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[SF Kosmo]

Off the top of my head...

- Imprisoning Mimir for about a century or so in a tree and personally torturing him daily
- Trapping Freya in Midgard so she can never travel to any of the other realms or return home to try and fix her relationship with her own people, some of which view her as a traitor for marrying Odin - which she did to try and broker peace.
- Making it so that Freya can't hurt another creature, even in self defense. Thus robbing her of her "warrior spirit" as Mimir put it, and Freya in Ragnarok implies it was much worse than that.
- Berating Thor at every opportunity and killing him the moment he refused to obey Odins commands
- Putting the Midgardians along the wall to act as cannon fodder during Ragnarok
- Subjugating the dwarves, destroying their economy and basically giving them the choice of working for him or dying while also polluting their air
- Manipulating Kratos and Atreus into searching for Tyr, impersonating Tyr and when found out killing Brok
- Imprisoning Tyr and others for decades in case he needs to impersonate any of them
- Using his resources to hunt down and kill all the giants he could because prophecy told him that a giant army would fight him at Ragnarok


How much more do you need for him to be evil?

EDIT.

Adding to the list...

- After Kratos rescues fake Tyr who is Odin, Odin has his forces invade and occupy Svartalfheim, or at least Nidavellir as part of the deception
- Invading Vanaheim

Odin is clearly a bad guy, a tyrant even, but that alone isn't enough for Kratos to wage an apocalyptic war that could cost countless people their lives. It really undermines much of the character growth of Kratos to take on this savior of the realm role when the personal stakes seem fairly low.

 

[vivftp]

Odin is clearly a bad guy, a tyrant even, but that alone isn't enough for Kratos to wage an apocalyptic war that could cost countless people their lives. It really undermines much of the character growth of Kratos to take on this savior of the realm role when the personal stakes seem fairly low.

The entire game Kratos continues to repeat that he's not seeking a war, and he only makes decisions to protect Atreus and do right by his friends. That's all Kratos is seeking to do. It's the greater narrative of the world that his friends and the "good guys" are fighting a losing battle against Odin and Asgard that pushes him in the direction of fighting the in the war. The entire game he's exposed to the evils of Odin and Asgard, and in the end Odin killing Brok pushes everything over the edge. That's where we get the scene where they're hunting and Kratos realizes they've been wounded and are running. At that point the goals of protecting his son/friends and fighting Asgard align and lead to him becoming their general to fight the war. If he doesn't fight alongside his friends then they'll be wiped out and he'll still face the danger of Odin and Asgard, only then he'd have to face them alone with Atreus. Other than trying to leave the 9 realms to find some other land to settle in (if that's an option), there was no other option left for him at that point.

 

[SF Kosmo]

The entire game Kratos continues to repeat that he's not seeking a war, and he only makes decisions to protect Atreus and do right by his friends. That's all Kratos is seeking to do. It's the greater narrative of the world that his friends and the "good guys" are fighting a losing battle against Odin and Asgard that pushes him in the direction of fighting the in the war. The entire game he's exposed to the evils of Odin and Asgard, and in the end Odin killing Brok pushes everything over the edge. That's where we get the scene where they're hunting and Kratos realizes they've been wounded and are running. At that point the goals of protecting his son/friends and fighting Asgard align and lead to him becoming their general to fight the war. If he doesn't fight alongside his friends then they'll be wiped out and he'll still face the danger of Odin and Asgard, only then he'd have to face them alone with Atreus. Other than trying to leave the 9 realms to find some other land to settle in (if that's an option), there was no other option left for him at that point.

I get all that, but I don't think Brok's death is enough stakes. There should have been more clarity about what will happen if he gets the mask or maybe a plan to destroy it that leads to a fight or something, but it's really dumb to have this whole ark of "only Odin needs to die we don't need to destroy Asgard" and then we let Asgard get destroyed anyway.

It really feels like Ragnarok was supposed to be the last boss and it got cut for time. The smash cut to white where we just wake up with a the characters we like and care about happy and fine is a really lame way to end things.

 

[vivftp]

I get all that, but I don't think Brok's death is enough stakes. There should have been more clarity about what will happen if he gets the mask or maybe a plan to destroy it that leads to a fight or something, but it's really dumb to have this whole ark of "only Odin needs to die we don't need to destroy Asgard" and then we let Asgard get destroyed anyway.

It really feels like Ragnarok was supposed to be the last boss and it got cut for time. The smash cut to white where we just wake up with a the characters we like and care about happy and fine is a really lame way to end things.

Well it wasn't just Broks death, that was the tipping point. The mask was just compounding things because it held potential knowledge and power that would make Odin even more dangerous. He was already on the verge of wiping out everyone else, so action had to be taken right then and there

 

[Arsic]

Off the top of my head...

