PS2 Greatness...can not believe I never played these games because they are both classics!
Pros:
-Intense Action
-Actually Engaging Boss Fights
-Brilliant Story
-Challenging
-Variety of Moves/Powers
-Great Soundtrack
Cons:
-Annoying Platforming
-Camera Angles
GOW II (9.6)
Pros
-Everything from the first
-More Boss Fights
-Variety of Areas
-Story is enhanced and better paced, but not as dark as the first
Cons:
-Drowned out gameplay with infinite spawning enemies at every second again
-Starts off with a bang, but looses steam before the later half, but its still better than the first
Even though both these came out a long time ago, they still feel fresh and intense. The action is engaging the whole way through. Though it is a hack and slash, this is the mother of all of them and it never actually feels like a button smashing happy game. Instead it feels like a game that must be mastered. People use EPIC too freely and I hate it, but I think both these games deserve the title EPIC.
GOW I is crazy good, but it suffers from too many enemies coming at you at one time. Alot of games nowadays follow that same method and fail like Wolverine, but for some reason in this game, it makes sense that all these enemies are fighting you and it makes the game feel more intense. The boss fights are great, but the last boss fight is extremely hard, but very rewarding. GOW I suffers from poor platforming due to camera angles, but besides that the game is a must play. Alot of the game plays like a long puzzle which I found amazing because it all made sense.
GOW II has better platforming and better puzzles, but just like the first, too many enemies, but at least it is better paced this time. They are many puzzles that are thrown into the actually battle sequences which feel perfect. GOW II truly stands out from the first when it comes to scale, boss fights, and story. But the thing I didn't like about the story was it was not a deep and dark as the GOWI. I loved the feel and story of GOW1, but GOWII has this light feeling too it. GOW II is definitely one of the best games I have ever played, if not the best, but there are just a few things the make it better than the first and also make is not as stellar as the first as well. This game came out in 2007, but it is better than so many games that have came after it. When reviews said time did not hurt these games, I laughed, but after playing them, they are better then so many of the offerings right now.
If you have not played both these games then you do not understand the hype behind GOW III. But when you do play these games, or if you have, you will understand why GOW III is a must play. I do now.