Daxter

Released in 2006, this spin-off of the Jak and Daxter franchise puts you in the shoes of well, Daxter as he embarks on a quest to find Jak. The journey will take you through a wide variety of levels filled with all sorts of platforming obstacles, and overcoming those challenges remains a consistently fun affair. The combat isn’t as dynamic as the mainline entries, but Daxter does feature a simple melee-based combat system that serves well to break up the pace from the platforming sections.

#40. SCYLLA (GOD OF WAR: GHOST OF SPARTA)

God of War: Ghost of Sparta’s opening boss fight is very reminiscent of the likes of the likes of the Basilisk and the Hydra, in that it’s an intro boss fight that sees Kratos taking on a sea monster- but frankly, it’s not as good as any of them. It’s very short and doesn’t test the player at all, and the fact that the first encounter and the conclusion are separated by a decent chunk of gameplay doesn’t exactly help with the formidableness of the creature. Then again, the final QTE sequence does result in a pretty gory death for the Scylla, which is always fun to see.

GAIA’S BACK (GOD OF WAR 3)

You’d have to think really, really hard to be able to name games that have a better opening than God of War 3. It picks up exactly where God of War 2 ends, and right out the gate, it sets the tone where the game’s sense of scale is concerned. Throughout the entire gameplay section, the high-stakes battle between the Titans and the Olympians can be witnessed in the background, while Kratos himself dispatches Poseidon in typically brutal and efficient fashion.

KILLING ARES (GOD OF WAR)

The final fight between Kratos and Ares to close out the first game in the series remains an epic one to this day. Growing massively in size, Kratos stands toe to toe with Ares, and the two battle it out in a climactic duel, which ultimately sees Kratos lifting the sword off of a nearby gargantuan statue and driving it through his Ares’ heart.

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: THE MINISH CAP

The Minish Cap is easily among the most criminally underrated Zelda games of all time. Owing to the fact that it’s a handheld title and that it was developed by Capcom, not Nintendo, it’s been viewed as something of a sidequel by many, though as those who’ve played it will tell you, that’s an unfair assertion, because this is an incredible game. A remake that brings the game back to the forefront for modern audiences would surely prove that.

#8. GOD OF WAR: BETRAYAL

God of War: Betrayal was a mobile game before mobile games as we know them today even existed. It was a 2D sidescrolling Java title and extremely limited in its scope as such, and honestly, you’d be forgiven for not even being aware of its existence. It exists though, and it’s part of the series’ canon- and you know what? It ain’t half bad. If you go in expecting a decent, enjoyable mobile game that successfully captures at least a fraction of what God of War is about, this delivers it. Expect anything more though, and you’ll be sorely disappointed.

#7. GOD OF WAR: ASCENSION

God of War: Ascension almost killed the franchise. It wasn’t a bad enough game to warrant that kind of a reaction by any means, but even so, that reaction was easy to understand and even empathize with. That’s because even though it was a perfectly fine God of War game that did what God of War games had always done, it was little more than that. Yes, it had some decent boss fights, yes, it had typically gory combat, and yes, it looked great for it’s time- but it was nothing we hadn’t seen five times before it. It was just more God of War, and it did nothing to advance or shake up the series’ formula – which was wearing thin by that time – in any way. It felt wholly unnecessary, and more than anything else, highlighted the series’ desperate need for a reinvention- which, of course, it ended up getting… but we’ll get to that later.

#6. GOD OF WAR: CHAINS OF OLYMPUS

God of War: Chains of Olympus had some tough expectations to live up to, seeing as it had the unenviable task of delivering a quintessential God of War experience on a decidedly less powerful handheld device that didn’t even have all the buttons and inputs that consoles did. But developer Ready at Dawn, who stewarded the game in Santa Monica Studio’s stead, did an excellent job. Chains of Olympus was everything one could want from a God of War game- only in truncated form. Maybe the game’s short length and relative lack of boss fights can be held against it, but it was still a brutal, adrenaline-fueled romp that delivered excellent action, looked great, and told a solid story that focus on Kratos’ personal arc in a way that no other game in the series has.

