Are Changes to God Of War For The Better?

One can say that, after six God of War games that did the same thing over and over, this is a welcomed change, but others have their concerns if these changes are too much. Is this a change for the better? Or will these changes lead Kratos down a different path of self-destruction?

[UCForce]

It’s up to the fans of course. But I can tell you that Cory Barlog and his team have been aware of this since the beginning. He did said that he isn’t going hold any back by showing it to the audience. Back in E3 2016, he was on stage and play the game. The response was positive. But there was concerns which I aware of. About Kratos ? The guy faces a lot of struggles including his guilt. He has lost his family before. And now, he has a son and he won’t repeat the same mistakes again.

[hulk_bash1987]

As a long time fan of the series, all I've seen are positive changes. I cant wait for it to come out, its a day one for me.

[DarXyde]

Agreed. After God of War III, I can honestly say that I got burned out of the combat mechanics. They worked well, but I just didn't care about it anymore. In fact, I skipped Ascension until it was on PlayStation Plus. I just couldn't do it.

The fact that Barlog is back and offering a new vision makes me very excited to get behind God of War. God of War II is by far my favorite and my expectations are pretty high, but I know Barlog won't disappoint me.

[Eonjay]

Different game. It should change. For those not aware, there were subtle changes from inception to Ascension. I welcome the changes. Kratos is metal as hell. No matter what they change, those changes will only serve to make him more metal. Embrace it.

[Ceaser9857361]

I have a gut feeling GOW Norse gonna do very very well.. I wont be surprised if it get close to Uncharted 4 or beat it .. I am happy with the Team in what they accomplished.. I am a norse fan for a long time therefore cant wait to get my hands on it.. Have asked my wife to go and visit her parents on 19th April and spend few days there :P

[UCForce]

Another thing, this game have developed for 5 years. So this isn’t The Last of Us rip off.

[DialgaMarine]

People are only calling it that because apparantly TLoU invented great story telling and third person gameplay, and having a great story has become a negative for some reason. I guess every game has to be a mindless dudebro multiplayer fragfest to these people, because screw genre diversity. /s

[Big_Game_Hunters]

I think people are referring to the walking and talking gameplay/grumpy old dude able to care about someone again cliche.

[Jinger]

@Big Game Hunter

Precisely.

[MadLad]

Examples of this go far more back even, obviously. But when you said that, Alan Wake instantly came to mind.

[kevnb]

The presentation feels a lot like the last of us, if they were movies I would think they had the same director.

[_-EDMIX-_]

😂😂😂 exactly, they be like "oh great now another game with good narrative and great storytelling how many of those do we really need?"

What you saw from The Last of Us was extremely rare not just from Sony but from the industry in general I think some audiences are just angry because Sony has a stable of amazing games in terms of adult narratives.

Vs time to shoot a bunch of aliens mindlessly lol

[Gardenia]

I don't know about that. Kratos was always a stone cold killer without any mercy, and that is why we like him. But now all of a sudden he is the nice dad. I kind of hope that kid dies so Kratos goes in full rage mode for the rest of the game

As for the gameplay, I think it could work but we'll have to see

[UCForce]

The kid won’t die. Sony Santa Monica confirmed it. If you watch the previous trailer, you know Kratos said the kid is more than a man. Meaning he is god just like Kratos. I’m sorry, but Kratos lost his family once and he won’t repeat the same mistakes again.

[morganfell]

Nope. Play Ghost of Sparta.

[rainslacker]

He was a father in the original game. Just his back story as a father wasn't part of what he was doing in those games. Much of his reason for doing what he did was because of what happened to his wife and child.

[Vanfernal]

So you obviously never played GOW3...

[_-EDMIX-_]

Who said he was nice? I would argue Kratos character doesn't even come off as loving to this kid and clearly he's a merciless killer if he still actually killing it all the gameplay trailers and videos 😂😂😂

So are you telling me somebody cannot be a father and a merciless killer? So you're telling me you never knew that in the first God of War Game Kratos is a father?

