, that scaling up the action to 720p in this newly remastered God of War Collection merely enhances its striking visual allure. With the benefit of anti-aliasing to smooth out those unsightly jaggies, the removal of the previously jarring v-sync tearing, and a solid 60 frames per second, it feels like you're seeing the game live up to its true potential.

Whether patiently exploring the brooding environments or duking it out with giant pissed-off Hydras, there are times when it looks every bit as stunning as the very best contemporary releases.

'God of War Collection' Screenshot 4

The God of War Collection also comes with a demo of God of War III in the States.

That's not to say the conversion is flawless. God of War 1's cut-scenes appear to be sampled directly from the original PS2 version, and the contrast between these and the crispness of the newly upscaled engine couldn't be more apparent - akin to watching a Blu-ray interspersed with scenes sampled from VHS. If conversionist Bluepoint Games could have recaptured these scenes from the newly upscaled engine, the port might have been perfect.

Fortunately, the effect isn't as noticeable in the even more impressive God of War 2, which makes the original look tame by comparison. Not only did Sony Santa Monica serve up grander and more beautiful environments than the original, but the feast of epic boss battles laid on was as fitting a swansong imaginable for the glorious PS2 era. So much so, in fact, that it shamed the entire PS3 launch line-up in spring 2007.

As cynical an idea as 'remastering' old PS2 games sounds, the God of War Collection demonstrates how magnificent the net result can look in the hands of the right developer. Far from being mere exercises in nostalgia, these hugely entertaining HD versions underline exactly why we all got so excited about them in the first place, and suggests that while God of War III faces off against a lot of big names in 2010, the greatest threats to its dominance lie in its own past. Best of all, PS3 games are region-free, so there's no excuse for not importing this immediately. Simply divine.

9 / 10

God of War Collection is out now for PS3 in the US. A European release will follow in 2010.

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Picture of Kristan.

About Kristan Reed

Kristan is a former editor of Eurogamer, dad, Stone Roses bore and Norwich City supporter who sometimes mutters optimistically about Team Silent getting back together.

Read more articles from Kristan by visiting the Kristan Reed archive page.

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Comments (66) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Dizzy #1 2 years ago

    And this is why you don't need backwards compatibility!

    /recycle

  • Kostabi #2 2 years ago

    I really want to like these games ( GoW, Devil May Cry, Bayonetta, etc) as they always look so entertaining when other people are playing them. As soon as I take over I end up mashing buttons like I'm playing in mittens.

  • Geordiemp #3 2 years ago

    Funny how good adventure / fighting type games are in a drought and then all come along at once.

    Looks like will get this on import as I missed the Ps2 era, and Bayonnetta on 360.

    Where is the best place to get GOW collection on import in UK ?

  • FooAtari #4 2 years ago

    Kostabi, button mashing is fairly effective in GoW

  • dominalien #5 2 years ago

    And why do we have to wait again?

    Because you speak some language the americans can't understand.

  • Phily50 #6 2 years ago

    Where's the best place to import this from?

  • CaoSlayer #7 2 years ago

    Button mash is impossible in hard or god modes.

    In those modes is all about spamming a safe cancelable combo, roll when attacked and repeat all day long.

    I don't like GoW as much as DMC or Ninja Gaide because how dull the combat becomes in harder settings.

  • leafmulch #8 2 years ago

    I played through GoW 1 to the end and I thought it accomplished, yet soulless. It's like DMC without the pizazz. It's like giving people everything they thought they want... Having watched a playthrough of GoW3 on giantbomb, I had absolutely no compulsion to use the download code and try it for myself. Besides Bayonetta is around the corner, so who the heck needs this?

  • GamesConnoisseur #9 2 years ago

    Played PS2 versions recently on PS3 (still no ylod), and yes still great game which are pure fun but with sprinkling of odd frustrations. For me it was the platform jumping about in later stage where it is so easy to die, again and again due to the sheer cruelty of Santa Monica folks but the joy of beating the more challenging bits are worth it and PSP version is a very great addition that feels the same and can't wait for GOW3.

  • Lemming81 #10 2 years ago

    This is my first foray into GoW and while it is an excepetional set of games (GoW2 more so), it's not without it's problems.

    Killing minotaurs that increase with hits per colour is not fun, it's just a time sink. That goes of any monster actually. How many times can you go 'ok here is an ogre....oh you killed him? OK, here is two!" before it gets samey?



    That said I found the puzzles refreshing by today's standards. The lateral thinking involved without everything being signposted is brilliant.

