God of War CoO isn't just an incredible handheld game, it is an incredible game.
Graphics:
I do not need to say alot here. Anyone who has seen a screenshot of this game know the graphics rival its PS2 brethren. And nothing is compromised. The framerate on a PSP slim holds up throughout the whole game. On the fat PSP, there are 3 or 4 moments of slowdown throughout the game, but they only last a second or two. I noticed a tad bit of screen tearing in the large environment, but you will be too busy gazing at the incredible textures to notice.
Gameplay:
If you haven't played a God of War game before, you will quickly learn to love the gameplay. The finishing moves are just as brutal as ever, the button pressing sequences are just as creative as ever, and the blades of chaos are just has fun as ever. Seriously, the blades of chaos are one of the coolest ideas ever thought up. The controls for this game are geniously mapped to the psp's controls. There is an alternate weapon you will aquire later in the game that it incredibly fun to use also.
Sound:
Top-notch. The soundtrack really gets your blood pumping. It is a real treat to turn off the sound effects and just listen to the music as you play the game. Not that the sound effects are bad, they are just as good. Everytihing from the swish of the blades to the crunch of a skull sounds great.
Story:
It's not Metal Gear Solid, but it is still a great story. The voice acting is great, especially Kratos and the narrator. The dialogue was a bit melodramatic at places, but other than that, the dialogue was great.
Lasting Appeal:
On your first playthrough, on hero(normal), finding all the upgrades and everying thing like that, will probably take you 5-7 hours.Once you beat normal you will unlock god mode and the challenge of hades. The challenge of hades is very hard but rewarding to complete. It will probably take you around 2 hours to complete. There are only 5 but you will die ALOT.
Then theres god mode, which, as its name implies, is incredibly hard. It will take you over 10 hours to complete. There are three unlockable costumes, one is unlocked by beating story mode, one by the challenge of hades, and one by god mode.I have personally played through the story 9 times because it is so much fun.
Overall:
Ready at Dawn as crafted a masterpiece. It's sad to to see them move away from the psp, but they have certainly left their mark with Daxter and God of War Chains of Olympus. At the very least, please rent it. You will not regret it.