What do you get if you take a pissed-off, unpredictable demigod on an adventure fueled by vengeance, and throw in epic battles against figures
from Greek and Norse mythology?... …You get one hell of a gaming franchise, that’s what! Hold onto your loincloth, because this is the evolution of God of War! Following the success of their futuristic racing game ‘Kinetica’ in 2002, Santa Monica Studios began developing
a new title using the same game engine. It was to be called God of War. The game’s director and creator, David Jaffe, revealed that
he had been inspired by Capcom’s title, ‘Onimusha,’ a game which re-tells Japanese history using historical figures and
supernatural elements, and said, "let's do that with Greek History." Other inspirations for God of War included the 1981 feature films,
‘Clash of the Titans’ and ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark,’ plus an American science fiction and fantasy
comics magazine called, Heavy Metal. While taking characters and themes from
Greek mythology to begin with, the development team at Santa Monica allowed
themselves "lots of creative freedom" and simply looked to incorporate the "coolest aspects of
the subject" to make for the most entertaining experience. Lead concept artist, Charlie Wen, drew inspiration from
the 1981 movies as well as more modern films, like 2000’s Gladiator, for the visual design
of characters and the game’s setting. Gameplay, on the other hand, was heavily influenced
by the Strider arcade franchise, another hack-and-slash game from Capcom. God of War was first unveiled at Sony America’s
Santa Monica Gamers’ Day in 2004. In an interview with GameSpot at E3 that same year,
developers described it They also promised that players would be able to Following the teasers, it's fair to say that gamers
were pretty hyped for the release of God of War… at least if they owned a PlayStation 2 anyway, as the
Sony-published title was to be a PlayStation exclusive! On March 22nd, 2005, the game was officially released,
and all hell broke loose! Enter Kratos, a demigod with superhuman strength and
abilities who was once a fierce Spartan warrior. Mainly through flashbacks, it is revealed that in a battle against
the Barbarians, Kratos offered his life and service to Ares, the God of War, in return for victory. Sensing Kratos’ formidable power, Ares accepted and
bestowed upon Kratos the blades of Chaos; curved blades forged in the pits of Hades that
became fused to Kratos’ arms by long chains. Following the battle, Kratos became a servant to Ares and
led his Spartan army to conquer much of Greece. However, in one village, Ares put Kratos into a rage,
ensuring that he killed anyone in his path. Shockingly, the last two victims of Kratos’ bloodlust
turned out to be his own wife and daughter. Ares explained that this was a test of the Spartan’s
power and severed his final ties to humanity. The Oracle of the village destroyed by
Kratos cursed our protagonist, binding the ashes of his dead family to his skin, making it pale, and giving Kratos a new moniker, "the Ghost of Sparta." Kratos renounced his service to Ares and began
wandering the Earth, feared by others and seeking the service of other gods to redeem himself
and seek vengeance against Ares. “Ares! You’ll die for what you did that night!” And from then on, it was up to the player to take
control of Kratos and complete his mission. How about that for the best introduction to a game ever? With gameplay that focused on bloody combat and puzzle-solving, gamers strapped in for an awesome ride, using an array of weapons and superhuman powers to
fight multiple enemies brought to life from Greek mythology. Many battles involved a minigame where precise button presses, analog spins, or button mashing is used to defeat
enemies with a gruesome special kill. Red experience orbs spread throughout the game enabled
Kratos to level up his weapons and powers, while Gorgon Eyes and Phoenix Feathers increased
his overall health and magic, respectively. Many of the weapons and powers in-game allude to Greek
myths, like the Blade of Artemis or Medusa’s Gaze. Movie-like presentation in a story mode that switched seamlessly
from FMV sequences to gameplay and back were revolutionary, with load times masked by having the player
traverse a long, often featureless area. Quite rightly, God of War received very positive reviews, and many people consider it to be among
the greatest PlayStation 2 games ever. One review from CNN stated that Metacritic recorded a very impressive score of 94, and it was also a commercial success
with 4.6 million copies were sold. Fun Fact Upon completion of the game, players
gained access to a graveyard containing character models that were rejected. Some are of enemies, and others are of Kratos himself. A few of them even have notes from the developers
