Why God of War Worked
Published May 9, 2018 12:00 am
By Adlai Rosh
Selling more than 3 million copies in 3 days, Santa Monica Studios’ reimagining of Kratos hit all the right notes.
From the moment I started up the game I knew God of War was going to be special. It had all the makings of a good game. The storytelling, the graphics, the solid gameplay, the camerawork – it felt nothing like any God of War that came before it. A labor that took 8 years to complete, Santa Monica could’ve easily gone the route of every cynical release that came before it. Not helping matters was a leaked review released a day before the actual embargo lifted that harpooned the game, souring it in the eyes of many before the actual reviews came out – and afterwards, so many reviewers, including myself, piled heaps of praise on the game. When the game released it exceeded 3.1 million sales in the first three days, making it the fastest-selling PS4 exclusive to date.
What led to the massive success of God of War?
The Embargo
In today’s interconnected world, it’s become common practice for game studios and publishers to send review copies a day before a game’s launch. While some may argue that it’s for the best in order to prevent information leaks, more often than not it’s to take advantage of the time-sensitive nature of product reviews. Every outlet wants to be the first to publish so people flock to them for information. At the same time, a game could be so front-loaded that the pacing suffers in the post-game, sometimes many hours away from starting up. Games like Destiny 2 and The Surge offer stunning opening hours only for the excitement to ramp steadily downwards after that.
With God of War, the embargo was lifted a full week before release, with review codes being given out more than two weeks prior to release. Not only did this give reviewers ample time to assess the game for all it was worth – pick it apart how they pleased without the looming threat of a deadline mere hours away – but it was also a powerful play in Santa Monica’s favor. Gamers at large have become fatigued towards game reviewers due to controversies surrounding the ethics of videogame journalism; an embargo being lifted many, many days before release was a message of good faith. It was them saying, “hey, world. We’re not afraid to show this game off, and we hope you’re ready.” And with the reviews coming back as a net positive across the board, it was only natural for the hype surrounding the title to reach a fever pitch as eager gamers wondered if it was all truly as good as it sounded.
The State of the Market
God of War released in the middle of a console generation where preorder bonuses come with tangible rewards, where season passes are not only common but expected to pick up the slack where a story took off, where even purely single-player experiences are marred by the promise of lootboxes giving you a chance at something good (like Shadow of War) or the latest installments of acclaimed franchises offer DLC that fleshed out and completed the story (like Final Fantasy XV and Resident Evil 7). God of War could have easily followed this trend and released in a much shorter development period, giving us a fancy exclusive tech demo to wave in other people’s faces.
But it didn’t. Against all odds, against all the market pressure bearing down on every new release, against the growing trend of releasing games as hollow incomplete packages proudly and unashamedly touting 60 dollar season passes, God of War was a complete package. Muspelheim, Niflheim, and even the Valkyrie bonus bosses could’ve easily been added later on as DLC gauntlets. Alfheim could’ve been much shorter, and the conflict could’ve been 6 hour story DLC. Even the numerous call-backs to the previous God of War games could’ve been relegated to a DLC filled to the brim with fanservice.
It’s both amazing and depressing that God of War is noticeable in this regard – amazing that a flagship series came completely devoid of any sort of additional monetization scheme out the gate, and depressing that shipping games in a feature-complete state is something outstandingly rare.
The Story
I’ve touched on God of War’s story in my review. It’s an incredible departure from the previous games’ hypermasculine acts of violence as Kratos kills mortals, undead, mythical creatures, and gods, has sex with multiple women, and overall acts like a huge jerk to everything that moves. To see the former poster boy for brutal, over-the-top violence become a jaded, sober old man was nothing short of amazing. So many things could’ve gone wrong with the story but at no point did it feel like it was beating me over the head with the message. In Kratos’s attempts to raise Atreus to be better than him, he fails to even say why – and this failure to communicate even leads his son to falling deathly ill at one point in the game.
It’s made clear that neither Kratos nor Atreus are perfect. Kratos may be the more responsible of the two but his perceived emotional detachment puts him at odds with nearly every character in the game at some point. Unparalleled in combat, he is at first a terrible parent, with nearly every character calling him out on his irresponsibility. Atreus is the human element, a character that comes alongside Kratos. To keep him relevant, Atreus isn’t so much something to be protected but more of an extension of Kratos’s combat capabilities. He can take care of himself and needs very little babysitting, and is an essential component in combat, exploration, and puzzle-solving. The nuances of their characters make their continued growth more refreshing as the two evolve from a somewhat cold, distant relationship to one where Kratos is proud to have a drink of ancient wine with him – a mature story for fans who grew up on videogames and may have families of their own.
God of War’s success was brought on by a number of factors and smart decisions on the part of Sony and Santa Monica Studios. With such massive numbers and strong public opinion, it’s clear to see that 8 years of work paid off. It’s a strong contender for one of my favorite games released in 2018 and I eagerly await the inevitable sequel.