Lol ok bud, looks like we just found someone who hasn't actually played this series it's so easy to just let them expose themselves when they try to talk about it.

[TheGamez100]

From what we've seen, its been looking great. Nice change from the old and in with the new, I mean theres been like 6 gow games with the same style of gameplay. Of course we will have to wait to play the game ourselves to come with a conclusion.

[PrinceVegeta]

Yes, but they changed the core o the gameplay, it looks slow and more focused on one on one encounters. GOW means fast paced over the top action and brutality. That for me is the core of the series which should be there. I'll reserve judgement until the game's release.

[AspiringProGenji]

It is still fast pace and the action and brutality are still there. It is just the different camera angle that changes the gameplay from a braindead hack n slah. There won’t be 1to1 encounters all the time. There will be hordes too

[DialgaMarine]

Have you not seen the trailers where Kratos is literally fighting a dozen enemies at a time, and juggling several with his axe swings? Haters keep claiming there hasn’t been much shown and that it looks slow, but we’ve seen plenty enough to know that it’s anything but slow.

[Jinger]

@aspiringprogenji

Are you calling the OG GoW games braindead hack n slash?

[AspiringProGenji]

Yes, in a good way I call it that. I meant GoW was a button masher pretty much. This one looks like it is less button mashing

[NapalmSanctuary]

@AspiringProGenji

If they wanted to move away from the brain dead aspects of the original series, they should have gone more in the direction of DMC/Ninja Gaiden. The current direction of this game is obviously more in the feelsy and cinematic direction. The gameplay does NOT look fun.

[DialgaMarine]

Won’t know 100% until we have the games in our hands, but I think it’ll be neither. “ For the better” suggests the previous formula was bad, which it clearly wasn’t. I don’t think it can be for the worse because the new game looks excellent. I think both formulas are great, and I trust the studio to make an excellent game regardless.

[Jinger]

It won't be for the better or worse... it'll just be different, but also good in its own way.

[fenome]

We'll find out soon!

[ShockUltraslash]

No they are not and Im not talking about the focus on story.
The fast paced action combat system has been removed, Kratos cant even jump, over the shoulder camera obstructs the gameplay, the gory finishers are gone.
And since he cant jump there isn't any platforming anymore.
Bring back the good old enjoyable combat system.
Why REMOVE features?

[Darkwatchman]

You know how satisfying combat will feel without the controller being in your hand? Damn, give me some of the clairvoyance.

[Rude-ro]

Fast paced is there, Kratos can jump, The camera backs away for the fight, Gory finishes are still there, and there is still platforming.

Just an fyi

[ShockUltraslash]

NO HE CANT JUMP.
http://www.thesixthaxis.com...
http://gameranx.com/updates...
Let the player control the camera instead of forcing some arbitrary restriction on them.

[Rude-ro]

Kratos has reactionary maneuvers and a jump.
It’s just not the same “jump” in the older god of wars.
It has been shown in gameplay videos.

[ShockUltraslash]

How? how can he jump if the creator specifically states that jumping has been removed?
Are you making this game?

You cant jump with a button, which means that is a downgrade and this will negatively impact gameplay experience.

[Goldby]

@shock

if they only thing preventing you from enjoying the game is a jump button... you were never a GOW fan to begin with

[Prince_TFK]

@goldby

Actually it should be the other way around. Jumping was one of the core gameplays for the past GOW games. Removing this button mean that there are no more platformings. As an old time fan, I’m disappointed that this feature was taken out in order to make the game more “cinematic”. I am also disappointed that they had removed some of the fan favorites weapons from the past games.

However, As a fan I am still very interested in this new GOW and I will most likely buy this day one to support Santa Monica.

[rainslacker]

"Why remove features"

Maybe to make a different playstyle? You're judging that before playing it, but you have apparently no clue what's been added or changed for the new direction.

people can whine about it all they want, but nothing is going to change now. Might as well at least give it a chance. You can enjoy the new and still be a fan of the series. You can rent it if you are unsure, because I doubt you're gong to get an unbiased look at it if you are already predisposed to thinking it sucks before even playing it.

