The action, intensity, challenge and puzzles come together for an experience that will leave you saying "wow".
As Kratos, a Greek soldier who has been given the raw deal by the Greek god Zeus, you are on a journey to hunt the king of Olympus down and defeat him. During the course of the game, the action has a level of intensity that only Call of Duty 4 can rival. Moreover, the difficulty of the enemies during combat start hard and stay tough right from the fight with the statue of Colossus in the first stage. For those who try and shy away from overly challenging games, GoW does provide an opportunity for players to step the challenge level down a notch after every 5 to 10 deaths during the game. For those new to the GoW series, this game is not a straight forward, short beat-em up that someone could complete within a matter of hours. Instead, you will use Kratos to fly on a horse, swim underwater, fly with the Icarus wings, climb up large walls, hang from ceilings, and push precise buttons with exact timing all while trying to kick the enemies' butt. There are also several puzzles along the way which will require a decent level of intelligence to solve, but nothing requiring a college degree. The game also features an upgrade system common to today's 3D action games and RPGs. As you go around and gather orbs, you will be able to upgrade your weapons and/or magic as you so desire. If you haven't played the game, I would recommend upgrading your regular blades, arrows, and rock magic only. Unlike some games, the improvement you make in GoW II will actually make a difference in your efforts to not only defeat Zeus, but also conquer the other adversaries that lay in your path. Overall, a player should be able to complete the game in between 12-20 hours, depending on the level of difficulty you choose to stick with.
Overall, I rate this game a 10. The graphics and sound are superb for the PS2 and the action is nothing less than first rate. The only drawback I must mention is the very mature action associated with playing. The combat includes a great deal of gore with blood flying all-over the place. In fact, Kratos even rips one particular enemy's arm off and then uses the axe (still in the hand of the ripped-off arm) to kill the foe. Additionally, there are some female enemies who do not fight with complete clothing and remain topless throughout the game. While this may not offend some, I must warn the audience that the "nudity" warning in the "M"-rated box is well justified and to not play this game around children for that reason.
Aside from that, the action in this game is as good as you'll find and the overall experience is one I wholeheartily recommend to anyone of the mature audience. The fighting, variations of action (flying, swimming, climbing, etc.), puzzles, upgrades and boss battles make this title one that truly stands out amongst the rest and leaves you saying "wow" after you've finished the game.