(Gaze at that magnificent beard)
AAAAAARRRRREEEEEEESSSSSS!!!!!!!!! Kratos' favorite phrase from God of War (other variations include ZZZZEEEEEUUUUUSSSSS!!!!!! or CCCCCCAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLIIIIIIIIIIIIOOOOOOPPPPPPPEEEE!!!!!!!!). What I'm trying to say is that Kratos likes, no, loves to yell the name of the person he's looking for and most of the time he is angry. These days he gets a lot of crap for being too one-dimensional, and while that's true, it is not the whole story. That's why today I'm going to talk about why the God of War franchise is one of the greatest ever, and why it is only the beginning.
(I knew the Uber dropped me off at the wrong place)
Before God of War, the only real knowledge I knew about a Greek Mythology was from what is saw in a Disney movie (and man did they take liberties with that movie). Hercules is still an awesome movie, but the portrayals of the gods were way off. Then again, showing kids that Zeus screwed anything with a pulse would have probably driven the MPAA rating to a hard R. After becoming obsessed with Greek Mythology for a time I learned one thing, almost all the big-name gods are assholes, and that is why Kratos' existence works so well in this medium. Unlike most other mythologies, the Greek's version is not about these holy gods that want to do good to people who serve them, Zeus and the gang are more like human beings with extraordinary abilities.
Since Kratos is not a good guy, that allows him to fit in with the broken world that is Olympus. The appeal of Kratos was that he was unlike any character we had seen before (hold it, I know you already compiling a list, but hear me out). God of War first came out in 2005 when I was 13. One of my friends (who was also under the recommended age) told me about a game where your mission is to kill a god. For some reason or another, I was immediately intrigued by this idea, how would one kill a god? If you look at my age closely and think about what type of characters I was surrounding myself with (Yugi, the loser Ash, Goku, Batman, Spider-Man, etc...) you realize that Kratos is a different type of beast. Kratos is already a failure when it came to heroics, he couldn't save his family and he abandoned his army. If you include the comic, he is pretty much a douchebag in the comic too, but there is one aspect that continues to drive him and that's family.
Kratos is willing to sacrifice anyone's life to save his family. He even went to the depths of the Underworld for a chance to save his brother. The franchise is telling a story of a man who has already lost it all. Someone who has nothing to lose is the most dangerous type of person. That's why in the games Kratos does not give a flying duckling what happens to anyone else, all he wants is revenge for what the gods have done to him. I think it also works in the story's favor that he was the one who ultimately swung the blade that cost his family's life. It makes sense, he is the personification of rage. When looking at it from another angle, you realize that Kratos is not the God of War, he is instead the God of Wrath (a god created not by birth, but by experience). That's why he is a very interesting character to me and that's why I love the story. Plus, he's still a badass.
(Holy crap Kratos! I know he stole your parking spot but isn't this too far)
The moment that I knew this game is for me was when he stared downed the hydra. This story defines epic not just in video games, but throughout the entertainment industry. "The power to kill a god" is the mantra of the whole franchise. The story is about destroying the established order, an order some would say that is an unmovable object. By God of War 3, a question seeps into the mind of the player "should we destroy the established order?" Every time a god died the world got worse (I know this feeds into Kratos being an asshole), the death of Poseidon saw the oceans rage, Helios' demise sent the world into darkness, and the end of Zeus created eternal storms. Kratos, the unstoppable force, killed the paradox by not only moving the immovable but completely blew it away. Just the very fact that someone is going around killing gods makes the game epic.
(Awww, Kratos and his grandfather spending time together)
The way the camera pulls back to show you the giant environment perfectly explains the grand adventure you are about to embark on. The giant-sized monsters that make Kratos look like a tic tac (and the fact that he does not back down from these beasts) drums up the feeling that this is impossible but just a hint of maybe it's not. The story, the music, the bosses, the gameplay, the presentation, the whole package defines what epic is. It is one grand violent adventure with the main character (some call him a determined atheist) that represents a modern day Greek tragedy (the tragedy part being Kratos is prone to anger).
