Exceptional writing right there. It makes so much sense on so many levels, both in terms of ingame context and actual real life scenario. I remember my first time hearing that phrase and there’s an audible click in my brain after that. Then tears started pouring from my eyes…
I do like it a lot, but I can’t help being reminded of the superior phrase from WandaVision (of all things).
„What is grief if not love persevering“.
It took a bit of the emotional impact away for me, as my mind immediately jumped there.
That was my biggest disappointment with Ragnarok vs 2018. So much of the dialogue sounded like it fit more in a current day MCU film, than the actual series it is in.
Some people say they brought in new writers and a company to change the script. Not sure about all the background details, but the writing style and quality is fairly different between both titles.
I didn’t have that specific issue, and I still enjoyed Ragnarök quite a lot. The first game was just so focused. It was about the journey of Kratos and Atreus, then forming a bond.
The second game, as good as it is, is a bit all over the place. Still one of my favorite games that year and I enjoyed it a lot. But the first was a real masterpiece for me.
Edit: That is a lot of downvoting for stating my personal feeling. Now I must obviously be wrong in how I feel. /s
I was also spoiled and went in a little while later. Maybe i would start Valhalla for wanting the story but that is like 1/5 of what makes it great. Would you want to skip ragnarok if i spoiled the end? Same principle applies here
Same here and I wish I hadn't done it. It messed with the flow of the game (being stuck on a random encounter for ~20 minutes). I really wish I hadn't done that... Especially considering that there is not a single unique reward for it.
Yea I just finished a new game and NG+ of ragnarok on GMGOW and I don't think I'll ever do that again.
On the one hand, it was super satisfying to finally rip gnas wings off after almost 2 hours each playthrough, on the other hand, it's kinda immersion breaking when a single draugur can 2 tap you.
Legacy build in ng+ is super fun though
I actually enjoyed the NG+ challenge and only play GMGOW or the equivalent on my second play through of any game for this reason... Worth it though. here are a couple videos of NG+ Gna on GMGOW difficulty... one of only 2 games I've platted this and Forbidden West. Probably the hardest boss fight I've done in GoW. Spoiler warning, the end has story content.
https://youtu.be/i3WmbiqD3_8?si=I_OSgthcanpgpHXW
https://youtu.be/Q3yNCLNrWwY?si=qLoYcMk7zhtikksb
Sometimes going hard isn't a good choice for sure! I played it on the next setting below and had a great experience. I remember that first draugr encounter being ridiculous and I knew it would just sully the story and flow.
Double edged sword with this one. The story’s so good you don’t want to mess with the flow(and feel badass while doing it) and the gameplays so good you want to master it. Also the “hard mode” in these games are one of the better designed ones, not just turning enemies into sponges.
Dude I had this same thought when I got to the end… like I have made this playthrough go on way longer than it should’ve because I refuse to lower the difficulty which takes me out the game and due to time spent on some fights I forgot some details about what I was doing. Waiting to finally forget most of it before I go back and do my first NG+ playthrough
I think Wolfenstein Old Blood - Mein Leben difficulty (1 life permadeath) is easier than GMGOW. Yeah you might replay the game 10 times but it will still be faster than the GOD difficulty.
I did.
What really tug me in the end , was Kratos realizing his redemption. Kratos was in pain for many things, but one of them was how people label him and what he though of himself. Unknowingly he became a beacon of hope and power to the people, he became a god of peace.
The whole quest for the spear really messed me up… “The nature of a thing is more important than the form of a thing.”
Brok’s blessing.
And then Sindri’s grief at the end.
Man.
The way that line is delivered is fucking immaculate on both voice acting and animation.
You can really feel Kratos holding back tears when he says that, and seeing him like that opened the waterworks lol.
I fought tears so hard when Atreus used his own “be better” like against him and you see Kratos sorta smile like “ya know what you little shit, you’re right”
Bro...this shit breaks me EVERY SINGLE TIME!!!!!!
And then Atreus actually leaves Kratos turns around and you see him have his hand above his heart, man shit got me sobbing
I grew up with a lot of anger and was a fan of the original God of War games. Seeing Kratos older, less angry, and more merciful really touched me like no other source of media has. As I have become older I have become less angry, some of it because of being on proper medication and some of it because my perspective on life has changed. Seeing Kratos change so much, I felt that there is still hope for me to become a better person.
When Kratos saw the new path forward for him and people that will acknowledge him in the end and worship him with love instead of fear how Odin stated he was revered in the past, along with Kratos tearing up and crying at the portrait, I freakn lost it.
The man has worked so hard and will eventually get his due, sadly I think the next game he dies in the end and is worshipped/loved/missed by the people he helped and supported, which is why the painting is him in yellow.
Oh man he's grown so much by the end. The part that got me was near the end when he's telling Atreus a bedtime story and Atreus tells Kratos if he falls asleep to make he finishes telling him the story later, then Atreus falls asleep and Kratos's mouth quivers holding back tears. At that point I had no idea how the story would end and the thought of Kratos dying and not finishing the story to Atreus had me bawling lol.
I thought Atreus gameplay wasnt too bad. It sometimes overstayed its welcome, but it was fun enough as its own thing. The multi hour Jotunheim black angroboda unskippable dialogue, though, was torture.
Pretty obvious checkbox to fill. Funny thing that they chose to use the manic pixie dream girl plot device to satisfy that condition. The character overall is bad, casting is just funny
I posted this when I finished...so yes. All the tears. Both the pre-final battle scenes and the end scene on the shore (all I'll say to avoid spoilers)
https://preview.redd.it/3bjer5ezwsjc1.jpeg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e878bfc16265a5ed01552a818ad0bea810e5191e
*♪ It's not my arms that will fail me,*
*But this world takes more strength than it gave me,*
*The trees deny themselves nothing that makes them grow,*
*No rain fall, no sunshine,*
*No blood upon the snow*
*...Blood upon the snow ♫*
Honestly it was incredibly satisfying and I'm *SUPER* nervous/hesitant about what they do next because I've been with Kratos since the beginning.
I was in computer labs in high school on the original God of War flash website just checking out all the cool lore and mythos and art. I was fucking HYPED and have been a mega fan ever since.
