Chasing the dragon that is God of War’s (2018) success was always going to provide a challenge. You’d expect a sequel of this size and budget to minimize taking risks and focus on expanding the scale and narrative. However, 2018 is a tight-knit, focused experience on gameplay with a solid narrative to complement it. Ragnarok, on the other hand, leans so heavily on a story that is compelling enough but not one worth dragging through a plodding 30+ campaign.
The pacing on this thing is glacial at points, with the warts of AAA design hovering all over this thing; characters desperate to spew exposition in every moment of space, puzzles that never evolve past “throw the object at the environment,” an RPG-lite skill tree that deprives you of any basic strategy and linear environments that attempt to give you a false perception you can go in any direction other than straight.
There is no doubting the technical finesse of Ragnarok and Santa Monica Studios. They are truly industry-leading in creating that AAA blockbuster experience with their motion capture tech, strong voice-acting performances, incredible visuals, and spectacular set pieces. The game retains some of its predecessor's magic with several memorable boss fights that fit up with some of the best in the series, but so much of this game feels like you’re on the Disney World “It’s a Small World" ride. You have no control over what happens, and it’s the slowest fucking thing in the universe.
The pacing on this thing is glacial at points, with the warts of AAA design hovering all over this thing; characters desperate to spew exposition in every moment of space, puzzles that never evolve past “throw the object at the environment,” an RPG-lite skill tree that deprives you of any basic strategy and linear environments that attempt to give you a false perception you can go in any direction other than straight.
There is no doubting the technical finesse of Ragnarok and Santa Monica Studios. They are truly industry-leading in creating that AAA blockbuster experience with their motion capture tech, strong voice-acting performances, incredible visuals, and spectacular set pieces. The game retains some of its predecessor's magic with several memorable boss fights that fit up with some of the best in the series, but so much of this game feels like you’re on the Disney World “It’s a Small World" ride. You have no control over what happens, and it’s the slowest fucking thing in the universe.