Game 79 - God of War: Ragnarok - Week 157 - Dec 22

od of War: Ragnarok 

If it isn't broken, don’t fix it. Those cliché words were clearly at the heart of God of War Ragnarok; especially when it comes to gameplay. The sequel to the masterpiece that was God of War 2018 delivers in almost every way. Not as a sequel that evolves what the original did in an innovative way, but something that enhances the nigh perfect gameplay of the original and takes the story in a new winding and unexpected directions before its inevitable climax. As such this review is probably going to be a short one. If you want to see me gush about how good the Leviathan Axe feels to huck at a Draugr or the return of the Chaos Blades wrapped around our favourite spartan's buldging biceps – see my 2018 journal entry – because much of it is the same here. Santa Monica played it so safe that most of the previous moveset is the same – and you know what? I don’t’ mind. It serves the story better in the sense that Kratos is a real character and his legendary weapons are a part of him and can't be switched swapped for every little trinket that comes along. No more than you could remove the legend of Excalibur from King Arthur can you remove the Chaos Blades and Leviathen Axe from Kratos. Also considering we only got the Chaos Blades part way through the story it allows us to explore his old weapon much more. This is very apparent in the new system that focuses on combing these weapons: Set enemies on fire, do more ice damage and vice versa. Do enough damage without getting hit and you can permafrost the axe or immolate the blades for fast high elemental effects and damage. It’s a simple yet effective synergy that takes the existing gameplay and turns into a new song and dance between Kratos and his iconic weapons. Joining the game half way through Draupnir feels a little tacked on, like the Chaos Blades in 2018. Most players would forgoe this already being quite intimate with their existing weapons, but I felt there was enough time for this weapon to become a staple, albeit a little overshadowed by his instruments of fire and ice. The role of Draupnir is more of a utility weapon but I LOVED it thematically. Pairing this with the round Athenian shield gave me awesome Greek vibes - but also the spear quickly overtook the axe as the best ranged weapon. I think a lot of people will underlook the ability to siphon other elements such as electricity, poison and especially bifrost which can make this a very effective weapon. Bifrost is a new status exclusive to Odin’s warriors that when applied caps your health bar and if hit again banishes a healthy green bar into the shadow realm! It’s a nice addition that creates very tense encounters and makes the Einherjar every bit as feared as they deserved to be. Combing stolen Bifrost with Draupnir’s speed has devastating effects – make it the ultimate Asgard counter-weapon in the story and gameplay. Abilities can now be enhanced if you use them enough, giving them special effects such as more damage, elemental, momentum (immolation, permafrost, maelstrom), etc. Which is a fun way to customize the abilities you use the most and motivate you to explore the ones you don’t. That being said I did find myself sticking to an ability once I upgraded it, forming a habit and full well knowing another ability when enhanced could be better.

The story picks up quick. Freya hunts Kratos, Thor and Odin show up, Kratos fights Thor in what is possibly the best fight in the game. Thor delivering his Mjolnir hammer blow and knocking Kratos into Tyr’s statue, exploding into debris was fun and reminiscent of the first fight with the Stranger. Mjolnir was done incredibley well, oozing electricity, and quick but heavy just like it is in the giant slaying legends. In one scene they even breaks the 4^th wall as Kratos fades to black and a loading screen presents itself, you hear Thor say “I'm not done with you yet” and shocks you back to life. An amazingly unexpected touch that starts the game off by saying, yes, we still have surprises for you. It’s a shame that this was the best fight in the game and even so not as good as the fight with Baldur. For that fight, part of it was how unexpected that first fight was and also it was your first experience in the new cinematic boss fights of God of War. But in Ragnarok the formula typically goes something like this, God, troll, Dreki, dragon, etc sucker punches Kratos knocking him back into an arena... Now fight! It’s missing much of the cinematic grandeur that was in God of War 2018, which was true to the original trilogy as well. Even the dragons who had some of the most epic scenes in 2018 with Baldur’s dragon, here have a scripted event of drag Kratos through the sky and fling him back to the arena. 

Satisfying to beat, terrible to fight...

Speaking of bosses some move sets and especially the last 2 bosses felt mechanically cheap. Having a high skill, fast, high moveset boss is fine. But when the damage is so high that there's no room for error. Combine this with some move sets that are blindingly fast as if designed by a QA tester with 5000 hours experience and it's infuriating. So what you end up with is finding builds that will get the job done instead of relying on your own skill. I like what they tried with Queen Gna and King Skrofd. Having final bosses to meet everything you've learnt and built in our Kratos. A big part of what solidified God of War as a 10/10 even in its "end game" was perfecting your own build and maxing everything so you can overcome the boss. It was an amazing feeling. In Ragnarok that feeling is cheapened by an unfair moveset that shoehorns you into a "better" build and good RNG. I just wish I could have done it with my build, god knows I tired for 6+ hours on both bosses both rebuilding. That being said it was only 2 bosses: 0.001% of the overall experience. So still a trivial gripe in perspective only highlighted by the brilliant of the rest of the game.

