God of War III has a lot of things going for it. An enhanced combat engine, some of the best looking visuals in next gen console gaming, and most importantly, it is a part of one of the most beloved game series…ever. Historical and mythological inaccuracy aside, the God of War series is just good hack and slash fun. Impressive set pieces, memorable boss fights, and (at times) frustrating difficulty all personify the series. The third installment certainly has its fair share of each of factors, but its something about the sum of the parts where I started to notice that things don’t quite work the way they were intended to.

It’s not that God of War 3 is a bad game. Far from it, GOW III is an enjoyable game that I am glad I purchased, and will certainly play again. The story progression, though, is where the game hits a bit of a snag.  I say “snag”, because its not game breaking. The premise of the game has you hunting and killing off the gods of Olympus, one by one and often limb by limb. Each of these areas, such as the underworld where you face Hades, feels uniquely different from other regions. The problem is the poor progression and pacing between these areas, which causes the game to lose some of the seamlessness notable in the first two games. In a way, GOW 3 feels like the player is walking between self contained rooms, rather than journeying across a vast landscape. While I understand many adventure games rely on the contrast between in-game locations to establish a sense of scale in a game, the journey between these locales cannot be glossed over. Otherwise, as in God of War III’s case, the game can lose a lot of its “epic factor”.

That said, God of War III largely makes up for this with its simply stunning visuals. Lighting, animations, and blood splatter are all some of the best I’ve seen. I’m not the kind of gamer that buys a game simply for its graphics, but GOW3′s visuals certainly do not disappoint. Voice acting is disappointing, and its obvious the budget was not spent here. I think we can all agree that voice acting in games is usually pretty abysmal, so its hardly worth crying over (I think Uncharted just has me a little spoiled). Finally The core gameplay received some welcome interface and functionality changes, such as the dedicated power bar, and the magic/special weapon pairings. Though of the four new special weapons, the cestus is the only one that you are likely to use much. One issue that plagued the first two games, the fixed camera, remains disappointingly unresolved.

For the most part, I really enjoyed God of War III, and I think you probably will too. But If you missed the original two games, do yourself a favor and pick them up first (via the God of War Collection).  Canon aside, they both feature some truly memorably gameplay that still holds up in the current generation. Then grab God of War 3 for the impressive visuals, and a semi-satisfying conclusion to a great franchise.

Also, check out Zack’s thoughts on the game in the Comments section below.