God of War could be on the precipice of another major franchise change after the events of God of War Ragnarok. With the Norse realms more or less secure, Kratos likely assuming Tyr’s role as the God of War, and Atreus setting off on his own journey to seek the remaining Giants, the franchise will effectively be forced to adapt, evolve, and take unexpected narrative risks.
Many assume that one of these risks will be the supplanting of Kratos as protagonist by Atreus. Considering Kratos’ multi-game-long journey of attempting to leave conflict behind, working to be productive rather than destructive, it would be narratively satisfying to see him “settle down,” so to speak. Meanwhile, Atreus is a young buck, just discovering the full extent of his godly powers, and embarking on a solo adventure, likely with Angrboda alongside him. Put plainly, there is a lot more room for Atreus’ story to grow, and while Kratos probably won’t exit the stage completely any time soon, it’s very probable that he will move into more of a background position over the next few games. Looking beyond the sequel to God of War Ragnarok, it will be interesting to see how Santa Monica continues to develop the franchise with respect to this father and son duo.
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In Some Ways, Atreus and Kratos Will Always Be Inextricably Linked
What To Do With Kratos In Future God of War Games
A single Atreus-led God of War game definitely makes a lot of sense—even a series of solo Atreus adventures could work, in theory. God of War Ragnarok planted the seed for Atreus-centric gameplay, and alongside his continued maturity and character development, there’s plenty of unrealized potential for the young god to lead his own compelling stories.
But whether he will ever truly replace Kratos is another question entirely. As long as Kratos lives, there will always be the possibility of him coming back into the fray. More importantly, it could be difficult to justify keeping Kratos out of the action if the stakes are high enough: there wouldn’t be a reason for him to not help Atreus in his adventures. Thus, if Santa Monica truly wants Atreus to be the new “God of War,” and the face of the franchise, there may only be one solution: Kratos must die.
This dilemma is similar to what is seen in long-running superhero series. For instance, why should a character like Daredevil or Spider-Man be tasked with handling existential threats when they are allied with gods and other omnipotent beings?
It Feels Like God of War Missed the Boat for Killing Kratos
God of War Ragnarok is all about subverting destiny, so it’s not exactly a bad thing that Kratos survives the story despite it ostensibly building up to his death. The problem is that now, his potential death may not be anywhere near as impactful. This is especially true if he retires, more or less, from fighting, which is where the story seems to be heading. Santa Monica could certainly have him die of old age, but this could feel a bit underwhelming, especially as an alternative to the existential, epic scale of Ragnarok.
On the other hand, if Atreus dies, it would probably result in Kratos regressing to his older, angrier self, potentially erasing or undermining his previous character growth and retreading old ground. Of course, none of this is to say that Santa Monica can’t find a compelling way to keep this father-son pair together, or remove one of them from the franchise in a meaningful, gratifying way, only that it may be difficult and require outside-the-box thinking.
- Released
- November 9, 2022
- Engine
- Proprietary Engine
- ESRB
- M For Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- How Long To Beat
- 26 Hours
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty