Member the games you used to play? We member. The basement at the Hardcore Gamer office has a section known as the Crust Room, with an old grey couch and a big old CRT TV. All the classic systems are down there collecting dust, so in an effort to improve the cleanliness of our work space, we dust off these old consoles every so often and put an old game through its paces, just to ensure everything stays in working order. We even have a beige computer with a floppy disk drive.
Sony might not have an exclusive game character that serves as their mascot in any official capacity, but Kratos is among the handful of characters that meet the qualifications for the job. Kratos has starred in eight God of War games appearing on PlayStation consoles, which does not include mobile games, remasters or guest appearances in other games. Beginning as a Spartan warrior whose emotional range extended from angry to angrier, Kratos has evolved as a god and as character since his debut in 2005. In 2018 God of War was given the reboot treatment where an older Kratos was starting a new life in Scandinavia, most likely because he had run out of Greek gods to kill.
Taking place many years after the incidents of mass deicide in Greece, Kratos has settled down in the realm of Midgard. Kratos is living with his sonBoyAtreus as they are both dealing with the recent death of his second wife Faye. After they are attacked by a stranger which Kratos vanquishes, the two begin their journey to scatter Faye’s ashes from the highest peak in the nine realms, her final wish. But as things go with Kratos, it’s never simply of matter of setting off to achieve a goal. Soon he is involved with a new pantheon of gods meddling in his affairs, some temperamental dwarves and a talking head ends up fastened to his belt.
Probably the biggest change in this incarnation of God of War was Kratos’s role as a father. This isn’t Kratos’s first attempt at being a family man, but the original games explained why none of those characters are still around (that Ares jerkpunked him good). Throughout this God of War game Kratos has Atreus as a constant traveling companion. This could be in part because Kratos takes his responsibilities as a father seriously and doesn’t want to leave Atreus alone in Midgard while he’s off killing various denizens of the nine realms. It’s equally probable that the success of The Last of Us with Joel and Ellie’s relationship and their constant banter was responsible for this new direction. When this was revealed I’d be lying if I said my initial reaction was positive, but after playing the game the dynamic of papa Kratos and his kid worked surprisingly well.
God of War as a series was never one that was known for its comedic overtones. This is largely true of the Norse reboot, but it’s also the funniest game in the franchise. Kratos’s serious matter of fact nature makes him a perfect foil for Atreus’s impetuous ways, and Mimir is often a good source of humorous dialogue. The most entertaining aspect of these characters to me, however, was how Kratos constantly refers to them as “boy” and “head” with his tone doing nothing to hide his constant frustration with their nonsense. This does add levity to the otherwise serious tone of the game without ever undermining the gravity of the situation or Kratos’s established personality.
Compared to the earlier God of War games these changes are drastic, but fit with the new approach to the narrative. A lot of time is spent traveling the nine realms and killings whatever Kratos comes across, but there seems to be a greater emphasis on exploration and character interaction. Perhaps it may be the presentation style clouding memory, but there’s a greater depth than simply going from god to god, doing their bidding and then ultimately killing them. The majority of characters feel more nuanced and fleshed out, particularly Kratos. He’s still humorless killing machine but seems like the developers wanted to make Kratos more human in this adventure. Surprisingly the story of God of War ended up being compelling, either because or in spite of the new direction they decided to take the Norse reboot.
God of War’s gameplay feels familiar to anyone familiar with the previous games once they adjust to the fact that it’s jumped on the trend of making shoulder buttons the primary attack input. As a change of pace, Kratos doesn’t begin with his signature Blades of Chaos though he does acquire those later. Living in the frozen woods, Kratos’s new primary weapon is the Leviathan axe which is great for both hacking and throwing, which can conveniently be summoned back like a boomerang. Atreus provides assistance in battle, occasionally jumping on enemies to temporarily distract them or using his bow and arrow to help his daddy kill them.
The main story of God of War can be completed relatively quickly, but mainlining that would cause the player to miss out on many additional activities. Much of Midgard remains unexplored if Kratos and Atreus simply try to reach Jotunheim as quickly as possible even with Baldur’s meddling. Freely wandering throughout Midgard and the other realms can lead to powerful Valkyries to kill and dragons to free. There are spirits who have been denied rest that have assorted errands for Kratos. It’s easy to spend just as much time exploring the nine realms for the optional side content as it is taking care of the main story.
Upon fulfilling Faye’s final wish two new realms open up for post game activity: Muspelheim and Nifelheim. Muspelheim offers a series of challenging battles, including a fight with one of the nine valkyries. Muspelheim’s challenging battles were fun and a nice way to kill some time at the end of the game. Nifelheim is a unique realm. Nifelheim is engulfed in mist that will slowly kill Kratos with each second he spends in the mist. This is also the home of Ivaldi’s Workshop which has great treasures. Sindri is interested in these items and will even craft Kratos armor that can slow the mist’s effects. This is an area that was fun at first but ultimately became too much of a grind to complete it. Kratos has to navigate a maze with a layout that resets every time he enters and tries to collect as many mist echoes as possible. Getting enough echoes to unlock everything isn’t particularly challenging provided the player is willing to sink in some hours. The problem with this area is after I got equipment upgrades and sealed the Tear that required 10,000 echoes, I had grown bored of the area, and there were tears that remained requiring 15,000 and 20,000 echoes to open, along with expensive chests.
Despite the changes in narrative approach, adding more open world exploration, the Nordic change of scenery and the ever-present boy, God of War feels surprisingly familiar. Kratos is still the monstrous brute he was always, using his great strength to defeat any enemy in his path or knock down a pillar to solve that fairly common puzzle. The visceral brutal combat the series is known for hasn’t been toned down at all. Aside from the violent tendencies of Kratos, one of the God of War hallmarks is the general sense of grandeur in exploring the world and this title does not disappoint. From the imprisoned dragons to enormous trolls to the unworldly hugeness of Jormungandr, God of War delivers a grand spectacle on scale that few games even attempt. But with video games presentation is only part of the equation, and the mechanics necessary to make God of War fun to play as just as impressive as the graphics, music and story.
God of War’s 2018 reboot was one of those cases were drastically rebooting something gets it right. As a long time fan of God of War it was exciting when the reboot was first revealed, but this excitement was tempered with some skepticism. Dad of War was a common phrase about the direction that was being taken, and while The Last of Us games are great in their own right, it didn’t seem necessary to inject that DNA into God of War. Nevertheless in 2018 Kratos came back for a new adventure that maintained what made his character so memorable in previous games while rejuvenating the aging series. God of War was initially a PlayStation 4 exclusive that was later ported to PC. Regardless of whether someone prefers the Greek or Norse settings, God of War’s Norse reboot is a phenomenal game and should be experienced by any action game fan.
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