Topic: God of War Collection

[idolminds]

Woo!

SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT AMERICA ANNOUNCES
GOD OF WAR® COLLECTION, A NEW COMPILATION OFFERING FOR PLAYSTATION®3
Exclusive God of War® and God of War® II Blu-ray Disc Compilation
Available This Holiday Season

FOSTER CITY, Calif., September 1, 2009 – Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) announced today a new and exclusive PlayStation®3 (PS3™) offering for the critically acclaimed God of War® franchise, God of War® Collection. Scheduled for release this holiday season, God of War Collection will feature reworked versions of both God of War® and God of War® II on a single Blu-ray Disc™ at full 1280 x 720 resolution. Both critically acclaimed games, which were originally developed for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, have been remastered with anti-aliased graphics running at 60 frames per second for a smooth gameplay experience on the PS3 system. Additionally, the Blu-ray Disc compilation will bring PlayStation®Network (PSN) trophy support to the franchise for the first time (included for both games). God of War Collection offers substantial value to PS3 consumers, the compilation of both best-selling games costing just $39.99 MSRP.

Developed by Sony Computer Entertainment, Santa Monica Studio, the God of War series brings epic mythological battles to life with stunning graphics and an elaborate plot that puts Kratos, the triology’s main character, at the center of carnage and destruction as he seeks revenge against the Gods who have betrayed him. God of War® III is scheduled for release exclusively on the PS3 in March 2010.

“We are excited today to announce God of War Collection,” said Scott Rohde, vice president, Worldwide Studios America. “Our fans spoke and we listened; thanks to our partnership with Bluepoint Games, fans and newcomers to the series can experience the epic God of War and God of War II saga in stunning 720p on PS3. This Blu-ray Disc compilation brings Kratos to PS3 even earlier than expected.”

Pretty kick ass.

[Pugnate]

I've been waiting for a reason to get a PS3 to use alongside my 360. This initially had me excited, till I realized they only upped the resolution and added FSAA. Though to be fair, the price is reasonable, and the games do ship conveniently on one disc.

I guess if this had been something I really cared about like Diablo 2 or Baldur's Gate II,  I would have been doing jumping jacks.

Still, not bad.

I think if Sony find it too difficult to implement backwards compatibility, then this could be a profitable solution for them. "Remastering" the greatest PS2 hits would really make the PS3 more attractive.

[Xessive]

Sweet!

[MysterD]

I've been waiting for a reason to get a PS3 to use alongside my 360. This initially had me excited, till I realized they only upped the resolution and added FSAA. Though to be fair, the price is reasonable, and the games do ship conveniently on one disc.

I guess if this had been something I really cared about like Diablo 2 or Baldur's Gate II,  I would have been doing jumping jacks.

Still, not bad.

You can easily get D2 and BG2 can easily be working on modern PC's; namely just by turning OFF hardware acceleration in your DirectX Graphics Settings.

Plus, there's a mod out there to jump the res' up even higher-up for The Infinity Engine Games.

Though, on another hand -- it's probably be pretty cool to see PST, BG2 and D2 in say full 3D. Personally, since these classics still work on modern PC's w/ a little bit of tweaking -- I'd rather see BG3 and Diablo 3.

I really don't wanna true-blue PS:T 2, though. I wouldn't mind seeing the same say world of Sigil and setting and all -- but, I'd want new characters entirely. The Nameless One's story is just too complete, by the time the game's over.

I think if Sony find it too difficult to implement backwards compatibility, than this could be a profitable solution for them. "Remastering" the greatest PS2 hits would really make the PS3 more attractive.

Especially if they are puttin' multiple games on say one BR disc.

[idolminds]

I hope they do an Ico/SotC collection for when that new game comes out. That would be amazing.

[iPPi]

Having never played God of War and really wanting to, I will definitely pick this one up.