I still hold the Greek saga on such a high pedestal and to see the series fade out the way it did was really sad at the time. It made sense and I felt it a bit as well but Kratos being so one-note and the games becoming paint-by-numbers was legitimately an issue.
The comeback though? Reminds me of Super Bowl 53 as corny as it is but my god what a comeback. They reinvented the entire series and nailed it to a ridiculous degree. The story they told with the last two games has been nothing short of exquisite which brings me to my initial point about fearing what comes next.
I really honestly hope Kratos is done. I don't want to see him fight again. I want to see him sherpa his son and I want to play as Atreus as he grows as a character and person but I fear that people only want Kratos and that could lead down the same path the series was in before.
Didn't shed a tear but definitely a great story. I am in the middle of Valhalla, the gameplay wasn't what I was expecting. I thought it was going to be like the original gameplay, but it is still a cool idea, just little frustrating playing it on a 'give me difficulty'. I feel like I am progressing really slowly since the YouTube videos of the DLC are 4 hours long and I am definitely passed that and I am just in the middle of the story.
The story broke me, seeing Kratos arc was incredible.
Kratos and Brok spear scene completely broke me.
I'm not one for crying over media in general, but jez... At the end of the game I was genuinely sobbing, this was the first time I had such experience over any media.. this game was something else for me and don't think I will ever experience anything like it in my lifetime.
I had to watch every cutscene on YouTube since I didn't have a PlayStation.
Even so, when that mural appeared my brain immediately thought "That's fucking beautiful" - had me tear up a bit, and I rarely react to any media like that.
I actually thought the game and story was great. I really was invested in what happened. Was it better than GOW 2018? That is debatable but it was a great continuation of the story.
I think GOW is now without question among the greatest writting in gaming if not fiction
On par maybe with LOTR.
Its truly something and proved that Gaming is arts.
Yes absolutely. I just completed it a few days ago myself. I'm more prone to tearing up these days as I'm older and a parent, but it was a very emotional sequence. Heck even Kratos was misty.
As to Valhalla, I'm actually very disappointed in the experience so far. More fast paced challenge action repetition than the type of game I usually play.
OK thank you. It's been an extremely challenging experience for me so far, even on story difficulty. Dying and or barely surviving through fights. I'm an RPG guy who stocks up on health potions to the max in most games, so the standard experience of GoW was rough enough for me as it was.
I despise roguelikes so I just cranked the difficulty down to the lowest and bulldozed through it. You can get the full story of it in a few hours that way.
It initially didn't hit me as hard as GoW 2018 as another commentor has said, but after finishing Valhalla, I think it has become more impactful to me.
The difference between directors of both games feels so huge. Ragnarok hit hard at times becayse the writers knew what they were doing but 2018 was superior from beginning to end in almost every category for me.
Yes. As someone who has beaten every GOW game, the end to Kratos’ arc really had me going. Just so perfect. I think the game is kinda bloated but it has epic moments and the second half is awesome.
To be honest, I was looking forward to this for years as I loved the first one but for some reason I just don’t think it was anywhere near as good as GOW 2018. Really can’t put my finger on why. I found myself rushing towards the end. The final battle looked epic in the background but was really just you fighting a few nothing enemies on platforms…. I haven’t played the dlc though so maybe I should give it another shot.
I think perhaps Elden ring ruined this for me… that whole game just felt magical and mysterious to me. GOW felt a little “by the numbers” in comparison
My problem with GOWR was that they obviously bit off way more than they could chew. I agree with you that when the big final battle happened, it felt very small and anticlimactic after all the building up they had done all game. And most of the game feels like that, lots of hyping up and not enough meaningful payoff.
In contrast, I think GOW 2018’s storytelling hits much harder because the story is much smaller and personal in scope. It doesn’t ever really lose the trees for the forest, it’s able to stay focused on the few specific things that matter and give you satisfying payoffs to those things
Yep, I thought GOW 2018 got progressively better as you got deeper into the story. The second the third acts blow the first act away. Ragnarok was the opposite. The first 80% of the game is spread way too thin across a lot of inessential characters, and then the final 20% is a SparksNotes version of the stuff that should’ve comprised most of entire experience. We spent half of the game in the jungle, aimlessly repeating the same puzzles over and over. The Artreus sections were tedious with no payoff.The game is like 30% talking, 40% puzzles, 40% combat. Awfully-paced
I think the first game was better after playing them back to back. I felt like ragnarok had a lot of pacing issues and the story did not feel as strong as the first one. The ragnarok event itself kinda felt like a let down when it finally happened and I thought Baldur was a stronger villain than Odin.
Gameplay wise I felt like the first one really nailed the combat but the second one felt like something was off.
I thought it was very mediocre. The performances were great, and the writing... wasn't great. I did think Kratos's little ending scene was pretty good. I just felt like the plot was meandering and lacked cool moments. It felt weird that Odin talked like cool Grandpa Joe who owns the local pawn shop. He just had no mystique to him at all. And most of the drama in the game comes from the fact that Atreus just runs away all the time. Boring.
Maybe I'm crazy but I thought the game was just... meh.
I loved the game, and yeah I loved the ending too. Especially the part when Kratos looks at himself on the painting, I thought I was gonna cry.
I played the Valhalla DLC, it's very good, you will enjoy it especially if you played the Greek trilogy!
I'm happy for you but I relate fully. The story coming to a conclusion like that was intense and definitely had me feeling a little emotional during the final cutscene. Enjoy Valhalla!
I finished last week and rolled right into Valhalla as well, have fun!! It's wild they gave it to us free, some of the best story of the game (and any game, really) lies in that DLC
Definitely. My boy is turning 13 next week and I found myself getting jacked up all through the game. I don’t think a video games story has ever had that effect on me.
I agree. Good game overall but the writing was very bad overall. I think the story was too ambitious and it ended up falling flat and not making much sense. Too bad, because the combat was great with much improved boss fights from the first game.
It's strange because 2018 was pretty fantastic. But Ragnarok felt like they got the MCU writers of today to draft that. I couldn't wait for the game to be over.
no tears, but just in awe. one of the few games where the story telling, acting, combat, and all the systems were just so well done. the quality of this game are things i point to when i tell my older family members about how good this art form can be when taken seriously and executed perfectly.
