God of War Ragnarok is a sequel to the 2018 video game, God of War, which is also known as God of War 4. This new addition to the God of War series continues the amazing journey of Kratos and his son Atreus. The game is a Playstation 5 exclusive, and it was developed by Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment.
The voice of Kratos is provided by the award-winning Christopher Judge, and Atreus is played by Sunny Suljic. The game begins with Kratos and Atreus back in the realm of Midgard as they try to make their way back home, following the events of the previous game, making for a perfect start to a sequel.
At first, the biggest change is seen in the character of Atreus, as he has grown older and is now a young teenager. Kratos has also aged a bit, evidenced by the gray hairs that have grown in his beard. Nevertheless, the story takes a turn when the father and son reach home and are greeted by Odin and his son, Thor.
After a short conversation, Thor sends Kratos flying through his roof and into the sky, where they face off in a battle that is arguably one of the greatest fight sequences in video game history. After this conflict, the main plot of the game is revealed to the player. Ragnarok, which will bring about the end of the nine realms, is coming sooner than expected, and Kratos and Atreus cannot let Odin win in this war against the realms.
As this new journey begins, the player is reunited with the dwarven brothers, Brok and Sindri, who helped Kratos and Atreus during their journey, in the previous game. Our main characters eventually embark on their journey through the nine realms: Midgard, Alfheim, Asgard, Vanaheim, Niflheim, Muspelheim, Helheim, Svartalfheim, and Jotunheim.
In the first game, Kratos and Atreus were only able to travel to five other realms, with the exception of Midgard as the main realm. This decision to enlarge the game world was a great idea by the developers. Opening all nine realms for the first time allows players to explore, while at the same time widening the scope of the story. This is a fantastic way to expand on the already amazing existing gameplay mechanics.
Also, Kratos is given a new way to travel to these realms, in the form of a travel stone given to him by Brok. This item allows you to use the mystic gateways from the previous game to travel between realms.
As you continue deeper into the game, you are immersed into the beautiful and amazing landscape of the realms. These amazing new graphics are combined with the similar fighting mechanics that made the previous God of War such a unique experience. This sequel already exceeds expectations in the “look and feel” category, compared to its predecessor.
As you are faced with new challenges, such as moving over huge obstacles and climbing upwards, you can see how much Atreus has matured and become much more independent. He is now able to move around more freely on his own, unlike in the previous game, where he would hop on Kratos’s back and needed to be carried up cliffs.
As the game becomes more intense with combat, and the main characters encounter new adventures, people and creatures, the player can really feel for Kratos, as he is a father who only cares about the safety of his son. Additionally, Atreus is a rebellious teenager, who wants to prove to his father that he is, in fact, a warrior and a “champion”. This title is given to him throughout his journey by a new character that we meet early on in the game. His name is Tyr, and he was the old God of War of the Giants.
The game also features other returning characters, such as Freya, and the one and only Mimir, whose personality, sense of humor, and great stories of the nine realms make the game even better than it needs to be. Despite the fact that he is still only a head with no body, Mimir actually shows great character development, as he is now seen as a part of Kratos’s family and is much closer to them than he was in the previous game. This is shown when Kratos calls Mimir by his true name, and not as simply “Head”, like he did in the previous game. All of this makes for an amazingly immersive gaming experience.
With an amazing sequel like God of War Ragnarok, in addition to the already masterful game from five years ago, I would highly recommend this franchise for gamers everywhere. Even though it sadly didn’t win the 2022 Game of the Year Award because of its late release in December of last year, it was nominated for almost every other award and won many of them, including Best Story, Best Graphical Showcase, Best Art Direction, Best Audio Design, Soundtrack of the Year, and Best PS4 Game of the Year.
This is another gaming masterpiece from Santa Monica Studio, and it will stand as a benchmark for other game developers all around the world, for the future of the industry. And if you enjoy the God of War series, you should also check out the winner of the 2022 Game of the Year Award, Elden Ring, and Red Dead Redemption II.
