God of War Ragnarok: let's analyze the new gameplay video in this special

God of War Ragnarok

Exclusives are increasingly rare in today's videogame journalism. On the other hand, it has now become almost impossible to completely stop the leak of information and news spreads at such a speed on the web that exclusive articles are an advantage with an almost negligible duration (even if, it must be admitted, not at the level of indexing and initial accesses).

Yet the main problem of exclusives does not lie in what has just been described: more often than not, especially with incredibly expected titles on which you want to keep maximum secrecy for as long as possible, early coverage also involves limitations not indifferent, which barely allow the publications to offer fans a few crumbs of content. function ready (fn) {if (document.readyState! = 'loading') {fn ()} else {document.addEventListener ('DOMContentLoaded', fn)}} ready (function () {window.addEventListener ('message', function (event) {let target_origin = 'https://aff.netaddiction.it'; if (event.origin! == target_origin) return; if (typeof event.data == "object" && event.data.hasOwnProperty ( "type") && event.data.type == "embaff") {let embed_id = event.data.embed_id; if (embed_id == '1124') {document.querySelector ('#_ aff_embed_1124'). setAttribute ('height ', event.data.embed_size);}}}, false);}) This seems to have been the case of the "coverage" of God of War Ragnarok by Game Informer: tested still among the most important in the world, yet limited to a couple of articles on PlayStation Studios production accompanied by two videos with a negligible duration to say the least. An exclusive, in short, which has once again demonstrated the willingness of Santa Monica Studio and Sony to reveal as little as possible until the last moment, perhaps by virtue of the "spectacular" surprises that the social communications of certain team developers seem indicate for the future.

Even with these novelties still unknown, in any case, the short videos published contain more information than expected for a careful eye and today we will try to bring them to light in your company in this special dedicated to God of War Ragnarok.

Fire and Ice

God of War Ragnarok: The ax is still a devastating tool of death, but the variety in combat seems to have increased dramatically, with more usefulness in switch of the weapon We obviously start from the combat, considering that it is also the first topic dealt with by the American magazine. The changes in this field seem to be several and all oriented towards a general increase in the complexity and flexibility of Kratos' maneuvers during the battles. The most obvious change? The addition of "unique moves" to the two weapons available to the wiry Spartan, which allow him to elementally charge the Blades of Chaos or the Leviathan ax in the middle of the fight. Obviously this involves the possibility of applying these elements to enemies (which is already feasible with certain skills in God of War), but the real gem seems to lie in the possibility of using them both at the same time with a quick weapon change, for additional effects not yet revealed. .

The issue of changing weapons, however, seems much better integrated into the rhythm of the battles, with no specific focus only on the ax or blades. The new ax moves seem after all markedly more "throwing" oriented, where the chain of fiery blades makes it possible to immediately bring enemies thrown into the air to the ground, for brutal closures of the combinations. Combined with the possible extra elemental effects described above, this need to combine the protagonist's death tools for elongated combos could lead to a renewed focus on aerial combinations in Ragnarok, for a much higher overall showmanship. Of course, the combat of this return of God of War is much more calibrated on the power of the maneuvers, well planted on the ground, and markedly more "brutal" than that of the series in its original incarnation, however these innovations represent a valid substitute, more suitable for the new mechanics (and very useful for further improving the control of groups of enemies, which in the new God of War requires more strategy and repositioning due to the camera behind, as well as the careful use of specific maneuvers). >
The question of shields is also very interesting: it is not clear whether they are quickly replaceable like edged weapons; however, they are clearly designed to offer two different approaches to defensive maneuvers. The new Stonewall, in fact, is not based on instant parries and can absorb blows in defense (only up to a certain point, so better not to abuse them), and then release the accumulated energy in the form of a devastating shock wave. The variant of the original shield, on the other hand, is still based on instant parry, but it seems to stun enemies more brutally and in some cases guarantee quick executions in charge, which could really support those players specialized in "closing like a turtle". >
Atreus himself seems to have received a significant boost: once again he is able to stun and immobilize enemies (both with arrows and directly), yet the frequency of his attacks seems to have increased and it is even possible to direct with precision his shots towards specific objectives. We observed this when, during the video, the player used it to break a wooden wall from a distance where a Grim, a large reptile that is part of the new bestiary of Ragnarok, was perched. Ah, obviously we also expect a lot more variation in terms of opponents and creatures in this sequel - given that it was one of the weaknesses of its predecessor - and it is nice to see how the behavior of these lizards is already peculiar, thanks to their ability to hurl. acid from a distance and climb vertical surfaces.

Home of the dwarves

God of War Ragnarok: in Svartalfheim there is no shortage of ponds ... and puzzles The second clip shown is as interesting as the first, although just as short. Here Kratos and Atreus head to Svartalfheim, a kingdom of the dwarves that was not explorable in the previous game (it seems that all nine kingdoms will finally be freely accessible in Ragnarok and there will be significant changes to those already visited). The interest this time lies not in the fighting, but in the exploration, because at first glance, Svartalfheim seems to be a peaceful and enemy-free kingdom, populated by dwarves who do their own business and full of gadgets and technology directly related to the puzzles. of this sequel.

Yes, because in Ragnarok the Santa Monica Studios seem to have wanted to revive not only the battles, but also the more "quiet" moments with more elaborate puzzles than in the past, albeit once again directly related to the powers of Kratos tools. You don't see much in the video, of course, however we can observe Kratos freezing the exit point of a Geyser to create a platform, where on another occasion he releases a jet of water by destroying a metal structure with the help of the Blades of the Chaos. For what little one can guess from these interactions, the map clearly features mills and other structures that use the geyser jet to function and it would not surprise us if as we advance we encounter complex combinations of interactive elements to be studied carefully to obtain hidden chests. or simply clear the way of the Spartan. Curious, but predictable, then also the presence of one of Odin's ravens at the beginning of the level, which demonstrates how father and son are constantly kept under an eye by the main Norse god, and therefore always at risk of ambushes by his affiliates.

God of War Ragnarok: in the kingdom of the dwarves we expect several upgrades to the equipment Overall, however, the technical sector is once again surprising: the new kingdom is splendid, full of mirrors of water to navigate by boat, and is a clear demonstration of the greater variety of settings promised by Santa Monica. The game may be cross-gen, but it is once again a bomb in terms of graphics. Some scenes of the two videos also suggest a significant enlargement of the maps, so much so that in Svartalfheim you can see a huge mountain in the distance with a sculpted face (plausibly reachable after a decent outing). Also in this case the things to evaluate are not few and the surprising ideas in map design may not be missing.

Put simply, even with the skimpy information officially made public by Sony and Santa Monica, the new God of War seems to have a lot of meat in the fire and we are seriously curious to find out what are the surprises that seem to exalt its developers to extreme levels. Who knows whether Sony decides to show something more concrete soon; at least not long before the game arrives.

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