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[Loudninja]

GamesRadar

Combat is still fast and bloody, the focus has just shifted slightly

This is not Dark Souls: Odin Edition. Kratos can still slice, dice, hack and wreck with the best of them. His personal reach might no longer match that of his old Blades of Chaos days (though there's good reason for his switch to an axe), but in the demo I saw today he was clearly as fast, ferocious, fearsome and flowing as he was back in Greece. His attacks have more direct, heavy impact nowadays, but his crowd-control efficiency remains supreme. Fear not. When you want to spill blood, it will be spilled. And when you need to deal with threats from further afield, hey, you've got a son with a bow.

There's a definite Zelda element, philosophically at least

He describes the new God of War as being in the spirit of a classic, fantasy adventure game. Specifically, he describes the joy of spotting a crack in a wall, dropping a bomb to blow it open, and discovering the magic of a brand new area, hidden in plain sight the whole time.

That's how God of War is approaching exploration. It certainly isn't an open-world game by any means, but it does contain many hidden sights off the beaten track. Find the means to discover them, and you'll be treated to all kinds of new delights, none of them vital to your journey, but all of them enriching it in some way, be that by additional narrative context, or simply revealing a cool new part of the world.

Kratos' origins will not be forgotten

Referencing this, Barlog tells me that in God of War's narrative, all mythology exists simultaneously, distinct from, but respectful of, all the rest. Don't expect the original God of War trilogy to be entirely forgotten. There will certainly be a character or two in the new game who knows of Kratos' origins.

QTEs are over. Control is now yours

Barlog admits, as QTEs are discussed, that he was tired of God of War's trademark, cinematic combat trick by the end of the second game. Thus, they're not coming in anything like the same capacity, in the new one. That's not to say that there won't be huge, stand-out takedown moments. It's just that from now on, they'll be under the player's control, triggered by the same actions and agency as everything else in the game. There's a grab button. There's a ‘hit with axe' button. Players know how to use such things, so Barlog is going to trust them to know how to combine them at the right time for the right, destructive purpose. Much as God of War's exploration won't hint or dictate with collectible checklists or leading waypoints, its violence is going to let the player carve their own path.

http://www.gamesradar.com/7-things-...-original-trilogy-links-and-the-zelda-factor/

Edit: More stuff:

Kinda Funny

1) Neverending Story being an influence confirms my speculation that the kid was named after the hero alter-ego in that movie.
2) Confirms skill-tree.
3) Confirms that there are separate skill-trees for father and son.
4) Apparantly kid is vulnerable if you choose to use his actions with circle button.

Cool to hear that there actually was more God of War material somewhere at E3.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_pNq0FQplE&feature=youtu.be

Kotaku

The presentation focused on character relationships; gone are the days of the angry Kratos who spurned aid and used random strangers as door-jams. Kratos' bond with his son expresses itself mechanically as well as narratively. During certain combat sequences, players will actually take control of the son. In one instance, leaping off Kratos' back and switching in order to shoot some arrows to harass enemies. As players progress, they will be able to teach the boy new abilities much like they would Kratos. The whole thing sounds like a smart way to express the father-son, master-student relationship through the game's combat.

Kratos's son will also interact with men and women he and his father come across in their travels. He's a liaison for his father, who doesn't know the language. Barlog compared the scenario to that of his own home life with his bilingual son, who has taken to teaching him Swedish.

Beyond the central relationship of Krato and his son, the game will allow players to befriend allies who will also be able to help out. One of those allies is the dwarf Sindri, who crafted the legendary hammer Mjolnir. He's a weapons merchant, sure, but if you interact with him it'll eventually lead to a reconciliation with his estranged brother Brokkr.

God of War will still have plenty of brutal combat and bloody executions, but the Kratos Barlog described sounded far less like the unlikable brute of past games. When asked if that was a deliberate response to those who criticize Kratos as being a one dimensional character, Barlog disagreed that the changes were quite so dramatically motivated but acknowledged the change. ”Who I was and how I view the world is different now," Barlog said. ”We had initially embraced the concept that Kratos was an anti-hero. You didn't want to root for him. But how interesting would it be to take a person who had fallen and figure out how they will pick themselves back up?"

http://kotaku.com/the-new-god-of-war-might-finally-make-kratos-interestin-1796080869

The Verge

A variation of the quick time event will still appear in the game. For big, elaborate boss battles, Barlog said, players can expect the ”Track and Field" design, referring to the classic NES game in which players quickly spammed buttons to create a feeling of physical exertion. In dramatic sequences, God of War might ask the player to spam ”X" or twirl the control sticks to mimic the action happening on screen. But at no point will the game require the player to tap a button at a precise moment.