[Quemaqua]

For all their faults, they were fantastic games.  It isn't often I get excited about what essentially boils down to simple action, but those games really knew what they wanted to do and did it right.  And God of War II has possibly my favorite boss fight of all time, plus some additional good ones to boot.  They aren't perfect, but they're undeniably epic in ways that most games fail to achieve on any level whatsoever.  I'll definitely pick it up.

[sirean_syan]

I hope they do an Ico/SotC collection for when that new game comes out. That would be amazing.

That could possibly be greater news than the their new game. Both games are not aging well almost solely because of resolution and framerate problems. Even though SotC can run in widescreen and progressive scan, it's hard to go back because it just gets too choppy at times. Both games are special and unique enough that they should warrant some measure of preservation.

As for the actual news of the thread: good stuff. Like Ico and SotC, the art itself is just fine and resolution is really the only holdup. It'll be good to see the games that essentially defined action/adventure games of the previous generation be able to stick around.

[Quemaqua]

I still disagree with you on ICO/SotC.  Maybe I'm just more used to bad framerates from years of playing games on a 386 & 486 when Pentiums were becoming the norm, but I think both of those games are still phenomenal looking.

Though I most certainly concur that updates to smooth out the rough edges would be fantastic.  I wouldn't want to buy into that with many games, but those qualify well beyond the merits of pretty much anything and everything else.

[iPPi]

I picked this up earlier this week and having never played the God of War series before, I have to say that it's pretty fun.  It is very intense though.  I think I'm gonna finish up the first one and take a break with some other games before I start on God of War II.

Also, with every purchase of this Collection, you get a voucher code to download the God of War III E3 2009 Demo.  I've downloaded it but I haven't tried it yet.

[Pugnate]

On the box it is advertised that there is a voucher to download the God of War 3 E3 demo.

Once I brought it home, it turns out the voucher expired a month ago... which means the voucher was valid for 3 or 4 weeks.

I am sorry, but that's complete bullshit.

Still happy with my purchase of course, but really, there is no excuse for that.

BTW, I hear PSN is going on a pay model ala Xbox live.

I remember predicting it would happen, but I never expected it to happen this PlayStation generation.

Rumor has it that for subscribers, all the PS2 and PS1 game downloads will be FREE. That is actually kinda awesome if true.

[MysterD]

   
I bought the Gears of War collection and something shitty happened.

I think you meant God of War Collection.
I smell a Freudian slip.

Yeah, I didn't know Microsoft and Epic put their game on a Sony system.

BTW, it's crap your voucher expired. They wasted printing it, if they were gonna let it expire THAT soon.

[Pugnate]

I think I corrected that within a minute of posting... still couldn't beat D..

haha but at the shop today I was asking for the Gears of War collection as well. I don't think it is a Freudian slip, I think I am just getting old.

[MysterD]

I think I corrected that within a minute of posting... still couldn't beat D..

Yeah, I'm a message board troll, I know...

haha but at the shop today I was asking for the Gears of War collection as well. I don't think it is a Freudian slip, I think I am just getting old.

Go convince Microsoft and Epic to bring Gears of War 2 to G4WL on Demand. And Fable 2, as well.

EDIT:

BTW, I hear PSN is going on a pay model ala Xbox live.

I remember predicting it would happen, but I never expected it to happen this PlayStation generation.

Rumor has it that for subscribers, all the PS2 and PS1 game downloads will be FREE. That is actually kinda awesome if true.

I thought that was one of the selling points of the PS3 - the PSN being FREE. Ugh.

But, if they're gonna give PS2 and PS1 game downloads for FREE if you're a PSN member, that's actually pretty sweet. But, do you have to actually STICK w/ PSN pay-service to be able to use your FREE old-school PS1 or 2 download?

[Pugnate]

Not sure. There was some "leaked" document or something.

[Quemaqua]

PSN is going pay?  Fuck me.  I guess I'm done with console gaming.