- Imprisoning Mimir for about a century or so in a tree and personally torturing him daily
- Trapping Freya in Midgard so she can never travel to any of the other realms or return home to try and fix her relationship with her own people, some of which view her as a traitor for marrying Odin - which she did to try and broker peace.
- Making it so that Freya can't hurt another creature, even in self defense. Thus robbing her of her "warrior spirit" as Mimir put it, and Freya in Ragnarok implies it was much worse than that.
- Berating Thor at every opportunity and killing him the moment he refused to obey Odins commands
- Putting the Midgardians along the wall to act as cannon fodder during Ragnarok
- Subjugating the dwarves, destroying their economy and basically giving them the choice of working for him or dying while also polluting their air
- Manipulating Kratos and Atreus into searching for Tyr, impersonating Tyr and when found out killing Brok
- Imprisoning Tyr and others for decades in case he needs to impersonate any of them
- Using his resources to hunt down and kill all the giants he could because prophecy told him that a giant army would fight him at Ragnarok


How much more do you need for him to be evil?

EDIT.

Adding to the list...

- After Kratos rescues fake Tyr who is Odin, Odin has his forces invade and occupy Svartalfheim, or at least Nidavellir as part of the deception
- Invading Vanaheim

So you just pointed out what I said. Most of this takes place off screen or is heresay. He’s built up as this big bad, and in game all we ever really see him do is kill Brok.

They couldbe done a lot more with him being able to take on other forms, or tapping into this time travel shit they kept alluding to, or Odin saw enough before losing his eye to avoid the ragnarok outcome and use it to his own, or he could’ve pretended to be Groa, and so on and so forth.

They had so many interesting possibilities and instead just ham fisted an ending to get quick closures that didn’t feel satisfying.

Just lazy and stupid writing towards the end. The elves fighting forever but they like Freyr so much they just auto fight for him ? Lazy shit.

Game is good but I stand by the last 30-40% of the narrative was rushed out and not satisfying whatsoever.

 

[Barakov]

Found Odin underwhelming as a final boss as far as last bosses go in this franchise.

 

[Yoboman]

Found Odin underwhelming as a final boss as far as last bosses go in this franchise.

Opposite for me. Found Odin way more interesting than Zeus

 

[vivftp]

So you just pointed out what I said. Most of this takes place off screen or is heresay. He’s built up as this big bad, and in game all we ever really see him do is kill Brok.

They couldbe done a lot more with him being able to take on other forms, or tapping into this time travel shit they kept alluding to, or Odin saw enough before losing his eye to avoid the ragnarok outcome and use it to his own, or he could’ve pretended to be Groa, and so on and so forth.

They had so many interesting possibilities and instead just ham fisted an ending to get quick closures that didn’t feel satisfying.

Just lazy and stupid writing towards the end. The elves fighting forever but they like Freyr so much they just auto fight for him ? Lazy shit.

Game is good but I stand by the last 30-40% of the narrative was rushed out and not satisfying whatsoever.

We saw the effects of over a century of Odins work, which is what I mentioned. That is what tells us he's a dangerous asshole that needs to be stomped out of existence. We don't need to see him doing each and everything on screen to know how evil he is, seeing the effects of his handiwork can be just as convincing.

He also killed Thor on screen. He also convincingly fooled everyone into thinking he was Tyr on screen. There was a lot of content to make us understand he's an evil, cunning, manipulative badass.

 

[gow3isben]

Found Odin underwhelming as a final boss as far as last bosses go in this franchise.

Zeus final boss in gow3 was worse.

The part one fighting game style was amazing but the second stage was bizarrely short and final stage in the heart just sucked ass. Don’t get me started on when you have to do that weird shit looking at your memories at the end.

Odis’s fight second stage and combo finisher were great. Not epic but a lot of different mechanics.

But yeah final boss needed to be Surtr Chronos style set piece wtf criminal omission

I will say though. The Kratos/Atreus duel finisher against the valkyries with the bear was the best finisher of all time in all games. Even more than GoW3. So hype.

 

[struggler_guts]

I was honestly a little let down at the end of the campaign, but now I feel like the epilogue is like 25% of the game AT LEAST and it's raised my opinion of the game a lot.

Anybody else going for the platinum? I never care about trophies but I want to get every little morsel out of this!

 

[Bonsaibäumchen]

I was honestly a little let down at the end of the campaign, but now I feel like the epilogue is like 25% of the game AT LEAST and it's raised my opinion of the game a lot.

Anybody else going for the platinum? I never care about trophies but I want to get every little morsel out of this!

Platinum was easy. I am trying to clear all labours. Thats a tough one. Worst part I might not be able to finish a single one of them because I can't find any more exploding pots. I need 6 of them but haven't found any. And I revisited every realm, location, corridor, secret spot and so on. Last thing I can do is revisit all of Vanaheim at night. But I probably won't find any more exploding pots. Seems like they are locked in inacessible areas or the counter isn't working how it should.

Edit: I submitted this to sms bugtracker. Kinda curious if I'll ever get an answer on this

 

[TheKratos]

Off the top of my head...