”[QTE's] are cool," said Barlog, ”but we're finding a better way."

https://www.theverge.com/2017/6/15/15811678/god-of-war-ps4-director-no-qtes-quick-time-events

Edit: 2

Like last year. I get you new exclusive interesting infos from this French gaming site interview:
http://www.jeuxvideo.com/videos/rep...ealisateur-repond-a-nos-questions-e3-2017.htm

- This GOW has been in development for at least 5 years (just after the release of GOW: Ascension, I presume)
- Cory Barlog considers that all past 7 GOW games only constitute one big chapter of Kratos' life, and this is his chapter 2 (this means maybe more sequels will come to expand this chapter 2).
- Cory isn't implicit about this and cries it loud, but I will still put in spoiler tag:

Spoiler

Kratos didn't die at the end of GOW3, and in this interview he said: "Kratos realized that he is cursed and can't even die, and he is condemned to wander for the eternity, and if he doesn't want to get insane, he needs to change". In some of last year's interviews, he said that no one would die in this game, neither Kratos nor his son and a sequel is still planned with him. So quit the idea of him (at least) dying.

This doesn't surprise me at all tbh.
- The journalist asked him, that in previous episodes, you recuperate weapons directly from bosses and if this is the case here in this GOW. Cory replied that getting items,weapons and progressing in this game is unique, but there are some cool elements from the past games they kept and that they will be used in an adequate way. He also insinuated that getting weapons from bosses is kept too.
- This GOW will keep the trend of the epic bombastic intros of he previous games. In fact for such epic intros, they got inspirations from Indiana Jones and James Bond

Eeven Le Monde journal talked about this game: http://www.lemonde.fr/pixels/articl...soin-d-un-nouveau-depart_5145440_4408996.html

and asked Cory about the games they inspired him for this game and the list was: Assassin's Creed, les Batman [Arkham], Tomb Raider, The Last of Us... but the game will have its own identity since the first GOW started and wasn't similar to any other game at that time.

Gameinfomer
Kratos didn't quite display that level of nuance in the original God of War games. Is some of this characterization of him being retroactively applied?

I still think he lacks nuance in certain areas. He's a struggling character. Pixar once sent out these rules for storytelling, and one of them talks about the hero failing over and over again. But you love him for it, because he gets back up every time he fails. That is the engagement with the character. This character doesn't change overnight. He's not going to sit there and have very deep, meaningful, emotional conversations with his son. He struggles this whole game to figure out his place in the world and how to relate to his kid. Because it's important to him to change tomorrow, because he's been blaming yesterday his whole life.

If you have the linear action of previous God of War games on one end of a spectrum, and open-world on the other, where does this new God of War fall?

I would say that action/adventure is squarely where we are suited. We're definitely not open-world, but we're kind of this interesting "super-wide linear" in the sense that the world has a greater sense of scale. We're really encouraging the player to say ”Hey, what's that over there? I'd like to go check it out." We're not forcing them. We don't force you to go find something, but when you do, you are rewarded. You are rewarded with things like ”Wow, there's an entire level over here!" And I think that sense of discovery is so important. Linearity can drive you through this fantastic story – you're always going to be driven forward by the development and arc of the characters – but at any given point in this game, you can pull the lever on the bus and stop to look around, and then get back on the bus and keep going. Seamlessly integrating that, making it feel like it's not a chore and you're rewarded for it, that's the big trick of this game. That's the big play, to make it feel like you're not just going down a hallway. To always feel like there's a ”why."

http://www.gameinformer.com/games/g...2017/06/14/god-of-war-director-interview.aspx

 

[Yjynx]

Sounds awesome. The right evolution of GOW.

