Oregon daily emerald., April 14, 2005, Page 13, Image 13

War: Game a must for PlayStation 2 fans
Continued from page 9
grab the controller.
When players first meet Kratos, we
find him standing on Suicide Bluff star
ing into the Aegean Sea below. Kratos
casts himself off the cliff and moments
before he hits the bottom, players
flashback to the start of Kratos' jour
ney. Kratos, a mortal, is commissioned
by Athena to kill Ares. It seems that
Ares has gone crazy with jealousy and
has decided to destroy his sister's city,
Athens, in a desperate bid for the atten
tion of his father, Zeus. In order to kill
Ares, Kratos will need to acquire Pan
dora's Box, which is located in the puz
zle-laden Pandora'sTemple.
The production value of "God of
War" is amazing. Levels are vast, de
tailed and varied; they give the game
an epic feel and lend to "God of War’s"
superb storytelling. Early in the game
players find themselves jumping from
ship to ship fighting undead legion
naires and Hydras.Later, players will
find themselves peering through a
sandstorm as they crawl through a
desert listening for a Siren's song.
Loading rarely stifles the pace of the
game and the graphics are some of the
best seen on the Playstation 2.
"God of War's" combat is a brutal
ballet of violence. The Blades of
Chaos, Kratos' weapons, are a pair of
huge knives connected to chains
which are bound to Kratos' wrists.
These weapons allow for some of the
most imaginative combat in a video
game. Kratos furiously whips his
blades from one adversary to another
as combos reach over 100 hits. After
some battles players will find both
their thumbs and wits exhausted. The
fluidity of the combat is astonishing, a
player can be dicing up harpies at one
moment and then quickly dodging a
Minotaur's club the next.
It is clearthat "God of War's" pro
grammers spent a lot of time dreaming
up some of the most gruesome and
imaginative ways to take out an enemy.
PlayStation 2
PlayStation. 2 J?
. For instance, when fighting Medusa
the player will first have to whittle away
on the queen of the Gorgons. After she
takes enough damage, the symbol for
the circle button will appear over her
head beckoning players to grab her.
Once Kratos grabs hold of Medusa
players find themselves locked into a
mini-game, quickly entering combina
tions until Kratos manages to rip off the
head of Medusa. Kratos is then able to
use Medusa's head to turn enemies
into stone.
One of "God of War’s" greatest
aspects is also the one of the game's
low points. "God of War's” boss bat
tles are so enjoyable and so satisfy
ing that it is disappointing that there
aren't more. Each boss, much like
many of the game's enemies, has a
gimmick. As players fight bosses it
becomes quickly apparent that
Kratos' blades will not be enough to
take down the foe. It is up to players
to discover each boss's weakness,
or environmental factors that may
help Kratos defeat the boss.
It is important to note that "God of
War" is extremely violent and that it in
tended for a mature audience. Each
swipe of Kratos' blade causes enemies
to gush blood and Kratos seems to find
some of the most brutal ways to kill any
enemy. With that said, "God of War" is
a must have for any Playstation 2 own
er. It will take a player anywhere from
15 to 20 hours to beat and once the
game is finished players will unlock
deleted levels, extra content, and other
new challenges.
Playwright, author, radio. star, •
and retired elf
may be the most
Tickets: The box office, BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com,
or call 682-5000 • Groups (20+) call 744-1962.
Jungle: New creatures,
visuals break monotany
uonunuea uom page a
including ice caverns and lava pits.
In "Jungle Beat," players control
Donkey Kong, a huge fuzzy gorilla
who's out to become the king of the
jungle by conquering various fruit
kingdoms. Each level is loaded with
bad guys, as DK tries to collect as
many bananas as possible before
proceeding to the area boss to do
battle for the throne.
The action becomes repetitive,
each level presenting only a small
challenge of knowing when to jump
and where. Game play can almost
become automatic, often relying
only on well-timed claps, which trig
ger events to progress through the
level. Thankfully, Nintendo recog
nized this fact and went some dis
tance to help break things up. DK
encounters help in many different
forms as the creatures of the jungle
come to his aid; animals such as
killer whales and flying squirrels
present different types of play and
help diversify the game.
"Jungle Beat" also has a very
polished visual aspect When the
camera zooms in for boss battles,
DK is covered in hairthat makes him
look like a walking fuzzball with
arms. The fact that Nintendo has
gone the extra mile to create individ
ual hairs and still have the game run
at a smooth frame rate just makes
you want to smile. The level designs
leave you feeling a little empty. All of
the visual work seems to have gone
into characters, which become
painfully obvious when it feels as if
you've ran through the same blocky
corridor 50 times.
Miinougn jungie oeai is
entertaining, it’s simply not meant to
last. From start to finish, total game
time will range anywhere from 2 to 4
hours depending on skill and how
in-depth players wish to get. Ninten
do tries to remedy this problem by
presenting the idea of crests.
Crests, objects that are earned after
beating a world and collecting a
specific number of bananas, are
used to open up new levels in the
game. In orderto collect all of the
crests, players will have to venture
into worlds multiple times before
they can reach perfection. This type
of game play can be enjoyable, but
for those who just wish to go from
point A to point B will find them
selves backtracking to collect
crests in orderto proceed further in
the game.
The game also takes a hit by be
ing one-player, which is a real
shame because "Jungle Beat" be
comes a lot more fun with a group of
people. Those who’ve bought more
then one bongo for "Donkey Konga"
will be saddened to see extra bon
gos collect dust in this new adven
ture. Normally Nintendo throws in a
pitiful head-to-head battle mode to
bring in more players, but they've
decided to leave it out all together
this time.
For people who've already invest
ed in the DK bongos, "Jungle Beat"
will be a fine addition to their game
collections. Those who haven’t pur
chased the drums will be fine rent
ing it instead.
dustinreese@dailyemerald.com
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