Aside from a shared publisher, there really isn’t much room to compareGod of WarwithThe Last of Us 2, due in part the incredibly different gameplay, tone, and worlds of the two titles. However, while the two games are so incredibly different, that doesn’t mean that Santa Monica Studios can’t learn from and evenborrow features from Naughty Dog’slatest title.
One feature in particular could mean introducing a whole new dynamic intoGod of War, specifically by moving the perspective away from Kratos for a moment and putting players in Atreus' shoes. In this way, similar to howThe Last of Us 2took players away from Joel and Ellie and instead put them in control of the secondary protagonist Abby, giving a more personal representation of Atreus could ground the character.
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Combating God of War’s Criticisms
It isn’t unheard of for players to simply not connect with or eventually dislike a character, and childcharacters like Atreusare fairly prone to take on a lot of frustration as it can be difficult to patiently observe them grow over time. As a result, Kratos' “boy” quickly became one of the primary selling points ofGod of Waras well as lightning rod for criticism, thanks in part to his adolescent angst and his troubled relationship with his father. Especially considering the fact that players had over a decade of games to establish a connection with Kratos, having a small child spend the majority of the game arguing with him can easily rub a player the wrong way.
So, for those players that didn’t connect with Atreus originally, a chance to actually control the character may be exactly what they need to really empathize with him inGod of War: Ragnarok. Beyond some of the more calculated “heartstring pulling” thatThe Last of Us 2attempted with Abby’s background, some players really connected with the character’s personality and regret-motivated story. This likely wouldn’t have been the case if players hadn’t been put in her shoes halfway through the game, which would likely work twofold for Atreus since he hasn’t already been set up as an antagonist.
Splitting the Timeline
One way to keep players guessing is to utilize a timeline within the story that twist around in an unconventional way, locking the player’s knowledge off by the limited perspective they view the world with. Giving control of Atreus could twist time inGod of War: Ragnarokin the same way thatThe Last of Us 2does by setting the game over the course of three days and sending the player to experience them through two separate characters. This allows for a unique type of storytelling in which players think they have all of the information at first, before eventually learning that the events unfolding are much more complex than they originally imagined.
It may work better inthe nextGod of Warto do more than simply copyThe Last of Us 2, but instead transform this storytelling device by chopping up the division into several sections instead of splitting it between two. In some cases, this may have been a decent tool to utilize in the 2018 release, as moments like Atreus slaughtering an army of Dark Elves among other limited times that the characters are separated. At times, the less is more style of storytelling does hint at how powerful Atreus really is due to what he is sometimes able to survive, but letting players see this for themselves could solidify his godly status.
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True power of the Gods
Putting players in the shoes of Atreus as he begins to discover his godly powers could have multiple affects on how fans begin to perceive the world and the strength of these deities. More importantly that simply showing Atreus' growth, putting players in his shoes with noall-powerful Kratosin sight could help us understand how powerful characters like Thor really are. Instead of being able to punch, hack, and bash through any encounter, Atreus' age and initial lack of godly strength could give a better look at these characters from the eyes of a character that can only run to survive.
It’s not that Atreus can’t fight for himself, in fact there are plenty of times that he has proven to be able to topple armies of Dark Elves and survive lethal blows from fellow gods. However, ifGod of War: Ragnarokis expected to start where the secret ending to the last one left off, then that would likely mean that Atreus might not have a great grasp on his powers yet. If this is the case, then facing off against Thor, who should be stronger than anything faced in the last title, should be well out of the realm of possibilities withoutKratos to do the heavy lifting.
Explore Completely New Areas
One thing that players would be most excited to see ifGod of War: Ragnaroklets playerstake control of Atreus, is the new locations that would only be available to the smaller character. This is already a mechanic in the latest title, with Kratos directing his son to complete certain tasks that are easier for him to reach. However, these puzzles can be widely expanded on with the player being able to control both characters, and needing to switch back and forth in order to complete the puzzle properly.
Of course, digging into the way thatThe Last of Us 2utilized this splitting of the story between multiple characters, this could also give chances for players to explore multiple realms as the two main characters are set on different paths. Sending Atreus on his own separate mission while Kratos heads out somewhere else could be a fairly organic way for player to explore moreNorse realms inGod of War: Ragnarok. This can especially go a long way towards making sure that visiting new areas and possibly revisiting previous realms doesn’t feel forced or unnatural to the plotline, as splitting up automatically doubles the playable area along with the characters.
God of War: Ragnarokis currently in development for PS5.
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