 

[David___]

Getting more excited the more I hear. Sounds like the perfect evolution for the series

Im still impressed that the speed from the demo we saw at the conference looks to be on par with the past titles even though its now behind the shoulder

 

[OrbitalBeard]

God of War needed this shakeup. I'm so excited to play it!

 

[orochi91]

Well, shit.

QTEs were amazing in the previous GoW games.

 

[jett]

It already seemed like the game had thankfully abandoned QTEs, but it's nice to have confirmation.

Shit has no place.

 

[Vroadstar]

Can't wait to play, it will also be a graphical powerhouse just like other GOW games

 

[overcast]

Expected the quick action to stick around because of Barlog. Confirmation is nice though.


I kind of liked the QTE's in god of war honestly just for the bosses. It's okay though.

 

[SprachBrooks]

Honestly, one of the most interesting aspects is how they marry the Greek mythology with Norse mythology; how they incorporate Kratos's past into this story and how formative it will be. Really excited to play this––it's my most anticipated game of this generation.

 

[TissueBox]

I just can't shake the feeling that this game will be something really powerful while also being great to play. I'm looking forward to seeing it expose the heart underneath its epic massacres.

 

[MegaSackman]

They're saying everything I want to hear and more!

 

[RootCause]

Sounds like they still have a hard on for violence.

 

[steven28]

Sounds perfect to me. I love that that it is still linear but there are optional things to find,that's the kind of game design i really enjoy.

 

[Elixist]

It already seemed like the game had thankfully abandoned QTEs, but it's nice to have confirmation.

Shit has no place.

it still looks like it has A to awesome. just no prompts now

 

[yansolo]

So do all gods from different cultures hang out? the original trilogy made it like the only gods in the world were the Olympian ones (battle of earth with the titans, flood at the end of 3)

I wonder how they will introduce the norse gods

 

[forrest]

I've really gotten a ton of enjoyment out of this franchise and I can't wait to see what they have in store for the new direction. The footage shown this year looked great!

 

[Drencrom]

Sounds like they still have a hard on for violence.

The series is called "God of War"...

 

[Wollan]

Uncut camera from game start all the way to end will be incredible. Never loading, never camera shift, never fade to black etc.

 

[darkistheway]

This is pretty much what I thought the game footage revealed. Happy to hear it from the director.

 

[NightwingRebirth]

This game really is going to be fantastic. I can't wait to play it.

 

[SolidSnakex]

Sounds like they still have a hard on for violence.

What's wrong with that?

 

[Cave Johnson]

Loved the QTE's back in the day. But the time for developers to mature and not rely onnold gimmicks to make it through this industry and that feature has reached its expiry date years ago. Glad Cory decided to give more agency to the player rather than regress into barely interactive simon-says sequences. It's amazing go see (see spiderman) at the same time you feel a sense of underwhelming feeling that it could just have played out without the QTE's.

 

[Darknight]

Sounds like they still have a hard on for violence.

This is like saying why is Mario in 2017 still E for everyone...LOL.

 

[Shin]

Good shit, can't wait to play it.
The game will support HDR, yeah?

 

[ItWasMeantToBe19]

Show a gameplay demo that isn't the tutorial...

And tell people what's going on and what options they have in said demo.

I'm glad this guy managed to see a gameplay demo though and that is seemingly looked good.

 

[Loudninja]

Good shit, can't wait to play it.
The game will support HDR, yeah?

Dont think they talk much about pro support yet?

 

[Dynomutt]

This is not Dark Souls: Odin Edition.

So happy to hear this. Can't wait.

 

[Oathbreaker]

This is going to be amazing! God of Changes!

 

[vivekTO]

Really Happy to see all the changes, especially the combat parts. Its seems quiet Fast and responsive in the trailer . hopefully they hit March 2018 as release date.

 

[Loudninja]

I didnt mind the QTE but also I understand they want to go in another direction and that's fine.

 

[Night Angel]

I never thought I'd say it, but I might miss these QTEs.

Sounds good, though. The series definitely needed a shot in the arm.

 

[facetheslayer92]

Can't wait. I hope the campaign is meaty like God of War 2.

 

[hydruxo]

I think GoW is one of the few series where I really don't mind QTEs, but I trust that if they've abandoned them that it's all for the best. Everything sounds and looks great so far.