- Imprisoning Mimir for about a century or so in a tree and personally torturing him daily
- Trapping Freya in Midgard so she can never travel to any of the other realms or return home to try and fix her relationship with her own people, some of which view her as a traitor for marrying Odin - which she did to try and broker peace.
- Making it so that Freya can't hurt another creature, even in self defense. Thus robbing her of her "warrior spirit" as Mimir put it, and Freya in Ragnarok implies it was much worse than that.
- Berating Thor at every opportunity and killing him the moment he refused to obey Odins commands
- Putting the Midgardians along the wall to act as cannon fodder during Ragnarok
- Subjugating the dwarves, destroying their economy and basically giving them the choice of working for him or dying while also polluting their air
- Manipulating Kratos and Atreus into searching for Tyr, impersonating Tyr and when found out killing Brok
- Imprisoning Tyr and others for decades in case he needs to impersonate any of them
- Using his resources to hunt down and kill all the giants he could because prophecy told him that a giant army would fight him at Ragnarok


How much more do you need for him to be evil?

EDIT.

Adding to the list...

- After Kratos rescues fake Tyr who is Odin, Odin has his forces invade and occupy Svartalfheim, or at least Nidavellir as part of the deception
- Invading Vanaheim

Bbbbut all hearsay! That guy missed the whole story or is purposely ignoring literally 90% of the cast warning him about Odin. Literally killed his own son but nah must be an agenda against good guy Odin yep.. lmao

 

[struggler_guts]

Platinum was easy. I am trying to clear all labours. Thats a tough one. Worst part I might not be able to finish a single one of them because I can't find any more exploding pots. I need 6 of them but haven't found any. And I revisited every realm, location, corridor, secret spot and so on. Last thing I can do is revisit all of Vanaheim at night. But I probably won't find any more exploding pots. Seems like they are locked in inacessible areas or the counter isn't working how it should.

Edit: I submitted this to sms bugtracker. Kinda curious if I'll ever get an answer on this

Interesting, I assumed all the labours/quests/etc would be part of the platinum. RIP trying to find exploding pots though, I only vaguely remember one spot in the whole game where there were non-essential exploding pots

 

[Yoboman]

Platinum was easy. I am trying to clear all labours. Thats a tough one. Worst part I might not be able to finish a single one of them because I can't find any more exploding pots. I need 6 of them but haven't found any. And I revisited every realm, location, corridor, secret spot and so on. Last thing I can do is revisit all of Vanaheim at night. But I probably won't find any more exploding pots. Seems like they are locked in inacessible areas or the counter isn't working how it should.

Edit: I submitted this to sms bugtracker. Kinda curious if I'll ever get an answer on this

Yeah the labours don't seem to track right. I've killed all the Dragons but it stopped counting at 3

 

[TheDarkPhantom]

To pick up where I left off, the combat in this game is glorious, so many ways to kill a man. One of things I'd hoped for was a return to the bloody brutality of the previous titles and GoW:R mostly delivered. Still not near the level of the older games but a big step up from 2018, it simply makes the combat feel more kinetic and impactful. Heimdall fight is the closest we get to the supreme blood opera that was GoW 3 and though I wish there was more I'll take what we got.

With all the skill tree unlocks, myriad runic attacks and relics there is more than enough possibilities to get creative in battle and really let loose. So it was with great delight when I unlocked a *third* weapon, completely unexpected. The spear feels so damn good to use but besides it's combat prowess it functions as a traversal mechanic and the final tool needed for some of those Nornir chests, Merry Christmas. The quest to forge to spear was a highlight too.

Now I come to the narrative itself. Playing with prophecies and the idea of destiny - and how we have the power to change our fate - is something that directly appeals to me. What muddied the waters here was seeming foreshadowing and a complete dropping of the ball for what was supposed to be the climax of the game (Ragnarok). Throughout we have moments of Kratos refusing to be "that" God again, refuting Freya and her wanting to go to war with Odin. Then we discover the mask, Brock is killed, Odin's history of treacherous, destructive acts is clear and undeniable, Kratos cannot ignore it and live out his idealistic vision of life in a small cabin in the woods...

"Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!" This famous line from the 'Godfather 3' is what came to mind to me as witnessed the events unfolding on-screen. I know you're not that bloodthirsty deity anymore Kratos but 1 last time you need to be the Ghost of Sparta and go to war, not for vengeance or selfish reasons but quite the opposite, to protect that which you love and to do what's *right*. Kratos emerges from his tent, he agrees to be Freya's general and as a player, as a fan of this character from the very first game I'm thinking "fuck yeah, here we go!". Well, it didn't quite work out that way.

The ending is undoubtedly, inarguably this games greatest flaw and ultimately the only *important* criticism I have. We glimpse Surtr for all of 30 seconds slowly waving his giant arms in the background. Thor fight was...OK. I wanted limb torn from limb though, one last time, a God on the warpath. Odin? Same sad story. Where is something on the scale of Kronos' boss fight while we're at it? Literally tearing off the titan's fingernails, scaling his massive body, giving him a serious case of indigestion followed by disembowelment? Nothing in this game had such scale/ambition, Garm fight came close.