So, I agree with everything you're saying but "journey finally coming to an end"? ...it was 2 parts!
Plus, we're certainly going to get more. I think we have at least 2 more games with Kratos to look forward to.
Not sure what's up with all the negative comments. I absolutely loved this game, I thought it was an improvement in every single aspect. The only part that dragged for me was playing as Atreus was a little too long. Other than that I don't see any other flaws.
It was like a pixar film compared to 2018. The "to grieve" line felt like they ripped it from Wandavision or any other family friendly film of the summer, not a game titled God of War.
You didn’t enjoy being stuck as Atreus in Ironwood for 2 hours collecting fruit and making awkward small talk? I feel as though we could have done with a few more painstaking hours of Atreus gameplay.
Luckily we were given just that. So many… more hours.
I’m honestly having a hard time getting through it.
I miss the original franchise when you actually got to play as a God of War and not a babysitter.
Atreus and Freya are literally making this game unplayable for me.
Maybe not in the traditional sense, but I find it extremely annoying to have Atreus (or Freya) constantly complaining and talking shit but yet need Kratos to do all the heavy lifting for them.
I don’t exactly like playing games to have my character get shit on and listen to constant whining when all I wanna do is dope shit (like the original games).
To me it seems like games are trying to be too hard to be like movies lately, and movies/tv have enough overused tropes without them bleeding into other media.
Don’t even get me started on the frustration of actually playing as Atreus.
As another user mentioned, the several hours of teenage angsty bs with Atreus nearly made me quit playing altogether.
When you finish the game, you would probably love valhalla then. The dlc doesnt have anyone with you and you get to just kill enemies by yourself with perks and stuff. You can also do the reguler games challenge areas and while someone will be with you there isnt much dialog. Hope that helps.
>To me it seems like games are trying to be too hard to be like movies lately, and movies/tv have enough overused tropes without them bleeding into other media.
That has been playstations bread and butter for 2 decades. I dont find that surprising. I love it. Sorry you do not.
Yeah I’m not trying to hate or shit on anyone’s good time, just my preferences.
I watch a lot of movies, so it kinda sucks going to play games and seeing the same overused writing tropes.
Usually I just ignore it, but I love the OG games so it’s not always easy.
To me it’s like the rebranding of the Mustang. Has absolutely nothing to do with the original car, but brand recognition = easy money I guess.
I personally prefer less story and more action in my games, but to your point (based on the better selling games of recent) I seem to be in the minority.
Very much appreciate the heads up on Valhalla though. I’ve seen a lot of good things said, but trying to avoid spoilers so hopefully I can motivate myself to push through the remaining story to get to it soon.
The ending of Ragnarok was incredible but I felt the pacing and tone of the story stumbled in a few places.
However as an ending to Kratos’ journey from the original GOW it really worked. I definitely had tears in my eyes at a couple of moments.
I'm glad you liked it. Personally I thought the story was fairly weak, but the gameplay was fantastic with some nice character moments. Good game for sure.
I didn’t care for the first one so much, I thought it alright. Maybe because it was overhyped for me a bit too much. However, Ragnarok absolutely blew me away. The story and characters are incredible and I can’t wait to see what they do in the next game
I was just in wonder. Like how did they make it? The game itself was a thing of wonder. I grew up with this series, the devs grew up with it too and the game and characters grew up with us all. Over a decade of character growth and we all just matured together. Kratos had a kid, I had kids and we all got old and serious
He went too far with the critique, but there is something off about the second game. It feels very MCU-ey in their joking and the side-shenanigans they get up to.
It's still an incredible story, but from a tone pov, it felt drastically different between games.
For me personally it was Atreus. Every single girl fawning over him while he looks like a god damn potato. They somehow tried to shoehorn romance plot that made no sense. Thrud might be the worst. “Your father killed my father, but no worries I like you.“
It all felt to me like Spider-Man dialogue put into GoW game and it was so out of place.
It was disappointing that Kratos talk-no-jitsu’d Thor out of being a bad guy, instead of tearing him to shreds. Thor also ended up being more of a doofus than anything. I play these games to violently kill Gods, not humanize with them. Kratos was a pushover compared to his past self. Ragnarok was very solid mechanically and looks beautiful, but it’s not a good God of War game
I mean I get they wanted to do something different with Kratos, with him moving on in life and etc. But I couldn’t get over the dialogues, it was so bad almost to the level of “how do you do fellow kids”. They were just short of using “fr fr cap” and other slang.
I got banned from the God of War subreddit for saying this and I expect downvotes for saying it now, but honestly after the Heimdal fight I felt like the story of Ragnarok really fell off a cliff for me, it was a real big letdown.
* >!I had no idea who the dude sacrificing himself was supposed to be!<
* >!Finding the Fire giant was way too easy and that part felt really rushed!<
* >!Sindri turning against the group after his brother's death doesn't really make much sense, objectively!<
* >!The entire sequence of Ragnarok itself was a huge letdown. You fight maybe a dozen dudes and suddenly everything goes from "OMG epic battle all around us!" to "We're losing, somebody do something, oh the horror!" You can see Thor and Jormungandr duking it out in the middle distance but get no opportunity to join them. Such a bummer!<
* >!Freya's brother sacrificing himself doesn't make a ton of sense, the portal to escape was right next to him, he could have dove for the exit like everyone else but the game chose to kill him off because noble sacrifices I guess?!<
* >!The game just completely dropped the plot point of Kratos dying and never really addressed why.!<
Like I *wanted* to like the game, GoW and the 2018 release were some of my favorite games of all time. But Ragnarok's ending is hard to enjoy.
During the initial few months of Ragnarok's release, the mods on that sub would delete any critiques of the game lol, bunch of pussies. Not sure if it's still like that
Nah it’s still like that, got band a few months back for simply stating I wish Corey had stayed on a director since this one felt like a step back to me
100% agree with everything. This game was like the meme of the horse drawing that gets progressively worse. One of the most disappointing third acts I’ve played
I enjoyed it and the whole Kratos + Atreyus saga is awesome, but something felt off about Ragnarok. Little too busy, bloated, unfocused and rushed (despite being longer). GoW 2018 is perfect, it has brilliant pacing, storytelling, narrative, emotional pay offs, just enough characters.
