Review - God of War: Ragnarok

One of the best games of the year, God of War: Ragnarok is a suitably epic finale to the war between Kratos and the Norse gods.

[@peanut-junder]

Christopher Judge had a lot going on in his life with his children at the time both games were being motion captured and that translated so flawlessly into Kratos in both God of War 2018 and Ragnarok. I'll always respect T.C. Carson, but Christopher Judge delivered an unmatched performance.

[@justlivin2499]

He earned that 8 minute speech

[@peanut-junder]

@@justlivin2499 Absolutely he did 👏💯

[@TheStraightestWhitest]

@@justlivin2499 And fun fact: His speech was actually longer than the entire MW3 campaign!

[@justlivin2499]

@@TheStraightestWhitest and was better than the entire MW3 campaign lol

[@DionPanday]

If I wanted to watch a movie, I’d watch a movie

[@Nygassso]

They needed to have a 3rd game to expand the final war, it was too rushed. The Ironwood bit needed to be cut in half and we should’ve spent more time with Thor and the rest of the family

[@locomojoboy2]

Yeah it felt so damn rushed

[@stefansibbes2440]

As a ps4 owner Im glad I can play the full story without having to buy a ps5.

[@Leroydavis182]

@@stefansibbes2440my ps4 would take off if I played this on it lol

[@sebastiansnyder8500]

That angroboda part went on for way to long. Every single time I thought I was gonna be done it just kept going and going. If I remember it was around 2 hours of basically nothing.

[@flozenen6468]

As much as i have wanted them to make another game I don't think they'd have enough story for a whole game.

[@seanofthedawn8548]

Kratos has always had a strong paternal side he loved his daughter and made the ultimate sacrifice so she could continue to exist, it's just more front and center than before

[@GourSmith]

He was never a father wit Caliope … Just “loving” your child doesn’t make you “paternal” … He was almost never there in the first place. His family was never a priority in his life until Atreus. He was *identified* with being a father but was no father to Caliope. And as we see in the modern world-simply being *identified* with a trait or characteristic or role doesn’t actually make you that thing you identify yourself with.

[@seanofthedawn8548]

@@GourSmith did you play Ascension or chains of Olympus? Or how about the first game with the boss fight with Ares where you literally have to sacrifice your health to keep your family safe, or in chains of Olympus when Kratos had to sacrifice being with his daughter so she could continue to exist, he made such a tremendous sacrifice for the good of his daughter, like a father would do!! The whole premis of the franchise is him realising that he was wrong to pursue power and should have been with his family, his whole motive for hating himself and the gods is how they tricked him into killing his family and how he's tortured by what he did, the first game opened with him trying to kill himself for what he's done, in ascension he resists the temptations of the furies because it would be a lie and a dishonour to their memory, but in the that sequence we can see how tender Kratos his towards Caliope and his wife, and of course loving your child makes you paternal, it's called paternal love! This character has always put his fatherhood as a defining trait, how about in GOW3 when he doesn't want Pandora to destroy herself to help him because over the time he spent with her, she reawakened that spark of humanity and paternal care within him. This character has always been deep and multilayered, it was one of the biggest praises of the original trilogy!

[@GourSmith]

@@seanofthedawn8548 *TLDR* I read maybe have of that book you just vomited. Yes, goofball-I’ve played the entire series. None of that qualifies as Kratos having a “strong paternal side”. And my whole point is that Kratos lived most of his life far away from his family. That is-by definition-a life away from being a father. It’s not like he was out getting milk and bread for his family … He was out for vengeance and glory and his own entertainments. Simply having sweet emotions for your family doesn’t mean you “have a strong paternal side”. That would just mean you live in sentimentalities, which Kratos definitely did. Based on your reply, I can only assume you’re a teenager who doesn’t know much about life yet.

