God of War: Ragnarök – Full Review
by Jake Mackin 2025
With the long awaited and much-anticipated sequel to a game that many considered a masterpiece, expectations for God of War: Ragnarök were as high as can be. I’m sure I won’t be the last to say that the high expectations were not only met but exceeded. If Santa Monica Studio hit it out of the ballpark with 2018’s God of War, then this one is gone, out of the atmosphere and into the next solar system. Ragnarök makes improvements across the board compared to 2018’s God of War. Not only with the combat, but the story telling, graphics, exploration, and quality of life all see minor to major improvements. If you consider yourself a gamer, both God of War from 2018 and God of War: Ragnarök needs to be added to the front of your backlog immediately. Let’s get into the review.
Starting with the combat, the core hack and slash, beat the living piss and shit out of everything functions are still present. No need to reinvent the wheel when you already have a solid and fun foundation. But Ragnarök takes it a few steps further and adds some more depth to the already amazing combat. A substantial improvement includes the addition of the amulet, which you can slot different enchantments in to boost your stats. The enchantments can also be a part of a set bonus. For example, you can slot 3 Midgard enchantments to increase ranged attack abilities. This whole system multiplies the number of playstyles and build choices a player can make and that is something the 2018 game lacked. Player choice in combat playstyle is essential nowadays. I personally played it safe with a Strength and Defense build, but it is fun to play around with the other set bonuses to try more high-risk high-reward type of builds. There are also non set bonus enchantments, like passive health regen that you can play around with.
Along with the amulet is the addition of a brand-new weapon, the Draupnir Spear. It’s technically a magical ring but you just love to see it. Kratos, born of Sparta with a spear in his hands. It’s even donned with a red cloth to indicate his Spartan Heritage. Not only is the spear itself awesome, but the journey you take to go get it is a memorable one. I will never forget Kratos kneeling before Brok to give the spear his blessing. It’s moments like these that’ll make a man get all fuzzy inside. The move set also looks great and plays smooth, especially when you Spartan Rage at a filthy draugr, stab it right through his chest and then stomp his ass out. You can also throw the spear an infinite number of times at enemies and then make the spears explode. In a world of short attention spans and boring repetitive gameplay, having these new combat options will be much appreciated among gamers.
Getting into the story, I just want to talk about some of my favorite moments. Before I do, I want it to be clear that this is one of the best stories in video games. Again, building from the 2018 game, everything from the voice acting, motion capture, storytelling, and comedy all set the standard for what a video game is capable of. The characters are captivating, the world building is grand, and the style of storytelling can immerse you into a believable world of ancient Norse and Greek mythology. The side quests and the stories they tell feel like they really matter. Even the passive character dialogue while just traveling drop some amazing lines. Death can have me when it earns me. I can’t praise this part of the game enough.
I already mentioned one of my favorite moments when Brok gave the spear his blessing. There are so many more great moments. When Atreus returns from his adventures with Odin in Asgard, he gets to Sindri’s House in the Realm Between Realms, and they are under attack. Atreus gets knocked down and when Kratos shows up, he says “Off your back”. Even though it was simple, I was so hyped up in that moment and remember jumping out seat in excitement. This was a reunion that we knew would happen, but it happened in a way that we didn’t expect. I can’t forget to mention my favorite new character addition, Heimdall. He is just a sarcastic asshole in every moment, and I found him so entertaining. Of course, Odin was another great addition, and his villainy was top tier. Manipulating almost everyone and everything at every turn.
Something I didn’t expect was the empathy I felt for Thor. With the events of 2018, the teaser at the end of it, and the character model reveal, I expected Thor to be an angry brute and mostly one dimensional. What we got is a complete side character on the “bad” side, and characterization that felt strong and genuine. From the adventures to Muspelheim with Atreus to the drunken bar fight, I grew somewhat attached to Thor’s character. Of course, throughout the whole game, Thor was essentially Odin’s puppet and always did whatever he was asked to do. Odin says something along the lines of “you don’t think, I think and you kill”. Almost the exact moment Thor rebels against Odin, he gets murdered for it. It’s a wonderful wrap up for his character as tragic as it would be leaving a daughter behind. Of course, this sets up for continuation of the Thrud’s story and possibilities of exploring the relationship she has with Atreus. There aren’t many games that come along nowadays that reach this level of production quality, immersion, and just overall fun. God of War: Ragnarok is a must play. If not now then you are in fact missing out so put it on the top of your list.