Carnby
Member
I can't believe how many people don't understand this. Instead they cry out "GOW is war against women!"
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God of War Ascension |OT| Gods up, Foes down
- Thread starter Canis lupus
- Start date
I can't believe how many people don't understand this. Instead they cry out "GOW is war against women!"
Summary Man
Member
I totally forgot about that ice scorpion in GOW3. Now I remember why: it seemed so random and out of place, like the developers were trying to add filler into the game. It doesn't even fit thematically into the series. I don't recall ever hearing about a giant ice scorpion in ancient Greece.
That was always the one thing that stuck out to me.
That was always the one thing that stuck out to me.
It would simply make it another level and no longer a trial. May as well rename it "The Stages of Archimedes".
Gold_Loot
Member
And it was the next to final boss in the game. A game filled with potential gods and titans, but no, the final challenge to Zeus is...some random Scorpion. I have no idea what they were thinking.
Also one of the MP maps in here is that damned room of boxes from 3, lol.
perineumlick
Member
Fuck that elevator with the fire. Fucking bullshit big time.
God of War has had damage sponge enemies since the very first game.
Killing_Joke
Member
Not sure how they can balance the trials without fucking it up. Adding checkpoints would make it way too easy.
Haha i like Todd. I wouldn't mind if he came back for GOW4.
Haha i like Todd. I wouldn't mind if he came back for GOW4.
hey_it's_that_dog
benevolent sexism
Sure, some enemies have been damage sponges. I think even the most basic enemies take way longer to kill in this one.
Vire
Member
I just played God of War 3 on Titan. Nothing took that long.
By the way, is there a checkpoint in between the trials or is all in one go kind of thing? I remember God of War 3 had a trials portion but you got a checkpoint in between waves.
hey_it's_that_dog
benevolent sexism
They can go ahead an fuck it up for all I care. I derived very little satisfaction from beating it as it was. Now I'm stuck again at it on hard difficulty even though I know what I need to do. It's just incredibly tedious. The constant snake grabs, the eternal snake finishing moves, lightning constantly striking. It's not fun for me, just work.
No checkpoint and the first round takes way too long.
NameGenerated
Who paid you to grab Dr. Pavel?
Just beat it. It was damn good. I think it's about on par with GoWIII except I think the combat is worse. III had some more interesting weapons and items and the enemies in Ascension can be not fun to fight with their super armor and what not. Also the game is way less polished, weird animation bugs, sound glitches, camera glitched on me a couple of times too. Ascension also had a lack of boss battles, but what was there was great (dat final boss).
What I liked more than III:
The puzzles, clever but not annoying or frustrating. The graphics are spectacular. The story didn't go into cringe territory and I thought the lessening of Kratos speaking was a plus. The level design was really solid and cohesive and I didn't think anything was bland like the Daedalus labyrinth.
I'm only level 15, but the multiplayer is surprisingly good. I doubt I'll stick with it for much longer though, got many other games to play.
Also the bros before hoes trophy...that was it? Insane overreaction to that. And I beat the trial on my first try on normal (another "that was it?").
So there's my generic, non-specific thoughts.
My series ranking:
2>>3=A>GoS>1>CoO
Two greater thans for 2 because it's that damn good. I also haven't played 3 since it was released so I might place it differently after a replay.
What I liked more than III:
The puzzles, clever but not annoying or frustrating. The graphics are spectacular. The story didn't go into cringe territory and I thought the lessening of Kratos speaking was a plus. The level design was really solid and cohesive and I didn't think anything was bland like the Daedalus labyrinth.
I'm only level 15, but the multiplayer is surprisingly good. I doubt I'll stick with it for much longer though, got many other games to play.
Also the bros before hoes trophy...that was it? Insane overreaction to that. And I beat the trial on my first try on normal (another "that was it?").
So there's my generic, non-specific thoughts.
My series ranking:
2>>3=A>GoS>1>CoO
Two greater thans for 2 because it's that damn good. I also haven't played 3 since it was released so I might place it differently after a replay.
Very.
hey_it's_that_dog
benevolent sexism
It's the next chapter, I believe. After you solve the puzzle, just a couple minutes away.
