I think the original God of War was the first "mature" game I ever purchased that I called my own. There is a disagreement between me and my dad what my first game was (He says it was DOOM and Wolfenstein 3D, but I find it much more believable they scared me shitless as a 3-4 year old, so I say it was either Super Mario Bros. (or the Deluxe version for GameBoy Color), Pokemon Red/Blue, or Spyro the Dragon).
Anyway, the original God of War was truly a spectacle for me, especially since I got it when I was 16. I fell in love with this interpretation of Greek mythology and it inspired me to go read about the "real" thing.
The game's combat is satisfying to this day. I appreciated the Blade of Artemis changing up the combat to being a slow and powerful cleaver, the Blade of Chaos just had that iconic look, speed, and versatility of movesets that have them probably on my top list of favorite video game weapons of all time. While it might be a bit of a stretch because of how much of the game it is, but Pandora's Temple is easily the highlight for me. It's one giant puzzle, that's made up of so many other puzzles. So many combat sections, story revelations, and interesting areas. Every time I do a series replay (to which I'm looking to do soon. Just need that exact Ragnarok release date so I can plan out the timing), the original is one the highlights.
I will say however, Hades, for the most part, is a fun area... But the pillars... The pillars SSSUUUUUUUUUCCCCKKKKKK. I hate those blades so much. I understand they were so rushed and crunched to ship the game on time they couldn't be properly QA'd, but if that was the case, it should've been cut. Another thing that I really don't like is the fight against Ares. The entire game is a hack-and-slash, but the climax is like it's ripped out of an obtuse fighting game. And I don't like fighting games (except the a singular exception as I've discovered over the past month and am still playing as of writing...). So the fact Ares switches up the mechanics at the end is irritating to say the least, despite him being an interesting character.
Also, for how old it is, the game still looks good, not necessarily great, but I still think it has some charm. And the cinematics! On PS2, the God of War games had some of the best CG on the console, full-stop. I remember being awed when Ares realizes what's happening at Pandora's Temple, and throws the spire so many miles to bullseye Kratos into a bloody mess as he's pushing Pandora's Box and thinking, "Holy hell this looks incredible."
All of this isn't even getting into the secrets! The concept art, the dev-docs, different costumes with buffs, and the Trials of Olympus are all great, but the absolute best are the two phone numbers. Granted, with the advent of YouTube, the magic of secrecy on these is completely lost, but the concept of developers putting in extremely hard-to-find Easter Eggs with tangible, meaningful rewards, ESPECIALLY rewards that are outside of the game itself isn't done enough. I don't know (and I don't think it is, but it might be) if this was a first in gaming, but rewarding players with a secret phone number to call for a message from the game's director and main actor is AWESOME.
I have such fond memories of this game. If it wasn't for the reboot (and probably the coming Ragnarok), this would be my favorite of the entire franchise. As of writing, it currently sits at 29th on my top 100 games of all time and is my 2005 Game of the Year.
And now, I'm CERTAIN of what are top two are... And if I'm right, they're games I'm not high on...
Regardless, as always, massive shoutouts and thanks to my fellow voters @Crepe, @bam541, @DIPSET, and @Sentinel-Beach for getting God of War as high as the Bronze of our list!