From the moment I started up the game I knew God of War was going to be special. It had all the makings of a good game. The storytelling, the graphics, the solid gameplay, the camerawork – it felt nothing like any God of War that came before it. A labor that took 8 years to complete, Santa Monica could’ve easily gone the route of every cynical release that came before it. Not helping matters was a leaked review released a day before the actual embargo lifted that harpooned the game, souring it in the eyes of many before the actual reviews came out – and afterwards, so many reviewers, including myself, piled heaps of praise on the game. When the game released it exceeded 3.1 million sales in the first three days, making it the fastest-selling PS4 exclusive to date.
What led to the massive success of God of War?
The Embargo
In today’s interconnected world, it’s become common practice for game studios and publishers to send review copies a day before a game’s launch. While some may argue that it’s for the best in order to prevent information leaks, more often than not it’s to take advantage of the time-sensitive nature of product reviews. Every outlet wants to be the first to publish so people flock to them for information. At the same time, a game could be so front-loaded that the pacing suffers in the post-game, sometimes many hours away from starting up. Games like Destiny 2 and The Surge offer stunning opening hours only for the excitement to ramp steadily downwards after that.
With God of War, the embargo was lifted a full week before release, with review codes being given out more than two weeks prior to release. Not only did this give reviewers ample time to assess the game for all it was worth – pick it apart how they pleased without the looming threat of a deadline mere hours away – but it was also a powerful play in Santa Monica’s favor. Gamers at large have become fatigued towards game reviewers due to controversies surrounding the ethics of videogame journalism; an embargo being lifted many, many days before release was a message of good faith. It was them saying, “hey, world. We’re not afraid to show this game off, and we hope you’re ready.” And with the reviews coming back as a net positive across the board, it was only natural for the hype surrounding the title to reach a fever pitch as eager gamers wondered if it was all truly as good as it sounded.
The State of the Market
God of War released in the middle of a console generation where preorder bonuses come with tangible rewards, where season passes are not only common but expected to pick up the slack where a story took off, where even purely single-player experiences are marred by the promise of lootboxes giving you a chance at something good (like Shadow of War) or the latest installments of acclaimed franchises offer DLC that fleshed out and completed the story (like Final Fantasy XV and Resident Evil 7). God of War could have easily followed this trend and released in a much shorter development period, giving us a fancy exclusive tech demo to wave in other people’s faces.
But it didn’t. Against all odds, against all the market pressure bearing down on every new release, against the growing trend of releasing games as hollow incomplete packages proudly and unashamedly touting 60 dollar season passes, God of War was a complete package. Muspelheim, Niflheim, and even the Valkyrie bonus bosses could’ve easily been added later on as DLC gauntlets. Alfheim could’ve been much shorter, and the conflict could’ve been 6 hour story DLC. Even the numerous call-backs to the previous God of War games could’ve been relegated to a DLC filled to the brim with fanservice.
It’s both amazing and depressing that God of War is noticeable in this regard – amazing that a flagship series came completely devoid of any sort of additional monetization scheme out the gate, and depressing that shipping games in a feature-complete state is something outstandingly rare.
The Story
I’ve touched on God of War’s story in my review. It’s an incredible departure from the previous games’ hypermasculine acts of violence as Kratos kills mortals, undead, mythical creatures, and gods, has sex with multiple women, and overall acts like a huge jerk to everything that moves. To see the former poster boy for brutal, over-the-top violence become a jaded, sober old man was nothing short of amazing. So many things could’ve gone wrong with the story but at no point did it feel like it was beating me over the head with the message. In Kratos’s attempts to raise Atreus to be better than him, he fails to even say why – and this failure to communicate even leads his son to falling deathly ill at one point in the game.
It’s made clear that neither Kratos nor Atreus are perfect. Kratos may be the more responsible of the two but his perceived emotional detachment puts him at odds with nearly every character in the game at some point. Unparalleled in combat, he is at first a terrible parent, with nearly every character calling him out on his irresponsibility. Atreus is the human element, a character that comes alongside Kratos. To keep him relevant, Atreus isn’t so much something to be protected but more of an extension of Kratos’s combat capabilities. He can take care of himself and needs very little babysitting, and is an essential component in combat, exploration, and puzzle-solving. The nuances of their characters make their continued growth more refreshing as the two evolve from a somewhat cold, distant relationship to one where Kratos is proud to have a drink of ancient wine with him – a mature story for fans who grew up on videogames and may have families of their own.
God of War’s success was brought on by a number of factors and smart decisions on the part of Sony and Santa Monica Studios. With such massive numbers and strong public opinion, it’s clear to see that 8 years of work paid off. It’s a strong contender for one of my favorite games released in 2018 and I eagerly await the inevitable sequel.