I disagree. The bug men in the Hechatonchries go down just as fast as anything you encounter in the beginning sections of any GoW game and the goat men don't go down any slower than of the other intermediate lackies.
The fucking Satyrs, the Gorgons, the Minotaurs, Cyclopses, Cerbersuses, Centaurs, Chimeras, etc. all took forever to kill in previous GoW games. There's nothing egregious here.
Good deal, that is where I called it a night. Will knock it out tomorrow.
MrCookiepants
Member
How is this even possible.
I'm baffled by the complaints. Only the first wave is difficult. I died once there and then the next time I was more careful and got through it without much trouble.
This game is really exposing all the square, square, triangle spammers. :lol
So has the thought ever crossed your mind that it may just be you?
You struggled on normal, and now you're stuck again on hard.
Maybe?
Edit: honest question...not a jab.
Indeed.
Voice of Reason
Banned
Yeah, you'll be fine. Make sure to use the L/R3 attack of the Hades element, and freeze the annoying Medusas so you can take out the electricity hoes.
Will keep that in mind. Thank you.
You should be fine, but for those having a serious issue, I've reloaded to do the trials again a few times. Here's an easy way complete it.
First priority; survive wave 1 at all cost. Burn all magic if you need...just survive. It really doesn't matter how much health or magic you have. The more of either, the easier the rest will be.
Waves 2-3/4, block...wait for separation, use amulet immediately followed by oath stone, block...wait for refresh of the two (amulet/oath stone), rinse and repeat.
Take your time. Celebrate your "cheap" win and move along.
Carnby
Member
So the only way to beat this section is to exploit the game and be "cheap." And you don't see a problem with this? That sounds like a poorly developed challenge if the only way to win is to be "cheap."
Point taken. Never meant to hurt anyone's feelings. If my posts are bannable, I do apologize. Thought this was an open space to voice views and opinions.
Good luck with the trials.
Look, I researched it to help others. I didn't exploit anything nor did I use cheap tactics when I completed it. Had you read my post I said I went back to replay it a few times to try and offer a solution to others.
I think the patch is a cheap way out. If I can offer tactics you view as cheap to assist others in the time being, I will do so.
Carnby
Member
No no, keep posting. I'm just suggesting that you may want to scale it back a bit. You can't directly argue every person who comes to this thread to complain about the trials. Your tips are certainly welcomed!
No thanks. You and I will never view this the same way. I think it's perfectly fine the way it is, and you think it's too hard or unbalanced. We can agree to disagree if it makes you happy, but as you pointed out, I need to scale it back a bit. People may get offended because I call it the way I see it, and that's not my intentions.No no, keep posting. I'm just suggesting that you may want to scale it back a bit. You can't directly argue every person who comes to this thread to complain about the trials. Your tips are certainly welcomed!
As I said, good luck with the trials, and enjoy the patch. I just hope Bioshock delivers...I'll be trading this in toward that. Happy St. Patty's!!
Helscream
Banned
Well after beating the game on Normal. I am half-way through Hard right now.
Some things I wanted to add about the Combat system. Maybe this will help others or enforce your disgust for the combat changes.
Parry: Obviously the L1+X Change is frustrating to adapt to. I notice that you have to make sure L1 is pressed down first before hitting X. Otherwise you will just do a regular block or jump in the air and block (which looks silly). I will agree that this come sometimes interrupt the flow of combat. And often times it is just better to just roll out of the way. Also when you activate parry there is a small delay. Which is also frustrating to adapt to. Also it really only effects the one enemy that swung at you. Leaving the other nearby enemies ready to stun-lock you. The really good thing about parry is the ability to instantly stun enemies and set them up for a grapple. Especially a Juggernaut or Cerberus.
To Improve Parry you really should be able to tap L1+X at the same time so you can parry the instant you see an attack coming. Remove the slight delay so that you only need to parry the moment the attack is incoming. Also it would be REALLY awesome to be able to parry Mid-Air. I really have been wanting that ability since GoW2.
Secondary Weapons: To me it seems the only secondary weapons that seem to be useful are the sword and shield.
The Sword is great for punishing enemies on the ground or in the air. And once the blade starts swing you can keep most enemies stunned.
The Shield is my favorite because it seems to stun and do excellent damage against Siren's/Gorgon.
