So I’ve Finished: God of War Ragnarok

So, I’ve finished playing God of War: Ragnarok. It is a “prestige” single-player narrative video game for PlayStation, and is kinda good, as far as I’m concerned.

It is a very solid and sensible adaptation to my unscholarly examination. It is a personal story. It is impeccably performed in voice and motion and direction. Something for everyone involved to feel proud of, for sure. Especially how there’s really so very few holes I can think of to poke at the story side: Atreus is good (and is more fun to play than his pop), Kratos hasn’t forgotten the lessons of the first game, Odin is pitch-perfect, everyone is trying their best and nothing is working and you understand and feel for them. Good stuff.

Game-wise, to me, it felt kinda flat, though. It’s very game-y (you can see the systems uncloaked from their diagetic explanations everywhere you look) for a story that railroads you this hard (If it’s an interactive novel, why the soup of collectables and upgrades? If it’s a game, where’s the meaningful decisionmaking?). Its upgrade mechanics feel both necessary (rewards are clearly aimed at changing or upgrading gear) and meaningless (no armour set or upgrade is ever more than a fractional improvement).

It is pretty, but not _that_ pretty. I played it on PS5 and it was properly nice, but never wow (if that makes sense). This isn’t to say that it needed to be prettier (far from it, I think they could have let the artists have more vacation and some naps (for the same pay, obv.)), just that reviews of the time rather universally praised the visuals.

But the same chunky combat is back, but without the skill wall I remember from the first one. Fewer enemies are quite as bad HP sponges as the first, but the ones that are have less expressive movesets leading the fight a formulaic feel. I didn’t seek out too many optional challenge fights as a result. But goodness is fighting a heckuva lot better than Horizon: Forbidden West (more on that another time).

Can recommend, especially on sale. Will play the third one when it’s out.