Even if the cinematics fall short at times, the tension of these scenes do not...

This leads me to my next complaint which is a lack of cinematic moments. I’m skipping straight to the worst part but here it is. Ragnarok (as in the final battle) wasn't long enough. It was epic sure but where was the attrition, the loss, the devastation. I wanted to be involved, up close and personal with Thor and Jormungdarr but instead what was got was watching flying off shooting sparks and a giant snake in the distance. I wanted to see Odin go to toe with Fenris Wolf. The soldiers of Hel are absent bar one wet blanket scene with a boat and so are the rest of your allies in most of the scenes as you travel through the trenches. I've heard so much of these tales I wanted to be up close and personal with every one of them. The entire game was building towards Kratos inner conflict of choosing between his past, becoming the general his friends and son need for the upcoming war or ignoring it all and protecting his son. Cutting this with a fascinating dance with prophecy and the ability to forgo it with your own choices and it was a great ride that played with many of the established Norse tales. The characters becoming the highlight of this story such as Freya’s twin Freyr and his company, Sindri and Brok, Tyr, Freya and Mimir all bring the Norse tales to life in an adaption perfected with so much care and love for their craft. While they were side characters in Part 1, I could write thousands of words going into how each characters is brilliantly crafted and contributed to the journey and some of the best scenes that have nothing to do with Kratos or Atreus. So when this fantastic story culminates in its inevitable end, Kratos had at the very last moment decided to be their general. I was ready to go to Olympus yet again, but this time for my friends and family's vengeance, for Brok, not my own. What I got was a predictable yet poorly executed final battle. Sindri in his grief destroy dwarven weapons used by Midgardians, whom Odin put there to slow down the attackers. Atreus has a breakdown and asks what he wants, and in this moment Kratos sees his son repeating his mistakes, has an epiphany, and as the Fae of his dreams asked him to, asks Atreus to open his heart as they go to find Odin and end this. It’s a great conclusion on paper but after 20 minutes of war its very very abrupt and does not feel earnt. The game had great build up yes, but the execution in that final moment was not great. It was cool blowing the Gjallhorn, see the elves fly overhead as you entered Asgard, and Fenrir and the wolves fight. But I wanted to fight through the trenches shoulder to shoulder with elf and hel walker. 

I wanted to be in the fight between Thor and Jormungdarr as they shattered the realms. When I waded through all the bodies and destruction I had caused, for an hour or more of phenomenal, epic gameplay, and it led to the moment that Sindri destroyed the machines, I should have seen the kid that Atreus befriended dying, making all the prior sacrifice up until that momement and that scene feel real. Instead it felt a little abrupt. Not contrived because the build up of Kratos fighting his old self, a monster, and the man he could be as Fae saw, was every bit as perfect as it could be. But the final ephiany was certainly abrupt. Taking the fight to Odin was perfect – but where was Fenrir? Why didn’t I see Odin push  Atreus off the walls of Asgard as Heimdall almost did. Kratos freefalling after him only to see him caught and saved by Fenrir, who now turns his snarling giant maw to Odin as the legends went. The original God of War(s) were epic. The Norse tales were epic. So why was this moment not!? The final fight like the first fight was too static when you compare it to Baldur. Thor did not get enough screen time and unlike Baldur you only fight him twice – he and we got robbed. Although I should say their movesets where on point with Thor’s thundery belows and Odin’s sorcery. But it should have moved around and been under carnage and destruction. It should have been Ragnarok! Baldur had an undead revived giant fighting Jormungdarr in the background! There was none of that to be seen here... Freya can summon cooler shit than Odin? Um what? It didn’t have to go this exact way but these epic cinematic fights are what God of War is known for and it’s sorely missing here. It’s somewhat clear that the choice to turn a trilogy into a single final game influenced the budget here. Why else would the fights not be as epic? When they have every reason to be so much more. There are still epic momements like the cart ride in Svartalfheim in their search for Tyr or escaping from the mines as Odin’s Einherjar fall from the sky on the epic bifrost rays. Or chasing down Garmr through Helheim. It’s clear they focused on the characters with the constant shift between Kratos and Atreus. Running through the fields as a wolf with Angrboda, freeing Tyr, giving Mimir his redemption and reuniting Freya and Freyr are all awesome. I just wish we didn’t have to lose those epic moments in favour of all these character scenes in the limited time frame one game is given.

Oh Fenrir... you were so perfect until you were robbed of your moment in Ragnarok.

