Originally published at: God of War Ragnarok First Look – Alphagamer
Yesterday, I had a first look at the new God of War Ragnarok game and I must say I am impressed!
Interestingly this is 1 of the franchises I never really played even though I remember it being big hit when it released on Playstation. I think I was just too occupied with other games at that point.
I will break down my first impression in:
- How does it look?
- How does it play?
- Do you like the story?
I do only have 4 hours in so this is just my initial view, I will likely keep adding and expanding my view over the next couple of weeks. So here we go!
How does it look?
On he Playstation 5 the game looks really good. When you start the game you basically feel like you are in Kratos (main character) and in a snowy landscape/cave. The look and sound make you feel you are actually walking through a thick layer of snow. The interaction with his son (Atreus) and with the other characters in the game looks and feels natural. I rate it an 9.0 out of 10.
How does it play?
The story starts with an event on a dogsled which is really well done but I had some challenges with the controls. They want you to bash the O button at some point which I just didn’t get… so I died. Not a big deal and not difficult to figure out, probably just me being a noob. As soon as you get off the sled and follow the story it is all very intuitive. I am still figuring out the skill trees and moves to use with enemies. It also takes a bit of time to figure out targeting (R3 press) and how to handle groups of enemies.
Fighting bosses is really cool and the visuals and game play experience are excellent. Again, it takes a bit of time to get the hang of evading, blocking and (targeted) attacking. I guess this just needs a bit of time to sick in. I rate the gameplay at 8.5 out of 10.
Do you like the story?
What is there not to like? Playing a bad ass dude who is fighting all kind of mythical creatures is pretty cool. Being a big fan of Marvel’s Thor I really like that they took the approach of making Thor and Odin the badd guys. I haven’t progressed very far but the story seems rich and detailed and how the game flow through it feels organic. The additional information the game system provides is very detailed and helpful, as you can pull up information on you allies, enemies, creatures, etc. Great especially for people new to the franchise, like me. I rate the story at 8.5 out of 10.