[@seanofthedawn8548]

@@GourSmith well personal insults aside nice touch by the way guess civil debate is truly dead, I'm a father who's spent 27 years on this planet and I can tell you I've learnt a great deal about life my friend! And I can tell you a big part of parenthood is sacrifice, to put aside your wants and desires for the good of your child, which Kratos did on several occasions during the original games, and books and you want to try and say he had never been a parent to Caliope, how about when Caliope was born deformed and Kratos knew that in Spartan society that meant death and he travelled across the world facing unimaginable trials to get a fruit that would cure her, but yeah guess you're right Kratos was never a father to her

[@GourSmith]

@@seanofthedawn8548 I never read the books or comics … So the skin deformity is news to me. But even still … You’re making a non-argument. Based solely on the games, Kratos definitely had *sentimentalities* and strong *identifications* of being a father … That doesn’t mean he was *STRONGLY PATERNAL* … Note the distinction. He had no relationship with his daughter at all. He wasn’t out fighting war after war to “sacrifice for the benefit of his daughter”. He was doing it for his own personal greed and arrogance (something he himself admitted in the Valhalla DLC). I’m not arguing Kratos had sweet emotions with about his daughter. His daughter was about the only thing that humanized him at all. But that doesn’t mean he “has a strong paternal side”. That means he is identified with being a father. Just like I can *IDENTIFY* as being a woman even though anyone with eyes or ears can know I’m not a woman. And based on your comments … It’s obvious punctuation is the only thing that’s dead here. To roll with your “sacrifice” analogy … Let’s look at a father who sacrifices all his time and energy to work 18 hours a day and pays all the home bills and pays for food. That doesn’t then mean he also “has a strong paternal side” … He may not care about the kids at all. He might be trying to maintain a social status and appearance and reputation. That doesn’t mean he has any type of closeness with his children. That’s exactly the case with Kratos. He may have had warm, sweet thoughts and sentimentalities about his daughter and ideas of being a father … But that’s a mental activity he played with while *AWAY* from his daughter. He was literally a stranger in his daughter’s life in his rare appearances between bloody battles for his own honor and glory. His fatherhood was a minuscule part of his life and was most definitely in the background of everything else.

[@mayogamer2800]

We need a rdr2 review from the drinker

[@aamusch015]

YES PLEASE

[@Karlach_]

I'd be curious to hear a Scott's take on the Old American West.

[@anrojoo]

best game ever IMO

[@Garagelab164]

I would watch that or even if he played through the game.

[@themasontwin]

best narrative and protagonist rockstar has ever made

[@user-ff8rs7gk6r]

Anyone else want to hear Drinker shout "For democracy!!!!" while mowing down some bugs?

[@DionPanday]

He should stick to movies, games aren’t his thing

[@benjaminnicholas5527]

Can’t wait for his drunken victory over the automatons

[@janhornak5739]

Or having a cup of Liber-t.. wait Liber-whiskey?

[@rhettmaxwell4860]

@@DionPandayI think he’s a fine enough gammer. He had been doing games for a few years now. He had always uploaded them on his after hours channel.

[@DionPanday]

@@rhettmaxwell4860 he has very safe opinions, he only changed his mind about god of war after it was revealed sweet baby inc was involved. Before he was all for the woke stuff. To him games are just a pastime. He doesn’t actually care about gaming as a medium

[@Karlach_]

Also make sure to finish the free Valhalla DLC for Ragnarok. It's a lot of fun and it continues Kratos' story along with a few others.

[@justlivin2499]

The fact that masterpiece was free blows my mind

[@65firered]

It's so good. It's about 10 hours for a free dlc that's huge.

[@JohnAnderson-ev3lp]

No thanks don't want to play apologize simulator

[@tro1239]

​@@JohnAnderson-ev3lp well this is a loser comment

[@weskerwewe]

I legit thought this was just going to be for streams. I am so happy

[@brockdavid]

Why are Norwegian, Danish, Finnish and other European groups and indigenous peoples being swapped out and culturally erased from their own history, heritage, stories, and mythologies? I’m very proud of my Scandinavian/Viking ancestors and ancestry, my great grandfather was a lesser Norwegian noble who got banished in the 1920s for throwing a grand piano off of a balcony (and, also for getting into a lot of troubles, fights and being a heavy drinker). And, was sent where Europe sends all exiled people of note, to the cold harsh wastelands of Canada and complete obscurity ;D Gaming, cinema, storytelling and our popular culture is being diminished and infantilized, to dull our minds and reduce our capacity to grasp new concepts, or cross harder boundaries and clear greater hurdles. Race swapping characters, deities and gods of any peoples is an insidious form of cultural erasure. It’s as jarring as John Wayne playing Ghenghis Khan.

