When word got out that Ready at Dawn would be to address one of Sony’s biggest franchises, God of War, and bring it to the PSP, optimism was pretty high. The team responsible for the splendid Daxter did a great job of bringing Jak and Daxter world in the palm of our hands. Furthermore, after seeing how well Sony’s other platform games, Ratchet & Clank has proven on the PSP, there was ever even a reason to doubt God of War: Chains of Olympus as being anything other than brilliant?

Of course not! With the last match in my hands as I write this, I can wholeheartedly say that Ready at Dawn are masters when it comes to pushing every little bit out of the PSP. God of War on PSP is the same God of War, as you’ve seen twice on the PlayStation 2, but the great thing about Chains of Olympus is that you can take it with you everywhere you go.

I have no qualms about saying that God of War: Chains of Olympus may very well be the best PSP games available – I simply can not imagine anything that comes remotely close to being this spectacular. Ready at Dawn has created a nearly perfect console-to-handheld translation, blurring the lines between the two entities. Once you pick the game up, you feel at home.

The effortless sense of control and fighting has argued extremely well, practically perfect, actually. The fighting is very responsive, and is still a feature that ensures a very satisfying and addictive experience. Minigames boss killer is back in full swing, like several other functions. You can use the powers of various bosses you defeat, simply by holding the R shoulder and press Triangle.

You will be able to upgrade your weapons by using all the orbs you collect throughout the game. With each upgrade comes added weapon strength, as well as new moves learned. In addition to upgrade your Blades of Chaos, you will also improve various other things such as your specific magical powers – again, which is acquired when defeating various bosses. Added to this, scattered around the game will be the status increasing items. There are a number of different elements, all with their own unique accessory – collect five of each, and you will be rewarded with improved health, magic, among other abilities.

Furthermore, most of the features you are used to pull out has made the transition to Chains of Olympus, but in addition, the Ready at Dawn also took a creative initiative by adding a number of new moves Kratos – and they are pretty awesome. Besides, while playing the game, you will notice that the AI will fight between each other – yes, in the beginning of the game, you will actually see your fellow Spartans fighting against the enemy Persian army.

As expected, the story, of course, be revealed through a series of cut scenes, all of which are traded. Moreover, because this is a prequel, God of War: Chains of Olympus is doing a great job of showing you the origins of Kratos’ past and how he was Puppeteer by the gods. Now, even on a smaller medium, perhaps the most shocking aspect of the PSP’s God of War is its length. Chains of Olympus is just about as long as the two console siblings. When the two first may be an hour in about 10-12 hours, Chains of Olympus is good for about 8-10 – but it will probably end up with a 20 hour experience that you want to play games to unlock certain features.

Everything about God of War Chains of Olympus feels so carefully crafted, and the more you play, the more it becomes clear that this is quite a labor of love. Ready at Dawn impressed with Daxter, but they have absolutely blown me away with God of War. To bring over all gameplay element, so flawlessly, something I never thought would have been possible at this PSP. How long we have come from the days of Game Boy and Game Gear.

At the beginning of the game, my first reaction an illuminating “how the hell did they do it?” – Overuse of exclamation marks and everything. Although I would not go so far as to say that the game looks as good as the original God of War did on PS2, it’s darn close! You will have to be really picky NIT-when it comes to game graphics, since together with Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, GOW: Chains of Olympus may very well end up being one of the best looking PSP game ever.

The details of the animation appears to be identical with the two original game on PS2. There are no hiccups and no choppy series of animation – it’s all as smooth as silk. You have not watched a game animate this well on a handheld, ever. There are some screen tearing during certain parts, but it’s not terrible, especially considering how amazing the rest of the game looks. What’s more is that despite all the chaos going on is caused by you, there’s a whole bunch more of what goes on in the background. And it’s not the end of it.

Although it is on PSP, Chains of Olympus still features no shortage of absurd gigantic monsters that you each pulverize their bloody deaths. Best of all, the framerate does not even seem to take the smallest hit. Plus, if you happen to own a PSP Slim, you can play it on your HDTV and you’ll still find yourself impressed by its graphics. Sony has found a developer who is truly harnessing the power of the PlayStation Portable.

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The sound is performed equally well on PSP as it was on PS2. The voice actors behind the last two games, including Kratos, continue to shine in Chains of Olympus, and delivery of each line is fantastic done. Chains of Olympus still features the signature God of War orchestrated soundtrack, complete with war drums in the background which does a great job of keeping tensions high. The sound is great stuff here, but did you expect anything less?

With Patapon and God of War: Chains of Olympus, the PSP looks very nice this early in 2008. And with Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII is still under way, things will get better. That said, there is no doubt that God of War: Chains of Olympus is arguably the best PlayStation Portable game yet. There is simply nothing on the console that comes close to its polish, gameplay and production values. To have a game as epic as God of War in the palm of your hand is absolute bliss. This game alone makes purchasing a PSP worthy – no fan of the series or action genre should be without it.