The Sling you rarely get to use. In the game. Its a ranged attack which is ok, but really its the L1+O that really stun-locks enemies it seems.
The Spear I normally will blow all the charges then immediately do the L1+O. The multiple falling spears help keep enemies stunned and thus making the open for some heavy attacks.
The Mace I am really not to sure what to think about this weapon. It says it can disarm enemies (sometimes), but I am so frequently opened to attack when trying to use this that I normally will jump in the air then hold O down for a power attack. Or just L1+O to throw it. It seems to have a area-effect knock back which is nice.
The most obviously decision from the player is whether they should just to use the weapon or throw it to stun specific enemies that are most difficult to deal with.
Blades of Chaos: The Blades really seem to be the same. They are familiar and still have most of the same moves. The issue is being restricted to certain moves when your Rage meter is not full. Which can kinda be annoying. I really wish they they should have allowed players to use the typical moves they are use to in previous games. Only allowing "special unique attacks" become available only in Rage mode. Limiting the players move-set outside if Rage mode really leaves you with so few options to actually build your Rage meter. Also the R3+[ ] R3+X R3+/\ moves are unreliable at best. There is such a small window in which you must hit one of the three buttons immediately after your roll you will only perform a unique dodge move 1/10 times.
Rage Meter: I do like the concept of building up to build up a type of "momentum" that makes your attacks having more force and damage. As well as unlocking certain move exclusive in Rage mode, but your really don't have much to unlock with your Blades of Chaos alone. You really need to max out your Ares/Zeus/Poseidon/Hades elements to unlock special moves. Which those moves will actually have a unique property that will only activate in Rage mode. This concept I think is great, but I feel is still limited. If Kratos' "rage" reaches critical mass you should not be getting stun-locked by enemies. There is nothing more frustrating trying to build up your Rage only to lose all of it in 2 seconds because someone threw a small turd at you.
Ares/Poseidon/Zeus/Hades Magic: The magic abilities look cool as shit and are damn satisfying. You really feel like your wielding the power of a god when you suck your enemies into your electro-magentic sphere of lightning when you Zeus' magic. attack. I really like the idea of having specific attacks depending on which god-powers you are using. The only thing I wish is that there was a more expansive move set available. I do like the tactical options which you are giving when using one of the elements. Ares grants you more Rage, Zeus grants you more mana, Poseidon more red orbs, and Hades grants you health orbs. So there is a reason to choose one of the four outside of simply different attacks. Great idea, but I wish there was more moves available for each element.
QTE's: Pretty much the same. I do like the small-mini-game of actually stabbing/slashing a enemy before you finish them and having to dodge here and there. I just wish there was more of this. I really like the feeling of being up-close and personal with a Gorgon before I split it in half.
Enemies: They seem to have alot of damn health and take a real beating. Which really wouldn't be a big deal if I wasn't susceptible to being stun-locked so easily. To really punish a enemy your really need your Rage meter full. Otherwise your attacks are somewhat weak and don't seem to phase the enemies your attack. On the other hand you can constantly stun enemies (even larger enemies) when your Rage is full. Also grappling seems to be more restricted. Even the simple enemies you have to break their armor to actually grapple them (which makes sense). Also they can wield different weapons when makes it more difficult for you to time your parry. I noticed that changing up your attacks with Secondary Weapons really make a difference sometimes (mainly sword or shield).
Uroboros Amulet/Oath stone of Orkos: Really cool and simple to use. And damn does it make a difference when you upgrade it. Absolutely critical to use in hard encounters. Oath stone works differently but really helps a lot in tough fights.
Overall I want to say that the combat has been improved, but there are certain things that hold it back. Combat feels more fluid and brutal, but the ability the enemy has to shut you down can often little to utter frustration. I myself did not have that big of a Issue with the Trail of Archimedes. I think having to fight the Hades Cerberus and Two Satyrs on God of War 3 Takes that cake. I applaud SSM trying to make real changes/improvements to the combat system, but the short-comings it brought with it seems to lead people to disappointment. I for one thoroughly enjoy the combat.
Some things I wanted to add about the Combat system. Maybe this will help others or enforce your disgust for the combat changes.
