God of War III is an
action-adventure
hack and slash
video game developed by
Santa Monica Studio and published by
Sony Computer Entertainment. First released for the
PlayStation 3 on March 16, 2010, it is the fifth installment in the
God of War series, the seventh chronologically, and the sequel to 2007's
God of War II. Loosely based on
Greek mythology, the game is set in
ancient Greece with
vengeance as its central motif. The player controls the protagonist
Kratos, the former God of War, after his betrayal at the hands of
Zeus, King of the
Olympian gods, whom he learned was his father. Reigniting the
Great War, Kratos ascends
Mount Olympus until he is abandoned by the
Titan
Gaia. Guided by
Athena's spirit, Kratos battles monsters, gods, and Titans in a search for
Pandora, without whom he cannot open
Pandora's Box, defeat Zeus, and end the reign of the Olympian gods to have his revenge.
The gameplay is similar to previous installments, focusing on
combo-based combat with the player's main weapon—the Blades of Exile—and secondary weapons acquired during the game. It uses
quick time events, where the player acts in a timed sequence to defeat strong enemies and
bosses. The player can use up to four magical attacks and a power-enhancing ability as alternative combat options, and the game features
puzzles and
platforming elements. Compared with previous installments,
God of War III offers a revamped magic system, more enemies, new camera angles, and
downloadable content.
God of War III was critically acclaimed upon release, with praise for the graphics, gameplay, and scope, although the plot received a mixed response. The game received several awards, including "Most Anticipated Game of 2010" and "Best PS3 Game" at the 2009 and 2010
Spike Video Game Awards, respectively, and the "Artistic Achievement" award at the 2011
British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Video Game Awards. The second best-selling game in the
God of War series and the
ninth best-selling PlayStation 3 game of all time, it sold nearly 5.2 million copies worldwide by June 2012 and was included in the
God of War Saga released for PlayStation 3 on August 28, 2012. Since its release, it has also been named as
one of the greatest video games ever made. In celebration of the
God of War franchise's tenth anniversary, a remastered version of the game, titled
God of War III Remastered, was released for the
PlayStation 4 (PS4) on July 14, 2015; as of June 2023, the remastered version has sold an estimated 4 million copies. After two more prequels were released, a direct sequel to
God of War III simply titled
God of War was released on April 20, 2018, which served as a soft-reboot of the franchise and shifted the setting to
Norse mythology. (
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