I know we have a number of threads about certain aspects of the game but I felt it was worth putting everything into one thread. If mods think this isn't necessary please feel free to close it. Will update with any new info.
Official gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJ_GCPaKywg
Higher quality: http://www.gamersyde.com/hqstream_god_of_war_e3_gameplay_demo-37487_en.html
New composer: Bear McCreary https://twitter.com/bearmccreary
New Kratos VA: Christopher Judge https://twitter.com/iamchrisjudge
New writers: Rich Gaubert, Matt Sophos and Cory Barlog http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1234488
Rated M for:
Digital Foundy
Frame-rate test
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDLsAKNIuoY
Giant Bomb
Impressions from Brad and Alex
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2pQdz981Uc&feature=youtu.be&t=7m13s
Easy Allies
Huber impressions
https://youtu.be/KftPFPcu_K0?t=5349
PS Livecast
Interview with Barlog and Judge
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ar59w0yrA_E
IGN
Video interview with Cory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWu_BFkDFHs
Thanks Loudninja for picking out this info
GOD OF WAR MADE ME CARE ABOUT THE SERIES FOR THE FIRST TIME
http://uk.ign.com/articles/2016/06/...e-me-care-about-the-series-for-the-first-time (More in the link)
GAMESPOT
Video interview with Cory Barlog
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wu6tSF683Q
God of War PS4 Director on the Challenge of Making People Take Kratos Seriously
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/god-of-war-ps4-director-on-the-challenge-of-making/1100-6440945/ (More in the link)
Venturebeat
Sony’s Cory Barlog answers our questions about the amazing God of War demo
http://venturebeat.com/2016/06/18/s...-questions-about-the-amazing-god-of-war-demo/
Playstation Lifestyle
God of War Preview: Closer to Kratos
http://www.playstationlifestyle.net...r-ps4-e3-2016-preview-norse-mythology-kratos/
vg247
God of War is the father-son epic you never knew you needed
https://www.vg247.com/2016/06/15/god-of-war-is-the-father-son-epic-you-never-knew-you-needed/ (More in the link)
Kotaku
The New God Of War Has A Button Dedicated To Your Kid
http://kotaku.com/the-new-god-of-wa...m_source=Kotaku_Twitter&utm_medium=Socialflow
Cinemablend
New God Of War Is Kratos' Quest For A Second Chance, According To The Director
https://www.cinemablend.com/games/1...for-a-second-chance-according-to-the-director
Shacknews
God of War Takes Unexpected Turn to Introspection
http://www.shacknews.com/article/95322/e3-2016-god-of-war-takes-unexpected-turn-to-introspection (more in the link)
Geoff Keighley
Intereview with Cory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jjoq7snv24I&feature=youtu.be&t=10h25m37s
Playstation Access
BTS info
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgVm0EfmRhA&feature=youtu.be
Gamesradar
Being a good dad will be Kratos' greatest test of strength in God of War
http://www.gamesradar.com/being-a-g...al&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
Telegraph
E3 2016: The new God of War is a fatherly reinvention
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gaming/what-to-play/e3-2016-god-of-war-ps4-preview/
Tweets by Cory
Giant snake?
Awesome post by StalkerUKCG about things you might have missed.
Official gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJ_GCPaKywg
Higher quality: http://www.gamersyde.com/hqstream_god_of_war_e3_gameplay_demo-37487_en.html
New composer: Bear McCreary https://twitter.com/bearmccreary
New Kratos VA: Christopher Judge https://twitter.com/iamchrisjudge
New writers: Rich Gaubert, Matt Sophos and Cory Barlog http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1234488
Rated M for:
https://godofwar.playstation.com/index.phpBlood and Gore
Strong Language
Intense violence
Nudity
Strong Sexual content
Very interesting infos from this French site: http://www.jeuxactu.com/god-of-war-on-a-revu-papy-kratos-et-on-a-de-nouveaux-details-104578.htm
The journalist watched the behind closed doors demo and was able to ask Cory Barlog about the game.
- The behind closed doors demo was more about showing the exploration side of the game.
- He asked whether the game was running on PS4K but Cory Barlog confirmed that it was running on a regular PS4.
- He asked him whether the game will have a skill tree and Cory Barlog was reluctant to answer and didn't neither confirm it nor deny it. He only replied that they are still working on that aspect.
- The axe is not only helpful in combat, but also in exploration, like collecting objects and items: for example there is a distant object that you can't reach or you need to walk for some time to get it, just throw your axe on it and call it back, it will retrieve the object with it.
-The axe has really amazing complex combos connecting the throwing and the recovering of it: You hit an enemy with the axe or other weapon, you throw your axe on the enemy (you can probably continue punching him or beating him with another weapon) then you jump, and instantly call your axe midair and beat him or finish him from the airs.
