Challenge of Olympus Guide

[F8L Fool]

Below is a tips, tricks, and general strategy guide for conquering all 7 challenges within the "Challenge of Olympus" portion of God of War III. Some are quite easy, while others are made so with the right planning and tactics.

The Challenge of Olympus is located in the "Treasures" section of the main menu. It does not unlock until after you have completed the game. There is a gold trophy associated with it as well:

Up to the Challenge
Beat the Challenge of Olympus

Population Control
Don't allow there to be more than 50 enemies at the same time.
Kill them before too many spawn.

Enemies: Skeletons (30 at a time average).
Time Limit: 90 seconds.
Waves: 1

In this challenge by default you're stuck with a level 2 "Nemean Cestus" as your weapon. This is more than enough to deal with the lowly skeletons. The method here is to not get fancy.

Don't try and pick up skeletons with , or for heavy attacks, because both will just take up too much time and not get rid of very many skeletons. Also don't use +, because it will just cause you to take damage and also not kill very many skeletons.

Just use ++, and stick to going from left to right in the ring, from one side to the other. The reason this works so well is that the third attack will cause you to lunge at them and launch them outwards and into one another. This causes them to damage one another, just like if you were using one as a ram, and even tosses them off of the arena platform. Just aim for bunched up groups of skeletons and you'll be fine.

Bare Hands
Before time runs out, kill all the enemies without using any weapons.

Enemies: Skeletons (~25), Statues (2), Armored Cyclops (1).
Time Limit: 75 seconds.
Waves: 2 (At 50 seconds an armored Cyclops drops down)

Since you have no weapons your go to is . What you need to do is immediately run to your right and pick up a skeleton. After picking it up press to start using it as a battering ram, and take it to the statues. Literally do circles as close as you can to the statue to optimize damage.

When you are prompted with the mini-game icon over the statues head, ignore it. Furthermore do whatever it takes to not engage it with circle, and try and kill it ASAP with a skeleton ram.

Be sure to not get near the chained boulders with the skeletons, because if you do you'll start slamming its head against the boulder. This takes up a TON of time.

Continue to pick up the skeletons and killing the statues until the cyclops spawns. If the statues are still up don't worry about them, and immediately start focusing on the Cyclops. The cyclops you can run DIRECTLY into with the skeletons, as there is no need to circle close to them.

Just remember to:
1.) Not use circle to finish the Statues or the Cyclops.
2.) Not get too close to a boulder with the skeleton ram.
3.) Kill the cyclops as soon as you see it.

Get Stoned
Allow the Gorgons to turn you to stone 10 times without dying.

Enemies: Zombies (4), Gorgons (2), Satyr's (2), Armored Cyclops (2), Bats (6).
Time Limit: N/A
Waves: 4 (At 2 stones bats show up, at 4 satyr's show up, at 7 Cyclops show)

In my opinion this is the hardest challenge, if you don't have the perfect strategy. What you need to do is run up to the Gorgon and press , which will cause her to break your grasp and instantly counter with a Gorgon Beam (thx T_l_M_B_0 for that tip). Once the Gorgon Beam is on you, hit , and IMMEDIATELY begin moving left-to-right as fast as humanly possible.

For some odd reason blocking the gorgon beam and not unleashing it causes you to be turned to stone almost instantly. Because of this there's not so much waiting around to be frozen, or a risk of the beam ending prior to being frozen.

Just try and get to a spot away from the Satyr's when the spawn, before you try and grapple the Gorgon and stone yourself.

Once the Cyclops spawn it's important that you evade every attack otherwise you risk being knocked straight off the platform. The only hard part should be when the Cyclops spawn.

If you are taking a substantial amount of damage go pick up a little roaming zombie with as it will restore your health. Do not let yourself get below 50% HP, because there is a limitless supply of health through the zombies.

It may take you several times, but just stick with the method and you will have it in no time flat.

El Matador - Olé
Don't get gored by the minotaurs. Don't get piled on by the enemies.