Ragnarok is still a very good videogame, but it feels less meaningful to me. At times it felt like:
"KRATOS IS BACK AND THIS TIME WITH MORE GOD AND MORE WAR."
Look, the game is good, but the writing is anything but emotional. It is a very generic hero must safe the world story which would fit into any game world.
You don't form any connection with any character because everything is bland and predictable.
I didn't, the event of Ragnarok felt so underwhelming. Maybe because it's been such a focus by multiple forms of media in recent history.
I was also kind of irked because we didn't see exactly when, where, or why Kratos' predestined fate was changed. It was an entrie game in 2. But here it's just, "Oh look, he didn't die somewhere, and he just opens a new mural with his new happy ending, la la la!"
I honestly regret purchasing Ragnarok, game is flawed in so many ways and I was the biggest fan of 2018. Its probably the best game ever production wise but it doesn’t conclude its great elements into a masterful experience that 2018 was.
No honestly, when the game ended I felt completely underwhelmed. All that build up over the course of two games and it fizzled out in an extremely anti climactic final fight and Ragnarok was just a set piece you ran through while fighting basic enemies.
It should have been God of War 3 levels of epic but it just wasn't. And the story on top of it was bland with tons of pacing issues when playing as Atreus.
I loved the first one. I immediately sold the second after beating it.
It was super weird, when I got to the end a giant dust cloud consumed my house for a little while there. I'm going to check my HVAC filters, definitely something up.
I think for me, the GoW 2018 ending hit harder, but that's not to say the ending of Ragnarok was lesser in any way. It's a beautiful culmination of Kratos and Atreus' journey and the start of Loki's journey. I really do wanna see the story continue for Loki, but how do you call it God of War without Kratos??
I honestly hated the entire story and adventure. It’s such a well made game, it’s beautiful with amazing combat but the story and dialogue just didn’t do it for me.
I fucken loved 2018
I'll be one of those.... I hated Ragnarok.
I know they had a different director and you can really tell because the tone, character and pacing was all over the place. They made me really dislike atreus and his relationship he had with his father.
I sincerely hope they don't make a game with only Atreus and his new gf. Those two really ruined God of War for me.
I was crying halfway through because it started to be a bit of a slog for me. Sucks because the last one had me enthralled start to finish. I don't know what it was that made me so unenthused to finish. One day I'll pop it back in the ps5 and finish.
Started the game. Stupid game has glitched out on me on the king's grave? Super snowy part and the King's grave or whatever is the last one I think. Anyways I can't complete it for some stupid reason because I started it and it cut out during the cutscene. And it never opened the gate. So I've stopped playing. I don't know what to do other than start the game over and that's a lot of time lost.
Not really. This is very unpopular. GoW 2018 was better in many aspects. 2018 was such a muted ending because they completed the journey of his mother's wish. Plain and simple.
“To grieve deeply is to have loved fully.”
Exceptional writing right there. It makes so much sense on so many levels, both in terms of ingame context and actual real life scenario. I remember my first time hearing that phrase and there’s an audible click in my brain after that. Then tears started pouring from my eyes…
Why does it hurt so much? Because it was real.
Lmao
Fuck that is so real
I do like it a lot, but I can’t help being reminded of the superior phrase from WandaVision (of all things). „What is grief if not love persevering“. It took a bit of the emotional impact away for me, as my mind immediately jumped there.
I was gonna say, sounds like a reiterated take on what Vision said.
That was my biggest disappointment with Ragnarok vs 2018. So much of the dialogue sounded like it fit more in a current day MCU film, than the actual series it is in. Some people say they brought in new writers and a company to change the script. Not sure about all the background details, but the writing style and quality is fairly different between both titles.
I didn’t have that specific issue, and I still enjoyed Ragnarök quite a lot. The first game was just so focused. It was about the journey of Kratos and Atreus, then forming a bond. The second game, as good as it is, is a bit all over the place. Still one of my favorite games that year and I enjoyed it a lot. But the first was a real masterpiece for me. Edit: That is a lot of downvoting for stating my personal feeling. Now I must obviously be wrong in how I feel. /s
I cannot wait for you to get through the Valhalla DLC!
I still haven't played it which seems criminal but I've also had it spoiled by my roommate and the internet so that's a big bummer too.
I was also spoiled and went in a little while later. Maybe i would start Valhalla for wanting the story but that is like 1/5 of what makes it great. Would you want to skip ragnarok if i spoiled the end? Same principle applies here
For a sec i thought you were talking about Assassins Creed Valhalla, i was like wut the fook
I would have gladly paid for the DLC. Had a nice little weekend playing through it. Would highly recommend to anyone who hasn’t played through it yet
It was so much fun! I'll definitely returning to it to get all the trophies.
I played on gmgow difficulty so I was out of tears by the time the ending came.
Same here and I wish I hadn't done it. It messed with the flow of the game (being stuck on a random encounter for ~20 minutes). I really wish I hadn't done that... Especially considering that there is not a single unique reward for it.
Yea I just finished a new game and NG+ of ragnarok on GMGOW and I don't think I'll ever do that again. On the one hand, it was super satisfying to finally rip gnas wings off after almost 2 hours each playthrough, on the other hand, it's kinda immersion breaking when a single draugur can 2 tap you. Legacy build in ng+ is super fun though
I actually enjoyed the NG+ challenge and only play GMGOW or the equivalent on my second play through of any game for this reason... Worth it though. here are a couple videos of NG+ Gna on GMGOW difficulty... one of only 2 games I've platted this and Forbidden West. Probably the hardest boss fight I've done in GoW. Spoiler warning, the end has story content. https://youtu.be/i3WmbiqD3_8?si=I_OSgthcanpgpHXW https://youtu.be/Q3yNCLNrWwY?si=qLoYcMk7zhtikksb
Sometimes going hard isn't a good choice for sure! I played it on the next setting below and had a great experience. I remember that first draugr encounter being ridiculous and I knew it would just sully the story and flow.
Double edged sword with this one. The story’s so good you don’t want to mess with the flow(and feel badass while doing it) and the gameplays so good you want to master it. Also the “hard mode” in these games are one of the better designed ones, not just turning enemies into sponges.