  • Gillespionage #11 2 years ago

    I got the US version from Movietyme..
    They sell mostly import blu-rays, but if you have a mosey around you can find GoW collection for £30 or so :)

    It's worth it, as I could only ever find the ps2 versions in shops for around £15 each anyway.. So I may as well get it in lovely HD instea

  • Kenshin001 #12 2 years ago

    "Besides Bayonetta is around the corner, so who the heck needs this?"

    Me, since I didn't like the Bayonetta demo. It's good to have the choice though. Actually my copy of the GoW Collection should arrive in a couple of days so this review pleases me.

  • NotSoSlim #13 2 years ago

    Collection is awesome!! Nostalgia is great...GOW3 demo is mint too :o)

  • stevethemeat #14 2 years ago

    Picked the US version up a few days ago, i missed these first time around so i had to try them before GOW 3 comes out, really enjoying the first one so far, and i am looking forward to the second seeing as it is better than the first,

    I normally wouldnt go for this type of game, but i was fan of films like Clash of the Titans growing up and being a fan of greek mythology in general helps.

    Is the GOW3 demo available on the playstation store?
    Edited by 3 at 29/11/09 @ 11:35

  • jamhead #15 2 years ago

    Disappointing that they didn't bother to update the cut scenes to HD, especially given all the spiel and bollocks Sony gave about PS3 = TRUE HD etc. It's just laziness.

    For all those of you who played one of the GoW's and not the other - they're both very much worth playing IMO. Really annoyed that I may fall into Sony's trap and buy this even though I own both on the PS2 already. Damn you and your borked/lack of PS2 BC in Europe!

    /shakes fist

  • redneon Verified Programmer, SUMO Digital #16 2 years ago

    I imported it from videogamesplus.ca. Though dvdboxoffice.com would be just as good. Then there's play-asia too.

    What a superb set of games. Nearly finished the first one again and couldn't agree with this review more.

  • cyacomini #17 2 years ago

    I actually bought a PS2 just to play the GoW games when I realised BC had been removed from the PS3's..

    Looking forward to Dantes Inferno more than GoW3 to be honest - think I've just sickened myself with Kratos.

  • kentmonkey #18 2 years ago

    I've got to admit, I really wanted to love GOW, but I just didn't. I preferred Ninja Gaiden. I'm not sure what it was, but it just felt a little formulaic to me, which is a surprise considering the universal love it gets.

    One of those games that just didn't click, I guess. Even so, still weirdly tempted to give it another go to see, although I'm fairly sure it won't change my opinion.

  • Freek #19 2 years ago

    They can't roll out the "europe has different languages" exuse anymore. Many games have world wide releases, even with multipell soundtracks all in the game.

    And this is a re-release, all the translation work has already been done!

    So what's the real reason here? SCEE just being rubbish as usual?

  • hyperkineticninja #20 2 years ago

    Good place to import:

    http://videogamesplus.ca/

    Canadian website, I live in Spain GOW collection cost me 37 Euros incl. P and P.

    They take about a week to deliver, and give you updates all along the way.

  • NorUraeus #21 2 years ago

    @Freek: Most game developers tend to point out these days that translations is not the biggest issue with doing European releases. Things like certification processes, sorting out rights issues and complying to various other pieces of local law is what tend to take time. Also for re-releasing older games you might have old publisher agreements which needs re-negotiating, unlike for instance the US and Japan where most major game studios published their own stuff.

  • ParanoidZombie #22 2 years ago

    GOW1 was really a shock for me back in 2005. I expected a violent button-masher, but the story and atmosphere really caught me by surprise. GOW2 was a bitter disappointment, because the plot was vastly inferiror (IMO) and Kratos didn't feel "right" in this sequel, the character became some sort of caricature of his previous self. GOW3 really needs to tell an interesting story, otherwise the final product will be nothing but an average game with stellar production values, a bit like killzone 2.

  • makeamazing #23 2 years ago

    Coming from someone who has slogged through hundreds of hours of Monster Hunter Freedom Unite, I found this simultaneously irritating and hilarious, but anyway.

    Haha great comment. This is so true of gamers, its amazing how one person will slate one game, only to be doing exactly the same on another type of game.

    Not sure if I will pick this up, not really my type of game, but considering it took 15 weeks of dev, they have sold about 120k so far, that is very impressive.

  • actionfitz #24 2 years ago

    "Best of all, PS3 games are region-free, so there's no excuse for not importing this immediately. Simply divine."

    I approve of this message.
    - My copy arrived on friday hehe
    woop woop!

  • freakzilla #25 2 years ago

    Sony seriously needs to get their shit together if they want to keep competing with the likes of Microsoft, being unable to release their own first party titles simultaneously across the US and EU is not a good sign.