Enemies: Skeletons (4-15), Minotaurs (1-3)
Time Limit: N/A
Waves: 5

-Wave 1: 1 Minotaur
-Wave 2: 4 Skeletons
-Wave 3: 2 Minotaurs
-Wave 4: 16 Skeletons
-Wave 5: 6 Skeletons + 3 Minotaurs

-Minotaurs "gore" you when they charge at you.
-Skeletons "pile" on you whenever you are near them, by grabbing you (just like you would grab them).

***Save Rage of Sparta until the final wave***

Waves 1 and 3 are the easiest part of this challenge. The second they start coming out of the ground, use + on them, at an angle so you can knock them off the edge of the arena (and not into the boulder), (thanks to the_requiem for that tip). If you do it right it will only take one try, otherwise it may take two. If it does take two be sure to not fall off the edge of the arena with them.

IF they do start to charge at you, don't worry. You can use + while they are charging and it interrupts them and you take no damage.

The skeletons are less simple, and random at times. On waves 2 and 4 just use +(tap repeatedly 'til it finishes). The second your animation stops, away from them and start up with + again. They can't grapple you while you're doing the spin attack, but they can RIGHT after that's why you should evade.

When wave 5 is about to pop be positioned as close to the center of where the previous skeletons spawned as you can get. Right when they start coming out of the ground use Rage of Sparta (click + at the same time), and unload. Just spam attacks which will do a spin attack, and launch them. If you use square he can end up lunging off the damn platform.

If they aren't all dead by the time Rage of Sparta expires, evade and continuously use the + attack until nothing is left.

This is an extremely safe and fast method and I've completed the challenge as fast at 58 seconds with it.

If you are thinking of suggesting the hanging method, or any variation of that, well, just read this spoiler:

Spoiler! (click here to reveal)

I am sure people are wondering why I haven't changed the "El Matador" strategy, despite all of the suggestions. I spent a bunch of time testing these strategies. I put in the ones that are the easiest to do for anyone that just picks up the controller, and has the most room for error and/or mishaps. The reason I don't post the "jumping" strategy where you leap over the charging minotaurs is because often when you try and jump them, well, they simply thrust up and gore you. The reason I'm not posting the "hanging" method that involves rolling/dropping off the arena edge is unless you handle the skeletons appropriately in wave 5, they get in the way of the Mino's and they also block you from getting up (or grapple you the second you do). Not only that but frequently the mino's will just STOP running and sit at the edge which screws things up. The method I posted is the closest thing to "foolproof" as you can really get. Not only that but it's faster than the other methods. I've completed the challenge in 51 seconds before with my strategy.

Knockout
Score 1000 points by knocking enemies out of the arena.
(Sentry=15 points, Minotaur=30 points, Wraith=60 points)

Enemies: Cyclops (only 1, and you ride it), Wraiths (~3)
Sentries (bunches), Mino's (~3).
Time Limit: 60 seconds.
Waves: 2 (1 is the lone cyclops, 2 is the rest)

When you see the black smoke start it means the cyclops is coming out. Just do a full combo, then spam on it until it is standing. If you do this correctly you will be able to mount him almost the second he emerges. The moment it's fully out of the ground it will do a kick -> punch combo roughly 90% of the time. So just evade the kick, and resume damaging it. If you get hit by it just restart because you're wasting precious time.

After that it's really simple. Just spam non-stop while going in circles near the edge of the arena. When you see the minotaur's and wraiths spawn don't go too far out of your way, just continue the circle and spam. You should easily finish this with time to spare as it's the most simple challenge.

[F8L Fool]

Hades' Kids
They don't die, they multiply. Get 5 cyclops to spawn.

Enemies: Armored Cyclops'
Time Limit: 90 seconds.
Waves: 4 if you mess up
(1 clops, then add one per additional wave)

It's best to use ++ when dealing with these guys. It stuns them just like the minotaurs and is quick.