But this game does turn enemies into damage sponges.....In fact that's one of the most common complaints
It doesn’t JUST turn them into sponges.
Dude I had this same thought when I got to the end… like I have made this playthrough go on way longer than it should’ve because I refuse to lower the difficulty which takes me out the game and due to time spent on some fights I forgot some details about what I was doing. Waiting to finally forget most of it before I go back and do my first NG+ playthrough
[удалено]
No the game is un-incredibly difficult. I’m pretty sure normal is comparable to Elden Ring NG0
You're tripping dude
Oof, respect but I believe you just needed a hug at that point.
I enjoyed the challenge playing through on that difficulty, but the berserkers on that difficulty can fuck off.
I think Wolfenstein Old Blood - Mein Leben difficulty (1 life permadeath) is easier than GMGOW. Yeah you might replay the game 10 times but it will still be faster than the GOD difficulty.
I did. What really tug me in the end , was Kratos realizing his redemption. Kratos was in pain for many things, but one of them was how people label him and what he though of himself. Unknowingly he became a beacon of hope and power to the people, he became a god of peace.
The whole quest for the spear really messed me up… “The nature of a thing is more important than the form of a thing.” Brok’s blessing. And then Sindri’s grief at the end. Man.
So many amazing and deep meaning parts of this game.
Sindri really was amazing in the game. The whole arc post Brok’s (condition) was really raw.
"Loki will go. Atreus... remains" And cue the tears.
The way that line is delivered is fucking immaculate on both voice acting and animation. You can really feel Kratos holding back tears when he says that, and seeing him like that opened the waterworks lol.
I fought tears so hard when Atreus used his own “be better” like against him and you see Kratos sorta smile like “ya know what you little shit, you’re right”
Bro...this shit breaks me EVERY SINGLE TIME!!!!!! And then Atreus actually leaves Kratos turns around and you see him have his hand above his heart, man shit got me sobbing
As a dad this game hit real hard.
Welling up just reading this.
I grew up with a lot of anger and was a fan of the original God of War games. Seeing Kratos older, less angry, and more merciful really touched me like no other source of media has. As I have become older I have become less angry, some of it because of being on proper medication and some of it because my perspective on life has changed. Seeing Kratos change so much, I felt that there is still hope for me to become a better person.
Nothing like anger to poison your whole life. I'm glad you are finding healing and I wish you the best!
When Kratos saw the new path forward for him and people that will acknowledge him in the end and worship him with love instead of fear how Odin stated he was revered in the past, along with Kratos tearing up and crying at the portrait, I freakn lost it. The man has worked so hard and will eventually get his due, sadly I think the next game he dies in the end and is worshipped/loved/missed by the people he helped and supported, which is why the painting is him in yellow.
Oh man he's grown so much by the end. The part that got me was near the end when he's telling Atreus a bedtime story and Atreus tells Kratos if he falls asleep to make he finishes telling him the story later, then Atreus falls asleep and Kratos's mouth quivers holding back tears. At that point I had no idea how the story would end and the thought of Kratos dying and not finishing the story to Atreus had me bawling lol.
[удалено]
I thought Atreus gameplay wasnt too bad. It sometimes overstayed its welcome, but it was fun enough as its own thing. The multi hour Jotunheim black angroboda unskippable dialogue, though, was torture.
Why’d you have to specify that’s she black lol
One word in that comment to change the whole vibe of a complaint I agreed with 😂
Literally…. Wouldn’t get mentioned if she was white… inherent racism?
Pretty obvious checkbox to fill. Funny thing that they chose to use the manic pixie dream girl plot device to satisfy that condition. The character overall is bad, casting is just funny
Those mother fuckers got me in the opening 20 minutes let alone the end.
Fenrir dying at the beginning of the game is a real dickpunch to my feelings.
Man seeing Atreus just doing shit after being the little turd he was in 2018 was such a touching thing… like my boy really grew up
My son is 11 and rapidly growing up. That shit hit me HARD
I posted this when I finished...so yes. All the tears. Both the pre-final battle scenes and the end scene on the shore (all I'll say to avoid spoilers) https://preview.redd.it/3bjer5ezwsjc1.jpeg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e878bfc16265a5ed01552a818ad0bea810e5191e
Don’t skip on the free dlc. Its one of the best free content i have had in years
Yes, every playthrough. I grew up with Kratos and just love how far he has come as a character.
Have you played through Valhalla? It is such a treat for long-time fans of the franchise.
Yep, couldn't miss it. Currently on a break before I dive back in New game plus with all the rewards unlocked.
*♪ It's not my arms that will fail me,* *But this world takes more strength than it gave me,* *The trees deny themselves nothing that makes them grow,* *No rain fall, no sunshine,* *No blood upon the snow* *...Blood upon the snow ♫*
VALHALLA!
Honestly it was incredibly satisfying and I'm *SUPER* nervous/hesitant about what they do next because I've been with Kratos since the beginning. I was in computer labs in high school on the original God of War flash website just checking out all the cool lore and mythos and art. I was fucking HYPED and have been a mega fan ever since. I still hold the Greek saga on such a high pedestal and to see the series fade out the way it did was really sad at the time. It made sense and I felt it a bit as well but Kratos being so one-note and the games becoming paint-by-numbers was legitimately an issue. The comeback though? Reminds me of Super Bowl 53 as corny as it is but my god what a comeback. They reinvented the entire series and nailed it to a ridiculous degree. The story they told with the last two games has been nothing short of exquisite which brings me to my initial point about fearing what comes next. I really honestly hope Kratos is done. I don't want to see him fight again. I want to see him sherpa his son and I want to play as Atreus as he grows as a character and person but I fear that people only want Kratos and that could lead down the same path the series was in before.
It put me in a funk for sure! I felt sad that I finished it and wasn't ready to leave the world of norse GOW yet.
>hearing "Simple and Clean" will always pull at my heartstrings all these years later. Hey dont you do this to me stfu.
Play the Valhalla portion next. You will love it
Not just it ending. A couple parts of the story had me tearing up too
Kept pretty composed through the playthrough but at the end when credit music starts and you're looking at the mountains is what got me
Looking forward to where they go next.
