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God of War II

God of War II is an action-adventure hack and slash video game developed by Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). First released for the PlayStation 2 on March 13, 2007, the game is the second installment in the God of War series, the sixth chronologically, and the sequel to 2005's God of War. It is based on Greek mythology and set in ancient Greece, with vengeance as its central motif. The player character is protagonist Kratos, the new God of War who killed the former, Ares. Kratos is betrayed by Zeus, the King of the Olympian gods, who strips him of his godhood and kills him. Slowly dragged to the Underworld, he is saved by the Titan Gaia, who instructs him to find the Sisters of Fate, as they can allow him to travel back in time, avert his betrayal, and take revenge on Zeus.

The gameplay is similar to the previous installment. It focuses on combo-based combat which is achieved through the player's main weapon—Athena's Blades—and secondary weapons acquired throughout the game. It features quick time events (QTEs) that require players to quickly complete various game controller actions to defeat stronger enemies and bosses. The player can use up to four magical attacks and a power-enhancing ability as alternative combat options. The game also features puzzles and platforming elements. Compared to its predecessor, God of War II features improved puzzles and four times as many bosses.


God of War II received critical acclaim, and is considered as one of the best video games of all time and was 2007's "PlayStation Game of the Year" at the Golden Joystick Awards. In 2009, IGN listed it as the second-best PlayStation 2 game of all time, and both IGN and GameSpot consider it the "swan song" of the PlayStation 2 era. In 2012, Complex magazine named God of War II the best PlayStation 2 game of all time. The game had sold 4.24 million units by June 2012, making it the sixteenth-best-selling PlayStation 2 game of all time. God of War II, along with God of War, was remastered and released on November 17, 2009, as part of the God of War Collection for the PlayStation 3 (PS3). The remastered version was re-released on August 28, 2012, as part of the God of War Saga, also for the PlayStation 3. A novelization of the game was published in February 2013. A sequel, God of War III, was released on March 16, 2010.

Synopsis[edit]

Setting[edit]

As with its predecessor, God of War II is set in an alternate version of ancient Greece, populated by the Olympian gods, Titans, heroes, and other beings of Greek mythology. With the exception of flashbacks, the events are set between those of the games Betrayal (2007) and God of War III (2010). Several locations are explored, including a real-world setting in the ancient city of Rhodes, and several fictional locations, including a brief scene in the Underworld, the Lair of Typhon, the Island of Creation and its locales, Tartarus, and a brief scene on Mount Olympus.


Rhodes, its skyline dominated by the massive statue, the Colossus of Rhodes, is a war-torn city under assault by Kratos, the God of War, and his Spartan army. The Lair of Typhon, hidden in an unknown location, is a snow-topped mountain and prison of the Titans Typhon and Prometheus. The Island of Creation is a vast island located at the edge of the world and home to the Sisters of Fate. The island is host to deadly traps, puzzles, and monsters. On the outskirts of the island are the Steeds of Time, and on the island itself are the Temples of Lakhesis and Atropos, and the Bog of the Forgotten, which hides the Gorgon Euryale and is the site of Jason of the Argonauts' last battle. Beyond the Bog are the Lowlands and the Great Chasm: a huge divide that blocks the way to the Palace of the Fates. At the base of the Chasm is the realm of Tartarus—prison of the Titan Atlas, condemned to hold the world on his shoulders. The Temple of the Fates is also filled with traps and monsters, while the final battle occurs on Mount Olympus, home to the gods.