It's clear this should have been a trilogy and somewhere along the line plans changed, the ending was cobbled together into something semi-coherent but ultimately unsatisfying and indeed unworthy of the God of War legacy. I won't let that ruin my overall feeling on the game though, I loved it and think it's one of the best 1st party exclusives PlayStation has ever put out. If the story continues with Loki it needs to be a spin-off ala Uncharted Lost Legacy. I want more Kratos, preferably a prequel set in Egypt before he arrived on Northern shores and took the mantle of fatherhood. Give me the unrelenting warrior whose rage is brighter than the sun or give us a new God of War to captivate our imaginations once again, hard to imagine it not being Kratos - he's one of my all-time favourite protagonists - but I have hope they could create something compelling.

 

[Bonsaibäumchen]

Yeah the labours don't seem to track right. I've killed all the Dragons but it stopped counting at 3

Theres one stone Dragon in Svartalfheim, did you kill him, too?

 

[Yoboman]

I love the end credits music

 

[Coherenthy]

Anyone ever encountered this weird glitch? Not sure what's making Gna move like someone was hitting her. It kinda spoiled the experience for me as I was already close to beating her legit then this happened.

 

[Bonsaibäumchen]

Anyone ever encountered this weird glitch? Not sure what's making Gna move like someone was hitting her. It kinda spoiled the experience for me as I was already close to beating her legit then this happened.

Wow easy mode unlocked
Nope haven't had such an opportunity.
At least she stopped it for the cutscene. That would have been worse or hilarious.

Submit it to their bugtracker: https://support.sms.playstation.com/hc/en-us/requests/new?ticket_form_id=10318770559245

 

[Coherenthy]

Wow easy mode unlocked
Nope haven't had such an opportunity.
At least she stopped it for the cutscene. That would have been worse or hilarious

Ikr? Lol. This is actually on Give Me No Mercy mode and I think on my 30th attempt.

Must be Brok's ghost or something.

 

[SF Kosmo]

The ending is undoubtedly, inarguably this games greatest flaw and ultimately the only *important* criticism I have. We glimpse Surtr for all of 30 seconds slowly waving his giant arms in the background. Thor fight was...OK. I wanted limb torn from limb though, one last time, a God on the warpath. Odin? Same sad story. Where is something on the scale of Kronos' boss fight while we're at it? Literally tearing off the titan's fingernails, scaling his massive body, giving him a serious case of indigestion followed by disembowelment? Nothing in this game had such scale/ambition, Garm fight came close.

It was there for the taking too. Like they talk about wanting to destroy Odin but not the innocent people or the realm of Asgard. It seems really obvious that they wanted to make you fight the Ragnarok monster after Odin to save the realm but ran out of time and money for their last big set piece. It really makes no sense.

 

[zkorejo]

Everyone here saying Kratos not brutally killing Gods was a disappointment.. you guys are missing the entire point of the whole story. He lived because he changed his nature for better. He is willing to sacrifice his bloodlust for greater good and what's right. That's uncharacteristic of him which is why the prophecy changed.

There's no such thing as fate or prophecies. Like Norns said, It's just basically them deducing based off past and nature of each god/person involved here.

It's a choice and he made that choice because Kratos didn't want to leave his son yet. He wanted to live to be with him still. Even if he had no path. But this new change in personality ends up changing his fate to a new one, him becoming a better god that people look up to like it was shown in the last mural.

I think it's a very solid message.

 

[Valonquar]

It's a solid message yes, but makes for a less stellar action-packed stabby stabby finale for a video game.

 

[saintjules]

 

[Games of Today]

Yeah - Thor scored a good one. Hot milf.

On topic of the story - this is the end of the Norse saga and it's obvious that Kratos has done the opposite for the Norse Pantheon vs the Greek. In the Greek, he destroyed the pantheon, in the Norse he saved the pantheon as the mural shows him being worshiped and idolized.

Atreus fucked off to do his own thing (thank god) the only way I see this moving forward to another Pantheon is going to be Mimir. Mimir is actually a being from another world, more specifically Celtic/Irish hence his Scottish accent. Also, if you did the sidequest after beating the game you get to find the real Tyr who was imprisned by Odin. The body has to be alive in order for Odin to take their shape, hence why real Tyr was locked in an actual prison in Niflheim. When you meet him there, Tyr says "I know you from somewhere", "I heard your name before" Freya offers him to go chill at Sindri's house but Tyr declines and says that he needs to sit down and be alone for a bit to process who he just met and saw (kratos obviously) If you go back to GoW 2018 and go down an elevator in Tyr's temple, there is a tapestry on the wall of Tyr visiting different pantheons including Egypt.

TLDR - Mimir and Tyr are the key to going to different Pantheons. I can't wait too see what's next.

I suspect that's what Atreus leaving is for.

I'm willing to bet that if they make a third one in this series, it's Atreus traveling to either Ireland (which has giants) or Egypt. This will give a good excuse to have Sindri come back and have an entire story wrapped around forgiveness as the two of them rekindle their bond of friendship.

 

[Games of Today]

They NEEDED to make the giant surtr thing the final fight!

They really blew it! I thought for sure Kratos was going to slam him for the final boss! Sometimes you have to take responsibility for the things you have created.

