WOW! When this game hits, it hits. My jaw was dropped for the last three hours of the main storyline... Unfortunately, that journey was also marked by long breaks from the game due to poor pacing. Most notably, I stepped away from this game nearly every time I switched to controlling Atreus -- his combat style was just not engaging and he did not have nearly enough customizability hooks for me. But that's my only complaint.

It was a wonder-filled path through the nine realms for most of the way, and somehow, they made me care about such a broad cast of characters, returning and new. The most special thing about the actual Ragnarok sequence was seeing the little cameos of every character I had seen throughout the game, and EVERY TIME, grinning like a child and feeling a kind of empathetic gratitude for each of their contributions. I want to give a special shout-out to Freya in this game -- her journey is perhaps the strongest in the game, and she absolutely chews every scene she gets in her extended treatment.

I think this game also did a really good job with the extra content. I'll admit that I was shocked every time they added a new collectible throughout the story, but at every turn, I was able to find those collectibles in the course of exploration and they opened up new storylines with the core characters.

I walk away from this game with a strange mix of memories -- I think the positive regard wins out, but I'll never forget that it took me 6 months to beat this game because of some of the meandering parts.