Parry: Obviously the L1+X Change is frustrating to adapt to. I notice that you have to make sure L1 is pressed down first before hitting X. Otherwise you will just do a regular block or jump in the air and block (which looks silly). I will agree that this come sometimes interrupt the flow of combat. And often times it is just better to just roll out of the way. Also when you activate parry there is a small delay. Which is also frustrating to adapt to. Also it really only effects the one enemy that swung at you. Leaving the other nearby enemies ready to stun-lock you. The really good thing about parry is the ability to instantly stun enemies and set them up for a grapple. Especially a Juggernaut or Cerberus.
To Improve Parry you really should be able to tap L1+X at the same time so you can parry the instant you see an attack coming. Remove the slight delay so that you only need to parry the moment the attack is incoming. Also it would be REALLY awesome to be able to parry Mid-Air. I really have been wanting that ability since GoW2.
Secondary Weapons: To me it seems the only secondary weapons that seem to be useful are the sword and shield.
The Sword is great for punishing enemies on the ground or in the air. And once the blade starts swing you can keep most enemies stunned.
The Shield is my favorite because it seems to stun and do excellent damage against Siren's/Gorgon.
The Sling you rarely get to use. In the game. Its a ranged attack which is ok, but really its the L1+O that really stun-locks enemies it seems.
The Spear I normally will blow all the charges then immediately do the L1+O. The multiple falling spears help keep enemies stunned and thus making the open for some heavy attacks.
The Mace I am really not to sure what to think about this weapon. It says it can disarm enemies (sometimes), but I am so frequently opened to attack when trying to use this that I normally will jump in the air then hold O down for a power attack. Or just L1+O to throw it. It seems to have a area-effect knock back which is nice.
The most obviously decision from the player is whether they should just to use the weapon or throw it to stun specific enemies that are most difficult to deal with.
Blades of Chaos: The Blades really seem to be the same. They are familiar and still have most of the same moves. The issue is being restricted to certain moves when your Rage meter is not full. Which can kinda be annoying. I really wish they they should have allowed players to use the typical moves they are use to in previous games. Only allowing "special unique attacks" become available only in Rage mode. Limiting the players move-set outside if Rage mode really leaves you with so few options to actually build your Rage meter. Also the R3+[ ] R3+X R3+/\ moves are unreliable at best. There is such a small window in which you must hit one of the three buttons immediately after your roll you will only perform a unique dodge move 1/10 times.
Rage Meter: I do like the concept of building up to build up a type of "momentum" that makes your attacks having more force and damage. As well as unlocking certain move exclusive in Rage mode, but your really don't have much to unlock with your Blades of Chaos alone. You really need to max out your Ares/Zeus/Poseidon/Hades elements to unlock special moves. Which those moves will actually have a unique property that will only activate in Rage mode. This concept I think is great, but I feel is still limited. If Kratos' "rage" reaches critical mass you should not be getting stun-locked by enemies. There is nothing more frustrating trying to build up your Rage only to lose all of it in 2 seconds because someone threw a small turd at you.
Ares/Poseidon/Zeus/Hades Magic: The magic abilities look cool as shit and are damn satisfying. You really feel like your wielding the power of a god when you suck your enemies into your electro-magentic sphere of lightning when you Zeus' magic. attack. I really like the idea of having specific attacks depending on which god-powers you are using. The only thing I wish is that there was a more expansive move set available. I do like the tactical options which you are giving when using one of the elements. Ares grants you more Rage, Zeus grants you more mana, Poseidon more red orbs, and Hades grants you health orbs. So there is a reason to choose one of the four outside of simply different attacks. Great idea, but I wish there was more moves available for each element.
QTE's: Pretty much the same. I do like the small-mini-game of actually stabbing/slashing a enemy before you finish them and having to dodge here and there. I just wish there was more of this. I really like the feeling of being up-close and personal with a Gorgon before I split it in half.
Enemies: They seem to have alot of damn health and take a real beating. Which really wouldn't be a big deal if I wasn't susceptible to being stun-locked so easily. To really punish a enemy your really need your Rage meter full. Otherwise your attacks are somewhat weak and don't seem to phase the enemies your attack. On the other hand you can constantly stun enemies (even larger enemies) when your Rage is full. Also grappling seems to be more restricted. Even the simple enemies you have to break their armor to actually grapple them (which makes sense). Also they can wield different weapons when makes it more difficult for you to time your parry. I noticed that changing up your attacks with Secondary Weapons really make a difference sometimes (mainly sword or shield).