to explain why they were rejected. The Cyclops, in particular, has many binned versions, and it is revealed that they were originally going to be naked! Thankfully at least one eye was covered up in the end product! Interestingly, the first title in the God of War series
was supposed to be its own self-contained story. After its success, the sequels were
made to be more inter-connected. This is why there are some inconsistencies in the franchise’s lore, and why some of the events of the first game
are no longer considered canon. That said, God of War II was still a sequel and picked up
the plot 13 in-game years after the first game ended. Spoiler alert: “By defeating Ares, Kratos, the once mortal warrior,
became the new God of War. However, Kratos soon found himself alone on
Olympus, shunned by his fellow Gods.” “By defeating Ares Kratos, the once
mortal warrior became the new God of War. However, Kratos soon found himself alone
on Olympus shunned by his fellow gods.” The second entry into this much-loved action-adventure
series was released in March 2007. The North American version was packaged in
a two-disc set, one disc for the actual game and the other containing information about God of War II’s
development, including a diary of the game's production. European and Australian versions offered
a "Special Edition" with similar content. Vengeance was once again the game’s central theme, although this time it was the almighty Zeus who had betrayed
Kratos by killing him, stripping him of his godliness, and sending him to the Underworld. However, Kratos is saved by the Titan Gaia, who instructs him to find the Sisters of Fate, for they will allow
him to travel back in time and take revenge on Zeus. The gameplay of God of War II did not
change much from the first outing. The combination of combat, platforming, and
puzzle game elements is continued, as are the minigames used to perform bloody kills. Red Orbs, Gorgon Eyes and Phoenix Feathers all returned, though some of the items obtained by Kratos
throughout the game are different. In God of War II, these include Icarus' Wings, an item cut from the original game that
allow the player to glide short distances, plus the Golden Fleece, which
allows players to repel projectiles. Just like the first game, God of War II received fantastic reviews, scoring 93 out of 100 from Metacritic. Chris Roper of IGN called it and defended the fact that the mechanics
hadn’t changed much, saying it was Among God of War II’s accolades were a Golden Joystick
for "PlayStation Game of the Year 2007," presented at the 2007 Golden Joystick Awards. The sequel sold almost as many copies as the original game, totaling 4.2 million copies worldwide. Fun Fact The Boat Captain is an unfortunate recurring
character in the God of War franchise. Kratos lets him fall to his death in the original title, and in the sequel, Kratos kills the Captain when he
is summoned as a soul by the Barbarian King. Humorous references to the Captain can be found in later titles too, but it’s arguably his appearance in God
of War II that is the funniest… especially if you’re a fan of dark humor! One of the most obscure games in the God of War
series is God of War: Betrayal, a mobile game that also came out in 2007. Acting as a prequel to God of War II, the 2D side-scroller
saw Kratos blamed for the murder of a giant named Argos. The player, as Kratos, is tasked with hunting down
the actual assassin in order to clear his name. Bizarrely though, the game never ends up revealing
the assassin's identity as they escape, and Kratos realizes his actions have further alienated
the gods, and likely angered Zeus. Betrayal is the only God of War title
to date not released for PlayStation. It was well received by critics, though, for adapting
the main gameplay characteristics properly. It even received awards for "Best Wireless Platform Game." In 2008, the first God of War game for the
PlayStation Portable was released. Titled God of War: Chains of Olympus, it was developed by Dawn Studios and served
as a prequel to the original 2005 game. It followed events during the ten-year period in
which Kratos served the Gods of Olympus. Kratos is tasked with completing several goals so that he
may achieve redemption for the nightmares that haunt him. With gameplay elements essentially the same
as those seen in the console releases, Chains of Olympus served as an incredible option for
those wanting to play God of War on the go. The game received a score of 91, making it the
highest-rated PSP game on Metacritic. Chains of Olympus was later remastered to be included in
both the 2011 God of War: Origins Collection and 2012’s God of War Saga for the PlayStation 3. “Your suffering will never end, Ghost of Sparta.” Speaking of which, the first God of War title to come
out on PS3 was, appropriately, God of War III. It was released in March 2010 and later remastered
