This served as my introduction to the "God of war" franchise and even without the context of GOW 3, this game shoook me to my core. God of War remains one of the best videogames I have played, tied only with The Last of Us. I revisit it every year for another playthrough and every time I do it's like i'm playing it for the first time again. Both the weighty, satisfying feeling of combat (only ever even getting slightly stale on new game plus) and highly emotional storyline are masterfully presented, and combined with a deeper personal knowledge of what it took to make this game behind the scenes and the amount of human sacrifice required both for the mechanics and performances make this one of the most heartfelt and amazing games i've ever played and likely ever will play. Literally can't get enough of it.