STACK #162 April 2018

GAMES FEATURE

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Kratos is back. A new mythology, a new family member, new weapons, and a new world. It’s God of War like you’ve never seen it before. Words Alesha Kolbe

T he very first God of War game released for the PlayStation 2 in 2005. 13 years later, we’re two (and a half) console generations down the track, and it’s safe to say things are a little different. Nothing stays the same and that, of course, applies to video games, too. Sony has had a long hard think about where its popular franchise needs to be in 2018. Consequently, there are some new additions here; for starters, this instalment has a new camera system, and swaps the Greek mythos of old for a new Norse regime. At Sony’s Sydney HQ, we recently engaged in a significant hands-on session with Kratos’s new adventure on a PlayStation 4 Pro (which you can check out at stack.com.au), and also had the opportunity to sit down with Aaron Kaufman, community manager at Santa Monica Studios, to chat about the franchise’s

the same character who was hellbent on rage. Enough is enough, right? Our core God of War fans still want a Kratos that’s full of rage, and we give you a taste of that in this game.” Here Kaufman pauses to mention the return of Cory Barlog to SIE Santa Monica Studio. Barlog began his journey with the very first God of War; having departed the studio in 2007, he returned in 2013 as creative director for the beginning of the new game. “During his time away, our head of studio called him, and he had some big grand visions of where he wanted to take the game.” He also explains how Barlog ended up becoming one of the writers on the new God of War: “A lot of it related to his personal life. He jokes about being a lazy

renaissance and why the studio opted to swap for Norse mythology. God of War: Ascension was the last game released before the reboot – back in 2013. Kaufman tells us that this was when work on

reimagining the series truly began. “We got a lot of feedback about that game. The fans really just told us: ‘okay, it’s time for Kratos to change.’ Kratos is such an iconic character to PlayStation that I think in many ways, he’s someone that you would hope never ever goes away from the PlayStation universe.” In saying that, Kaufman recognises that they can’t simply keep re-telling the same

The fans really just told us 'okay, it's time for Kratos to change'

story. “We did a lot of research, a lot of user testing on different ideas, and one of the things we kept discovering is that people wanted an evolved character. They didn’t want

FACTS OF WAR

God of War creator David Jaffe was a big fan of Clash of the Titans (the 1981 Ray Harryhausen version, not the 2010 interpretation starring ex-bricklayer, Sam Worthington). The film proved to be Jaffe’s creative springboard for the game. Kratos himself has been touted for a silver screen appearance for 13 years now. David Jaffe wrote a provisional script in 2005, attracting purported interest from Universal. In early character concept designs, Kratos was blindfolded and had a baby strapped to his back, and in another he had long hair. Daniel Craig (odd choice in our opinion) was approached for the role in 2010, but thankfully he declined. Interest in the project was reignited in 2012 but as of 2018, despite having a budget of $150 million attached to it, the screen adaptation of God of War is yet to find its director and star.

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APRIL 2018

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