#5. GOD OF WAR (2005)

The one that started it all. Viewed from a different lens, the original God of War may very well have a shot at being the #1 game here, or at least being somewhere in the top 3. Its legacy can never be diminished, and at the time, it was an absolutely revolutionary experience. Of course, if we’re going purely by merit, we do have to knock some points- God of War is still fun to play today, but parts of the game have not aged very well and can feel a little rough around the edges, while there’s also no denying that it has been thoroughly outmatched by its many successors in almost every possible way. Even so, given what it is, and especially what it was when it first came out, no one will ever be able to deny that this is one of the all-time greats in the history of PlayStation.

#4. GOD OF WAR: GHOST OF SPARTA

Ready at Dawn was up to the task of delivering a solid handheld God of War game with Chains of Olympus, and naturally, the studio ended up exceeding it with its follow-up. 2010’s God of War: Ghost of Sparta remains an excellent game. It tells a captivating story that, once again, explores a corner of Kratos’ personal life that no other series instalment has cared to look at, and on top of that, its excellent, brutal combat, and its impressive visual fidelity, it also makes up for Chains of Olympus’ few shortcomings with a healthy roster of exhilarating boss fights. Again, length is a bit of a issue here, but given how incredible the game is from start to finish, that issue is, ultimately, rather easy to overlook.

#3. GOD OF WAR 2

This game right here is partly why the original God of War isn’t placed higher in this list- because God of War 2 is pretty much the perfect sequel. Put aside the fact that it’s got a story that falls apart the moment you look at the logic of its time travel shenanigans for more than a second- because from beginning to end, God of War 2 is just a monster of a game. From combat to visuals, from boss fights to the fiery rage this series has always been known for, this game took everything that was good about its predecessor and dialed it all up to eleven. Very rarely have video game sequels managed to up the ante as successfully and as drastically as God of War 2 did. If Ragnarok can accomplish even half of what it did back in 2007 in terms of expanding on its predecessor’s excellent foundations, it’ll be an absolute masterpiece.

#2. GOD OF WAR 3

God of War 3 is, simply put, the purest, ultimate distillation of what this series used to be before it was radically reinvented in 2018 (again, we’ll get to that in a bit). Buckets of gore, gleefully excessive violence, angst and rage, a truly unparalleled sense of scale, and, of course, incredible boss fights and set pieces. Since its inception, God of War has been about those things, and every single one of those elements was in prime form in God of War 3. It was a thrill ride unlike any other, an absolute rollercoaster that never failed to make you feel like a murderous badass. One after another, God of War 3 delivered unforgettable moments that we fondly remember to this day, from the Poseidon boss fight to the legendary Cronos encounter and so much more. There are many who’ll probably argue that God of War 2 deserves to be higher on this list than God of War 3, but as far as we’re concerned, God of War 3 is the zenith of the series’ formula.

Or, well, its old formula, at the very least. Speaking of which…

#1. GOD OF WAR (2018)

The most obvious #1 pick of all time, right? But it’s obvious for a reason. People have been waxing lyrical about God of War (2018) since the day it came out, ourselves included, so there’s nothing we can say that hasn’t been said before countless times already. But no amount of praise feels like it’s enough for this game. In so many ways, God of War (2018) is so diametrically opposed to what its predecessors was, from its more thoughtful and mature story and storytelling to its slowed, deliberate pacing to its over-the-shoulder perspective to its cavalcade of gameplay changes. And yet, in spite of all that, it still very much feels like a God of War game, like an extension and natural evolution of the franchise. Striking that sort of balance should be impossible, and yet God of War (2018) does it so convincingly and so confidently, you almost end up taking it for granted.

True Knightfall Protocol – Batman: Arkham Knight

By the end of Batman: Arkham Knight, everyone is aware that Batman is actually Bruce Wayne. As a result, the Dark Knight looks to initiate the Knightfall Protocol, which requires completing seven of the major side quests. Once that’s done, Bruce Wayne removes the cowl, enters Wayne Mansion – which explodes – and is seemingly dead. To get the true ending, you need to apprehend all of Gotham’s villains. So along with dismantling the militia’s Road Blocks, Mines and Watchtowers to eventually face off and defeat Deathstroke, you also need to collect all 243 Riddler Trophies to bring in the Riddler.

Once this is done, the same ending will play out and Batman is seemingly gone. However, it’s followed by a new epilogue wherein Jim Gordon becomes the new Mayor of Gotham and Timothy Drake looks to marry Barbara Gordon. Cut to a scene of criminals attempting to rob a family in a back alley but instead of Batman, a fiery version of the Dark Knight descends on the crooks, instilling a new age of fear.