in 2015 to be playable on the PS4. It carried on the plot from God of War II, after Kratos
was betrayed at the hands of Zeus, who, by the way, turns out to be Kratos’ dad. Kratos ascends Mount Olympus but is abandoned by the Titan Gaia. Controlling Kratos, the player must battle monsters,
gods, and Titans while guided by Athena’s spirit, find Pandora’s box and open it to defeat Zeus,
and take some sweet revenge. In terms of gameplay, it was another case of ‘If it ain’t broke,
don’t fix it’ for the third main installment. One interesting element that was added,
though was Godly Possessions. In addition to relics such as Icarus’ Wings and the Golden Fleece,
Godly Possessions were hidden throughout the game to be found and used at any time during a second playthrough. There were 10 Godly Possessions in total,
including Poseidon's Conch Shell, which granted the player infinite Magic, Hercules' Shoulder Guar, which
decreased damage taken by a third, and Hermes' Coin, allowing the player to collect
10 times the amount of Red Orbs). While useful, once a Godly Possession was activated, a player
could no longer receive PlayStation trophies for that playthrough. As expected, God of War III performed just as well as its predecessors, garnering universal acclaim and scoring
92 out of 100 on Metacritic. Reviewer Nathan Ditum summed things up by saying, Surprisingly for a sequel, God of War III outsold its predecessors by hitting over 5 million copies in worldwide sales. Fun Fact God of War III won multiple times at the
2010 Spike Video Game Awards. While “Best PS3 Game” and “Best Graphics”
were great acknowledgments, Kratos received his own special award for “Biggest Badass.” I certainly can’t think of a video game character
more deserving of it, can you?! In November of 2010, a second game was developed by Ready at
Dawn and released for the PSP, titled God of War: Ghost of Sparta. With a storyline that took place between
God of War and God of War II, it followed Kratos as he visited the long-lost city of Atlantis,
revealing further details about his past along the way. In the game, the player learns that Kratos’ long-lost
mother and brother Deimos are alive! Once again, the game was admired by critics, with
IGN awarding it 9.5 out of 10 and pointing out that Eurogamer only gave a 7/10, though, claiming that Overall, Metacritic measured a score of 86, and Ghost of Sparta went on to win several awards,
including “Best Handheld Game,” “Best PSP Game,” and “PSP Game of Show” at E3. It ended up selling around 1.2 million copies worldwide,
making it the fifteenth best-selling PlayStation Portable game. Fun Fact Ghost of Sparta confirmed an old mystery in the God of War
series concerning the identity of the Grave Digger. In the original game, the Grave Digger saved Kratos
by digging a grave that reached through to Hell. This led to theories that the character could be
a God in disguise, possibly Zeus or Hermes. The theory was confirmed in the unlockable
combat arena of Ghost of Sparta, where you can play as the Grave Digger who,
once selected, transforms into Zeus and wields both the Blade of Olympus and the Gauntlet of Zeus. In March 2013, God of War: Ascension was released as
the seventh installment in the God of War series, playable on the PlayStation 3. In terms of its plot, Ascension serves as the first chapter,
taking place before Kratos’ reign as the God of War, roughly six months after the unintentional
killing of his wife and daughter. Flashbacks are again used to aid the timeline, which follows Kratos’ allegiance to Ares, and the events that occur happen ten
years before those in the first game. Marketing material claimed that Ascension was "the most
ambitious God of War adventure in the series so far,” and the most notable addition was
a new online multiplayer mode. In it, players could play co-operatively or competitively. Up to eight players on two teams could battle for control of
a map in a deathmatch style to earn rewards from the gods. One-on-one matches were also available. Players could sell their champion's soul to
either Zeus, Hades, Ares, or Poseidon, enabling them to try different weapons, armor sets,
and powers inspired by the God of their choice. While God of War: Ascension received
"generally favorable reviews," it was the lowest-ranked title of the series to date, with a score of 80. The fundamental gameplay and spectacle were deemed great, but the lack of new ideas and a mixed response to the
multiplayer mode dragged the overall score down. Sales numbers also dipped to just over 3 million copies, and despite several nominations,
Ascension failed to pick up any awards. Santa Monica Studio was tired of using the same
God of War format repeatedly. To make things worse, after God of War: Ascension, they asked
