Gods of War

Gods of War or God of War may refer to:

Video gaming

Artillery game

Artillery games are early two or three-player (usually turn-based) video games involving tanks fighting each other in combat or similar. Artillery games are among the earliest computer games developed; the theme of such games is an extension of the original uses of computer themselves, which were once used to calculate the trajectories of rockets and other related military-based calculations. Artillery games have been described as a type of "shooting game", though they are more often classified as a type of strategy video game.

Early precursors to the modern artillery-type games were text-only games that simulated artillery entirely with input data values. A BASIC game known simply as Artillery was written by Mike Forman and was published in Creative Computing magazine in 1976. This seminal home computer version of the game was revised in 1977 by M. E. Lyon and Brian West and was known as War 3; War 3 was revised further in 1979 and published as Artillery-3. These early versions of turn-based tank combat games interpreted human-entered data such as the distance between the tanks, the velocity or "power" of the shot fired and the angle of the tanks' turrets.

God of War III

God of War III is a third-person action-adventure video game developed by Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). Released for the PlayStation 3 (PS3) console on March 16, 2010, the game is the fifth installment in the God of War series and the seventh, and last, chronologically. Loosely based on Greek mythology, the game is set in ancient Greece with vengeance as its central motif. The player controls the protagonist and former God of War, Kratos, after his betrayal at the hands of his father Zeus, King of the Olympian Gods. Reigniting the Great War, Kratos ascends Mount Olympus until he is abandoned by the Titan Gaia. Guided by the spirit of Athena, 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.

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 onscreen enemies, new camera angles, and downloadable content.

Santa Monica, California

Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is named after the Christian saint, Monica. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is bordered on three sides by the city of Los Angeles – Pacific Palisades to the north, Brentwood on the northeast, Sawtelle on the east, Mar Vista on the southeast, and Venice on the south. Santa Monica is well known for its affluent single-family neighborhoods but also has many neighborhoods consisting primarily of condominiums and apartments. Over two-thirds of Santa Monica's residents are renters. The Census Bureau population for Santa Monica in 2010 was 89,736.

Partly because of its agreeable climate, Santa Monica had become a famed resort town by the early 20th century. The city has experienced a boom since the late 1980s through the revitalization of its downtown core, significant job growth and increased tourism. The Santa Monica Pier remains a popular and iconic destination.

History

SCE Santa Monica Studio

SCE Santa Monica Studio, also known as Sony Santa Monica, is an American video game developer and part of SCE Worldwide Studios which is owned by Sony Computer Entertainment. As implied by its name, it is based in Santa Monica, California and was established in 1999. It developed the Kinetica game engine that was first used in Kinetica and later in God of War and God of War II.

They also have an external development branch that funds and provides support for a wide variety of games. External development also runs an incubation program which has funded and housed independent developers, including Thatgamecompany and Giant Sparrow.

On January 29, 2014, it was reported that the company is moving from Santa Monica to Playa Vista, Los Angeles. Their new facility occupies a 20-acre site and allows the studio to house two independent studios as well as having an "improved sound bay and a motion capture studio".

On February 25, 2014, the studio was hit by layoffs due to cancellation of a new IP.