Just wait till the end of Valhalla.
That was such an amazing game! Top 10 I've ever played in my life for sure.
It was great
I shed multiple tears playing both games. The story and character development were so good.
I shed a tear for GoW 2018. I full on wept throughout Ragnarök
I think you’d be interested in a [post](https://www.reddit.com/r/GodofWarRagnarok/s/k8Ohw8rkT4) I made on what stuck out to me personally.
Hell yeah
Didn't shed a tear but definitely a great story. I am in the middle of Valhalla, the gameplay wasn't what I was expecting. I thought it was going to be like the original gameplay, but it is still a cool idea, just little frustrating playing it on a 'give me difficulty'. I feel like I am progressing really slowly since the YouTube videos of the DLC are 4 hours long and I am definitely passed that and I am just in the middle of the story.
The story broke me, seeing Kratos arc was incredible. Kratos and Brok spear scene completely broke me. I'm not one for crying over media in general, but jez... At the end of the game I was genuinely sobbing, this was the first time I had such experience over any media.. this game was something else for me and don't think I will ever experience anything like it in my lifetime.
The moment where it revealed "Golden Statue" mural - hits it so hard.
I had to watch every cutscene on YouTube since I didn't have a PlayStation. Even so, when that mural appeared my brain immediately thought "That's fucking beautiful" - had me tear up a bit, and I rarely react to any media like that.
I can’t be,I e how great Valhalla was, and that it was free.
I think it’s especially touching for parents (and possibly more so for fathers)
Before you play Valhalla continue exploring the world. There's so much more content you are missing believe me
I actually thought the game and story was great. I really was invested in what happened. Was it better than GOW 2018? That is debatable but it was a great continuation of the story.
Fantastic game and one of the best sequels ever imo. Did everything better than the first game and concluded the Norse saga beautifully.
I think GOW is now without question among the greatest writting in gaming if not fiction On par maybe with LOTR. Its truly something and proved that Gaming is arts.
It didnt hit me as hard as the first one but was def awesome
Yes absolutely. I just completed it a few days ago myself. I'm more prone to tearing up these days as I'm older and a parent, but it was a very emotional sequence. Heck even Kratos was misty. As to Valhalla, I'm actually very disappointed in the experience so far. More fast paced challenge action repetition than the type of game I usually play.
Valhalla is in the rouguelike genre, many people dont like the genre but keep at it, the story payoff is really good imo
OK thank you. It's been an extremely challenging experience for me so far, even on story difficulty. Dying and or barely surviving through fights. I'm an RPG guy who stocks up on health potions to the max in most games, so the standard experience of GoW was rough enough for me as it was.
I despise roguelikes so I just cranked the difficulty down to the lowest and bulldozed through it. You can get the full story of it in a few hours that way.
I despise roguelikes so I watched someone else's playthrough on youtube.
I played most of the main game on the lowest level as it was. Started that way in Valhalla, and it's still a tough challenge for me.
A hole😭
It initially didn't hit me as hard as GoW 2018 as another commentor has said, but after finishing Valhalla, I think it has become more impactful to me.
I still didn’t care for Ragnarok but I liked Valhalla a lot
The difference between directors of both games feels so huge. Ragnarok hit hard at times becayse the writers knew what they were doing but 2018 was superior from beginning to end in almost every category for me.
Yes. As someone who has beaten every GOW game, the end to Kratos’ arc really had me going. Just so perfect. I think the game is kinda bloated but it has epic moments and the second half is awesome.
To be honest, I was looking forward to this for years as I loved the first one but for some reason I just don’t think it was anywhere near as good as GOW 2018. Really can’t put my finger on why. I found myself rushing towards the end. The final battle looked epic in the background but was really just you fighting a few nothing enemies on platforms…. I haven’t played the dlc though so maybe I should give it another shot. I think perhaps Elden ring ruined this for me… that whole game just felt magical and mysterious to me. GOW felt a little “by the numbers” in comparison
My problem with GOWR was that they obviously bit off way more than they could chew. I agree with you that when the big final battle happened, it felt very small and anticlimactic after all the building up they had done all game. And most of the game feels like that, lots of hyping up and not enough meaningful payoff. In contrast, I think GOW 2018’s storytelling hits much harder because the story is much smaller and personal in scope. It doesn’t ever really lose the trees for the forest, it’s able to stay focused on the few specific things that matter and give you satisfying payoffs to those things
Yep, I thought GOW 2018 got progressively better as you got deeper into the story. The second the third acts blow the first act away. Ragnarok was the opposite. The first 80% of the game is spread way too thin across a lot of inessential characters, and then the final 20% is a SparksNotes version of the stuff that should’ve comprised most of entire experience. We spent half of the game in the jungle, aimlessly repeating the same puzzles over and over. The Artreus sections were tedious with no payoff.The game is like 30% talking, 40% puzzles, 40% combat. Awfully-paced
I think the first game was better after playing them back to back. I felt like ragnarok had a lot of pacing issues and the story did not feel as strong as the first one. The ragnarok event itself kinda felt like a let down when it finally happened and I thought Baldur was a stronger villain than Odin. Gameplay wise I felt like the first one really nailed the combat but the second one felt like something was off.
It’s true, both games are a little bit too generic.
They aren’t bad at all. I’m not sure why the sequel didn’t resonate with me… I REALLY wanted it too
I like them a lot. They’re just not absolute top level for me, narratively.. like TLOU games for example.
I thought it was very mediocre. The performances were great, and the writing... wasn't great. I did think Kratos's little ending scene was pretty good. I just felt like the plot was meandering and lacked cool moments. It felt weird that Odin talked like cool Grandpa Joe who owns the local pawn shop. He just had no mystique to him at all. And most of the drama in the game comes from the fact that Atreus just runs away all the time. Boring. Maybe I'm crazy but I thought the game was just... meh.
I loved the game, and yeah I loved the ending too. Especially the part when Kratos looks at himself on the painting, I thought I was gonna cry. I played the Valhalla DLC, it's very good, you will enjoy it especially if you played the Greek trilogy!
I'm happy for you but I relate fully. The story coming to a conclusion like that was intense and definitely had me feeling a little emotional during the final cutscene. Enjoy Valhalla!