fans of the series what they thought of God of War, and many told harshly that they were done with Kratos. He either needed to go away or get a fresh start. So, the studio decided to reinvent the franchise. However, this wasn’t as easy as it sounds. To create the reboot, they brought back Cory Barlog,
a lead figure for the early God of War games, and this time he would be the director of the game. Originally the place was going to be Egypt, which
of course, could also be a very interesting setting. Kratos killing Egyptian gods,
I would love to see that! Eventually, they decided it was worth the risk,
and Atreus was added to the story. In this story, Kratos wasn’t just an angry version
of himself like he was in the previous games; this time, the studio wanted a well-thought-out story. Kratos helps his son as a mentor, while
Atreus helps Kratos become a father. The team also decided to hire a new voice actor for Kratos,
and eventually, they found the perfect match: Christopher Judge. “My agent had called and I wasn’t really sold on auditioning for it. I know it sounds silly now.” When Christopher read the script, he envisioned a movie,
he just couldn’t believe all of it was for a video game. “That is exactly what i am!” “Not to me!” “And it just -- I-I couldn’t... ...wrap my head around... ...how this would be in a video game.” Christopher also brought some humor to the set. “Have you missed me?” “No, not really.” “+Yes you had
-Yes you have” “Come on man, it’s okay, it’s okay to love dog. You gotta.. you know, don’t forget that so, okay to love, love is first.” “Fall closely by hate and divorce in alimony.” “Those are the things we teach kids on set!” Apparently, Kratos also loves to make dad jokes. “What do you call a blind deer? No eye deer.” “I don’t trust stairs. They are always up to something.” Fun Fact Terrence Connor Carson, better known as T.C. Carson,
had voiced Kratos in almost every God of War game, but for God of War in 2018, he was replaced by Christopher Judge. What was the reason? Apparently, Carson wasn’t tall enough to
portray Kratos for motion capture! Sadly, he wasn’t even told he’d been replaced. Maybe they were just trying to get him to
channel his rage for the next game! Or not, seeing how Christopher Judge is
known to have returned for the role. “...and the rage takes you that is me in your blood, eating away at any goodness your mother
may have passed on to you.” The team grew bigger and bigger, and eventually,
the game was made with over 300 people! Including Danielle Bisutti, who plays the
Norse goddess Freya in the game. Funnily enough, she thought she was
auditioning for Game of Thrones! “I thought i was auditioning for Game of Thrones,
i’m gonna be honest. I was pulling on a major Lady Stark moment with my monologue, and i was like, this is my moment.” Musicians also played an important role
in making the game as epic as possible. Bear McCreary, an Emmy-winning musician,
composed the music for God of War. “and the last minute, i was like it’s so simple that i almost wrote it by accident it was the last thing i did in sketching that theme. But i’ve come to really love it, and i think its simplicity
is what makes is so powerful and it represents Kratos.
He’s a man of few words. At E3 2016, it was the first time the team showcased
what they had been working on for years. “What for?” “A test. She taught you to hunt, yes?” “Yes, sir.” “Then show me what you know. I am hungry. Feed us.” “That was straight up paralyzing. I was literally paralyzed, full chills, entire body.” They just hoped people would be happy with the changes they made. And it’s an understatement to say people were excited! “But the scary thing was we showed
10 minutes 45 seconds or something and it took a year and a half to get there and now we have a year and a half left essentially.” Now it dawned on the team that they had to deliver
a game that was as amazing as the demo. They were worried that the team didn’t have enough time
to make the rest of the game as epic as the demo. Doubts began growing as the release date approached. So much had to be done, and there was so little time. “We are literally all in on this game. You have to get a 150 people who
are very stubborn and passionate and creative to all see a similar picture that doesn’t exist. And doubt is the demon that lives in the
ear of every person in this industry.” The team really put their hearts and souls into this game, as is seen here as Christopher sheds a tear. “You will always be a monster.” “I know.” Before God of War was released, a text-based game playable through Facebook Messenger
appeared called God of War: A Call from the Wilds in 2018. It turned out to be a collaboration between Sony and Facebook
to promote the upcoming God of War game for the PS4. Featuring a short story that follows Kratos’ son, Atreus,