[@samwallaceart288]

I don't mind black characters showing up in fantasy settings, and I get the logic that the Greek games also had non-Greek actors so fair's fair in that sense. But your point is also a fair point. There should be more authentically Norse representation. I think my thing is I want both versions to exist; a general mainstream fantasy where any actor from anywhere can take part in everyone's stories; and then have more accurate indigenous stories on top of that for people to see the real version. Maybe that's wishful thinking on my part, to think we could have the best of both.

[@JZStudiosonline]

@@samwallaceart288 The thing about voice actors is their race doesn't really matter. You literally don't see them. No one complains that the voice actors are whatever race.

[@samwallaceart288]

@@JZStudiosonline that said, it IS cool when foreign animation gets actors that are authentically from the place they're depicting; we can have our GoWs and our Mountain King's at the same time

[@JZStudiosonline]

@@samwallaceart288 I don't know what Mountain King is referencing. I don't have a problem with whoever does the voice, as long as they don't suck like Awkwafina. Does an accent change the value of the story? Not really, no. Do it or don't, people won't have a problem with it. It's when they take a story of largely one ethnic group, which actually doesn't matter which group it is, and then throw in random ethnicities for "diversity."

[@samwallaceart288]

@@JZStudiosonline Mountain King is a Norse folklore-accurate horror puzzle game with authentic actors; my point being stuff like Ragnarök and that more authentic stuff can exist side by side

[@AllHailMe12431]

An answer to the woke allegations and Sweet baby influence is they most likely had a hand in Angrboda's race choice. I'd say It's pretty dumb considering the setting, but they could fix that easily by giving her a connection to some southbound pantheon, perhaps through Tyr. Though, even if she's not woke per se, I find it hard to like her, as she makes some lines that kinda damage the worldbuilding, like a throwaway line where she states the Vanir gods' magic is actually Giant magic. This one line which is meant to explain how Angrboda can use Vanir magic, has the unintended consequence of demeaning the Vanir gods, and by extension Freya, by taking their specialty, the magic that makes them stand out in the Norse pantheon, and giving it to the giants, who already have more than enough to distinguish themselves as is. Her being part of the massive slog that is the Iron woods doesn't help either. How fitting that the part where Sweet Baby inc got to put their grubby little hands, is arguably the worst part of the game.

[@CMCAdvanced]

argably

[@sunayocarissime5309]

Agreed just remember in a post I made earlier some of the Jötunn are dark skinned according to the Poetic Edda. About the only one that isn't was Laufey the Just and even she was considered a minority among her own people so it is SEMI accurate. The Vanir magic though yes that is accurate and thought it was ham-fisted and Iron woods you can tell SBI's slimy little hands were all over it like a cheap suit.

[@NormieNerddom]

​@@sunayocarissime5309I would be ok with the giants being darker skinned but then there's Hildisvinni so it was clear this was nothing more than diversity for its own sake.

[@geoffrogue3049]

@@sunayocarissime5309Darker skinned doesn't mean black, ya knob. I'm Asatru and Angrboda is not black. Not to mention that it's already been confirmed that Angrboda was made black because of SBI. Just Google it, there's a whole interview about why she was made black and none of it had to do with anything found in the mythos.

[@Sheoloch]

@@sunayocarissime5309Darker skinned does not mean African looking though.

[@DionPanday]

Makes sense why Angrboda was changed by Sweet Baby inc

[@fredy2041]

Giants are the "diverse" race. We have small, really tall, 6 arms, 8 arms, skin green, blue, black, ice, fire, rock. It can be a dog, or a serpent, not necesarily humanoid.

[@eddychaosofpain244]

Sweet baby what touches they ruin

[@Mischkyy]

This game was a sound addition. What took me out was the modern speech, hearing Odin call Freya his "x" and a few other dialog choices that took me out of the whole ancient Norse vibe.

[@Clint_Yeetwood]

Agree. I had the same reaction.

[@thenewbohemian5779]

Odin was just an upper west side Jewish dad. I kinda found it funny.

[@frankkennedy6388]

I remember when they took the franchise seriously with its setting. That's part of what made it interesting.