(I know Kratos, I was disappointed too)
Everything hasn't been completely rosy in Kratos' camp. Across 5 games (6 if you include God of War Betrayal, but that is a mobile game, those don't count) we have been getting the high octane violent Kratos with nothing to lose. The reason why it worked for so long across those games was because of the phenomenal gameplay and compelling story (I know I've said it before, but we are killing myths, Kratos is the reason, story-wise, Zeus and the gang don't still rule today). God of War Ascension was too late. The story was meh, the antagonist was not memorable, and it all felt like a been there done that scenario. The success of the original games, mostly the main trilogy, was the goals (god hunting), the characters, the gameplay and the story. We are teamed up with the same old Kratos (I love him, but to survive in a post-Uncharted world he needs to evolve). The goal/story, freeing himself from Ares control is nowhere as interesting as killing gods. The gameplay, as fluid as ever, just felt boring. While playing the game, I felt that I had to beat the game because I was required to as a fan of God of War (the game wasn't bad, it just didn't match what had already been set). It wasn't just me, the game's sales didn't perform to the standards of set by past games so, there was something that people didn't see in Ascension that they saw in the rest of the games.
Jumping to the end of God of War 3, Kratos finally killed Zeus, he had gotten his revenge. So now what? Kratos was so hellbent on making everyone feel his wrath he never thought of what next. The only logical thing to do next is suicide. Remember, when we first meet Kratos he is on the edge of a cliff ready to jump. It was by Kratos' own hands that his family died (he was tricked by Ares), I don't think he ever got over that even if it wasn't completely his fault. Kratos hates himself, these games are just him sharing his pain with the ones responsible. Without his family, he's nothing (he at one point sacrificed his own army to save his daughter). I'm sorry, I know I'm blabbing on about Kratos again, but I still think he is so cool. What's next? Norse mythology (I'm going to have fun brutally murdering Thor).
(Pure Epicness)
The day is June 13th, 2016. I am killing time waiting for Sony's E3 press conference to start. Then suddenly an orchestra starts playing. The music sounds viciously epic and familiar. I keep thinking to myself that it couldn't be God of War, it's just too good to be true, but another part of me keeps saying what if. Then cut to a little kid playing with his toys and a deep voice calling out to him. The voice tells him to pick up his mother's knife and lets him know that they are going hunting. Then the person with the voice steps out of the shadows and it is revealed to be a fully bearded Kratos and everyone (myself included) lose their shit. The rest is history (you could watch the video up above). After so many games about a guy with nothing to lose, Sony Santa Monica has given him something to cherish again. The Full God of War Presentation
This is the evolution God of War needed (putting in a little Last of Us in anything is never a bad thing). Kratos now has a family to protect and a son to raise. He doesn't want his son to turn out like him, so he wants to raise him right. Throughout the demo, you can see Kratos about to lose it, but he holds back because he doesn't want his son to see his rage, or more importantly, he doesn't want his son to take after of that anger. The most exciting aspect of the demo wasn't the awesome new gameplay style, Norse mythology (I'm going to bathe in Thor's blood. Is that too much, I feel like that's too much) or the cool frozen ax that he can call back, it's the final moments of the demo where father and son try to share a moment but can't. Here's this guy who literally killed the god of death, and he is too afraid to give his son a pat on the back. We are going to see another side of Kratos who is more than just an angry douche. He has a second chance to make it right, a chance leave a positive legacy behind. He's not going to be just a monster, this a story of redemption. Then there are the mysteries surrounding the game. Who did Kratos meet with and have a son? How is Kratos still alive? Does Athena (she was alive in the end) have any influence on this story? How exactly am I going to kill Thor?
(Father and Son hunting trip)
That is the evolution God of War. This next game is the only reason that I wake up every day. I just want to say thank you to all the folks at Sony Santa Monica for creating something so special to me. Without God of War, I don't think I would be a gamer today. Before I took a dive into this world, the only games I could finish was Pokémon games. It would either get too hard, or I would lose interest, but there was something about God of War that kept driving me forward. In a way, God of War was my Legend of Zelda (except waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more violence). So again, thank you Sony Santa Monica, you help make me who I am today (except, I'm nowhere near as violent as the games, I promise). Well, I'm going to go to bed and dream about new sadistic ways to kill Thor (OK, I may have a problem).
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