God Of War: Ragnarok
Although the God Of War series has been around in various forms since 2005 it has been a series that consistently passed me by for various reasons. So when God Of War: Ragnarok came roaring into battle on PlayStation 5, after a much-hyped entry in 2018, I decided now would be the time to dive.
Despite God Of War: Ragnarok being a sequel it was still welcoming to a new player like myself. This is aided by the inclusion of a 'previously on' type feature in the opening menus. Picking up a few years after God Of War (2018) this entry in the series sees the godly father-son duo of Kratos & Atreus as the apocalyptic event known as Ragnarok bears down upon them. Rather than settling for a predestined fate Kratos & Atreus set out on an epic journey to shift the winds of fate forever in their favour, thus hopefully averting the apocalypse.
Across my 25.5 hours of gameplay, focusing tightly on the story’s golden path, the player is served up an epic fantasy tale of Norse mythology. For our heroes the journey will have them attempting to repair broken bonds with other characters, solving a plethora of mysteries/puzzles, & of course, hacking & slashing their way through an incomprehensibly high number of enemies.
Game Play - Hack & Slash Gore That Slightly Overstays Its Welcome
Gameplay wise God Of War: Ragnarok leans very heavily into button mashing hack & slash. As a newbie to the series this was an easy entry in this sense, but as your time with the game wears on you'll begin to become attuned to combos & stringing powerful attacks together. When you nail the feat of stringing together attacks & combos the game rewards you with some truly memorable & incredibly violent finishing kills.
While the gameplay is very enjoyable, particularly once you begin stringing together combos, it does overstay its welcome slightly. On a very very regular basis, you'll find yourself walking into battle arenas, which are all very obvious sections. During my experience following the golden path I highly doubt there was more than a 5-10 minute period where I was simply exploring the story without being forced to fight off some form of monster/enemy.
The puzzle sequences & traversal sections were some of my favourite moments but they are extremely sparse in comparison to battles. Perhaps these elements are relegated more towards the side quests but a little more balancing in the main story path wouldn't have gone astray.
A Truly Touching Emotional Story Of Growth & Maturation
On a storytelling front, God Of War: Ragnarok explores themes surrounding love, family, past trauma, suppressed grief/anger, teenage angst & maturation.
Being unfamiliar with the characters before jumping into God Of War: Ragnarok was not an issue. Although I am certain players who had previously played God Of War (2018) will have a much stronger emotional bond with Kratos & Atreus. By the end of God Of War: Ragnarok though I was touched by the growth I had witnessed in both of the main characters.
My biggest gripe with the story of God Of War: Ragnarok is in the structure. Quite regularly throughout my time with the game, I said to myself, 'oh I must be heading into the home stretch now', only to suddenly be diverted into another direction. Given that the story is about setting up the chess pieces for an impending realm-shattering war I guess this style of storytelling makes sense but it did become slightly annoying around the 22 hr mark.
Comparing God Of War: Ragnarok with everything I had read & seen of God Of War (2018) it appears that this entry is very much more of the same. However, I don't think this is a bad thing because although God Of War: Ragnarok doesn't revolutionise the franchise like the last entry it does expand on what worked. Add to that an incredibly well-written story with plenty of emotional beats scattered throughout & you have one of the best experiences currently available on PlayStation 5.
Support Pario Magazine
Become A Publisher
$10 / Month
- Name Added To Publisher List
- Physical Print Issue
- Early Access
-