Amazon
- A New Beginning - His vengeance against the gods of Olympus far behind him, Kratos now lives as a man in the lands of Norse Gods and monsters. It is in this harsh, unforgiving world that he must fight to survive... and teach his son to do the same
- Second Chances - As mentor and protector to a son determined to earn his respect, Kratos is faced with an unexpected opportunity to master the rage that has long defined him. Questioning the dark lineage he's passed on to his son, he hopes to make amends for the shortcomings of his past
- Midgard and Beyond - Set within the untamed forests, mountains, and realms of Norse lore, God of War features a distinctly new setting with its own pantheon of creatures, monsters, and gods
- Vicious, Physical Combat - With an intimate, over-the-shoulder free camera that brings the action closer than ever, combat in God of War is up close, frenetic, and unflinching. Kratos' axe - powerful, magic and multi-faceted - is a brutal weapon as well as a versatile tool for exploration
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GW8XOY2/?tag=neogaf0e-20
Digital Foundy
Frame-rate test
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDLsAKNIuoY
Giant Bomb
Impressions from Brad and Alex
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2pQdz981Uc&feature=youtu.be&t=7m13s
Easy Allies
Huber impressions
https://youtu.be/KftPFPcu_K0?t=5349
PS Livecast
Interview with Barlog and Judge
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ar59w0yrA_E
IGN
Video interview with Cory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWu_BFkDFHs
Thanks Loudninja for picking out this info
GOD OF WAR MADE ME CARE ABOUT THE SERIES FOR THE FIRST TIME
http://uk.ign.com/articles/2016/06/...e-me-care-about-the-series-for-the-first-time (More in the link)
While you assume complete control of Kratos, you also passively control his son throughout the entire game, and both characters grow and evolve. There’s a single button dedicated to your son, and its use depends on the context. He becomes an active participant in combat, traversal, exploration, and puzzle-solving. In this, the game is about passing knowledge onto your child. At the beginning of your journey, you teach a reluctant child how to fire a bow and hunt. As you progress through the game, that becomes second-nature to the boy, and it’s clear that your knowledge has been passed on.
This bond isn’t the only new, surprising element of God of War. The entire game is presented as a single, uninterrupted shot. Once you’re in, you’re in. No load screens, no cinematics, no fades to black. Kratos and his son’s journey across the world of Norse mythology -- which takes place an undisclosed amount of time past God of War III -- will be told in a wholly singular, and honestly unique manner.
Right from the get-go, it was apparent that this was a very different God of War game. We now view the world from behind Kratos’ shoulders, with the previously-static camera now being controlled using the right stick. This part is important, because the world is rife with hidden paths, secret nooks, and collectables hidden all over the place. During my extended demo, we wandered off the beaten path and discovered a number of crafting resources, pieces of armor, and idols. God of War will feature larger, much more in-depth RPG systems, something Sony will discuss further down the road.
While the E3 demo was a quieter, more character-driven look at the game, Barlog assured me that the series isn’t shrugging off its bombastic, cinematic roots. The reason they didn’t focus the E3 demo on a huge, spectacle-filled set piece is that it's a given that the game will have those. Barlog and Sony Santa Monica have mastered those moments, so with this demo, they wanted to surprise fans and non-fans of the series with the unexpected.
GAMESPOT
Video interview with Cory Barlog
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wu6tSF683Q
God of War PS4 Director on the Challenge of Making People Take Kratos Seriously
http://www.gamespot.com/articles/god-of-war-ps4-director-on-the-challenge-of-making/1100-6440945/ (More in the link)
One of the challenges you now face, after multiple games of this guy brutally killing everything is getting players to take him seriously when he's being sincere. All they've seen is Hulk, so when you bring out Bruce Banner, it's a weird turn.
Yes, we want to show you don't have Banner without Hulk and you don't have Hulk without Banner. The god and the human side coexist within him and he let out that rage for a long period of time, but we're trying to find the motivation to change within him, and actually get people along for the ride for that change. It's like Arrow Season 1 and Season 2, from brutal killer to struggling in situations where he's being forced to kill.
Deliberately, I went for that Buffy Dawn reveal; one day everyone was calling Dawn "sister" and they didn't explain it was a spell for like three episodes. I like that--enter the scene late and get people in, pull the bandaid off quickly and put him into situation where you see him struggle. He gets upset, but pulls it back, he doesn't let the kid get in the fray, but then gives him an opportunity and the kid screws up. It's all anchored in real human experiences we've had. Probably not fighting trolls or shooting lightning but my dad was holding a piece of wood and a nail and I hit him on the hand with the hammer. It was the same thing where I was like, "Oh man, sorry," and he was all, "Don't say anything."
You're training him to be a warrior like you?
Not like you. Kratos is teaching him how to survive. This time period is very much away from the Viking stuff. There's migration before them, and pre-migration before that. We're at pre-migration, in Scandinavia it was a very barren time when it was said the Norse Gods wandered the earth. The Vikings always talked about, "The gods have abandoned us," and the gods not being around, even though they thought Thor, Odin, and Loki walked the Earth. They did walk the Earth, but they just pre-dated them.
