BENGALURU: In keeping with my ‘replay’ theme for 2021, I replayed ‘God of War: Ghost of Sparta’. The game released as a PSP exclusive, so I managed to borrow one from a kind friend. In these difficult days where the prospect of receiving a tangible Ragnarok update seems bleaker than getting one for Valimai, reliving classics in the franchise will make us feel good, if only temporarily.
Ghost of Sparta is a game that is very sure of itself. It is almost as confident as its protagonist, the angry and unconscientious Kratos. However, its confidence might fool us into thinking it is also steadfast. Oh no. Let me explain. The PSP has a tiny screen, smaller than the average phone screen of 2021. The PSP also does not have a right joystick, forcing a stable camera angle. One would assume that these constraints would make the game linear, and therefore easy. GoW however, is sure of itself, sure to fool us into a sense of comfort in knowing what lies ahead.
The story in this game involves the Ghost of Sparta seeking out his long-lost brother, Deimos. The storyline is punctuated by flashbacks of Kratos’ youth. The pathway to fixing his past is simple. Kratos must visit the Temple of Poseidon, defeat Scylla, slash Callisto to learn no new information, defeat Thanatos’ daughter, use the key of Crete, cross the Gates of Herakleon, travel to the Temple of Ares, then to the Jails of Sparta …. *inhales deeply*…. receive the Arms of Sparta, stumble into Midas, find the statue of Poseidon in the city of Atlantis, and then enter the Domain of Death to search his brother. See? Simple. Ghost of Sparta would really be a joyful story about a man going on a pilgrimage; that is, if we didn’t see him ripping people’s heads off so often.
The path that Kratos takes is filled with a lot of traffic. There are huge spiders spitting poison, cyclops, minotaurs, automatons that can only be destroyed by a special fire, hounds, and more! However, Kratos is armed with the powers to destroy them. But as they get stronger, we must ensure that he has enough orbs, horns, feathers, and eyes (so weird) to max out the upgrades.
You might just overuse one power-up the spinning chains one, but you still need upgrades! Here, the illusion of the stable camera angles forces us to explore. An old-school puzzle. The game shows us a main path. But there may be a chest hidden, just out of sight. Except for the story, Ghost of Sparta feels like concept art for the recent God of War games. While some bits may not have aged well, the game is right in being confident, as it provides a healthy challenge for one that is 11 years old. 299/300 for the Spartan.
Anusha Ganapathi
(This economics graduate spends her leisure time preparing for the zombie apocalypse)