 

[Games of Today]

Don't believe DLC is coming or anything like that. Brok is dead dead as Mimir said shortly after you go off adventuring in Midguard after his death with Kratos and Atreus. Sony Santa Monica have clearly stated in an interview back in April this is the end of the Norse Saga, they do not want a 3rd game because it would take way too long to close the Norse story. The only thing I could see is a New Game+ patch similar to the original and that's about it. The rebuilding part is happening post-game I believe. Doing the side quests and catching up with everyone from what I understood. This is just my assumption.

A new pantheon is going to be the next big thing for end of PS5 or the PS6 era. New engine, the new-generation of God of War will most likely be that.

And I suspect that it'll be an entire Egyptian story with Atreus and Sindri rekindling their friendship.

 

[SlimySnake]

Alright. I just posted a largely glowing review of the game in the main OT, but now it's time to trash the game because my goodness, the game's story just falls part in the final 30 minutes or so. I hate everything about it. I love this game, and hate how it ended.

I actually like the final level. Compared to HFW's big finale battle, this wasnt just a cutscene. They had elves, giants, and valkyries on screen fighting while you traversed a war torn area with an epic soundtrack. So far so good. Then Thor unceremoniously sends the serpent back in time and im like wait, that was it? Then Thor's second fight is basically a simple valkyrie/beserker sequence. No epic multi-stage fight. No appearances from giants like that Wolf who went MIA in the middle of it all. No fucking Sigrun after they spent the entire game talking about her. There are three fucking phases to that boss fight and you cant have one where you fight alongside sigrun??

Why the fuck is the Queen of the Valkyries who finally got her wings back isnt fighting like a Valkyries. Shes more useless than Loki. We fight multiple beserkers and valkyries many time in the game. At least give her an ability to turn into one mid battle so we can tag team bitches. Very disappointing.

And no Thor hammer. GTFO. His daughter gets it? Why? And Odin just kills him with one spear attack? What is this nonsense? He's fucking Thor. At least let me have him as a companion post game. I hate everything about what they did to Thor, by far my favorite character in the game. He lit up the opening and brought so much charisma and screen presence to every scene and they just focused on Odin who was just underwhelming by the end. This is a family soap opera so go ahead and give Thor that moment with his father instead of his father just offing him randomly.

And after 4.5 years of dev time. After refusing to update the engine. Or refusing to spend the time going to PS5, they still phoned in the final two fights. Come on. That cant happen. No Sutr giant fight? Really? No giant fight aside from that one in a kitchen? really? Why have like 5 open world areas in the game when you already have like 45 hours of it. Just cut one of them and focus on the ending. Naughty Dog used to say that their big train setpieces would be the first one they would start and the last one they would finish. They should have started making the finale back in 2018 especially since they chose not to change any gameplay mechanics, level design, engine or graphics. It's simply unforgivable.

What sucks is that 99.99% of the game is phenomenal. Great setpieces. Great boss fights. Great variety especially in enemy design. Phenomenal combat. Some excellent one shot takes. But all of it falls part at the very end.

Im also not a fan of how Kratos kept apologizing to Loki. No Loki was a cunt, dont say sorry to spoiled brats you dumb fucking millennials. Dont be sorry, be better. Take your own fucking advice.

P.S A better ending would've been Kratos and Loki you know talking to Thor and getting him on their side. They spent the whole game humanizing Thor clearly hinting at his conflict with Odin and yet they do nothing with it. Hell, I want to play as Thor. That game would be amazing. Him killing giants. Fighting Freya in the crater or did they create the crater? Fuck exploration. Give me a 10 hour balls to the wall Giant Killing assassination spree from Thor until Freya checks him. Just flying around the map at insane speeds throwing people into mountains. Give me that game.

Alright time to review the game. No spoilers. Though discussing my thoughts without spoilers might be a bit challenging. Still after those multi beserker fights, I think I can do anything.

4 years ago, I played GOW and was convinced it was going to be the best game of the year then RDR2 came out and annoyed me to death with its controls, slow pacing, and ridiculous design decisions. And yet by the end of it all, the game had won me over and I think the same thing has happened here. My issues with the game simply did not factor into my enjoyment. I love this game.

Graphics:
Stunning at times. Underwhelming to the point of looking like a third party UE4 title other times. Vanaheim during the day has this really bad brownish UE4 quality lighting that Horizon fixed in 2017. That said, when the game wants to show off its cinematic flair, the visuals dont hold it back. Some truly awe-inspiring sertpieces, one shot takes, and locations in this game.

Level Design:
To me the crater is the best level in the game, and a true evolution of the hub world introduced in GOW 2018. Not just islands with nothing going on, it's a fully living and breathing valley with a day night cycle that changes the enemies that spawn. The rest of the game might feel more of the same, and a bit DLC'ish especially in the Dwarf islands, but there is the evolution here that I wanted from a sequel. The game is also fully of incredible setpieces, awe-inspiring boss fights, and enemy variety missing from the first game that take it far far above DLC category. It's a true sequel like GOW2 was back in the day.

