This really is a proper continuation of 2018’s God Of War and - given that GOW ‘18 might be my favourite game ever - this is a good thing.
It’s also a production that very much feels rushed as it reaches its conclusion. It does feel like it was meant to be the middle chapter of a trilogy but that halfway through it was decided it would be the conclusion, and that conclusion was then tacked-in - with less care, polish, and attention to details than what was put at the previous 80% of the game.
A technical quirk that bothered me was that showing/hiding the HUD by swiping would randomly stop working, so the HUD would stay visible or hidden without being able to swap. Given that I love the immersion of hiding all the HUD most of the time while being able to show it on demand, having this feature break regularly was a tad frustrating. It’s still a minor thing, however, and surely will be fixed sooner than later.
Mechanically, the game is very much a continuation of 2018’s - so much so that I think if you put GOW ’18 and Ragnarok next to each other and show it to someone without context they wouldn’t be able to tell which one is which. Of course, Ragnarok does add new mechanics on top of the previous ones, and they’re all truly welcome.
One truly annoying thing that carries over from the previous game is how close the gameplay camera is to Kratos! I wish there was an option to set the camera a bit further away from the character; both because it’d be nicer to see the whole character all the time and also because it’d be easier to see attacks coming from behind.
There were also a few sections that felt way too long and overstayed their welcome, therefore harming the overall pacing a bit.
But none of these things manage to sour the overall experience, however.
This is a powerful and wonderful story, driven by the characters and their personal struggles and the tensions between them, and yet full of spectacle and stunning set-pieces. A much larger cast filled with engaging and charming characters, all well-developed as the story progresses. It’s ultimately a rewarding journey.
There’s a lot of love put into the details as well. Kratos and his companions having lots of meaningful and important conversations while traversing the world always makes the moment-to-moment fun and engaging. The codex, which includes sections written by Kratos is a very nice way to get into his mind and the way he writes about other people around him is just fun and funny. The post-game is also surprisingly full of great moments.
In the end I’m happy with what I got; from the moment this sequel was announced I realised it would be very difficult for this game to surpass the magic and accomplishments achieved in 2018, so I had my expectations accordingly set, and Ragnarok met them for the most part.
It’s a complete package: a great foundation from the previous game, expanded and improved. Added mechanics - better and more fun gameplay; an already wonderful setting - expanded and evolved; a fantastic story - exciting and intriguing although clearly rushed at the end; more enemy variety, way more boss-fights, and most importantly a great cast of memorable characters all wonderfully developed.
One of the greats.
It’s also a production that very much feels rushed as it reaches its conclusion. It does feel like it was meant to be the middle chapter of a trilogy but that halfway through it was decided it would be the conclusion, and that conclusion was then tacked-in - with less care, polish, and attention to details than what was put at the previous 80% of the game.
A technical quirk that bothered me was that showing/hiding the HUD by swiping would randomly stop working, so the HUD would stay visible or hidden without being able to swap. Given that I love the immersion of hiding all the HUD most of the time while being able to show it on demand, having this feature break regularly was a tad frustrating. It’s still a minor thing, however, and surely will be fixed sooner than later.
Mechanically, the game is very much a continuation of 2018’s - so much so that I think if you put GOW ’18 and Ragnarok next to each other and show it to someone without context they wouldn’t be able to tell which one is which. Of course, Ragnarok does add new mechanics on top of the previous ones, and they’re all truly welcome.
One truly annoying thing that carries over from the previous game is how close the gameplay camera is to Kratos! I wish there was an option to set the camera a bit further away from the character; both because it’d be nicer to see the whole character all the time and also because it’d be easier to see attacks coming from behind.
There were also a few sections that felt way too long and overstayed their welcome, therefore harming the overall pacing a bit.
But none of these things manage to sour the overall experience, however.
This is a powerful and wonderful story, driven by the characters and their personal struggles and the tensions between them, and yet full of spectacle and stunning set-pieces. A much larger cast filled with engaging and charming characters, all well-developed as the story progresses. It’s ultimately a rewarding journey.
There’s a lot of love put into the details as well. Kratos and his companions having lots of meaningful and important conversations while traversing the world always makes the moment-to-moment fun and engaging. The codex, which includes sections written by Kratos is a very nice way to get into his mind and the way he writes about other people around him is just fun and funny. The post-game is also surprisingly full of great moments.
In the end I’m happy with what I got; from the moment this sequel was announced I realised it would be very difficult for this game to surpass the magic and accomplishments achieved in 2018, so I had my expectations accordingly set, and Ragnarok met them for the most part.
It’s a complete package: a great foundation from the previous game, expanded and improved. Added mechanics - better and more fun gameplay; an already wonderful setting - expanded and evolved; a fantastic story - exciting and intriguing although clearly rushed at the end; more enemy variety, way more boss-fights, and most importantly a great cast of memorable characters all wonderfully developed.
One of the greats.
Reviewed on Nov 16, 2022