Much of what you seem to lament being removed has simply been changed a bit, and some of it still exists. Maybe look past the E3 showings, because there is some cool stuff going on.

[ShockUltraslash]

"Maybe to make a different playstyle?"
What is the point of removing the playstyle that fans of the originals grew to love and enjoy? alienating the fan base is not a good way to make sequels.
If they wanted to implement something new then nothing stops them from doing so. Let fans of the original enjoy what they want to enjoy WHILE bringing in new players. But no they had to remove a key feature that was integral to the gameplay.
@Goldby
Do you have any idea how much that reduces the scope of the combat system? without jumping you
1) Cannot use air combos,
The series features fast and satisfying air combos that feel good to execute, and you can hit airborne enemies removing jumping takes all that away.
2) Cannot evade certain attacks.
many of the ground pound type attacks could be evaded by jumping, and now this removes one layer of complexity from the game.
3) No more platforming.
The fun and engaging puzzle platforming segments are now gone

[rainslacker]

Most of the fan base doesn't appear to be alienated though. They made how many games with the original formula? Isn't it worth letting them shake it up a bit and maybe try something new?

You say you like all those games in the past, which means you probably have some respect for the developer, but aren't willing to even concede that maybe they can make a great game again with a different presentation?

That doesn't sound like a fan to me. That sounds like an entitled brat who has no faith in those they claim to respect. You haven't played the game, or seen enough to make a final judgement on the game. You don't know if the changes they made are good or bad. All you know is that it's not exactly like the other games, and you don't like that. If you want to play it like the older games, GOW3 is available on PS4. Enjoy it and move on. If you play the new game, then you can maybe criticize with specific examples of how the changes ruined anything, and how they all relate to the new game play that has been implemented, instead of sounding like a parrot that is too biased to keep an open mind.

To me, the change in story direction is a very welcome change, because in the past, the story was pretty shallow and Kratos was extremely one dimensional.

[ShockUltraslash]

How do you know that? you dont speak for most of the fanbase and you cant impose your decisions on them. Most of the fanbase enjoyed jumping platforming and want the feature to be present. Again you are just assuming that the fanbase dosent dont want new gameplay, we want new gameplay but not at the expense of core mechanics be removed.

Why are you calling downgrade DIFFERENT?

YOU don’t get to assume who is a fan and who isn’t. Someone who enjoyed the originals is a fan and they continue to be a fan when those gameplay elements are present in the following iterations.
A good fan would provide constructive criticism rather than going with any decision made by the developer. You are assuming the changes they made are automatically good based on what exactly? Have you played the game? If you want to play some post apocalyptic daddy simulator then go play last of us. GOW is not about the story, if you want story please play other games. Just like you told me to play the originals.

Also why is the removal of jumping any good?
Can you explain ONE ADVANTAGE of jumping being removed and the combat being slowed down?

[rainslacker]

"you dont speak for most of the fanbase and you cant impose your decisions on them"

Maybe look in a mirror. I haven't seen an inordinate amount of the fan base upset with the changes. Obviously some are not going to be happy with the changes, but anyone who makes a final judgement before even seeing the game, or knowing more, is just jumping to conclusions and obviously bias.

I'd rather give the benefit of the doubt and be pleased or disappointed, than continue acting like an idiot who won't even give it a chance, because in the latter case, it's likely that they'll allow others to form their opinion for them.

You need to learn what a downgrade is. A downgrade would be including a feature, but greatly reducing it's effectiveness or impact on the game. This is a change. Hence...a reboot. It's been a reboot from the beginning. Accept it and either play the game or don't, but don't act like you are the sole proprietor of how the GOW fan feels about the game, because from what I've seen, you are in a minority.

And yes, I can assume who is a fan and who isn't. I don't consider anyone a fan who won't at least give it a chance, and makes claims that the game will be ruined because it doesn't have platforming elements or the combat is different. For all we know, the way platforming is done differently, and maybe the combat is a huge improvement over the originals and it'll be more fun.