[@MiguelitoStupidxHero]

Also agree, but I wish there were accents that matched the time period. That's one of the few things that pull me out of this game

[@teekay9886]

That was the thing that confused me as well... But the voice acting, story, and everything else was good enough to make me love the game regardless.... I kind of appreciate it even more, because it gave them that human dimension instead of just being dramatic characters. And, as for previous remarks about breaking the immersion with vocal oddities, nevermind in which format you use the English language, none of the previous GoWs wasn't authentic or accurate. Because, 1st; if he's really Spartan, he wouldn't have spoken English in ancient Greece. 2nd; Greek mythology is made up, as all mythologies are. 3rd; God of War is a videogame.

[@snakedogman]

It may not be particularly damaging to the game, but race-changing a character from Norse mythology to a black African is unquestionably a result of the woke "diversity, equity and inclusion" ideology whichever way you want to paint it. It could never happen the other way around (making a character from African mythology white) no matter how outlandish the rest of the story or visuals were. Would it make me not play the game? No. Does it make the game bad? No. But let's not pretend we don't know the reason why this particular thing is the way it is. We know where being tolerant to the lesser effects of this ideology has gotten us.

[@chuck9483]

But kratos was already black and Odin is jewish

[@totalprocall6894]

Fantastic post and on the nail. Kratos becoming a wet wipe for the sake of conquering "toxic masculinity" is another factor.

[@redninja3056]

​@@totalprocall6894how is Kratos a wet wipe? Honestly he's more masculine then in any of the previous games

[@jaydenc367]

@@redninja3056 Yeah I don`t get what is up with all the anti woke people who don`t like modern GOW....like I don`t see the issues with Kratos character here really.

[@elpogio4890]

​@@chuck9483 Kratos has never been canonically black

[@brijor6ff7]

I liked Ragnarok on my first playthrough, but when I replayed it I lost interest quickly. The Aterus sections drag the pacing to a halt. The combat is undeniably great though. 👍 8 out of 10 IMO.

[@eanderson9599]

The Atreus section in Ironwood is unbelievably slow, I’m shocked it made it into the final version of the game

[@stevenwoods5787]

yeah i tried to play again and i lost interest quick. love the story, but the game play and pace is hell to get thru

[@brijor6ff7]

@eanderson9599 brutal...I gave up on my replay shortly after that.

[@aytony4090]

​@eanderson9599 There's an interview with the game director and basically what happened is they kept writing stuff and when it came together they realized how unbearably slow that section was but realized that if they cut anything it would make some further plot point come out of nowhere. So they made this messy beast that is 2 hours too long.

[@chrismitcham1769]

That yak ride took 4 ever

[@spartanhawk7637]

Far as the story went, I only ever really had one or two gripes. The big one was Angrboda felt a bit off, though to be fair that's just cause I'm a massive nerd for classic fantasy and was expecting a more villainous character. My only other one was just Kratos telling Atreus to open his heart...in the middle of a warzone. That's a fantastic message and makes perfect sense in character, but I feel like Kratos also has participated in enough wars to know the importance of time and place.

[@snoobycong]

that was the ONLY time and place available to Kratos at that time. Yeah, they were in the middle of the war, but they had just came upon CIVILIANS and NON COMBATANTS, and has Kratos not stopped to impart upon Atreus that tidbit of opening his heart, Atreus would have been ready to commit effectively a war-crime and that would have DIRE consequences for Atreus's character

[@SaveMeXenu]

My gripe with the story is that I am a huge Norse mythology nerd and I really fucking hated how in the first game, the Aesir are described as some oppressive caste of gods that are keeping the poor defenseless Vanir down. It was absolutely supposed to be reflective of the political climate and it left a very bad taste in my mouth. In the actual mythos, the Vanir are the ones that started the Aesir-Vanir war by beheading Mimir and sending his head to Odin, not Odin being some incredibly paranoid and jealous wife-beater that wanted to keep all the magic for himself.

[@spartanhawk7637]

@@SaveMeXenu I mean...Odin is a total dick in the classic myths still. Stealing the mead of poetry, actively trying to subvert fate for his own sake not caring who got dragged along with him, sacrificing himself to himself for a power boost... Honestly the thing GoW got most correct is the fact Tyr's probably the most chill god in the pantheon.