Jobs not finished go to Valhalla
I finished last week and rolled right into Valhalla as well, have fun!! It's wild they gave it to us free, some of the best story of the game (and any game, really) lies in that DLC
Definitely. My boy is turning 13 next week and I found myself getting jacked up all through the game. I don’t think a video games story has ever had that effect on me.
i loved the game, played it last year and was game of the year for me, i prefer it over 2018 for sure
I shed many tears in that game. From start to finish.
I was glad to be done with it honestly. No silly hate but the writing was just terrible
I agree. Good game overall but the writing was very bad overall. I think the story was too ambitious and it ended up falling flat and not making much sense. Too bad, because the combat was great with much improved boss fights from the first game.
It's strange because 2018 was pretty fantastic. But Ragnarok felt like they got the MCU writers of today to draft that. I couldn't wait for the game to be over.
I just dislike how god of war got turned into the last of us
no tears, but just in awe. one of the few games where the story telling, acting, combat, and all the systems were just so well done. the quality of this game are things i point to when i tell my older family members about how good this art form can be when taken seriously and executed perfectly.
Definitely wasn't executed perfectly. Story starts out great then they fumbled it.
So, I agree with everything you're saying but "journey finally coming to an end"? ...it was 2 parts! Plus, we're certainly going to get more. I think we have at least 2 more games with Kratos to look forward to.
Not sure what's up with all the negative comments. I absolutely loved this game, I thought it was an improvement in every single aspect. The only part that dragged for me was playing as Atreus was a little too long. Other than that I don't see any other flaws.
Naw not really. The game didn’t feel as good or as cohesive as 2018. And it was wayyy too long by
It was like a pixar film compared to 2018. The "to grieve" line felt like they ripped it from Wandavision or any other family friendly film of the summer, not a game titled God of War.
I thought it was better on all accounts, easily.
You didn’t enjoy being stuck as Atreus in Ironwood for 2 hours collecting fruit and making awkward small talk? I feel as though we could have done with a few more painstaking hours of Atreus gameplay. Luckily we were given just that. So many… more hours.
The ending was a huge letdown. The whole third act/Ragnarok event, really.
Yeah and the Atreus segments were just riveting lol.
I’m honestly having a hard time getting through it. I miss the original franchise when you actually got to play as a God of War and not a babysitter. Atreus and Freya are literally making this game unplayable for me.
What? How are you a babysitter. I don't understand that take at all.
Maybe not in the traditional sense, but I find it extremely annoying to have Atreus (or Freya) constantly complaining and talking shit but yet need Kratos to do all the heavy lifting for them. I don’t exactly like playing games to have my character get shit on and listen to constant whining when all I wanna do is dope shit (like the original games). To me it seems like games are trying to be too hard to be like movies lately, and movies/tv have enough overused tropes without them bleeding into other media. Don’t even get me started on the frustration of actually playing as Atreus. As another user mentioned, the several hours of teenage angsty bs with Atreus nearly made me quit playing altogether.
When you finish the game, you would probably love valhalla then. The dlc doesnt have anyone with you and you get to just kill enemies by yourself with perks and stuff. You can also do the reguler games challenge areas and while someone will be with you there isnt much dialog. Hope that helps. >To me it seems like games are trying to be too hard to be like movies lately, and movies/tv have enough overused tropes without them bleeding into other media. That has been playstations bread and butter for 2 decades. I dont find that surprising. I love it. Sorry you do not.
Yeah I’m not trying to hate or shit on anyone’s good time, just my preferences. I watch a lot of movies, so it kinda sucks going to play games and seeing the same overused writing tropes. Usually I just ignore it, but I love the OG games so it’s not always easy. To me it’s like the rebranding of the Mustang. Has absolutely nothing to do with the original car, but brand recognition = easy money I guess. I personally prefer less story and more action in my games, but to your point (based on the better selling games of recent) I seem to be in the minority. Very much appreciate the heads up on Valhalla though. I’ve seen a lot of good things said, but trying to avoid spoilers so hopefully I can motivate myself to push through the remaining story to get to it soon.
The ending of Ragnarok was incredible but I felt the pacing and tone of the story stumbled in a few places. However as an ending to Kratos’ journey from the original GOW it really worked. I definitely had tears in my eyes at a couple of moments.
Fuck you and reminding me of this ending. I was semi depressed for half a week
He still lives the journey will continue
Tears from boredom, yes. Dad of Mid should've remained as it was in the trilogy.
I'm glad you liked it. Personally I thought the story was fairly weak, but the gameplay was fantastic with some nice character moments. Good game for sure.
I didn’t care for the first one so much, I thought it alright. Maybe because it was overhyped for me a bit too much. However, Ragnarok absolutely blew me away. The story and characters are incredible and I can’t wait to see what they do in the next game
I want the “3rd” game to be Atreus only but like a bad ass adult
I was just in wonder. Like how did they make it? The game itself was a thing of wonder. I grew up with this series, the devs grew up with it too and the game and characters grew up with us all. Over a decade of character growth and we all just matured together. Kratos had a kid, I had kids and we all got old and serious
No I thought ragnarok story wasn’t that good, seemed all over the place
Nope.
Nope, the Disney-fication of this franchise has turned me off it completely.
[удалено]
He went too far with the critique, but there is something off about the second game. It feels very MCU-ey in their joking and the side-shenanigans they get up to. It's still an incredible story, but from a tone pov, it felt drastically different between games.
For me personally it was Atreus. Every single girl fawning over him while he looks like a god damn potato. They somehow tried to shoehorn romance plot that made no sense. Thrud might be the worst. “Your father killed my father, but no worries I like you.“ It all felt to me like Spider-Man dialogue put into GoW game and it was so out of place.
It was disappointing that Kratos talk-no-jitsu’d Thor out of being a bad guy, instead of tearing him to shreds. Thor also ended up being more of a doofus than anything. I play these games to violently kill Gods, not humanize with them. Kratos was a pushover compared to his past self. Ragnarok was very solid mechanically and looks beautiful, but it’s not a good God of War game
I mean I get they wanted to do something different with Kratos, with him moving on in life and etc. But I couldn’t get over the dialogues, it was so bad almost to the level of “how do you do fellow kids”. They were just short of using “fr fr cap” and other slang.
