Story
While a gameplay shake-up was almost expected for God of War’s return, a change of tone and a move to a more emotional story came as more of a surprise. Kratos was always quite an unlikable character. He was perennially angry and had no relationships that led you to caring about him. Framing the new game’s story around his relationship with his son, Atreus, changed that completely.
The sternness and temper that make Kratos who he is weren’t lost, but nuance was given to his personality that shed light on his struggles with anger and making close, personal connections. The father and son’s journey to scatter their wife/mother’s ashes isn’t just about Atreus growing up and learning to cope in such a dangerous world, but about him and Kratos learning from each other. At the start, Kratos is rather dismissive of his son and has quite unrealistic expectations of him. As they spend more time together, Atreus’s emotional side rubs off on Kratos and he learns to be more understanding and a figure of guidance rather than fear. Their journey is compelling from start to finish, and a relationship unlike any we’ve seen in other PlayStation 4 exclusives.
The wider world outside the protagonist’s relationship is just as masterfully presented. The vastly different realms of God of War, and how they’re connected, create a world that feels ominously huge. The small personal moments and the vast, dangerous world combine perfectly, keeping the experiences fresh and the journey interesting.
The tale God of War tells, and how it presents its characters, is arguably more impressive than that of any other PS4 exclusive. Story and characterization are the stars of the Uncharted series, making Nathan Drake the most recognizable face in the world of PlayStation, but A Thief’s End’s story is the culmination of four games. Through spending time with Drake and his friends for 10 years, the ending is given emotional weight. However, the fact that God of War was able to elicit similar emotions from us over the course of one game is more impressive. To take a protagonist very few people cared about on an emotional level and turn him into someone deeper and more relatable is an incredible feat.