[@spartanhawk7637]

@@snoobycong Normally I'd agree, but you forget the fact this is Kratos. He could quite literally just walk through the village without interacting with anyone and nobody could stop him if they tried. Not even by fighting them, I mean straight up just brush past an angry mob. The guy's killed titans, what's some random guy with a pitchfork gonna do?

[@SaveMeXenu]

@@spartanhawk7637Odin was not a nice man in the myths, that is true, but what you're missing is that God of War tried to spin the Vanir as uncontested moral good guys while the Aesir are just evil assholes that are drunk on power.

[@Wicked_Sushi]

Hmm, okay. I enjoyed it for the most part, but the final act killed it for me. When the credits rolled, I felt cold. The end felt more like a half-hearted fart than the climatic end to the Norse Saga. We were that disappointed we listed it for sale the day after finishing it!

[@ocarinaplaya]

I didn't know about agreboda until I saw her in jacksepticeyes playthrough (I'm not wasting money on a repetitive, linear game). It was definitely a bit of whiplash seeing a character look like someone I'd see at a texas Renaissance faire. It's fine if developers and writers want to include black people more, but it needs to fit the setting or else it becomes jarring to people who aren't terminally online.

[@firenze6478]

Angrboda in mythology also has so much potential. She’s a literal demon that births the monsters that destroy the world and manipulates men by giving them what they want in exchange for a child that will be born a monster and destroy their father’s legacy. So much potential wasted for ‘diversity.’

[@alexkogan9755]

Norse characters being race swapped into being blatantly African is pretty annoying in all honesty and breaks the immersion (that seems to be as far as the wokeness goes but it was still unnecessary).

[@justlivin2499]

Yea, that was unnecessary but the game itself is still goated

[@Soup-man]

Thank Sweet Baby Inc for that

[@alexkogan9755]

@@Soup-man What clued me in was how they revealed Angrboda in the trailers, “see, see, look how diverse we are!”

[@Soup-man]

@@alexkogan9755 Yeah, it makes no sense. Like diversity is neat, but they forget that context matters sometimes. This is Norse mythology.

[@TheStraightestWhitest]

@@justlivin2499 It's the worst game I have ever played. The 2018 game was a 9/10. This one legit a 0,5/10. Couldn't finish NG+. Too boring. It's a historically bad sequel.

[@SingleMaltGamer]

Appreciate that it doesn't make or break a video by you Drinker (we're here for your commentary, not a visual masterpiece), but 720p footage of multiple-times processed footage is noticeably low quality. It'll take longer to edit, render, and upload, but it shouldn't be that much time from my experience/understanding - and it's just something people are expecting more and more. Love your stuff, cheers!

[@tagus100]

I am surprised that he doesn't have a proper 1080p or even 4K gaming recording setup.

[@iHaveTheDocuments]

His videos look objectively worse than any other on KZbin. Idk what he's thinking but these 720p things are horrible

[@aytony4090]

​@iHaveTheDocuments He always streams games at 720p I don't believe he is very tech savvy.

[@LUCAS420BLZ]

These are definitely very old videos

[@WayStedYou]

He doesnt have the internet to be doing 4k uploads ​@@tagus100

[@Elfaia]

Can't say I like the shift in the gameplay department from the original series. That over-the-shoulder 3rd person style is abysmal for action games that unfortunately senua's blade popularized.

[@Jonas790]

Its a Good Game not as good or Bad as people say but i kind of feel like people are heavily critizing it now adays because of SweetBaby Inc

[@n00ban4ga]

"Be Better" thrown at every male character the The Message part.

[@redninja3056]

That's such a strawman holy shit

[@liubei3058]

​@@redninja3056he's right though. Connect the dots here or there

[@redninja3056]

@@liubei3058 no he isn't you're both just pathetic losers looking for things to hate

[@lordofthepizzapie9319]