Combat:
I have a love/hate relationship with it, but mostly love. Sometimes it feels too chaotic. But most of times, It feels sublime. Sometimes Im like this is Ascension and HFW all over again, needless tinkering with perfection and then boom, i get in a groove mid fight and squeeze out a win like I'm John fucking Wick. It's brilliant. Tip to everyone: just focus on maxing out strength and defense. You want to do most of your damage with your basic attacks. You can kill most mobs in three hits at 400 Strength. Fuck Runic, Luck, Vitality, and Cooldown stats.

Story:
I personally didnt have many issues with the millennial writing here, but I do understand the concerns. I saw in the end credits that the game was written by 7 people up from just three last game, and I think thats why it feels a bit inconsistent. Without going into much detail, I will say it surprised me which is a good thing because stories no longer do that to me since ive seen everything, but then kinda left me wanting more which is not what you want from a finale for a game that was 4.5 years in development.

Conclusion:
Like with RDR2, I have a lot of issues with the game that I chose not to mention here because ultimately they are artistic choices I disagree with. It's why I didnt have an issue with what Neil did to Joel in TLOU2. It's his character. He can do with him as he pleases. I will go into those issues in the spoiler thread, but this masterpiece of level design, enemy design, combat design, and boss fights is something that all Sony first party studios ought to follow. And I dont call it a masterpiece lightly. I piss off my friends when I give HFW, Ratchet and Miles a 7 out of 10, but this is what I save my 9s and 9.5s for. A game that is truly light years ahead of HFW, Ratchet and all the other nonsense being handed out 9s and 10s recently.

 

[zkorejo]

It's a solid message yes, but makes for a less stellar action-packed stabby stabby finale for a video game.

I loved the ending. It made sense and closed off everything properly. Giving Thor a pass made sense. I kind of raised an eye brow for them trying to give a chance to Odin. But it's in line with Sindri killing him.

There were epic moments like Fenrir battle, the giant snake like thingy in Vanaheim.

Loved the Heimdall boss. Kratos kind of reverted back to his old ways there and he seemed highly disappointed in himself.

Finale needed a proper decisive moment that made sense more than stabby stabby. A father willing to change his nature for wanting to live to see his son grow to adulthood is actually touching.

Or maybe I have just gotten older.

 

[Mossybrew]

Having Freya as a companion is the worst. Lady can you just shut the fuck up about your troubled past for five minutes.

 

[SlimySnake]

I mean look at this guy. He's menacing. He's what Kratos used to be. He's perfect. And then they nerfed him into a drunk uncle, and thats ok. But then see it through.

 

[zkorejo]

I mean look at this guy. He's menacing. He's what Kratos used to be. He's perfect. And then they nerfed him into a drunk uncle, and thats ok. But then see it through.

He's chill and dumb when aggressive. Kratos was a monster but was always smart. He resented the Greek gods for using him and wronging him once even after he pledged his soul to them.

Thor on the other hand lived under shadow of one God I believe he could have easily killed if he wanted to but is constantly berated by his father who sees no value in him. His wife is sick of him putting up with it but all he does is drink mead to get past it instead of doing something about it. He's nothing like Kratos.

Kratos knew nothing but vengeance and rage. If Kratos vs Thor happened in Gow 2-3, Kratos would have decapitated him limb by limb and shoved Thor's intestines into his mouth before kicking his head in. Thor is lucky Kratos softened up by the time he met him.

 

[Elder Legend]

Having Freya as a companion is the worst. Lady can you just shut the fuck up about your troubled past for five minutes.

You must be joking. I loved every single second of Freya and her awesome background lore conversations and dialogue. Best female character probably in the history of video games to date. Atreus is the one who needs to shut his his mouth. His overly naive, and makes dumb decisions and obnoxious as fuck during combat.

 

[remember_spinal]

I love the end credits music

I hope they use this for the GOTY awards, this could have won a grammy

 

[SlimySnake]

Director explains why he didnt want Kratos to weild Mjolnir in the game. His reasoning? it wouldve been too easy, too expected, not surprising because everyone wanted it in the game. Umm what? So you chose the spear which was already in the PSP game? WTF is this reasoning. Apparently people in the studio were upset about it too.

And this is why you dont change directors. Not everyone is smart.

Pretty much the first question they ask him.

 

[remember_spinal]

Director explains why he didnt want Kratos to weild Mjolnir in the game. His reasoning? it wouldve been too easy, too expected, not surprising because everyone wanted it in the game. Umm what? So you chose the spear which was already in the PSP game? WTF is this reasoning. Apparently people in the studio were upset about it too.

And this is why you dont change directors. Not everyone is smart.

Pretty much the first question they ask him.

Always thought the idea of wielding the hammer would be redundant after having the axe. I’m glad they decided to go with the spear cause it adds a completely new skill set and feel to the game and its incredible.

This is why im glad ‘fans’ aren’t in charge of these decisions.

 

[Revolutionary]

My ending cutscene had a weird cameo

And yes, he was standing there the entire time during the final boss fights...

 

[remember_spinal]

My ending cutscene had a weird cameo

Hel-Kitty

 

[Trazyn the Infinite]

I mean look at this guy. He's menacing. He's what Kratos used to be. He's perfect. And then they nerfed him into a drunk uncle, and thats ok. But then see it through.

