God of War Ragnarök is a game that marks me coming full circle in a way. A few years ago, when this game was revealed I thought it looked really interesting despite being a massive Xbox fanboy at the time who still believed in console wars (unbelievably cringe, I know). Pair that with the critically well received and GOTY winning first game and my interest in these games and PlayStation as a whole was at its peak, so I bought a PS4 and the first game alongside it. Unfortunately, I got distracted by all the other games I wanted to play on the console and despite buying both games pretty early, didn’t actually get to them until this year. I lamented about how long it took me to actually get to these games in my review for God of War 2018 and I still do now, I simply do not know how I put off two incredible games like this for so long. Ragnarök specifically is everything I could have ever asked for from a sequel to 2018 and manages to tell one of the most powerful narratives I’ve experienced in gaming as well as just being a damn fun game.

While initially I thought the gameplay in Ragnarök was gonna be a straight rinse and repeat of 2018’s, I was surprised at how much they added to it. Starting with the good the game really took the criticism that many had with the first game and instead of reusing bosses and the same kinds of enemies ad nauseum, instead added tons of really cool boss fights and several different types of enemies each with their own weaknesses for you to figure out. The combat is just as satisfying as it was in the first game and certain new weapons and skills you obtain over the course of the game go a long way to make it remain so. There also just feels like there’s a lot less annoying puzzles to deal with, allowing the game to focus mostly on action which I felt was a really good call. But then there’s my complaints with the gameplay, chief among them being the sections where you play as Atreus. While Atreus is certainly an interesting and divulging character in this game it just felt like to me there was nothing that the game could do to make him as satisfying and fun to play as as Kratos himself is. Instead of using a badass axe or twinblades, Atreus simply uses his bow to beat up enemies which feels kinda weak and unsubstantial, he also just has a much smaller pool of moves that he can use due to his skill tree being much smaller than Kratos’ so it just feels like he designed to be inferior. His sections feel much shorter to make up for this and they do often have some very interesting story stuff going on so that’s a plus as well, but typically whenever I played these sections I just wished I was back playing as Kratos instead. My only other problem with the gameplay is the slow pacing of it, at least when it comes to traversal. The settings you explore in this game are really interesting, but a mission often consists of exploring a certain path and fighting a boss at the end of it, only to traverse back through that path to get back to the gateway that leads back to the main hub. It’s a tiny bit exhausting to have to go back through the area you just explored on foot with no way of fast travel or faster traversal to get you back through and all you’re really get from it is more dialogue among the characters, but still it’s not a huge issue and doesn’t take away from the game all that much.

God of War Ragnarök’s narrative is in a lot of ways the absolute polar opposite of its predecessor’s and yet the fact that both can tell such effective and emotional stories is an achievement that the writers at Santa Monica should be proud of. Instead of a simplistic and small stakes story of a man and his son taking his dead wife’s ashes up a mountain Ragnarök opts to tell the story of a father and son coming to grips with the end of the world and its approach to telling this story is just as cinematic and heavy as it sounds. Kratos, despite learning to be honest and open with his son in the prior game is still not a perfect father, he is still deeply untrusting and overprotective and those are things that become a driving force between him and Atreus throughout the game. Atreus on the other hand is deeply curious about the world and about who he is, seeking the truth no matter what the consequences might be and rushing hastily into situations instead of using his judgement like his father has taught him. Both are flawed characters, and this estranged relationship, despite being in the face of the end of all things no less, feels like the real conflict of the game that must be solved. Of course there are other characters that enhance the game as well, Freya’s search for revenge and meaning after Baldur’s death in the first game is interesting, Brok and Sindri’s drama with each other and their clashing lifestyles is really good and has some surprisingly heartfelt and dramatic moments to it, Thor as a character is a really interesting parallel to Kratos and the drama within his family is deep, and Odin’s endless quest for knowledge and the things he has done and will do the obtain it makes him a really intriguing character and villain.

Despite the deeply interesting plot and characters though, I think where God of War Ragnarök really hits home is in its themes. Although it’s been years since her death, we’re shown that Kratos still mourns Faye and with his own death prophesied about and presumably on the horizon he has dreams of her seemingly becoming for him to join her. This portrayal of grief that is seen throughout the game, specifically in moments of great indecision for Kratos’ character is incredibly realistic and well realized. There’s also overlapping themes of revenge, regret, and the idea of being better. Several characters throughout the story have reasons to seek revenge on other characters, whether its scene in Freya and Thor’s anger towards Kratos at the beginning of the story, or virtually everyone’s lust for revenge on Odin throughout the story, everyone in this game has been wronged and seek to deal with it in the worst way possible. When given the chance at revenge each in their respective ways however, the message then becomes one of how past mistakes do not define a person, how forgiveness can open far more doors than petty revenge can, and how striving to be better than the one who hurt you is one of the hardest but most satisfying things you can do, and the moments where certain characters realize this are some of the most powerful I’ve seen in all of gaming.

Having finally played both of the modern God of War games like I planned to years ago when I expanded my interests I can say without a doubt that they have two of the most powerful narratives and satisfying combat in any game I’ve played. Though there are just a few slight gameplay flaws that hold Ragnarök back from perfection it was still an unforgettable experience from start to finish and one I’m glad I took the $300 plunge on those few years ago. I’m uncertain where this series will go next but I will be there on day one to continue the adventures of Kratos and Boy when it arrives.