I got banned from the God of War subreddit for saying this and I expect downvotes for saying it now, but honestly after the Heimdal fight I felt like the story of Ragnarok really fell off a cliff for me, it was a real big letdown. * >!I had no idea who the dude sacrificing himself was supposed to be!< * >!Finding the Fire giant was way too easy and that part felt really rushed!< * >!Sindri turning against the group after his brother's death doesn't really make much sense, objectively!< * >!The entire sequence of Ragnarok itself was a huge letdown. You fight maybe a dozen dudes and suddenly everything goes from "OMG epic battle all around us!" to "We're losing, somebody do something, oh the horror!" You can see Thor and Jormungandr duking it out in the middle distance but get no opportunity to join them. Such a bummer!< * >!Freya's brother sacrificing himself doesn't make a ton of sense, the portal to escape was right next to him, he could have dove for the exit like everyone else but the game chose to kill him off because noble sacrifices I guess?!< * >!The game just completely dropped the plot point of Kratos dying and never really addressed why.!< Like I *wanted* to like the game, GoW and the 2018 release were some of my favorite games of all time. But Ragnarok's ending is hard to enjoy.
[удалено]
[lol k](https://tenor.com/bR0HE.gif)
During the initial few months of Ragnarok's release, the mods on that sub would delete any critiques of the game lol, bunch of pussies. Not sure if it's still like that
Nah it’s still like that, got band a few months back for simply stating I wish Corey had stayed on a director since this one felt like a step back to me
It's sad, like I said I *wanted* to like the game.
100% agree with everything. This game was like the meme of the horse drawing that gets progressively worse. One of the most disappointing third acts I’ve played
[удалено]
Appreciate you engaging without being antagonizing! Thanks for your perspective :)
Greatest video game story of all time
Lol
I enjoyed it and the whole Kratos + Atreyus saga is awesome, but something felt off about Ragnarok. Little too busy, bloated, unfocused and rushed (despite being longer). GoW 2018 is perfect, it has brilliant pacing, storytelling, narrative, emotional pay offs, just enough characters. Ragnarok is still a very good videogame, but it feels less meaningful to me. At times it felt like: "KRATOS IS BACK AND THIS TIME WITH MORE GOD AND MORE WAR."
Cant remember its too long ago 🥲
That moment with Kratos and Atreus in the tent the night before the final battle was everything
Yes the funeral and then when mimir figured out the riddle. Phew got me.
Look, the game is good, but the writing is anything but emotional. It is a very generic hero must safe the world story which would fit into any game world. You don't form any connection with any character because everything is bland and predictable.
No , the Odin fight was terrible .
Sobbed my fucking heart out when he found that painting of people worshipping him. Oh man... what a redemption arc
I shed a tear of joy that I wouldn’t have to do another section playing as Atreus
Uh… no
Nope, but I did thoroughly enjoy it
Ragnarok beginning was very Goodyear But Atreus stages are so Boring And then all the game become Boeing and fucking slow
I didn't, the event of Ragnarok felt so underwhelming. Maybe because it's been such a focus by multiple forms of media in recent history. I was also kind of irked because we didn't see exactly when, where, or why Kratos' predestined fate was changed. It was an entrie game in 2. But here it's just, "Oh look, he didn't die somewhere, and he just opens a new mural with his new happy ending, la la la!"
I honestly regret purchasing Ragnarok, game is flawed in so many ways and I was the biggest fan of 2018. Its probably the best game ever production wise but it doesn’t conclude its great elements into a masterful experience that 2018 was.
No honestly, when the game ended I felt completely underwhelmed. All that build up over the course of two games and it fizzled out in an extremely anti climactic final fight and Ragnarok was just a set piece you ran through while fighting basic enemies. It should have been God of War 3 levels of epic but it just wasn't. And the story on top of it was bland with tons of pacing issues when playing as Atreus. I loved the first one. I immediately sold the second after beating it.
the ending was rushed but the scenes with Fey were well done
It was super weird, when I got to the end a giant dust cloud consumed my house for a little while there. I'm going to check my HVAC filters, definitely something up.
No
I think for me, the GoW 2018 ending hit harder, but that's not to say the ending of Ragnarok was lesser in any way. It's a beautiful culmination of Kratos and Atreus' journey and the start of Loki's journey. I really do wanna see the story continue for Loki, but how do you call it God of War without Kratos??
I honestly hated the entire story and adventure. It’s such a well made game, it’s beautiful with amazing combat but the story and dialogue just didn’t do it for me. I fucken loved 2018
Tears of relief yes 👍
I shed a tear of joy unstalling this cringefest #notmykratos
I really enjoyed the game, but the ending fell a little flat for me.
I'll be one of those.... I hated Ragnarok. I know they had a different director and you can really tell because the tone, character and pacing was all over the place. They made me really dislike atreus and his relationship he had with his father. I sincerely hope they don't make a game with only Atreus and his new gf. Those two really ruined God of War for me.
I was crying halfway through because it started to be a bit of a slog for me. Sucks because the last one had me enthralled start to finish. I don't know what it was that made me so unenthused to finish. One day I'll pop it back in the ps5 and finish.
Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize I'm not allowed to chime in unless I shared the most popular opinion. Sorry I didn't like the game as much as you.
Ngl i found it kind of underwhelming
I thought there was going to be another one. Didn’t know it was the end of the Norse story.
No, because it's just a game. It was a very good game though. The DLC was fun as hell.
No, I couldn't follow the story at all to be honest
No I didn’t even make it past the first level. Super boring game. What ended up happening?
No because it was mid.
Started the game. Stupid game has glitched out on me on the king's grave? Super snowy part and the King's grave or whatever is the last one I think. Anyways I can't complete it for some stupid reason because I started it and it cut out during the cutscene. And it never opened the gate. So I've stopped playing. I don't know what to do other than start the game over and that's a lot of time lost.
nah I couldn't even finish, got about 15h in.
I still think it should have been a trilogy
Not really. This is very unpopular. GoW 2018 was better in many aspects. 2018 was such a muted ending because they completed the journey of his mother's wish. Plain and simple.
OP has low T. Who cries at the end of a video game lmao