Yep. The game peaks at this battle and it is nothing but anti-climaxes and piss poor pacing for the rest of the experience. At least the gameplay and some of the side content made it worth continuing the playthrough.

 

[SlimySnake]

Always thought the idea of wielding the hammer would be redundant after having the axe. I’m glad they decided to go with the spear cause it adds a completely new skill set and feel to the game and its incredible.

This is why im glad ‘fans’ aren’t in charge of these decisions.

thats fine. No reason why we cant have two new weapons. Couldve been a good end game weapon to level up.

GOW3 had 3 new weapons including a very punchy one Kratos got from Hercules that became everyones favorite. Thor's Hammer shouldve been a slow but hard hitting version of the axe that threw people into walls with lightning damage. Big mistake leaving it out.

Dont set the game in norse mythology if you wont let us use its most powerful weapon.

 

[remember_spinal]

thats fine. No reason why we cant have two new weapons. Couldve been a good end game weapon to level up.

GOW3 had 3 new weapons including a very punchy one Kratos got from Hercules that became everyones favorite. Thor's Hammer shouldve been a slow but hard hitting version of the axe that threw people into walls with lightning damage. Big mistake leaving it out.

Dont set the game in norse mythology if you wont let us use its most powerful weapon.

God of war isn’t a game about just filling up a menu screen with weapons though. Each weapon feels meticulously crafted to offer something new and something that feels wildly different to use both in and out of combat than the other weapons. They build such a unique set of skills and move sets for the three weapons, and give them good reasons for existing within the context of the story.

They did a good job not going overboard with fan service. Those weapons in the original god of war games had like one special move and like a couple different combo strings to unlock, they didn’t really add that much to gameplay.

And the Hammer isn’t the most powerful weapon, its equal to Fayes Axe. If you paid attention to the story Brok specifically comments on the fact that they made both weapons and the axe was made in order to combat Mjolnir

 

[struggler_guts]

If the story continues with Loki it needs to be a spin-off ala Uncharted Lost Legacy. I want more Kratos, preferably a prequel set in Egypt before he arrived on Northern shores and took the mantle of fatherhood. Give me the unrelenting warrior whose rage is brighter than the sun or give us a new God of War to captivate our imaginations once again, hard to imagine it not being Kratos - he's one of my all-time favourite protagonists - but I have hope they could create something compelling.

Yes! I have been raking my brain trying to think of how they could bring back energetic rage filled kratos and this would work! I'm 100% down for a prequel, it doesn't even need to explain how he traveled the realms just give me angry kratos back!

Like I loved these last two games but god of war needs kratos and I've had more than enough somber kratos

 

[Trazyn the Infinite]

thats fine. No reason why we cant have two new weapons. Couldve been a good end game weapon to level up.

GOW3 had 3 new weapons including a very punchy one Kratos got from Hercules that became everyones favorite. Thor's Hammer shouldve been a slow but hard hitting version of the axe that threw people into walls with lightning damage. Big mistake leaving it out.

Dont set the game in norse mythology if you wont let us use its most powerful weapon.

Not to mention that so much of the actual lore/stories of Norse is just simply NOT here, or if they are, they are heavily truncated or altered into increasingly disappointing "payoffs". Fenrir? Does fucking nothing. Garm? Just a conduit to put Fenny's soul to do fucking nothing. Tyr? A dumb hippy that is just there to create a fakeout that most saw a mile away. What about all the gods? Idun? A fucking collectible. Bragi? Forseti? Hodr? Hermod? Ullr? Njord? Not here. A few like Ymir are mentioned, but we never see them. This campaign has a tendency to TELL and not SHOW. This is basic writing 101 for visual mediums like film and video games. Show. Don't tell.

Famous stories like Loki Bound, Marriage of Njord and Skadi, The Binding of Fenrir, - all these things people and fans were foaming at the mouth trying to figure out how they would work them into the sequel and how it would work with Kratos and Atreus.

Nope. Not here. Enjoy the disappointment fans and historians of Norse history/myth!

 

[Kurotri]

Just finished it. I gotta say the ending was terrific, I love what they did and I love all these character and their resolutions. Overall I'm very happy with it.However unlike 2018, it felt like the story had more ups and downs instead of being consistent in quality. There were hours where I felt really involved in the story, and then there where times when I thought "my god, what are you doing?".

The fight against Thor wasn't all that insane. I feel like the opening of the game where you fight him for the first time was way better. Odin's fight wasn't anything to write home about either. I also wish the relationship between Odin and Thor was explored more.

Angrboda felt kinda wasted too. She has her own section but afterwards she kinda turns into a complete background character. Also there's some things here that need resolution, like Sindri and his relationship with Atreus. I hear there's no DLC planned. So what are we gonna have? Comic books or something? Really wouldn't like that. And if they try to bring this into the next game, well, that's like 4 - 5 years away. And most likely since it'll be in another mythology, it would feel kinda out of place to have that story play out outside of the nordic realm. What also seemed rushed was Sif and Thrud. Thor just fucking died and they're all like "yep it is what it is. thanks guys". Bruh what. And Sif turns over a new leaf way too quickly. Surtr is introduced way too late and then is basically just (very) short eyecandy at the end. Fenrir doesn't do anything. And Freyr's death seemed completely pointless.