Uroboros Amulet/Oath stone of Orkos: Really cool and simple to use. And damn does it make a difference when you upgrade it. Absolutely critical to use in hard encounters. Oath stone works differently but really helps a lot in tough fights.
Overall I want to say that the combat has been improved, but there are certain things that hold it back. Combat feels more fluid and brutal, but the ability the enemy has to shut you down can often little to utter frustration. I myself did not have that big of a Issue with the Trail of Archimedes. I think having to fight the Hades Cerberus and Two Satyrs on God of War 3 Takes that cake. I applaud SSM trying to make real changes/improvements to the combat system, but the short-comings it brought with it seems to lead people to disappointment. I for one thoroughly enjoy the combat.
hey_it's_that_dog
benevolent sexism
I've beaten every GOW game on Titan. I have breezed through the rest of this game on both normal and hard. Logic dictates that there's something not so good about this section and this section alone. I'll admit that tonight I wasn't giving it my full concentration and I was fatigued. I didn't play as turtle-y as I could have. I was trying to have fun.
You're right that the very first enemies are easy to kill. I should have been more clear; I meant the basic enemies later in the game, even with max blade power, take more punishment than comparable enemies in previous games. I could be imagining it, I'll admit, but fights feel like they take longer this time around.
I never meant to imply it's egregious, just that the pace of combat seems more drawn out and I don't think I like that.
BadAss2961
Member
Doesn't Hades element for the blades give you more green orbs? I haven't gotten to that part yet, so I don't know if it's disabled in that section or something.
I don't really see the common enemies having too much health complaint, but I may have a rusty memory on that as well. If you launch an enemy and hold square then hold triangle ending with an air grab you can rip through them.
It's supposed to but I have no idea how to trigger it. I used soul pretty predominantly the whole game, too.
It's supposed to but I have no idea how to trigger it. I used soul pretty predominantly the whole game, too.
BadAss2961
Member
Right now i'm just worried about getting Kratos fully upgraded in my first playthrough. Didn't realize until late that Ice element gives you more red orbs, so I think i'll roll with those the rest of the way.
Ice was my least used element and I pulled it off, depends on how well you scour for the eyes/feathers. There are more chests than items so after your health and magic is maxed each white box gives 1000 red orbs. I maxed right after the trial, and before that I was only missing the upgrade for the amulet of oroboros.
BadAss2961
Member
I'm in chapter 19 with one of them fully upgraded, can't remember if it was health or magic.
I forgot about the tons of orbs replacing those chests, so i'll start running into those now.
I can't get past the trial. I'm giving up on this game.
There's no way to escape the onslaught of attacks getting spammed at you between the medusas and the sirens.
It's not even a matter of the rage meter being a pain in the ass, because playing on offense is goddamn near impossible.
I've only made it ONCE to the centaur with a sliver of health, and I died instantly thanks to the spikes. That's when I put the controller down.. and for good, I'm afraid. What a shame.
There's no way to escape the onslaught of attacks getting spammed at you between the medusas and the sirens.
It's not even a matter of the rage meter being a pain in the ass, because playing on offense is goddamn near impossible.
I've only made it ONCE to the centaur with a sliver of health, and I died instantly thanks to the spikes. That's when I put the controller down.. and for good, I'm afraid. What a shame.
RyanardoDaVinci
Member
It's not that they have too much health -- they don't, except for Sirens, which take more hits than a cerberus -- it's that you have no time to build any combos when facing more than 2 or 3 goatfuckers, combined with the fact that they do not react to your hits at all except when you fill your stupid "use-the-combos-that-have-been-available-from-the-start-of-every-GOW-game-but-now-they-aren't-for-some-reason" meter.
I came across this today during my Hard playthrough: when you get the ice element for your blades, the game spawns 5 or 6 goatfuckers for you to deal with -- there was absolutely NOTHING I could do that would allow me to attack unless I spammed the R1 grapple over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over.