    Oh just F**** off!!! Sony has no bloody excuse, GoW collection was the only christmas game I wanted and it won't even be here till next year. And whats their excuse this time? All the F***ing localising has already been done.
    Edited by 1 at 29/11/09 @ 19:56

  • hilts #26 2 years ago

    I think it is unlikely this will even get released in Europe ..if III is due out in March? Think will import ... Are there any issues with trophies etc if you buy the import?
    Edited by 1 at 02/12/09 @ 10:17

  • Beano #27 2 years ago

    no

  • Beano #28 2 years ago

    "I think it is unlikely this will even get released in Europe "

    I belive it has allready been confirmed for Europe...

  • Skire #29 2 years ago

    nope, everything works as it should.

  • fjharps #30 2 years ago

    I'm quite lucky that my local game store imports games from the US as soon as they are released this year I've enjoyed Blazblue, Demon's Soul and now lucky for me God of War collection and all of them priced as normal european releases. I have been playing the GoW collection for the past week and I couldn't agree more with the review i'm having much more fun playing this second time round than i did the first time it's one of those games that really hasn't aged at all and i think they were impressive for ps2 standards in the first place especially GoW2. What I do agree is with the blu-ray, Vhs comparisons the reviewer did when it came to the cut scenes they do look bad compared to the crisp look of the game.

  • davisorle #31 2 years ago

    This collection is great for those that dont have any of the titles included already and havent played either. I do need to ask though the reviewer:
    With what criteria do you give an upscaled ( more or less ) PS2's title a 9/10 on the PS3? Dont gwet me wrong, great value, good game and all... But its a PS2, with not everything in higher resolution, game. I dont know if my question is clear on what and how im asking it.

    P.S. Dont import it. Wait for it. You never know what else might be included by then in the BR.

  • leafmulch #32 2 years ago

    @Kenshin001 as you didn't like the Bayonetta demo out of interest did you try the ps3 or xbox demo?

    I just realised that after the technical DF mauling people may well be looking to GoW3 to shine for the PS3. Looks like from the comments it's pretty much a 50/50 split of ppl who love the franchise and others who thought it lacked that special something. Regarding my previous post, I was obviously talking about the GoW3 demo download/playthrough... Maybe it's my mistake, but I do see this as in the same genre as DMC/Bayonetta/NG et al. And therefore the reason for my comment.

  • hilts #33 2 years ago

    I know it has been confirmed but the fact that there isn't a specific date and that 3 is due out here and in the US in March does not bode well in my opinion, maybe all 3 will come on one special package but I am not too hopeful :(

  • BigAl-1992 #34 2 years ago

    Can I just ask if it only got 9/10 because of the imperfect porting for the cutscenes, or for something else.

  • rogueJT #35 2 years ago


    I'd go with Axel Music for this. Works out as 32 euro delivered, and as It's sent from within the EU you won't be hit with any customs charges(I know it's unlikely you'll be caugth anyway, but still)

    http://ww w.axelmusic.com/productDetails/...

  • Pablo2k5 #36 2 years ago

    @ BigAl-1992 "Can I just ask if it only got 9/10 because of the imperfect porting for the cutscenes, or for something else."

    ...erm, because it's not perfect. 10 would suggest the game had no significant faults... *confused*

  • Voyeurism #37 2 years ago

    And why do we have to wait again?

    Because you speak some language the americans can't understand.

    Yes. That language is English.

  • Santino #38 2 years ago

    "With what criteria do you give an upscaled ( more or less ) PS2's title a 9/10 on the PS3? Dont gwet me wrong, great value, good game and all... But its a PS2, with not everything in higher resolution, game. I dont know if my question is clear on what and how im asking it."

    i think it might be because these 2 games are still better than almost everything that has been released on the ps3 so far.

    I bought my copy from an ebay seller as it was a UK seller, but mine didn't come with a demo code, i take it only some copies do? where is the logic in that?

  • IMD1_Pk #39 2 years ago

    As far as I am concerned I don't think there are many other games that deserve to be ported to the PS3. Like the review said God of War used textures and an art style that was near impossible to get done on such low resolution and that is why it benefited from the increase in resolution so much. It's a special case because most good game developers aim to make the game look as good as it can under the constraints of the console and what's the best type of art style they can achieve.

    A great case would be Shadow of the Colossus which looks really messy when unscaled to higher resolutions. They used extremely low resolution textures and their art style is what helped create the illusion of an eerily realistic land.