Venturebeat
Sony’s Cory Barlog answers our questions about the amazing God of War demo
http://venturebeat.com/2016/06/18/s...-questions-about-the-amazing-god-of-war-demo/
Playstation Lifestyle
God of War Preview: Closer to Kratos
http://www.playstationlifestyle.net...r-ps4-e3-2016-preview-norse-mythology-kratos/
vg247
God of War is the father-son epic you never knew you needed
https://www.vg247.com/2016/06/15/god-of-war-is-the-father-son-epic-you-never-knew-you-needed/ (More in the link)
It also introduced the axe, Kratos’s only weapon in the demo. Davis said this is an entirely new combat system which uses R1 and R2 at its core to deliver traditional melee attacks, but also includes short, medium and long-range attacks with the axe. The combination of axe and general strikes mirrors the depth of combat in the older games with the chain-swords, but we only saw a taste of what’s going to be eventually available.
The axe is going to play a big part in God of War, and not just in combat. Kratos can use it, for example, to smash chests and other points of interest in the environment to gather resources.
During the troll fight, Kratos smashes the ground with his axe. If you watch the video, you’ll see all the axe attacks are blue, denoting frost attacks. The trolls attacks are red, as they’re fire-based. Davis only touched on this, but there’s obviously a lot we’re not being told yet about different weapons and elemental damage, but you can wait. You don’t have much choice, I guess.
Kotaku
The New God Of War Has A Button Dedicated To Your Kid
http://kotaku.com/the-new-god-of-wa...m_source=Kotaku_Twitter&utm_medium=Socialflow
Kratos isn’t alone in the new God of War. Not only does he have a son, that child will be with him for the whole game. The two are so tied together that Sony’s dedicated an entire button on the controller to interacting with the kid.
The relationship between Kratos and his son is central to God of War’s latest installment. The big question at the heart of the game, according to the developers, is whether Kratos is capable of redemption. He paved the roads with blood in his quests, but things are different now that he’s responsible for a life.
Cinemablend
New God Of War Is Kratos' Quest For A Second Chance, According To The Director
https://www.cinemablend.com/games/1...for-a-second-chance-according-to-the-director
Shacknews
God of War Takes Unexpected Turn to Introspection
http://www.shacknews.com/article/95322/e3-2016-god-of-war-takes-unexpected-turn-to-introspection (more in the link)
That makes Kratos far from the perfect parent, but it comes from an honest place. The character is at least attempting to make some form of amends for his violent past. Barlog said this game is really about Kratos trying to put his rage in check, after multiple games in which unchecked anger was the driving force and a major gameplay mechanic.
The takeaway was clear. Destroying monsters is all well and good--and there will be plenty of them in this game, no doubt--but his ideas of parenthood and the way generations impact one another has turned more introspective. The old Kratos was an angry man lashing out at his deadbeat dad. The new one is trying to set a good example and prepare his son for the larger world. It's a resonant theme even set against the extreme conditions of this setting.
Geoff Keighley
Intereview with Cory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jjoq7snv24I&feature=youtu.be&t=10h25m37s
Playstation Access
BTS info
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgVm0EfmRhA&feature=youtu.be
Gamesradar
Being a good dad will be Kratos' greatest test of strength in God of War
http://www.gamesradar.com/being-a-g...al&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
Telegraph
E3 2016: The new God of War is a fatherly reinvention
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gaming/what-to-play/e3-2016-god-of-war-ps4-preview/
Tweets by Cory
Giant snake?
For the guys who asked about the thing which was moving in the final scene of the trailer. Do you mean this?
Awesome post by StalkerUKCG about things you might have missed.
Kratos looks like he still has some level of power, No where near the power he had in older games. Willing to be he retained some level of Demi-God power anyway since he is the son of Zeus.
I pulled as many interesting things as I could find from the trailer.
The HUD, Notice the axe on the right quadrant and the bow at the bottom, Looks like weapons for Both Kratos and his son will be available as you play, Additionally no idea what the thing on the left is, Possibly magic? He does have a Horn and a Flask on his belt.
The Axe, It's Ice powered based on the footage, I can't find any Norse legend it matches.
The figure watching Kratos and Kidtos. Originally I figured it may have been the kids mother but it floats off to the right and the camera purposefully avoids it. The area before it has 3 different paths and Kratos goes left. I think it might be either an upgrade mechanic vendor or something similar. Doesn't look all that important.
Scars of the chains glow when activating Spartan Rage, Looks like kratos binds his forearm to hid them. Neat little touch
Dire Wolf that quickly leaves the scene after being startled. Nice to see some wild life.
Flying magic fairy? We know you go to the fairy Kingdom due to the leaks, makes sense I guess. Still strange to see it outside the fairy portion of the game. Could be something else I suppose.