on his first adventure in the Norse wilds. Atreus hears the voice of a dying deer and finds it covered in blood. Then suddenly, some draugars appear. Atreus attempts to fight them, but he is injured. Guess who comes to the rescue... Kratos! Kratos and his son then battle a revenant before returning home. The end! Completing A Call from the Wilds unlocked downloadable concept art. If nothing else, it served as an interesting
teaser for the PS4 game. Named simply ‘God of War,’ the eighth installment
in the franchise was a reimagining of the series. Instead of focusing on Greek mythology,
there was a switch to Norse mythology, with most of the story set in ancient
Scandinavia in the realm of Midgard. After 5 years since the previous main installment
of the God of War franchise, it was finally time for a new skull-smashing adventure when
on April 20, 2018, God of War was released. Initially, the game was released exclusively for the PlayStation 4, but four years later, in 2022, the game
was also playable on Windows PCs. Events in-game are still said to take place after those in God of War III, though many years have passed, and Kratos is visibly much older. And, of course, aside from the mythologies, another major change was the addition of Kratos’ son, Atreus,
which meant that there were now two protagonists for the first time. After taking vengeance and surviving the final encounter with Zeus, Kratos finds himself living with his son in Ancient Norway. It is a savage land inhabited by ferocious beasts and warriors. Kratos’ second wife, Faye, has recently died, as per her wishes, father and son must take her
ashes to the highest peak of the nine realms. Along the way, the duo comes into conflict with
monsters and gods of the Norse world. In order to teach his son how to survive in this harsh environment, Kratos must channel his rage and power into
the toughest assignment of all… fatherhood! To match the new setting, several changes
were made to the gameplay and visuals. Kratos uses a magical battle axe instead of
his signature double-chained blades. This axe, called the Leviathan Axe, is
infused with ice elemental magic. The axe can be thrown at enemies and
magically summoned back to his hand. Spoiler alert, when Atreus falls sick and Kratos hopes Freya can revive him,
she tells him she can’t do that by herself. Kratos needs to go to Helheim and collect
the heart of the bridgekeeper there. However, his Leviathan Axe’s frost powers
won’t do much damage in Helheim, and therefore he must arm himself with another weapon,
which are, of course, the Blades of Chaos! Longtime fans of the franchise will no doubt feel right at home
when Kratos straps the chains around his arms. The Blades of Chaos have 5 levels, which allow players
to perform new combos and do increased damage. Just like the Leviathan Axe, the Blades also have a skills tree. Oh man, you’ve no idea how glad I was when I could
finally use these Blades again after so many years! Even though combo-based combat and
puzzle game elements are still in the game, the gameplay is vastly different from previous games,
as it was completely rebuilt. Just as in previous games, there is also a
“Rage” ability called Spartan Rage. This time, however, it has a meter
that gradually fills during combat. When using Spartan Rage, Kratos uses
his bare hand to do powerful attacks. Meanwhile, an over-the-shoulder free camera is used to see the action, as opposed to the fixed cinematic camera of the previous entries. The game is presented in a continuous shot, with no camera cuts
or loading screens, which makes the game much more immersive. The game also features RPG elements, such as the ability
to craft resources to create new or upgraded armor. There are also Experience points,
which are used to learn new combat skills. While exploring the gorgeous world, players can also find chests
that contain items as well as Hacksilver currency, which can be used for crafting and purchasing new items. Two special items, Iðunn Apple’s and Horns of Blood Mead increase the maximum
length of the health and rage meters, respectively. Besides a health meter above enemies' heads, there is also a stun meter. When it is full, a grab prompt appears. This allows Kratos to wreak full havoc and, depending on the
enemies, do multiple attacks, including ripping an enemy in half! Many of the development team from Santa Monica Studios
who worked on the original God of War game also worked on this title and designed it to be
both accessible and grounded. The result was a remarkable return to form, with Metacritic recording a critically acclaimed 94 out of 100, making it the highest-rated God of War title
together with the first game of the series. While the gameplay and graphics received high praise,
the story and cast also won people over. Peter Brown of GameSpot called the characters GamesRadar agreed and called God of War Guardian was also impressed by the
technological improvements and said, Many reviewers felt it had successfully revitalized the