 

[Jawbreaker]

This is going to be the best game in the series yet. They're doing all the right things.

 

[Loudninja]

Can't wait. I hope the campaign is meaty like God of War 2.

It has to be their biggest game yet.

 

[ValfarHL]

QTE's for glorious finishing moves on bosses and bigger enemies never bothered me. I actually liked the brutality of it.

But the "press O like a madman to open doors" grinded my gears..

 

[Adam Sadler]

Wow I actually did not know this is actually still a sequel to the previous God of War.

 

[Sesha]

Barlog admits, as QTEs are discussed, that he was tired of God of War’s trademark, cinematic combat trick by the end of the second game. Thus, they’re not coming in anything like the same capacity, in the new one. That’s not to say that there won’t be huge, stand-out takedown moments. It’s just that from now on, they’ll be under the player’s control, triggered by the same actions and agency as everything else in the game. There’s a grab button. There’s a ‘hit with axe’ button. Players know how to use such things, so Barlog is going to trust them to know how to combine them at the right time for the right, destructive purpose. Much as God of War’s exploration won’t hint or dictate with collectible checklists or leading waypoints, its violence is going to let the player carve their own path.

So Kratos has Nero's Buster in DMC4? I hope this isn't contextual like the QTE finisher prompts of old.

 

[vio]

No QTE? Thanks a lot to all of you that kept pressing that circle.

Still not convinced about the camera. In my opinion best solution would have been over the shoulder camera between fights. When fighting camera goes back and Kratos can move any direction while stays in center of screen.
Somewhat similar to the Witcher 3 camera. Faster, 360 degree combat, instead of the tank controls.

 

[Falchion]

It seems like the new direction they are taking can really breath some new life into the series. I'm excited to see the changes in action.

 

[Omnistalgic]

Uncut camera from game start all the way to end will be incredible. Never loading, never camera shift, never fade to black etc.

Did they have to do this because of the Ax tech?

Seems like a massive inconvenience to programmers, are there any benefits to it?

 

[TheKastorian]

This list has gotten me crazy excited! Especially like that there will be secret areas in the game (love exploring).

 

[ScaryShark]

So happy about the removal of QTE. I got ridiculously burned out on that mechanics and it's charm and novelty had completely gone away by the time 3 came around.

Balrog just seems to have a fundamental understanding and love of this character and franchise and fully understands how Kratos and God of War should evolve and improve with the times.

I can not wait for this game.

 

[Loudninja]

More stuff from the other topic

1) Neverending Story being an influence confirms my speculation that the kid was named after the hero alter-ego in that movie.
2) Confirms skill-tree.
3) Confirms that there are separate skill-trees for father and son.
4) Apparantly kid is vulnerable if you choose to use his actions with circle button.

Cool to hear that there actually was more God of War material somewhere at E3.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_pNq0FQplE&feature=youtu.be

A mod can change the title to include some of the details like, NO QTE, and skill trees

 

[Wollan]

Seems like a massive inconvenience to programmers, are there any benefits to it?

Immersion that never breaks and draws you in more than other games (being the goal). It's obviously much harder to do than to make normal videogames (which is why we haven't seen this in any modern AAA game).

See: Children of Men, Gravity, The Revenant.
Movies that try to achieve the same.

 

[MetalliCabombination]

you know when you see games like god of war and odyssey that theres just no way these games turn out as anything below excellent.
too much talent, passion and originality in the project

As a HUGE gow fan the game better be 60fps on standard PS4 or i'll wait for it to be $20.
Already a very hard sale to me as is.

As a huge god of war fan you got so used to 60fps in the series that youll skip the game till its 20 bucks and its already a hard sale for you?

This statement makes all the sense .

 

[KnightimeX_Legacy]

As a HUGE gow fan the game better be 60fps on standard PS4 or i'll wait for it to be $20.
Already a very hard sale to me as is.

 

[Raptor]

Insane gore = day one.

 

[basic_text]

Hopefully no QTEs also means no stupid sex mini game too. They always out me off.

 

[Loudninja]

Hopefully no QTEs also means no stupid sex mini game too. They always out me off.

They already confirmed that is gone as well.