God of War III is on a lot gamers' short lists of potential 2010 Game of the Year. It's viewed by many as the perfect combination of gameplay, graphics, sound, and epic scale. Similarly, God of War: Chains of Olympus, with its next-gen-looking graphical output and cinematic presentation, is considered to be the pinnacle of PSP gaming. So it's only natural that the upcoming PSP sequel, God of War: Ghost of Sparta, has built quite a lot of anticipatory buzz. The game was named "Best of E3" by several outlets, and from what we've seen so far, it looks like Ghost of Sparta will be a worthy entry in the series. Serving to fuel the fire of expectation, developer Ready at Dawn today announced that GoW: GoS will be releasing on November 2nd, and has further detailed a slew of goodies available to those who pre-order the game.

The packet of pre-order add-ons is fairly impressive, and for any fan of the world of Kratos, there appears to be a few "must have" items. Here's the breakdown:

• Ghost of Sparta Original Soundtrack – Be part of the legacy, and relive the emotional soundscape of defiance and rage through the original soundtrack.
• PSP Theme – Are you the ultimate God of War fan? Prove it with the God of War: Ghost of Sparta theme.
• PS3 Dynamic Theme – Fully animated in constant motion, personalize your PS3 system with the official God of War Dynamic Theme.
• PlayStation Network Avatar – Be one of the few to own the exclusive Kratos Avatar only available through this pre-order.
• Legionnaire Skin – Discover the origins of the Spartan warrior as you experience God of War: Ghost of Sparta as Legionnaire Kratos.
• EXCLUSIVE Game Directors Documentary – A full length featured video roundtable with all of the past and present Game Directors for the God of War franchise in front of a live studio audience, including: David Jaffe, Cory Barlog, Stig Asmussen, Ru Weerasuiya and Dana Jan.

Honestly, the PSP and PS3 themes alone would be worth the trouble of pre-ordering (which is to say, no trouble at all). But the addition of the PSN Avatar, the skin, and the video commentary with all of the past directors (including the always quotable David Jaffe) make this the kind of package that a fan of the series would have a hard time passing up. Although I normally don't pre-order my games (I'm more of an impulse shopper), I'll probably throw one of the participating retailers a few bucks for this one. Is anyone else in?

[Source]