I couldn't throw a few attacks and dodge away because I'd get hit during my attacks or would be completely surrounded and couldn't roll away. I couldn't try and launch into the air because I'd be hit during the charge up, every time. I couldn't jump and attack from the air because I'd be hit immediately after the jump or landing. I couldn't parry because you can't time that shit when 6 goatfuckers are attacking at random intervals. I couldn't use magic or better moves because the game forces you to use the ice crap. Not to mention; every time you get hit, you're going to get hit by 3 or 4 guys because you get stunlocked like a bitch.
It can be annoying but in this specific instance you can after the grab throw, do square x 4 which for ice specifically has pretty damn good knockback, then you should have space to do square square triangle. The game's combat is a very momentum based which can feel empowering when you get into a good position with rage but also very aggravating when you get hit once which leads into a gangbang of hits dropping your meter entirely and having everyone on your ass. I also don't agree with the way they locked combos away.
The main thing with the launcher is to cancel the hold X/Triangle move into the airthrow which will slam them into the ground and create spacing opportunity.
You just need to get really good at spamming and keeping your items off cooldown, while your clone is stomping around it should usually keep some of the enemies at bay while you roll away or get some easy square shots in.
I spent a good chunk of my day on the trial yesterday, on hard. Here's my advice.
The trick to the trial really is to play defensively until you have your items up. Definitely have them upgraded, too. The Shadow Kratos does a lot of damage and control. And the time sphere is obviously very useful for getting hits in or crowd controlling. But yes, just remind yourself to spam those L2 skills. Especially after getting grabbed by a gorgon or going through an executable minigame, or anything else that's ticking the time down, you need to constantly remind yourself to use them. You'll want to roll away, time sphere first asap, and then shadow kratos. The time sphere always comes back faster than shadow kratos, so make sure you check that one the most often.
At that start of stage 1 you can also move close to the fire streams, and the gorgons will spawn in the fire streams, giving you a little edge.
The other thing you can do, is activate Ares' blade rage mode as soon as you build to it, and you'll launch a mine at the target, the mine will detonate after a couple secs and send creatures into a daze, and you can then grapple R1 the medusa's and electric sages, and both those effects are useful, the medusas especially. The Hade's rage attack and Zues rage attack both offer damage and control. If you get it, just fire it off immediately. I used Ares's blades, because they build rage meter the fastest and do good damage. You'll have all the important skills already too if you use Ares.
Other than that, make sure you use magic attacks, because when you perform executions, you'll regain a full meter of magic. Get close to a healthy gorgon and use a magic attack, and then execute the weak one after you use it. You can go into the 2nd stage with full magic meter, or near so. You can also activate magic near the edges of the arena in hopes of sending those electric mages off the edges.
On stage two, you can hold R1 and block every single attack those guys the blue girl hunters and harpies do. Just don't get flustered. Execute the blue warrior chicks for health.
On stage 3, open up on the centaur with the time sphere and the shadow kratos. L2+Square and L2+triangle, back to back. Then combo it. He'll attack you maybe once, which you can block, then combo again and he'll be executable, giving you health. The centaur is really easy, don't get intimidated. All his attacks are blockable I think, and he takes a good amount of time before swings.
A general tip also, mostly, is don't do anything too fancy. Don't get yourself stuck in animations. Just light square attacks and L1 (block). Complete a square combo if you have time, or block mid combo if you feel an attack is coming. By sticking only to square combos, you can block at any moment necessary. The only other attack you will want to do is the hold square down area attack, in the ground or air. That attack is pretty much the only chance you'll have of breaking stoned opponents.
The trick to the trial really is to play defensively until you have your items up. Definitely have them upgraded, too. The Shadow Kratos does a lot of damage and control. And the time sphere is obviously very useful for getting hits in or crowd controlling. But yes, just remind yourself to spam those L2 skills. Especially after getting grabbed by a gorgon or going through an executable minigame, or anything else that's ticking the time down, you need to constantly remind yourself to use them. You'll want to roll away, time sphere first asap, and then shadow kratos. The time sphere always comes back faster than shadow kratos, so make sure you check that one the most often.
At that start of stage 1 you can also move close to the fire streams, and the gorgons will spawn in the fire streams, giving you a little edge.