This game isn't very different from the first game but in this case that is a good thing. I think gameplay is slightly better and I really like all of the labors there are to complete in the game, especially in relation to the skills. This time around the story is a bit less emotional and exchanges the very simple plot of the first game for one more complex and grand. Both stories are good in their own way, but I think this is exactly the route the sequel should've gone. This game has some better and more epic set pieces as well.

This is one of those games that leaves you feeling empty after finishing it, reflecting on everything you experienced during the journey and how much you miss the characters and the world. Words cannot fully describe how I feel after playing this game. The story was literally perfect, making it a perfect sequel to God of War.
The game builds on what was already great in the first game, with excellent combat, thoughtful characters, and an overall fantastic experience.
However, the one issue I have is the unnecessary inclusion of an open world. The side quests were basic and repetitive, and by introducing a semi-open world with these mundane quests, they created a flaw in an otherwise perfect game.

Essa foi a sequencia que eu mais aguardo ansiosamente desde Last of Us parte 02. Tenho muito carinho pela série clássica e acho louvável a re-imaginação do jogo de 2018, mas infelizmente minhas expectativas não foram 100% atendidas.

Ragnaroki de forma alguma é um jogo ruim. Gosto muito do desfecho de todos os personagens principalmente da redenção de Kratos, além da jogabilidade que continua impecável, porem acredito que esse GOW tem um problema sério no ritmo da aventura. O começo da jornada é bem divertida e intrigante mas a partir da metade do jogo sinto que o mesmo se torna extremamente maçante e com plots mau amarrados.

O terço final do game também me causa estranheza, o mesmo não me parecia ser o grande epílogo da saga, pelo contrário, por boa parte do tempo sentia que provavelmente teríamos um terceiro jogo para concluir a história. O game de 2018 já apresentava problemas no ritmo, porem naquela época não me incomodou tanto.

Por fim concluo dizendo que no geral tive uma experiência positiva. O final de Kratos foi extremamente digno e estou ansioso para uma nova jornada em outro universo, de preferencia com outros personagem.

God Of War Ragnarok teve a difícil missão de suceder um dos melhores jogos da última década, e apesar de manter a qualidade esperada da franquia, não alcança os passos de seu antecessor.
É inegável que o combate recebeu diversas melhorias, (algumas, simples ajustes de qualidade de vida que providenciam uma experiência mais agradável), e que no geral, é um avanço em relação ao antecessor, mas, o que mais atrasa o combate do jogo, e que possibilita que alguns ainda prefiram o combate do jogo de 2018 é a falta de "stagger" o impacto nos inimigos. Todas as armas possuem este problema, elas parecem ter perdido poder, com alguns inimigos ignorando completamente seus ataques, passando uma sensação de inutilidade para as armas, ainda assim, não é apenas pelo combate que o jogo perde uma estrela e meia, a história e exploração contribuem para isso.
O desenvolvimento dos personagens principais é inegavelmente incrível, a evolução do relacionamento de Kratos e Atreus é incrível de se assistir, é nas quebras de ritmo que o problema surge, em um momento você está em uma boss fight sensacional, e minutos depois o jogo desacelera grandemente e tira sua empolgação vinda da luta, te fazendo jogar por um tempo até que outro momento igual surja. Os antagonistas e personagens secundários foram utilizados de forma indiferente, a presença da maioria era tão rápida ou superficial que o apego do jogador com eles é dificultado.
God Of War Ragnarok consegue entregar uma experiência digna de ser chamada de God Of War, mas falha em aprimorar a estrutura narrativa de seu antecessor.

I beat just about everything including all the side missions except the ravens and the two post game bosses which I just couldn't overcome my skill issues for. Overall ,very great game and they mostly did a great job expanding the scope of the story from GoW 2018 (glad the whole game wasn't just reluctantly beefing with Freya). Loved the level designs and visuals and a lot of the side missions were great - the whale thing might have been my favourite part of the whole game. Legit great voice acting and I'm happy you had a lot of dialogue in stretches with no enemies.

That said, there are a few things that take it out of contention from being the best game I've played:

-Playing as Atreus kind of sucks and he's a little bitch. Cool companion characters tho. I will absolutely defend the Ironwood section, which a lot of people seemed to hate, imo the most worthwhile Atreus part.

- A bit overkill on the main missions having to complete so many puzzles to continue through the level. Hated how they gave you obvious hints for the easy stuff but not the hard stuff.

-The walking mode glitch in Svartalfheim gave me a stroke.

- Some of the side character's dialogue felt a bit MCUish/overly modern at times.


- Some of the side quests took too long. The flower collecting one and galaxy brain second crucible thing where you have to redo a bunch of them took more time than they were worth. My fault I guess for being a completionist and doing side missions that I knew didn't appeal to me.


- My biggest problem was the actual Ragnarok section. It felt very rushed. A lot of it is just rushing through mobs and I really would have liked to see more of the armies of the realms that were assembled. The final two boss fights were cool but I wish they did something more with the environment. Make it moving or something like the old games. Maybe fight on the back of the giant serpent or smth

Overall sick fucken game, I was just being critical because it could have been maybe my favourite ever with some tweaks. I loved what they did with Kratos' arc and the levels were cool and varied. Amazing visuals. Maybe should have been a trilogy but I get why they didn't want to draw out the Norse saga for over a decade. Would be super hyped for the Egyptian game ppl are speculating they'll do next