The problem with your comments is that all you do is parrot criticism. You can't make any actual objective analysis of the things you complain about, because most of it is an unknown right now. You say the lack of a jump ability completely ruins the original game play. I say it changes it, not ruins it. I keep an objective, open mind, because SSM has proven it's worth countless times in the past.

[UCForce]

You don’t know who make this game, do you ? The guy who behind God Of War 2. And also, can you say the same thing with Gear Of War series ? From I remember and played original Gear of Wars, the game didn’t have jump button.

[UCForce]

And your statement sound very childish.

[AspiringProGenji]

You are the only one being alienated. Everyone is either positive about the changes or cautious, but alienated is a stretch. It is ok to be worried about changes, but me as a fan of GoW I am actually more excited about the changes than wishing for the same thing over and over. And top of that, this is Santa Monica Studios, which every fan should trust by now, but you aren’t probably a GoW fan at all and you are just making a big deal about this changes

[stokedAF]

I’ll let you know in a little over a month.

[Darkstorm6111]

Why is the game trying to be last of us so bad?
Change is god when it adds stuff, not when it tries to copy some other game's popularity.

[Hardiman]

I wasn't aware TLOU was the only game to have a good narrative?!?! So I guess any game nowadays that has a solid story is a rip on TLOU!

[Jinger]

It's not just a good narrative... if you can't see the parallels of the two then you're just being blind or stubborn.

[Jinger]

Let's just go down the check list shall we?

1. Grumpy bearded old guy who lost his family - check
2. Grumpy bearded old guy has to take care of new child - check
3. Grumpy bearded old guy and child go through a journey together - check
4. Grumpy bearded old guy imparts his wisdom and knowledge and is guarded at first to reveal his past, but eventually warms up. - check
5. Grumpy bearded old guy routinely finds himself having to go over the top to protect the kid. - check.

[Goldby]

@Jinger

Grump old guy must decide between the human population and saving a girl - un check
Grumpy old guy uses shotguns, pistols and wooden planks to defend himself - uncheck
Grumpy old guy protects the only known immune girl (at the time) from virus infected people - uncheck
immune girkl has own dlc telling about how she was bitten, how she was immune, and what she had to do to her significant other - uncheck

no so many similarieties, but i guess if you go looking for it, you will find it.

i guess because Geralt was trying to rescue and save ciri in Witcher 3, that Witcher 3 is also a copy and past of Last of us.

[rainslacker]

Nice to see Jinger has had a full viewing of the games story to be able to impart his take on the parallels between them. Kratos still seems like an a**hole. Somehow, I don't think it's going to have the same story premise as TLOU. Plus, Kratos was grumpy and bearded before Joel was, and also gaurded his feelings in the original games, only to later show rage when he finally let it out. I didn't see a lot of that kind of thing from Joel.

I guess every game in the future with a kid one has to escort will be compared to TLOU. Although it seems that from last gen Telltales The walking Dead did it first....and I'm sure that story has been around before that in countless movies, books, and TV shows.

[Jinger]

@goldby

The weapons part doesn't matter when we are talking narrative similarities.

Also, Kratos may have to decide to save his kid or the world at the end, we will see.

Grumpy old guy might be protecting his son who is a key to something also... he does have Norse magical powers and it seems lime the Norse gods want to capture the kid for some reason... again, we will see.

But there are a lot of similarities here.

Edit: plus Corey Balrog from the beginning said he took heavy inspiration from TLoU and naughty dog so it's only natural that there will be tonal similarities. Not saying it's necessarily a bad thing, just saying that there are similarities

[AspiringProGenji]

If that is all the similarities you can find between the two, then damn that’s really nothing that screams “rip off” since TlOU wasn’t a hack n slash nor was about myths. This game still retains its core experince regardless of all of that uou mentioned.