[idolminds]

From what I've seen its not going pay so much as its going to offer some subscription options. Like pug mention, one rumor is a plan that would have you pay $X per year and then you can download all the PSOne and PSP Minis you want. I haven't heard anything about the current free way PSN operates going away or anything.

Guess we'll see.

[iPPi]

I hear it's going to have a premium service where if you pay you'll get some benefits.  However, all the services that are currently available will remain free.

To be honest, if they do go to a pay model, I hope the service will improve.  The PSN network has slowed down over the last several months, and could use some performance improvements.

Back on topic -- that really sucks Pug.  I managed to get a copy of it on release and the demo is awesome.  However, are you sure your code doesn't work?  I just checked my voucher and it clearly states that the code is valid from 11/08/09 to Launch of God of War III.  Given the GoWIII isn't due out until March 2010, I'd assume that your code should still work.  I would contact Playstation Network to see if you can get it sorted out.  The demo is really quite fun, albeit short.

And onto God of War and God of War II.  I just finished up God of War II yesterday (and its predecessor about 2 weeks ago) and the series is quite fun.  My only complaint is in God of War II, you start out as powerful as you were at the end of the first, then you lose everything and have to rebuild all your magic and powers.  That was kind of annoying, but once you do manage to get some of your abilities back it's all good.  Also, there are some minor presentation issues.  For some reason the game isn't in 5.1 audio, I'm only getting 2 channel LPCM audio from it.  Also, the music is sometimes loud enough that you can't hear the narrator.  And of course, the pre-recorded cinematics that use in the in-game engine haven't been redone, and they are visually inferior to the HD visuals of the game.  The challenges are tough.  At least for God of War.  For God of War II, I'm almost done the 7 challenges (I'm on the last two), and I'll have the platinum for GoWII. 

[MysterD]

You know, I'm getting tired of all this $-milking that I'm seeing in gaming across all platforms, PC and console - once you buy the game (likely $40 for a new game on PC for standard edition; $60 or more on consoles for standard edition); you have to then pay for online service especially if you just want a FREE patch (XBL subscription to Microsoft; PSN might do his from Sony; or however you access Internet via your PC); pay for small DLC (and likely there will be 1 or 2 of these; might be multiples of these w/ bigger hit titles); now some games have Day-0/Day-1 DLC; pay monthly fee for certain MMO's; etc etc. It's just getting ridiculous.

I don't buy a lot games brand new ($40 or above), but I began doing this last few more years more than usual. I might as well just stop this trend, for the most part - I'm sure popular Game X Vanilla Version 1.0 I'm interested will have a GOTY Edition w/ all its bugs stomped with 5 of its DLC's on disc one year later on disc for the same price as I bought a vanilla game for it. Makes the mass market early adopters of a game look like I'm some sort of Beta tester, more so than anything else, if you ask me.

[gpw11]

I smell a Freudian slip.

I probably shouldn't do this, but that's not really a Freudian Slip.

[MysterD]

I probably shouldn't do this, but that's not really a Freudian Slip.

If it isn't a Freudian Slip, then what is it?

[Quemaqua]

Also, wouldn't the pun on that page be, "When you say one thing, but you mean your mother"?

[Pugnate]

Well if PSN remains at is with the options of going with a subscription model, then it is all good. I think I agree with him that if it means an improvement in the system overall, it is all good.

iPPi, my GoW thing is from Singapore, so maybe that's it.

That's one other thing I like about the PS3. I can buy games from any part of the world and they will work. It might not affect you guys as much since you live in North America, and won't come across non-American releases at retail, but stores here sell games from all over.

[gpw11]

If it isn't a Freudian Slip, then what is it?

Simple lapsus (there's a specific name for written lapsus but I'm not going to took it up).  Not all slips are Freudian.  From your wikipedia link:

Popularisation of the term has resulted in its being applied to any slip-of-the-tongue phenomenon, often in an attempt by the user to humorously assign hidden motives or an air of sexual innuendo to the mistake. This has brought about a dilution of the original technical meaning, with the word 'Freudian' being applied to interpretations and explanations that have no essential connection with genuine psychoanalytic thought.