So far this jorunal has been a lot more complaint then praise. I don't want to colour my experience this was in retrospect. The gameplay, environments, dialogue, characters and performances as well as story and mythos brought to live are all on point to the degree that one I bought up this game it just feels like nothing else. As in nothing else can compare and pales in comparison to how good this package is in how good the gameplay feels.  So beyond the complaints about bosses, Ragnarok and cinematic cutscenes the game is still every bit as masterful as 2018 was. Speaking of 2018 I had predicted Atreus would create Fenrir and Jormungdarr through magic and so he did. Also that he would shapeshift this time (not a difficult one considering the mythology). Hel on the other hand I wasn’t sure, but after playing it’s clear she’s yet to come until Loki and Angrboda have a daughter… Loki is such a central part of the tales and arguably the main player - so to see the way they play with the original lore such as in these examples is incredible. This time around we got to experience each realm. And while 5/9 where story beats or side-content. A whopping 4/9 had open world areas with sleds or boats that we could explore - and I soaked up every one until the platinum trophy popped. Vanaheim in particular was my favourite with its beautiful dense jungle and deadly fauna as well as the crater. Uncovering the mystery behind it where Laufey and Thor fought ferociously was an awesome side-story that added context to the God of War mythos. Svartalfheim was also a standout – seeing the dwarven town and their craftmanship was breahtaking. It was like a mix of the Elven Rivendell and Dwarven Khazad-dûm from Lord of the Rings. Which makes perfect sense when you consider the discoure around Dwarves and Dark Elves being the same creatures from the same realm. As for the characters – I loved all of them. 

Freya has been my most favourite travelling companion with her fabulous voice acting and ferocious demeanour. A warrior goddess that's strong enough to lead her realm but compassion enough to save and show others mercy. Not to mention her performance is just fantastic.Mimir’s countless stories of Norse mythology were always interesting to hear retold. Thor was exactly as he is in the legends, drinking, giant killing, big dumb and redheaded. But he has an interesting redemption arc in the end. Odin is not what I expected – but when I think about it that’s exactly what I'd expect from Odin - the unexpected. I can definitely see some people expecting Gandalf or Norse Zeus to be disappointed. But the master manipulator was nailed here with some fantastic moments around him shapeshifting and playing the part of Tyr before his betrayal killing Brok. Using Thor as his hammer, as with all his subjects and "family". The Æsir that surprised me the most was Heimdall. I loved to hate him. 

The team perfectly crafted the arrogance one would if you could see the future – the confidence that would bring especially to a God. Odin brings all this rable together like a mob boss. Moments where Heimdall tries to kill Loki and Odin stops him before sending him off like a sulking child is just *chefs kiss*. Odin embodies the perfect manipulative patriarchal figure that the all-father is. Another favourite God, Freyr has the sardonic and romantic personality of a naïve young adult with a good heart, which is also part of his charm. His merry band of Guerilla fighters in Vanaheim with a sassy female dwarf, Traveller (big guys with bigger swords), light elf and dark elf couple – appeals to my fantasy adventuring heart. There is so much more – the world itself is an amazing character with all the nods to Norse mythology in one way or another such as the poetry of Kvasair, a wise, well-travelled teacher born of the saliva of the Æsir and the Vanir. Or Idunn’s apples which gave the Æsir immortality and Kratos health, One of my favourite moments that perfectly encapsulated the original tales was the decision for Loki to go to Asgard, which I did not expect and having him travel with Thor – which begrudgingly happens in the tales of old. Seeing him even as a child manipulate the oafish Thor in clever ways is so satisfying as a Norse fan. I truly believe it’s a must to have some prior knowledge of Norse myth as seeing how the writers play with these tales is so rewarding as a fan of both God of War and Norse mythology.

The cast is like no other. Every performance is gold.

The settings are a breathtaking mix of fantasy meets Norse mythology. 

By the end of reading this journal it probably seems like Ragnarok was a let down. But I think this is one of those cases where the worse parts are only highlighted by how phenomenal the rest of the game is. Like a pristine Mercedes with a few small scatches. In 2018 I said that I’ve never seen a better adaption of Norse mythology – and that is still true here even if Ragnarok was a little bit of a let down. The only major let down was some poor pacing and lack of epic scenes. I’m aware they decided to do it all in on one game so they could create something new instead of working on the series for 15 years. Fair enough especially when you consider that they’ve been the God of War Studio since their inception in the mid 2000s. I wish it didn't mean Ragnarok itself suffered but I’m excited to see what new IP they’re cooking up next. In the future I would love to see a God of Trickery (or Mischief) visit eastern mythos (Mayan or Aztec culture) centered around Loki. Something I don’t know a lot about. Of course then you have the epic pay off moment when he calls in the artillery, and grey bearded Kratos shows up. A man can dream... In the final chapter the faults of God of War are offset by the fact that every other aspect of the experience is improved enhancing what was already a masterpiece in its previous iteration. 

Badass boss ass !@#$%en game!