I believe Kratos having a kid in a new land gives the character a purpose for this new adventure. Like, what would be the reason for Kratos to be in Norse lands at all? Kill gods in every land until the world explodes? How stupid would that be?

I believe this is the reason They went for this narrative. TLoU influences may be there sure but for a good reason, but people like you still keep beating this dead horse without looking at the potential this brings to develop Kratos and the series even further, and it is pretty clear they did this for that reason instead of “here’s a new myth, kill all the Gods! That’s GoW for you.” No, just no!

Do you even know why GoW2 is considered the best in the series? It wasn’t because of button mashing alone, it was actually the narrative that gave it that title

[paintedgamer1984]

Lol ignore darkstorm... some ppl will try to nit pick things to death just because... the game will still rate highly and sell millions 🤗 this game is in good hands and i cant wait to play it

[Goldby]

@Jinger

"Also, Kratos may have to decide to save his kid or the world at the end, we will see"

Well i guess you havent kept up with all things GOW.

His kid doesnt die in this game, so there goes that attempt.

"The weapons part doesn't matter when we are talking narrative similarities. "

except you know... when its about weapons from mythology... or the fact that Kratos was unable to remove the chains in the first 6 games... the fact that he looks down at his arms, to where the scars and chains used to be tells me it has something to do with the narrative.

but hey, im goign to school for screenwriting and narrative design. what do i know.

"But there are a lot of similarities here. "

and for every similarity there is, there are probably 10 to 20 pieces of the game that aren't similar.

[doos_vd_kak]

@Jinger

"Let's just go down the check list shall we?

1. Grumpy bearded old guy who lost his family - check
2. Grumpy bearded old guy has to take care of new child - check
3. Grumpy bearded old guy and child go through a journey together - check
4. Grumpy bearded old guy imparts his wisdom and knowledge and is guarded at first to reveal his past, but eventually warms up. - check
5. Grumpy bearded old guy routinely finds himself having to go over the top to protect the kid. - check."

Let's face it, you're an xbox fanboy and you are all over this thread as if you think you know what's cutting when you most definitely don't. You sure have a lot to say about a game you're not interested in. It seems recent God of War articles have been littered with xbox fanboys desperately trying to downplay this game. When it releases and slays in reviews and sales, i also expect the same fanboys to run and scatter, much like what happened with Horizon zero dawn. Boy were fanboys put in their place with that game. I expect TLOU 2, death stranding, Spiderman, Detroit, dreams to go through the same cycle.

[UCForce]

@Jinger Kratos and Atreus Journey are more personal. It’s nothing like The Last of Us. You should play Ghost of Sparta to understand Kratos personal backgrounds. Ares turned Kratos into a monster and Kratos begging God to kill him but they denied. Kratos have become blinded when killing god without knowing the consequences even the god was corrupted by the evil(Pandora Boxes). In Ghost of Sparta, Kratos respect his brother and his family. He did admitted himself that he becoming a monster. This time Kratos have a second chance to live a life that he has lost before.

[MagusreaperX]

From all the gameplay released so far? hell no combat looks slow and stupid.

[Felsager]

Sorry mate, God of War is only available for the PS4.

:D

[ThunderStream]

The series reached a peak with GOW3, Kratos story is already over and he SHOULD BE DEAD.
Ascension was not very popular and this was time for Santa Monica to move on to another new IP.
But no! Sony cant take risks!
New combat looks like Dark souls and that is not a good thing.
GOW combat was always fast paced and flashy, I love dark souls but I dont want the market to be filled with souls clones.

[LP-Eleven]

"Sony can't take risks" - All credibility lost right there.

OT: I don't know. I haven't played it yet. I'll say that it's God of War. No matter what they do, I'm in! Series has yet to let me down!

[Felsager]

ThunderStream, I'm sorry but this game is not available on XBONEX. You need to get a PS4 if you want to play it.

C:

[Hardiman]

I think the changes are very welcome! I got the original trilogy all day one and loved them but really if I'm honest I didn't want another "same" style game and love everything I've seen so far!