    There are some other good candidates for conversion though. Off the top of my head FF12, zone of enders2, resident evil 4, silent hill 3, and MGS3(2 would be a bad candidate though) and Black(it looked fantastic played on a 360 with AA and 720 upscaling so I assume with a resolution boost it would look even better on the PS3).

    Now the wait for GoW III begins....

  • Gregolution #40 2 years ago

    I missed GOW 1 and 2 so pleased they re released this. I'm thoroughly enjoying the first one, I think I'm close to the end. Being someone thats well into the latest graphics I'm surprised I can enjoy it, but it still looks very decent. Story is good, puzzles are fun, combat is more deep than I thought it would be and I absolutely love greek mythology - it's so epic!

  • Frosty840 #41 2 years ago

    Got sadly stuck on GoW1 on the first real level, where it asks you to "do a combo" to break an enemy's shield. I had no idea how to do that, and no guide on the internet ever explained what I was meant to do at that point. So I had to give up, because the game became largely impossible.

    Might go back to it now, though. I'll have to see if anyone's made an idiot-friendly walkthrough for the entire game...

  • Widge #42 2 years ago

    Ah, thats the attack where you start off with some Square hits and the finish with Triangle hits. That causes Kratos to SMASH down at the end of his combo, busting the shields.

  • Wayne #43 2 years ago

    I got this from videogames+
    I'd give it a 10 if they got the cut scenes right, but ala, a well deserved 9/10.

  • Wayne #44 2 years ago

    @Frosty, it explicitly tells you what combo to do at that point. Square, square triangle aka Prometheus plume

  • betahoven #45 2 years ago

    Post deleted at 09:36:16 17-12-2011

  • davisorle #46 2 years ago

    @Santino
    You should contact Sony after you are done doing your research on the official website of the game in case there are more similar cases or if there is a thread on the Sony site itself. Might be telling you what to do if you dont get your promotional code. Im not sure.. But i havent heard of "some cases" that you get the code only so you should have gotten one as well.

    As for your answer to my comment I dont dissagree, which isnt a good thing if you think about it after 3 years in the lifecycle of the machine, which also comes again on my question.. If the upscaled gets a 9/10 he has to rate by far a big fat 10/10 the GoW 3 without even thinking about it. Not only it will be fully HD including most visuals but the game is bound to look and play better since its designed for those performances from scratch.

    Anyhow. Other than my questioning of the rating for this release, which Im sorry but i do find incorrect and I repeat. Dont get me wrong. Its by far from the best PS exclusives, specially for me, I wish more of them come out to give me a good excuse to buy a PS3. Been thinking about it but I only have Uncharted 2 on the list from the exclusives along GoW 3 and now the GoW Collection. ive finished those already released but I dont own them and I tend to buy whatever is well worth.

    @wile_coyote
    Im Greek so lets take it easy there. Then again owing a PS2 and one of its best releases and not even finishing the game once talks itself so nvm :)

  • Darren #47 2 years ago

    This collection is really great with two games that might have dated a little visually (although they still look pretty damn good in HD with AA and no tearing) but the core gameplay is as awesome as it ever was. If it wasn't for jarring quality of the low-res FMV sequences and the lack of surround sound then it would be perfect. As it is it's an outstanding compilation of two of the PS2's finest games.

    I'm over half way through God of War and loving it as much as the first time I played it on the PS2. My only grievance is that the copy I imported from Movietyme didn't come with the God of War III demo code.

  • Razorus #48 2 years ago

    Will the import version work on all PS3 models? I think I have the 40 gig model.

  • Widge #49 2 years ago

    My canadian copy came with a code. States it on the box too.

  • man.the.king #50 2 years ago

    @Frosty840

    "Got sadly stuck on GoW1 on the first real level, where it asks you to "do a combo" to break an enemy's shield. I had no idea how to do that, and no guide on the internet ever explained what I was meant to do at that point. So I had to give up, because the game became largely impossible. "

    The "Plume of Prometheus" attack is square-square-triangle. If interrupted by an attack from one of the numerous enemies surrounding you, though, you have to start the combo again. The "Spirit of Hercules" attack (triangle-triangle-triangle) also does the job, though the first two triangles cause it to be slower than Plume..

    Currently playing God of War 1 (in the GOW Collection) in Hard mode. First time playing the game. Awesome game. Currently stalled in the first fight with Ares though :(
    Edited by 1 at 30/11/09 @ 07:00

  • Darren #51 2 years ago

    @Razorus - The import version is region-free and should play on ALL PS3s. Put it this way I've imported loads of US PS3 games and they've all worked fine on my UK machines (launch 60 GB HDD model and new 250 GB HDD slim).

