God of War

God of War is the game with a deep storyline. It has a powerful focus on its characters more than before. This time, it won’t be about another massacre, prepare for a melancholic journey through a cold, unfamiliar and inhospitable world.

That would be a journey of Kratos with his son Atreus to the highest mountain to dispel the remains of his deceased wife. The father-son relations will be the most crucial accent in this game. Look at this naive child and his ruthless father: something exciting is going to happen along their way. If you want to know what exactly, download God of War or read our detailed God of War review first.

Graphics — 5/5

When it comes to graphics, God of War deserves our best praises. The game got its outstanding HDR visuals from the developers, and the graphics quality is really on top. The landscapes look so realistic, and the characters are well-drawn. With the help of the new technologies, we get the most realistic effects and achieve genuine aesthetic pleasure from playing.

In addition, players can switch between a performance mode and a resolution mode to enjoy the amazing graphics in both of them. Astonishing sound effects enhance the visual performance and contribute higher immersion.

Gameplay — 5/5

The latest God of War is a fundamentally different game if we compare it with the recent titles. Now it has a deep storyline, great game mechanics, and another scene of action. The game series was radically rebuilt by studio Santa Monica, but still, the game is epic as the whole franchise.

The plot tells us about the story of Kratos whose wife died and bequeathed to dispel her dust from the top of the mountain. Her last will also consider that Kratos will do it together with his son Atreus. So we as players are taken to the dangerous journey during which the relations between the father and the son are going to open up in a new light.

Atreus doesn't know about father's divine nature. Becoming closer to his father, Atreus adopts a model of Kratos behavior and turns into a warrior. The characters discuss various themes along their way. We will also learn stories and myths from Scandinavian mythology: their companion Mimir is going to tell lots of them.

Father and son will have to fight a lot: tear up the monsters, break their bones, shoot a bow, and solve puzzles along the way. The puzzles are various: to turn ancient mechanisms, to move huge bridges and so on. The scenery of mystical Scandinavia and parallel worlds in which the story unfolds is incredibly beautiful and atmospheric.

The developers managed to balance all the elements of God of War perfectly. There are many types of enemies in the game, and they are all unique. Each new puzzle is not similar to the previous one, the mechanics of the combat system is also well-developed. Thus the gameplay combines a beautiful story with fights and puzzles.

Controls — 4.5/5

The latest God of War has plenty of new features that is why new controls appear. You could customize the main controls individually before. Now you need to learn the actual ones. The combat is more intense in God of War, that is why more controls are required.

You can use both light and massive attacks with two different buttons. R1 on your controller is for pushing light attacks, R2 works for massive attacks. L1 is for locking on to enemies (perfect for face-to-face boss fights). L3 is for sprinting. You can use the front buttons to call for Atreus actions and recall your ax Leviathan. With L2 you can aim before throwing the ax. Some time will be needed to manage the controls. However, experienced players do it from the first game.

Replay Value — 5/5

God of War wins the hearts of fans due to its deep emotional storyline and plenty of actions available. It was a long-awaited release that is why the game became popular at once: addictive gameplay, fantastic graphics, and no chance to get bored at all. The growing excitement guarantees players a high replay value.

The Bottom Line

Look for stunning HDR graphics and well-thought-out plot? Look no further than the latest God of War. This game is capable of blowing your mind.

• Graphics 5
• Gameplay 5
• Controls 4.5
• Replay Value 5

Pros

Fantastic HDR graphics
Intense combats
Deep and exciting storyline
Lots of content: actions, puzzles, characters, in-game stories, and so on

Cons

The game moves rather slowly