I would counter that when compared to even the more simplistic of the top tier action games (Devil May Cry 1) God of War doesn't even have half a leg to stand on. There's basically nothing in the way of canceling, what little combos exist are entirely canned, and the enemy movelist/AI is basically non-existent (enemies with more than one attack are the exception in God of War, not the norm). Encounters with larger enemies (ogres, minotaurs) are basically grind-fests where gigantic health bars and your inability to make them flinch replace any kind of skill.

God of War sacrifices all complexity for mass market appeal. If that's your kind of game that's fine, but don't act like there's any sort of depth where there's clearly none.

That the game HAS a combo system doesn't mean it's automatically a good one. I'd argue that God of War's is barely serviceable. The cherry on top is that the series has maintained this level of mediocrity since the first game and people keep buying them.