God of War is an action-adventure and hack and slash video game developed by Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE).
First released on March 22, 2005 for PlayStation 2, it is the first title in the series with the same name and the third chronologically.
Loosely based on Greek mythology, it is set in ancient Greece with revenge being the central theme.
The player controls the protagonist Kratos, a Spartan warrior who serves the gods of Olympus.
The goddess Athena assigns Kratos the mission to kill Ares, the god of war and his former mentor, who tricked Kratos into killing his own wife and daughter.
While Ares attacks the city of Athens out of hatred for Athena, Kratos embarks on a quest to find the only object capable of stopping the god once and for all: the legendary Pandora's Box.