**This review contains minor SPOILERS**
Watch the SPOILER review on YouTube
Starting off just a few years after the last game, this sequel feels like a true continuation of not only the story, but also the lore and gameplay.
It’s hard to come up with new things to say about this game that will be much different than what I said about the last “God of War.” It still has the same great characters that you care about, beautiful environments, and fun (but occasionally challenging) combat. Despite the fact that most of this stuff had already been done about as well as it could’ve been, this game does make some improvements. Since we’ve previously met most of these characters, we’ve already grown attached to them and their story arcs are more impactful. And not only are there different configurations of traveling companions accompanying Kratos, but they shake things up even more by having Atreus be a playable character for some parts of the story.
There’s also more versatility this time in the combat, with the addition of new arrow types, a new weapon and more integration of shield play. Even the rage meter has been re-tuned with more options. There’s also a wider variety of enemies and mini-bosses to spice things up. Unless the previous game is still fresh in your memory, there’s a learning curve with the combat. Weak enemies can take Kratos out with a few solid hits while he still has to hack away at them for a bit to kill them. This is especially true of the mini-bosses. While this is what makes fighting them a challenge, it can be frustrating to put in ten minutes holding your own in battle only to make one or two mistakes and find yourself dead and having to retry. One thing that’s not as challenging is traveling. There are still story-driven moments that don’t allow deviating much from the path, but travel gates appear much earlier now in the story as does access other realms. And even though there’s still a lot of returning to previous areas once you have the tools to explore further, it doesn’t seem as repetitive this time around. (However, you can waste quite a bit of time exploring trying to complete side quest or find collectibles only to realize they aren’t accessible until after the main story is complete. And that’s also when you unlock a side quest to truly end the story.)
Once again, all the locations look fantastic and are well-designed and rendered. But what’s most impressive is the facial animation during key moments. With characters saying little or nothing, the expressions on their face tell the whole story and when coupled with solid voice-acting, really sell the emotional beats.
“God of War Ragnarök” is not only as good as the already-great first game but manages to improve upon it in mostly small but meaningful ways. And while there’s a bit more of everything to do here, it’s still basically the same game as the last and doesn’t tread any new ground. And that’s okay, because the story of Kratos and Atreus was one worth continuing.
****1/2 out of *****