God of War: Ragnarok is exactly what everyone wished, yet no one imagined a game could be.
To take God of War 2018, the culmnation of modern and retro game design across genres, and say "You know what? Let's make it again, but this time, with 3x the ambition." is mindblowing. What was once a simple yet powerful narrative evolves into a realm-spanning, eon-long saga contained in one title, I would liken experiencing Ragnarok's story to watching Avengers: Infinity War AND Endgame back-to-back, or watching 2/3rds of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, by the end of the narrative, the beginning of the game felt like it was from a different title entirely, the writing is beyond impressive and it kept me hooked every step of the way, never, in any other game, has the story been so relatable and powerful that I genuinely felt myself wholly immersed and invested during boss fights, it wasn't just me watching Kratos stand up to those who wish to hurt his son, I, more than when playing any other game, felt truly emotionally heated during these exchanges, to me, fighting a boss wasn't just about completing a challenge, it was about proving that no one had the power to take Atreus away from his father. The writers awaken a part of you that you may not even know you had in you.
Unsurprisingly, Ragnarok is a blast to play, building upon the previous game's foundation perfectly and then adding even more mechanics that enhance and freshen the experience, never will I stop mentioning how utterly awesome it is to use the Blades of Chaos as a traversal tool, or how grotesquely masculine splitting men in half for your son is. Sidequests have been greatly improved from the original, which is incredible considering the original already excelled in this area, there are full character arcs and lore uncoveries in these optional adventures, and they are all a joy, it is unfathomable the amount of granular detail put into every inch of this experience.
Of course, once again, Santa Monica knocks it out of the park with their stellar graphical design and art direction, realms like Vanaheim and Ironwood truly inspire a sense of awe and immersion, they are dreams brought to life in explicit and intricate detail.
The scope of this game is undeniable, and with scope comes risk, Ragnarok accomplishes far more than its predecessor, but due to the increased scope, not absolutely everything this game attempts is accomplished perfectly, but any errors are so miniscule that I cannot even think of any in specific, it is the nature of such a complicated and diverse experience to fall every here and there, but ultimately, what it accomplishes compared to its predecessor is undeniably more impressive.
A review as long as this barely begins to scratch the surface of this magnificent experience, I truly mean magnificent, much like 2018, God Of War: Ragnarok is a stellar example of the potential video games have. This is not just a game, it is a living, breathing masterpiece.
9.5/10
To take God of War 2018, the culmnation of modern and retro game design across genres, and say "You know what? Let's make it again, but this time, with 3x the ambition." is mindblowing. What was once a simple yet powerful narrative evolves into a realm-spanning, eon-long saga contained in one title, I would liken experiencing Ragnarok's story to watching Avengers: Infinity War AND Endgame back-to-back, or watching 2/3rds of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, by the end of the narrative, the beginning of the game felt like it was from a different title entirely, the writing is beyond impressive and it kept me hooked every step of the way, never, in any other game, has the story been so relatable and powerful that I genuinely felt myself wholly immersed and invested during boss fights, it wasn't just me watching Kratos stand up to those who wish to hurt his son, I, more than when playing any other game, felt truly emotionally heated during these exchanges, to me, fighting a boss wasn't just about completing a challenge, it was about proving that no one had the power to take Atreus away from his father. The writers awaken a part of you that you may not even know you had in you.
Unsurprisingly, Ragnarok is a blast to play, building upon the previous game's foundation perfectly and then adding even more mechanics that enhance and freshen the experience, never will I stop mentioning how utterly awesome it is to use the Blades of Chaos as a traversal tool, or how grotesquely masculine splitting men in half for your son is. Sidequests have been greatly improved from the original, which is incredible considering the original already excelled in this area, there are full character arcs and lore uncoveries in these optional adventures, and they are all a joy, it is unfathomable the amount of granular detail put into every inch of this experience.
Of course, once again, Santa Monica knocks it out of the park with their stellar graphical design and art direction, realms like Vanaheim and Ironwood truly inspire a sense of awe and immersion, they are dreams brought to life in explicit and intricate detail.
The scope of this game is undeniable, and with scope comes risk, Ragnarok accomplishes far more than its predecessor, but due to the increased scope, not absolutely everything this game attempts is accomplished perfectly, but any errors are so miniscule that I cannot even think of any in specific, it is the nature of such a complicated and diverse experience to fall every here and there, but ultimately, what it accomplishes compared to its predecessor is undeniably more impressive.
A review as long as this barely begins to scratch the surface of this magnificent experience, I truly mean magnificent, much like 2018, God Of War: Ragnarok is a stellar example of the potential video games have. This is not just a game, it is a living, breathing masterpiece.
9.5/10