  • drxym #52 2 years ago

    Because, like it or not, SCEE decided to go with EyePet, Singstar Take That, and the Wipeout HD Blu-ray instead.

    That's not it. The US version of the game just has to work in English. Games for the European market need to be localised and need to account for the whims of local censors. Cutscenes, graphics, audio and subtitles may all have to be tested in each target language and it may well have to happen in English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish, depending on what versions originally appeared for the PS2. That means there is a bucket load of additional QA testing on top of what a US release might require and all of that takes a lot more time.

  • youhavenomail #53 2 years ago

    No doubt all these high GOWC review scores won't stop the same reviewers moaning about more of the same when it comes to marking down GOWIII.

  • metalmike25 #54 2 years ago

    I got mine's from movietyme. It came really quickly and oddly it's my favourite game of the year!!

  • TafKas #55 2 years ago

    Got mine from Axelmusic too, great delivery times from them. Im quite a way in on GoW1 and loving every minute of it, its quite possibly one of the most epic gaming experiences EVER. if your thinking at all about getting it, get the import, god knows when Sony will see fit to release it here....

  • septimus #56 2 years ago

    Will wait for the UK release. Too much other stuff to play, and this will fill the Jan/Feb void nicely.

  • MasterNameless #57 2 years ago

    Earl Bassett: "I've never played the first game, but really liked the second.
    Not sure I can be bothered to get this with number 3 round the corner, as they all essentially seem to be the same game.

    Maybe get it for xmas for the special lady though, as she loves it"


    Earl Bassett: ""my girlfriend spluttered incredulously"

    Even reviewers feel the need to remind us they have girlfriends any chance they get, not just the commenters"

    Haha. You were the only other commenter I'm afraid. xD

  • dingo75 #58 2 years ago


    Will wait for the UK release. Too much other stuff to play, and this will fill the Jan/Feb void nicely.



    Sure Jan and Feb look pretty dim...

    Dark Void
    Mass Effect 2
    Bioshock 2
    Aliens vs. Predator
    Just Cause 2
    Kayne & Lynch 2: Dog Days

    Additionally play.com lists:

    Max Payne 3
    Dead Rising 2
    Tom Clancy: Splinter Cell Conviction

  • pooKy1979 #59 2 years ago

    Got a buddy to bring this over from the States. Had my first go last night and it works a treat. Never played 'II' before and it's just as freakin' gratuitous and maniacal as the first. Anyone hook a brother up and let me know how to get the 'III' demo working?

  • gamingdave #60 2 years ago

    Managed to miss these first time round, so will definately pick them up.

  • foamy #61 2 years ago

    Never played this. Probably will get this when I get god of war III.

  • Murton #62 2 years ago

    Think I will probably grab this as I missed out in the PS2 days. I played each one at a friends house and thought "meh, nothing special here" but reading the review it looks like I may have been mistaken. As long as its priced reasonably I'll pick it up when they finally get round to a UK release.

    As for the debate on why Europe has to wait, there's no language issue here unless they've changed the text or audio, which I very much doubt they have. The original games were both published by Sony in both territories so I'd say it's probably the typical Sony wanting to get it out in US first in order to subsidise what it believes will be a less successful European release.

    Hopefully Sony will day put some faith in Europe and show a little more parity compared to US/Japan, but until then I guess these sorts of delays in European releases will continue to be the norm.

  • mooseman721 #63 2 years ago

    Just got this today, great games, never looked better. Get it, get it NOW!!!

  • comedian #64 2 years ago

    Yay for imports, been playing this all weekend.

    Boo for being rubbish at it and having to set the difficulty to easy mode.

  • hilts #65 2 years ago

    woo hoo! received mine yesterday from axelmusic, also with the GOW3 voucher , just about to check it out!

  • Zebula77 #66 2 years ago

    Been playing this for the past week-and-a-half. Nearly done with GoWII and man, I cannot remember them being this good. I recently played through Dante's Inferno (which is probably the most rip-offest game in quite a while) and thought it was pretty good. Playing the first GoW I realise that I'm mistaken. Dante wasn't "pretty good" - it was a half-assed copy with cool level design. GoW is better in every respect.

    Got my paycheck today and after work I'll be picking up my copy of GoWIII, thank you very much. :)

    ...oh, and the only disappointing thing about the collection is, like many people have already pointed out, the low-res cinematics in the first one. They really do stick out like a sore thumb.

    edit: @comedian: Yeah, me too! I got stuck at the Cerberus fight in GoW I, died MANY times and was offered easy mode, which I very reluctantly accepted. :p
    Edited by 1 at 09/04/10 @ 09:48