I think the fact that Cory and company should be applauded for not just doing a cut and paste cash in! It's almost time and I believe those who are on the fence will be pleasantly surprised. Those who are set in their ways will never be swayed so it is what it is!

[rainslacker]

I'll reserve judgement. But I don't see the changes in any way making it a bad game. I see them as maybe not pleasing some fans of the original style, and that's understandable. But in the end, one may enjoy this game more. I know I probably will, because I was never vested in the story of the originals and found Kratos to be one dimensional, and while I really enjoyed the game play of the originals, it was usually pretty by the numbers in terms of what you could do and how you progressed in the learning curve, with usually only one or two changes to combat from one to the next.

I have a feeling that despite the fact that a lot of Xbox fans seem really disappointed that it's not like the old GOW games, it's going to sell pretty well. I've only seen a couple people I know that are PS fans seem upset about it, and even then, I wouldn't really call it upset, but rather they feel they'd prefer the original style, but even those couple seem willing to give the new game a chance.

[Flewid638]

I'm a fan of everything about this version except for how the gameplay looks. I even welcome the camera change.....but that Axe.....it's such an underwhelming looking weapon. :-(

[P_Bomb]

I agree, at least from initial impressions. Loved the blades of chaos, blades of athena. So versatile and a nice original feeling weapon. Good up close, from a distance, in the air. Loved how Ascension let you hook one onto an enemy while still freely swinging the other.

The axe has a lot to live up to. Don’t simply want Mjolnir. When I saw Kratos look at his arms where the chains used to be (in that last trailer), I popped.

[GamingSinceForever]

Won’t know until you’ve played it.

[Flewid638]

Absolutely. But we still all have impressions based on what we see.

[Silly gameAr]

Here we go with this crap.

[showtimefolks]

We won't know till it launches I do know this that the series needed a change and it got one

[MadLad]

Time will tell. To be fair, I thoroughly enjoyed the series but, in honesty, the gameplay style was never my thing. It was just done as well as it was, and when combined with the story and locations, I found it a very worthwhile experience.
As for personal preference, I like the feel of the upcoming release far more. A departure for the series? Of course. And many hardcore fans my find problem with that. That said, the talent is there, I what should be on offer is a great experience, as long as you can get behind the change in direction.

[Yui_Suzumiya]

Hell yes.. the third game was the only one I really loved from all the prior ones and I played them all except for Ascension. This one looks tops to me.

[Enjoigamin]

Day 1 for me...but slower gameplay is kinda disappointing.

[Skankinruby]

I think it's hilarious how when gameplay first surfaced people calles me out as ignorant for acknowledging the clear parallels with the new direction this series took to TLOU. You're an idiot if you don't see the inspiration. These changes could be absolutely brilliant if the executed them right. Humanizing Kratos and having a story with substance is a much needed breath of fresh air to this series. I'm definitely stoked.

[Chumdiddy]

It had to change to continue but we'll see if it's for the better. I'm a huge GoW fan and I still have small reservations, tbh.

Still, the only way I skip it is if it's pulling in sub-7/10 scores.

[Forn]

I know I'm in the minority here, but I really wish they had brought back the MP from Ascension and expanded on it in this new game. It was super original and fun.

[Silly gameAr]

I loved the MP. I'm with you there. It was underrated.

[TheOttomatic91]

Too early to say but the consensus after their last title God Of War Ascension was that fans were tired of the same old formula

[The_Sage]

Yes. It's 2018. Time to evolve.

[Markusb33]

This game will sell millions and I would say it's helped by the new direction. If it was the original design I would be a low seller in my view.

[windblowsagain]

Looking forward to it, a welcome addition.

Everything must change.

[FernDiggidy]

I just want the gameplay to be king like it was for GoW3!!! 4/20 can't come soon enough

[Elantregaless]

What the hell are they doing? copying last of us daddy post apocalyptic is just going to piss people off.

[DivineAssault]

YES! Ascension was enough with the same style.. All the psp titles on top of 4 console titles.. This needed to happen and it looks great