page_title: God of War (2018 video game)
section_title: Development
hierarchical_section_title: God of War (2018 video game) / Development
caption_attribution_description: _GEN2305_1
context_page_description: God of War is an action-adventure game developed by Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Released on April 20, 2018, for the PlayStation 4, it is the eighth installment in the God of War series, the eighth chronologically, and the sequel to 2010's God of War III. Unlike previous games, which were loosely based on Greek mythology, this installment is rooted in Norse mythology, with the majority of it set in ancient Norway in the realm of Midgard. For the first time in the series, there are two protagonists: Kratos, the former Greek God of War who remains the only playable character, and his young son Atreus. Following the death of Kratos' second wife and Atreus' mother, they journey to fulfill her request that her ashes be spread at the highest peak of the nine realms. Kratos keeps his troubled past a secret from Atreus, who is unaware of his divine nature. Along their journey, they encounter monsters and gods of the Norse world.
  Described by creative director Cory Barlog as a reimagining of the franchise, a major gameplay change is that Kratos makes prominent use of a magical battle axe instead of his signature double-chained blades.
context_section_description: Development on the next God of War began in 2014. This was confirmed by Santa Monica Studio's creative director Cory Barlog at the first annual PlayStation Experience on December 6 that year, where Barlog said the game was in very early development, and that it would not be a prequel, but possibly a reboot. In April 2016, concept art was leaked that showed images of Kratos in the world of Norse mythology; a concept originally considered by series creator David Jaffe after Kratos eliminated the Greek gods. The game's official announcement came at the 2016 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) with a gameplay demo that confirmed the concept art to be true. The demo showed a fully bearded Kratos with a son; he was teaching the boy how to hunt. The pair also battled a troll. The end of the demo showed the title God of War and confirmed it was in development for the PlayStation 4. The E3 announcement also confirmed that Barlog had returned to the series as game director for the new installment. Since the original 2005 game, Barlog has been a major contributor in the development of the series, previously most notably as the director of God of War II (2007); this new installment was his fifth God of War game.
  Barlog said the game was titled God of War with no numeral or subtitle because, although it was a continuation of the series, "we ... [reimagined] everything." Head of Santa Monica Studio, Shannon Studstill, and Barlog said that Sony Interactive Entertainment had to be convinced to do another God of War game as many people at Sony wanted the series to "sleep and rest" due to the lackluster response to the previous game, Ascension. In explaining why Barlog was brought back, Studstill said he knew the series very well, "and bringing in someone that understands that history is the respect the franchise deserves." Barlog responded, "You gotta know the rules to break the rules." Series creator David Jaffe was also considered but was unavailable.
  In explaining the transition from Greek mythology to Norse mythology, Barlog said: "it's kind of this BC–AD change over kind of thing. We're moving and starting from zero and kind of moving forward on that." Before settling on Norse mythology, Egyptian mythology was also considered. Barlog said that half of the team was for it, but since "there's a lot more about civilization – it's less isolated, less barren", he had to make the decision and decided on the Norse setting because he wanted the focus to stay on Kratos: "Having too much around distracts from that central theme of a stranger in a strange land." To explain why Kratos was now in the Norse world, Barlog said that different cultures' belief systems coexisted, but they were "separated by geography", suggesting that Kratos traveled from Greece to Norway (Scandinavia) after the conclusion of God of War III. Clarifying the conclusion of that game, Barlog said Kratos did not destroy what was believed to be the entire world, but only the portion ruled over by the Greek pantheon. Barlog said the new game predates the Vikings as it takes place in the time when their gods walked the Earth. It was also confirmed that this would not be Kratos' last game. Barlog said future games could see the series tackling Egyptian or Mayan mythology, and although this game focuses on Norse mythology, it alludes to the fact there are other mythologies co-existing in the world. Barlog also said he liked the idea of having different directors for each game as had happened with the first seven. He said that although he might not direct another God of War, he would still be at Santa Monica to work on future games.
  Most of the development team that worked on the original God of War worked on the new installment. They claimed they matched the new gameplay with the same level of accessibility as the previous installments. It was confirmed that the game would not feature any morality system or branching story; all players have the same story experience. The developers also confirmed that some of the more controversial mini-games found in previous entries (such as 
caption: The Santa Monica Studio team behind God of War at the 2019 Game Developers Choice Awards
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