[MysterD]

Help me, GPW - what's the correct term?
I'm serious.

[gpw11]

I edited my last post with a bit more clarity.

[MysterD]

I edited my last post with a bit more clarity.

Thanks, man.
Lapsus linguae.

[Quemaqua]

That's one other thing I like about the PS3. I can buy games from any part of the world and they will work. It might not affect you guys as much since you live in North America, and won't come across non-American releases at retail, but stores here sell games from all over.

It's huge for me.  I import Japanese games.  PS3, DS, and PSP are my best friends.

[iPPi]

Did you or are you going to import FFXIII?

Also, just got the platinum for God of War II.  Good game overall.

[Quemaqua]

Nah, nothing that big and sprawling.  I'll do really small games, so mostly portable ones or puzzley kind of stuff.  I can't read a whole lot yet, so... yeah.  Someday I'll do more, but there are a few titles I've grabbed just to have around before they get scarce or whatever.

[iPPi]

Ah... I'm hoping they keep the Japanese dub in the North American version of FFXIII... I don't hold much hope in English voice actors too often, especially when it's translated and dubbed. 

[Quemaqua]

I dunno'... Final Fantasy XII was incredibly well localized, and the voice acting was fantastic.  I'm generally a fan of the original language in anything I watch or play, but if they keep it the same quality as their last project they'll do fine.

[Pugnate]

I have to say that while I do almost always stick with subs when it comes foreign pieces of work, I found the FF games to have pretty good voice acting.

If FFXIII's Jap version has an option with subs., I will definitely buy it here.

The strange thing is that I see games and anime in Japanese only here all the time, which I find insane because I don't think there is anyone here who speaks Japanese.

That's why I bought the Blue Dragon RPG on the Xbox, because I naturally assumed it would have subs since they (the games store) went to the effort and cost of importing it to their store here. I also got the Japanese version of Dead or Alive, since the US wouldn't work on mine. It is easy to figure out though.

[Cobra951]

Yeah, without English translation of some sort, Japanese games (or anything else for that matter) are incomprehensible to me.  That's not going to change either.  I admire any adult Westerner trying to learn the language, particularly if monolingual.  That's a tough road to hoe, and I won't be on it in the foreseeable future.

[iPPi]

I dunno'... Final Fantasy XII was incredibly well localized, and the voice acting was fantastic.  I'm generally a fan of the original language in anything I watch or play, but if they keep it the same quality as their last project they'll do fine.

That's good to know.  I haven't played FFIX to FFXII so I wasn't sure how the localization held up. 

[Quemaqua]

In my opinion, FFXII is probably one of the most incredible localizations in gaming history, if not the very best.  It's got a ridiculously huge amount of text in the form of encyclopedia entries and such, but all of it is superb.  The voice acting and script are both very strong as well.  Some characters are a bit better than others, but it's remarkably consistent, and Fran, the character I thought would be absolutely impossible to take seriously in any capacity, turned out to be one of my favorite characters thanks almost entirely to the voice actress.  It's really quite something.  One of my all-time favorite games (and generally speaking, I'm not that big of a fan of FF games).

[Pugnate]

To update the main thread, I got the demo working. I think I may have entered the wrong key, but it is working now. The expiration date is mystifying though.

Anyway the demo is really awesome. GoW3 is shaping up really nicely.

[Pugnate]

FUCK THIS HYDRA BATTLE I AM NOT MAN ENOUGH TO MASH SO RAPIDLY!!!!

[sirean_syan]

Shit, and that's just the beginning.

You're obviously not angry enough for God of War.

[Quemaqua]

I think if you look at the main menu of the demo, you should know almost instantly if you're angry enough.  A lot of people could pretty easily fail that test.