Development[edit]

A sequel to God of War was first teased at the end of its credits, which stated, "Kratos Will Return".[8] God of War II was officially announced at the 2006 Game Developers Conference (GDC).[9] God of War Game Director David Jaffe stepped down and became the Creative Director of its sequel. God of War's lead animator Cory Barlog assumed the role of Game Director. In an interview with Computer and Video Games (CVG) in June 2006, Barlog said that while working on the first few drafts of script, he studied the mythology extensively. He said that the mythology is so large that "the real difficulty is picking things that really fit within the story of Kratos as well as being easy to swallow for audiences." Although he loves the idea of teaching things through storytelling (in this case Greek mythology), Barlog said, "you can't let your story get bogged down by that."[10] He said that in the game, players would see "a larger view of Kratos' role within the mythological world." He also said that he liked the idea of a trilogy, but there were no plans "as of right now."[11]


Like God of War, the game uses Santa Monica's Kinetica engine. Senior combat designer Derek Daniels said that for God of War II, they were basing the magical attacks on elements (e.g., air and earth). He said the combat system was updated so that it flowed smoothly between attacks and switching between weapons and magic. He said that they were working for a similar balance of puzzle solving, exploration, and combat seen in the first game, and they used elements that worked in that game as a base for the overall balance.[11] Unlike God of War where magic had a small role, Daniels said that for God of War II, their goal was to make magic an integral part of the combat system and to make it more refined. Barlog said the game would feature new creatures and heroes from the mythology, and he wanted to put more boss battles in it.[12] Commenting on multiplayer options, Barlog said that "there are possibilities for that but it is not something we are doing right now." He said that he felt that God of War is a single-player experience, and although multiplayer "would be cool," it did not appeal to him to work on. As for a PlayStation Portable (PSP) installment, he said that he thought it "would be freaking awesome," but not something he had time to work on and it was Sony's decision whether or not to make a PSP installment.[13]


In an interview with IGN in February 2007, Barlog said that his goals for God of War II were to continue the previous game's story, expand on several elements, and to feature more epic moments as opposed to cinematics during gameplay. He said there were many additions to the game, but they did not differ greatly from the style of the previous game. Set-pieces and large scale epic moments were reworked "so that each battle you have really feels epic and unique." Barlog also hinted that another sequel would be made; he said, "The story has not yet been completed. The end has only just begun."[14]


In another interview with IGN, both Jaffe and Barlog said that they did not view God of War II as a sequel, but rather a continuation of the previous game. Jaffe said that they did not want to include the Roman numeral number two (II) in the title for this reason, but they did not want the title to convey the impression it was an expansion pack.[15] Both Jaffe and Barlog said that the reason God of War II appeared on the PlayStation 2 instead of the PlayStation 3—which was released four months prior to God of War II—was because "there's a 100 million people out there that will be able to play God of War II as soon as it launches." Barlog assured that the game would be playable on the newer platform, which at the time, had PlayStation 2 backwards-compatibility.[16][17]


Four of the voice actors from the previous installment returned to reprise their roles, including Terrence C. Carson and Keith Ferguson, who voiced Kratos and the boat captain, respectively. Linda Hunt returned as the narrator, who was revealed to be the Titan Gaia, and Carole Ruggier returned as Athena; this was her final time voicing the character until a brief cameo in 2018's God of War. Both Paul Eiding, who had voiced Zeus and the gravedigger, and Fred Tatasciore, who had voiced Poseidon, returned but did not reprise those roles, and instead voiced the characters Theseus and Typhon, respectively. Corey Burton assumed the role of Zeus, having previously voiced the character in the 1998 Disney animated film Hercules: Zero to Hero and the subsequent animated series Hercules. Famed actors Michael Clarke Duncan and Leigh-Allyn Baker lent their voices for the characters Atlas and Lakhesis, respectively. Actor Harry Hamlin was chosen to voice the character Perseus because of his previous portrayal of the same character in the 1981 feature film Clash of the Titans. Although removed early in the game's development, Cam Clarke is credited for the voice of Hercules. Keythe Farley was the voice director alongside Kris Zimmerman and Gordon Hunt.[5][7][18]

God of War II: Original Soundtrack from the Video Game

April 10, 2007 (2007-04-10)

66:41

February 12, 2013

, ed. (2007). God of War II (Instruction manual). Sony Computer Entertainment.

Santa Monica Studio

(February 12, 2013). God of War II. God of War (1st ed.). United States: Del Rey Books. ISBN 978-0-345-50868-3.

Vardeman, Robert

God of War II official U.S. website

at IMDb

God of War II

at MobyGames

God of War II