The identity of this figure is unknown – perhaps we’ll learn more in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League since it’s set in the same universe – but at the very least, it does paint a much more positive picture for the future (for the non-criminally inclined at least).

BATMAN: ARKHAM ORIGINS

Batman: Arkham Origins could not have released under worse circumstances, in retrospect. Not only was it developed as a stopgap and sandwiched between two of the series’ biggest games in Arkham City and Arkham Knight, it also came out exclusively for 7th-gen consoles right on the cusp of the beginning of the next console generation. The fact that it was developed by WB Games Montreal while the series’ main devs Rocksteady focused on Arkham Knight did its pre-release hype no favours either, while Warner Bros. themselves have, bafflingly enough, continued to roundly ignore the game in the years that followed. That’s a real shame, too, because with a great story, some of the best boss fights in the series, and the typical strengths in combat and open world traversal that the Arkham games are know for, Arkham Origins did everything series fans wanted it to.

Kratos just destroyed an entire city. And he doesn’t care, ‘coz he’s a selfish asshole.

To answer that question simply: pretty much. God of War: Origins Collection does have a few issues, and it is apparent several times that these are handheld games that have been ported over to a console, but at the end of the day, Origins is a great collection that manages to bring over Kratos’ PSP adventures to the PS3 successfully.

The first difference you’ll notice on the PS3 is that the graphics have been overhauled, and both the games, especially Ghost of Sparta (being just one year old and more technically advanced than many contemporary console games), look extremely good, with great animation effects, awesome environments presented with great detail and some background vistas and backdrops that have been crafted so beautifully, they will take your breath away for sure, even if you saw them on the PSP 3/1 year(s) ago. However, Chains of Olympus does show some rough edges, with water effects appearing a bit unwieldy, and the character models looking a bit pixelized, but overall, both the games look very good. The difference in the visuals of the HD remastered versions and the PSP originals is clearly visible.

The combat feels just as satisfying and brutal as ever, and with the addition of rumble, it packs that much of an extra punch.

The gameplay is, obviously, the same as the PSP versions. For those of you who don’t know what God of War is all about, here’s a short description. You’re a bald badass who has two blades chained to his arms. He uses them like a yoyo and uses his rippling muscles to tear apart his enemies as he moves from one place to another, messing with the Greek gods an titans. The gameplay has boss fights, QTEs, puzzles and some platforming elements. Every time you kill an enemy, you get orbs, which you can use to upgrade your weapons and magical abilities, which you will keep getting more of as you progress through the game. And that’s about it. Simplistic in theory, but awesome and brutal when experienced.

It is because of this simplistic nature of the games that you will be able to pick up the games easily and play them whenever you want to. Kratos’ atrocious deeds will make you groan sometimes, since he can go overboard with his badass act a bit (read: a lot). The story of Chains of Olympus, while providing a much more personal story than that of Ghost of Sparta’s, feels a bit too straightforward and bland, and you’ll feel there are several parts in the game that just drag on and have no real purpose. Seeing that COO’s a game that can be finished in 3-5 hours, that’s not really a good thing.

Ghost of Sparta, though, is as visceral as ever, with the story holding up even now, the boss battles feeling as epic as ever, the graphics looking good enough to rival recent PS3 titles and the same brutal combat that we have all come to love. However, the controls might feel heavy sometimes, since they were built especially for the PSP’s less intuitive analog nub, and now, with the DualShock analog sticks, it can feel as if Kratos moves too heavily. However, it isn’t much of a hindrance, and additions like rumble feedback and evade controls being mapped to the second analog stick are very effective tweaks.

This dude’s anger has nothing on Kratos’ fury.

Ultimately, yes, God of War: Origins Collection has a few rough edges, and it does feel like a bloated handheld game oftentimes. I would recommend that those of you who have a PSP buy Chains of Olympus and Ghost of Sparta on the handheld rather than on the PS3, but those of you who do not have it should definitely go ahead and buy the collection without thinking twice.

This game was reviewed on the PS3.

Sony has released a video comparison of Chains of Olympus and Ghost of Sparta running on the PSP and on their HD remastered collection on the PS3. The differences are quite notable.

Nathan Phail-Liff, art director at developer Ready At Dawn Studios also talked about how difficult a task it was to remaster the PSP God of War games.

You can read what he has to say via the link below.

[Source: PS Blog]