series without losing the core identity of its predecessors. IGN gave God of War a perfect score and
confirmed this in their review by saying, Game Rant, who gave the game a 10 out of 10, said quote, Countless more reviewers highly praised the game,
but I think God is a Geek summed it up pretty nicely, It was no surprise that God of War picked up Game
of the Year awards from numerous publications. “All right, and the game award for
Game of the Year goes to God of War.” The game became a massive commercial success
and has already sold over 20 million copies! This is more than all sales of the previous God of War games combined. The only downside was that gamers had
to wait a while for another sequel! Although that wait is finally over… Fun Fact Kratos is a big guy…but just how tall is he? According to a developer at Santa Monica Studios,
his height varies between the games and comic books. In comics, he’s a lofty 7 foot 6 inches or 2.3 meters, whereas in-game, he is around 6 foot 4 inches or 1.8 meters. Either way, I suppose it’s not really his height that’s
the most intimidating thing about Kratos! As any good game should, God of War
2018 left players wanting more. Game director Cory Barlog had already confirmed
that a sequel would take place in a Norse setting and a secret ending to the 2018 game showed
a vision of Thor confronting Kratos and his son. One year later, to celebrate the first
anniversary of the previous game, Barlog posted a series of tweets on Twitter with pictures
and comments about the development of God of War 5, which at that point was still untitled. Some eagle-eyed fans noticed that the first letter of Barlog’s
tweets spelled out the phrase…”Ragnarök is coming.” Unfortunately, fans would have to wait longer than
expected to get their hands on the next installment. Originally scheduled for release in 2021, God of War Ragnarök was delayed due to both
the pandemic and Christopher Judge’s health problems. But, finally, on the 9th of November 2022, God of War
Ragnarök was released for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. As suggested by its title, the game centers
around a series of events known as Ragnarök, which in Norse mythology brings about the end of
days and depicts the deaths of some of the major gods. The event was foretold in the previous game after
Kratos killed the Norse god Baldur. Chronologically, Ragnarök picks up approximately
three years after the previous title and serves as both a sequel and a finale
to the Norse era of God of War. As Fimbulwinter draws to a close, Kratos and his now
teenage son, Atreus, must traverse the nine realms to seek out a way of preventing Ragnarök. At the same time, they seek
answers to Atreus’ true identity. The duo encounter many Norse gods, though their
main conflict lies with Thor, the god of Thunder who seeks revenge following the deaths of his
half-brother Baldur and two sons Modi and Magni. Freya, Baldur’s mother, also makes an appearance. As does the Allfather of the Norse Gods; Odin. Ragnarök’s gameplay is similar to the 2018 title, although there are many more enemy types
and mini-boss battles that add depth and variety. Kratos is equipped with the Leviathan Axe in
addition to his iconic double-chained blades, which can now be used like a grappling hook. Weapon Signature Moves allow Kratos to infuse
each weapon with elemental powers such as ice and fire and to unleash powerful elemental attacks. He can also carry one of several different shields, the mechanics of which have been revamped for
Ragnarök to make them more versatile in combat. As in the previous game, Atreus helps his father in combat
in addition to traversal, exploration, and puzzle-solving. The player can passively control Atreus by dictating where he fires his arrows with his Talon Bow, as well as choosing which magical spectral animals
he can summon to further help with combat. Role-playing elements return in Ragnarök and players can find crafting resources to create
new armor or upgrade existing armor with better perks. The addition of “armor transmogrification” now means the player can change their appearance
without losing any of the equipped armor’s stats. The critical response to God of War Ragnarök
has so far been outstanding, with reviewers awarding a score of 94
out of 100 according to Metacritic. Game Rant gave the game a perfect score and said GamingTrend were also very impressed, IGN gave the game a 10 out of 10, and said in their review Upon the game’s release, Sony announced that it expects sales of
God of War Ragnarök to at least match that of God of War 2018, which is mighty impressive considering the PS5 supply issues
and economic situation around the world right now! Still, nothing’s going to stop me getting
my hands on a copy of the game! How about you? Is Ragnarök the best title in the God of War series? Thanks for watching!
