Kratos will return next year in an adventure that may be more evolutionary than revolutionary.
The God of War series has delivered a lot of severed limbs and Medusa heads since it first burst onto the stage in 2005 on the PS2. A mix of slick controls, rewarding combat, and highly polished art direction made Kratos one of the most loved anti-heroes in gaming history. However, after watching the trailer at E3, I couldn't help but think that not a lot has changed in the seven years since its conception.
While the visuals continue to get better with each iteration, the basic gameplay seems untouched.
This isn't necessarily a terrible thing, and one could repeat the timeless 'if it ain't broke, why fix it' line, but thel introduction of a multiplayer mode makes me wonder if the developers are concerned that their tried and true formula might need a shake up as well.
Like a few other games on show at E3, this new God of War game is a prequel to the original, and takes place around six months after the death of Kratos' family. Gone is his ash-coloured skin, and the younger Kratos has an element of humanity to him now, rather than the burning hatred we've seen in earlier games. However, this doesn't mean that our anti-hero is afraid of killing. Ascension is still packed full of brutal, eye-watering violence.