Developer: Santa Monica Studio
Platforms: PS4, PS4 Pro, PS5 (Reviewed)
Genre: Action, Adventure, RPG
Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment
God of War Ragnarök is the highly anticipated follow-up to the much-acclaimed God of War, released in 2018. God of War Ragnarök continues from the last game, where you are immersed in the immersive story of Kratos and Atreus. For those who haven’t played God of War or can’t remember the plot from the last game, a handy recap gives you an overview of the last; game which was much needed by me.
Ragnarök on the PS5 does utilise the power of the console, and from the first action, you see the world of God of War in stunning detail from the characters, level design, enemies, and surroundings are precise and pristine. It takes your breath away, and throughout the, entirety of the game, you are surprised and just in awe of the fantastic screenshot-laden game. I mean, the first impressions do; set the tone for the whole game, and it doesn’t disappoint. It’s very hard; to find any visual defects in the game; the landscapes and the variety of environments are stunning. I loved the transition from dark colosseum-like structures to open-world beaches, underwater levels, and much more. The game seamlessly brings the player through the story to playable parts, the game has a more immersive feel, and you feel a part of the story.
The cinematics throughout the game is further enhanced by the wonderful music score and sound effects. The superb music enhances every boss fight and cinematic piece. This is enhanced through the controller’s haptic feedback, thinking of extra texture throughout the game.
Gameplay centres on using Kratos in this sandboxed environment which isn’t an open world. This, means that levels are very structured, and God of War has made intricate levels that are wonderful to explore and find things. Levels are even more intriguing when you must use Atreus and work as a team to solve puzzles and progress further in the world. I didn’t feel burdened and bored at any point when doing missions or side missions which just; made the game more enjoyable.
You can build your skill tree and upgrade your armour and weapons to customise; to your play style. The combat is superb; levelling up helps you get additional combos and move sets.
The weapon choices do give a richer; and deeper gameplay feel. Each weapon will affect how you play and how you level it up. I loved the diverse power-up options. The shields are intriguing; some shields are designed as big huge shields that; block, whereas others are more nimble and rely on parries.
Boss fights add another depth to the gameplay; you fight a mixture of Gods, Creatures, and the undead. Each boss battle requires you to approach the fight strategically, and button-bashing won’t help! Some of the bosses are huge and impressive in scale. The mini-bosses and random bosses appear throughout the exploration of the world.
Game Length and playtime will be up to 40 hours, but this really depends on how many of the side quests; and if you decide to collect every trinket in the game. This, is a ballpark figure, and if you are taking your time as I did, it’s easily a much longer and richer experience. There is a real timeless quality to the exploration in the game; it never seems like a chore; this includes the side missions. The side missions are as rewarding and interesting as the main missions too!
Graphic Fidelity Modes:
Resolution mode: 4k @ 30 FPS
Performance mode: 60 FPS
Performance Mode with High Frame Rate: 4k @ 40 FPS
Frame Rate Mode: 120 FPS
It’s hard to find a more complete game in terms of gameplay, storytelling, and just all-out fun. It stays faithful to the storytelling and general awesomeness of God of War (2018) but is bigger, bolder and; is a beautiful next step in the journey of God of War. God of Ragnarök has this wonderful cinematic element that underpins the entire game, the transitions from a narrative-based story to solving puzzles and ultimately beating huge enemies. The game has this beautiful flow, and I ended up losing hours in the game where I was so immersed that I didn’t feel the time go by. Ragnarök achieves this wonderful timeless immersion through fantastic level design, great storytelling, believable characters, stunning visuals, and amazing action rolled into one. The buddy team of Kratos and Atreus just makes the story and gameplay more involved to the player without making it seem like a standalone one-player.
Overall: 9.5/10
Enjoys more than the odd game, long time gamer, somewhat a technologist and everything else in between.
Also enjoys a good solid game of FIFA online. Currently PS4, XBOX 360 and STEAM.