The ending, with Kratos and Atreus, saved it all for me though. For me, these 2 were all that mattered, and they delivered. There's already fan speculation about Celtic mythology but I hope it's Egypt instead. If I have to wait so many years for a new game there better be a complete change of scenery, just like 2018 did. Celtic seems a little similar to me. As for Kratos, with such an ending, man...I want him to live out his days peacefully now. Atreus is still extremely young. Let him take center stage. Guess this isn't a popular opinion tho lol.

 

[remember_spinal]

Not to mention that so much of the actual lore/stories of Norse is just simply NOT here, or if they are, they are heavily truncated or altered into increasingly disappointing "payoffs". Fenrir? Does fucking nothing. Garm? Just a conduit to put Fenny's soul to do fucking nothing. Tyr? A dumb hippy that is just there to create a fakeout that most saw a mile away. What about all the gods? Idun? A fucking collectible. Bragi? Forseti? Hodr? Hermod? Ullr? Njord? Not here. A few like Ymir are mentioned, but we never see them. This campaign has a tendency to TELL and not SHOW. This is basic writing 101 for visual mediums like film and video games. Show. Don't tell.

Famous stories like Loki Bound, Marriage of Njord and Skadi, The Binding of Fenrir, - all these things people and fans were foaming at the mouth trying to figure out how they would work them into the sequel and how it would work with Kratos and Atreus.

Nope. Not here. Enjoy the disappointment fans and historians of Norse history/myth!

Thats because it isn’t a story about Norse Mythology, its a story about Kratos and Atreus. The Norse lore is a backdrop, not the focal point of the story being told. There are tons of stories about Norse Mythology, Assassins Creed just released one last year. This is Santa Monica’s take on the world with their own characters and their own spin, they never promised you an accurate retelling of the Eddas

 

[SlimySnake]

Not to mention that so much of the actual lore/stories of Norse is just simply NOT here, or if they are, they are heavily truncated or altered into increasingly disappointing "payoffs". Fenrir? Does fucking nothing. Garm? Just a conduit to put Fenny's soul to do fucking nothing. Tyr? A dumb hippy that is just there to create a fakeout that most saw a mile away. What about all the gods? Idun? A fucking collectible. Bragi? Forseti? Hodr? Hermod? Ullr? Njord? Not here. A few like Ymir are mentioned, but we never see them. This campaign has a tendency to TELL and not SHOW. This is basic writing 101 for visual mediums like film and video games. Show. Don't tell.

Famous stories like Loki Bound, Marriage of Njord and Skadi, The Binding of Fenrir, - all these things people and fans were foaming at the mouth trying to figure out how they would work them into the sequel and how it would work with Kratos and Atreus.

Nope. Not here. Enjoy the disappointment fans and historians of Norse history/myth!

I actually like that they took us to Asgard and let us interact with those characters far than we did in the original GOWs, but yeah, there is still lots missing. The lack of giants even though some are alive really hurt and they spend hours in the Dwarf and Alfheim realms wasting everyones time with boring side quests instead of tailoring the quests around those Norse gods. Fernier's transformation was done right, but then hes essentially discarded for the rest of the game. I really dont get it.

The director just said that even though the game is titled ragnorak, it's not just about ragnorak because everyone is trying to avoid ragnorak. Well, then at least spend more than an hour of your 50 hour game on ragnorak. It builds up for 40 hours and then just ends.

 

[Trazyn the Infinite]

I actually like that they took us to Asgard and let us interact with those characters far than we did in the original GOWs, but yeah, there is still lots missing. The lack of giants even though some are alive really hurt and they spend hours in the Dwarf and Alfheim realms wasting everyones time with boring side quests instead of tailoring the quests around those Norse gods. Fernier's transformation was done right, but then hes essentially discarded for the rest of the game. I really dont get it.

The director just said that even though the game is titled ragnorak, it's not just about ragnorak because everyone is trying to avoid ragnorak. Well, then at least spend more than an hour of your 50 hour game on ragnorak. It builds up for 40 hours and then just ends.

Yep. I wouldn't mind the slower pace and interacting more with these characters if it amounted to something and if they were well written. Freyr is just some dude bro. Freya turned into a complex character in the first to a whiny, mewling moron who quickly shifts attitudes like she suddenly became bi-polar. Heimdall was just a school bully from any CW show.

The *ONLY* character I felt like had actual growth was Sindri. The only saving grace of this whole narrative.

If we had another game to expand upon these characters, to see them grow and have them feel three dimensional - I think it would have made a world of difference. But clearly these writers don't know what they were doing.

 

[SlimySnake]

Thats because it isn’t a story about Norse Mythology,

The game is literally called Ragnorak.

 

[Trazyn the Infinite]

The game is literally called Ragnorak.

There is a reason I am not responding to them. There is no discussion worth to be had with any console warrior.

 

[remember_spinal]

The game is literally called Ragnorak.

So was Thor 3, how accurate was that to Norse Mythology?