Wave 1: Attack the lone cyclops while positioned slightly to his left, so he will be staggered towards open ledge between the chained boulders. That way he'll fall rather than having to finish him off.

Wave 2: Two more cyclops will spawn behind and to the left of you. Only kill one of them, while weakening the other. Start up with a ++ and aim it so it will land directly between the two of them. Both will be staggered, so take a step back and repeat the combo.

If done correctly one should fall off and/or both will have the prompt before ever coming out of the stagger.

When you see the circle prompt immediately start it, and go to where the next one will spawn (see wave 3 for that). Ignore the weakened one.

Wave 3: The third cyclops will spawn right where you originally knocked off the first cyclops. If you did everything right up until now you should be able to knock him off really fast and not have to worry much about him. If he doesn't fall off, still focus on him until he dies. The second he dies go finish off the weakened one and the challenge will promptly end.

If you screw up the steps somehow I suggest just restarting until you do it correctly. This is the easiest way to complete this challenge by far, because you never have to worry about fighting three cyclops' at once.

Simply Smashing
Destroy all the urns before time runs out.

Enemies: Urns (lol).
Time Limit: 20 seconds.
Waves: 1

Only use starting combos, no or +anything attacks.

Start out by destroying all of the urns directly towards the bottom of the the arena. Smash all of the urns on your way to the boulder, where two urns will be. Once you smash them start destroying them in a clockwise fashion.

The trick is to really attack them at max range. Utilize ++ for large groupings of them. Always aim between them, not on top of them for the press due to the larger radius of the impact.

It probably will take a couple of tries but it's really simple, albeit annoying to complete. Memorizing their locations will also assist you in completing this challenge fast.

[T_l_M_B_0]

Nice guide. Wish this had been up when i did this trophy :/
Quick tip to make "Get Stoned" easier, if you go up to a gorgan and press on it (Before there is an icon of them them) it will bounce Kratos back and the Gorgan will automatically counter with its stone gaze. from there you can do everything you said.
Its just easier and quicker than waiting for them to use the gaze on you

[F8L Fool]

Originally Posted by T_l_M_B_0

Nice guide. Wish this had been up when i did this trophy :/
Quick tip to make "Get Stoned" easier, if you go up to a gorgan and press on it (Before there is an icon of them them) it will bounce Kratos back and the Gorgan will automatically counter with its stone gaze. from there you can do everything you said.
Its just easier and quicker than waiting for them to use the gaze on you

Wow that is awesome. Tested it and you're very right. Putting it in now .

[Texan_Gentleman]

For the El Matador stage, I found it easier on the last wave to grab the sentries and use them as battering rams. More often than not, you can knock at least one minotaur off the platform before they even have a chance to attack.

[F8L Fool]

Originally Posted by Texan_Gentleman

For the El Matador stage, I found it easier on the last wave to grab the sentries and use them as battering rams. More often than not, you can knock at least one minotaur off the platform before they even have a chance to attack.

When I tried that I just kept getting grabbed. But if I grab them the second they spawn it might work, hmm...

I'll go give it a shot but off the top of my head it seems like a kind of risky thing to do.

[the_requiem]

Tip to make El Matador's Minotaurs easier:

Use L1+O to simply knock them off the platform.

That is it, really. Just position yourself so that minotaur is between you and edge and press L1+O. In fact this works during main game also. You can knock any enemy that can be grabbed with L1+O out of bounds.

[F8L Fool]

Originally Posted by the_requiem

Tip to make El Matador's Minotaurs easier:

Use L1+O to simply knock them off the platform.

Good tip. Gunna add it plus I forgot to mention that the Rage of Sparta on the last wave part, which is a big deal.

[F8L Fool]

Most people should be beating the game right about now. If you think you have any other method that is superior to what I have listed, or just a general tip to go along with it, post it here or message me.

[Sh1nx]

For the Urns trial, using square or horizontal attack doesn't always work on the shorter urns.

However the square, square, triangle combo works well, since the last hit break urns near where you stand as well.