The other thing you can do, is activate Ares' blade rage mode as soon as you build to it, and you'll launch a mine at the target, the mine will detonate after a couple secs and send creatures into a daze, and you can then grapple R1 the medusa's and electric sages, and both those effects are useful, the medusas especially. The Hade's rage attack and Zues rage attack both offer damage and control. If you get it, just fire it off immediately. I used Ares's blades, because they build rage meter the fastest and do good damage. You'll have all the important skills already too if you use Ares.
Other than that, make sure you use magic attacks, because when you perform executions, you'll regain a full meter of magic. Get close to a healthy gorgon and use a magic attack, and then execute the weak one after you use it. You can go into the 2nd stage with full magic meter, or near so. You can also activate magic near the edges of the arena in hopes of sending those electric mages off the edges.
On stage two, you can hold R1 and block every single attack those guys the blue girl hunters and harpies do. Just don't get flustered. Execute the blue warrior chicks for health.
On stage 3, open up on the centaur with the time sphere and the shadow kratos. L2+Square and L2+triangle, back to back. Then combo it. He'll attack you maybe once, which you can block, then combo again and he'll be executable, giving you health. The centaur is really easy, don't get intimidated. All his attacks are blockable I think, and he takes a good amount of time before swings.
A general tip also, mostly, is don't do anything too fancy. Don't get yourself stuck in animations. Just light square attacks and L1 (block). Complete a square combo if you have time, or block mid combo if you feel an attack is coming. By sticking only to square combos, you can block at any moment necessary. The only other attack you will want to do is the hold square down area attack, in the ground or air. That attack is pretty much the only chance you'll have of breaking stoned opponents.
Boombloxer
Member
Just beat it, and I can see where some of the complaints come from, mainly because 3 is one of the best of the generation.
I have mixed feeling about combat, really didn't like how magic was locked behind 4 levels for the other weapons. That, along with some added "vulnerability" (wall bounce, additional stagger, etc) made it less enjoyable for me. However, I did like the subweapons, the "doppleganger" move was really useful.
Some weird audio cutouts too, and sometimes the camera would pull back way too far--at times it was hard to tell where I was. Didn't have that problem in 3.
Overall, this is good, but just different, once you can get past not quite playing it like 3, its fine. The environments and graphics were unreal--I really enjoyed the Sub-boss mini-games, as a twist on QTEs.
I honestly am ready for someone new now. Bring on Persia.
For the Trials, I agree with using Ares + Time--the first wave was actually the trickiest for me.
For Stage 2, throw the Harpies out towards the screen, instant KO. The Talos, just take your time and use the Eye Attack to knock him back.
For Stage 3, Hold Block until the centaur charges, win QTE, extra 2 hits, roll towards the center, block, rinse repeat. For the others, time and shadow and take your time.
I passed the whole thing in one try, just take your time and block.
And the last boss fight was really easy.
Agree with this--I have the plat for 3, the enemies in this one are sponges.
I thought it was to emphasize Kratos being less powerful, and the need to fight with more tactics...I'm fine with that in theory, but it was a little extreme. Especially towards the end when they throw some crazy combinations at you.
I just finished the game on Hard. The trials took me maybe five or six attempts. When I finally beat them I had only as tiny sliver of health left. The final boss fight was easy in comparison, but holy shit at the spectacle of it.
Overall, I think GoW3 is still my favorite in the series as I preferred the combat overall in 3, but Ascension really is a great game once you get used to the new combat system. I enjoyed all of the puzzles, the "interactive" kill animations, and even the rail sliding segments. The graphics were obviously amazing.
I can't wait to see what Sony Santa Monica pulls off with the PS4, whether it's another God of War or a new IP (hopefully the latter).
Overall, I think GoW3 is still my favorite in the series as I preferred the combat overall in 3, but Ascension really is a great game once you get used to the new combat system. I enjoyed all of the puzzles, the "interactive" kill animations, and even the rail sliding segments. The graphics were obviously amazing.
I can't wait to see what Sony Santa Monica pulls off with the PS4, whether it's another God of War or a new IP (hopefully the latter).
Boombloxer
Member
Depends on the Trials, I'd say 2 max.
ReturnOfTheRAT
Member
Ha, the Trials are kicking my ass, and from what I'm reading I'm not alone. I've taken a 20 minute break to read up on what I've missed and I'll give the Hades' blades a try.