The chronologically first time it happened in the story was when Faye said it for herself AND Kratos. From her delivery it's very clear that it's something she WANTS to believe is true for them rather than some lecture she's giving Kratos. Considering what happened at the crater and with Durlin's failed rebellion it's pretty obvious she's wrestled with this idea a lot and still is. Besides it's not like the game has a shortage of female character overcoming their flaws or growing as people. For as much as people b*tch about Angrboda (sometimes rightfully, sometimes not) her whole thing is developing past her adherence to what the prophecy says, to make her own decisions. Something she does because of Atreus, a male character. Something she's mocked for doing by her grandmother, a female character. When it comes to Sif her whole distrust and dislike of Atreus is because he was involved in the deaths of her SONS, she also views him as a threat to her daughter and HUSBAND. She lets that go when she makes the realization that Atreus and Kratos were just defending themselves and it's ultimately Odin's fault for sending Magni and Modi as just expendable pawns. She then grows out of her dependance on Odin (something all of Asgard is suffering from) because she found out he doesn't care at all about any of them. Her change is entirely motivated by her love for her family (a continous theme throughout the game) which are largely male. Unless you're a completely clueless goober you should already know how Freya grows and changes as a person throughout the game. Otherwise I'd have to question if you even experienced the game.

[@n00ban4ga]

I doubt because all I see and hear is Atreus and Kratos preaching "Be Better". If anybody has said it, it appears to anybody as if it's the duo who convinced them to Be Better.@@lordofthepizzapie9319

[@Badmunky64]

Gow4 was a near perfect 9.5/10 for me while Ragnarok was 8/10. Ragnarok was by no means bad but I felt less satisfied by the time I put down my controller. And the ending being rushed didn't help either.

[@gibster9624]

My issue with Angroboda is she as a character feels out of place. We know Loki and her are supposed to fall in love but I felt the Chemistry with Thruud was so much better that it just made the Angraboda scenes feel tedious. And then at the end the writers show themselves as being completely lacking confidence in that character when Kratos finally gets to formerly introduce himself and drops the dumbest line of dialogue any character say and goes, "I like this one." It would be one thing if that line is earned but no where in any of the games does Angroboda come off as a character Kratos would just say he likes a few minutes into meeting them while being so calls to Brock and Sindri who've been nothing but loyal to us from the start without completely kissing our ass the whole time. They just come off as desperate for us to like a character and it's even worse because we don't need to even like her but it's felt like this was the writers guilty pleasure and would boost their egos if we likes her but didn't do enough leg work to make that happen. I mean ffs the game forces us to lose to her in both races and it does nothing but cheapen the moment we could have had finding out how the characters respond depending on the results.

[@johnwolf8995]

Sweet baby inc was involved in this game too... Just so u know

[@65firered]

Yeah... But thankfully they barely had an influence.

[@WillParker322]

​@@65fireredbarely? Lol. Kratos got cucked

[@redninja3056]

Oh my god.....who cares?

[@WillParker322]

@@redninja3056 L

[@liubei3058]

​@@redninja3056I do.

[@DarthVader-xh3mo]

*God of War Ragnarök* *Pros* Oscar worthy acting from the cast, Christopher Judge especially (that performance award was well deserved). Addictive combat with so many skills, runic attacks, weapons & rage modes to keep things interesting. Satisfying character arcs. Bombastic boss fights that rival the best in any game imo, like Thor & Garm. Plenty of side content like the Vanaheim Crater, favours & Valhalla (which is somehow free). *Cons* Feels too much like a movie sometimes & parts of the game overstay their welcome. Ironwood is unnecessarily long even if it is to flesh out Atreus’ connection to the Giants. An anticlimactic finale - Ragnarök, the twilight of the gods, should have had more buildup & spectacle. Ending felt a little rushed, far from terrible but a bit unsatisfying. Characters who we don’t care about, like who tf is Birgir? 😂

[@John_Notmylastname]

One thing I wish they would have done is give the player the ability to turn off NPC hints. I swear many times they solved the puzzle by telling me after having tried a few times. Thats silly. Let me get frustrated and try.

[@defeqel6537]

I like to view my surroundings in peace before tackling any puzzles, but the game would always try to give me hints

[@chrisq6122]

I was disappointed by the end of the game. The final chapter once entering Asgard just came and went. When it started, I felt like it was the opening of GoW3 (the best in the entire franchise) and got super hyped up but then it was just done and over. Also didn’t like that Kratos never lost it. He never went crazy with rage. I wish they didn’t erase that from him. That rage can do good in certain moments and I wish they showed Kratos learn and experience that. If anything, to overcome and show how he’s not consumed by that rage anymore but that he has complete control of it. That was what I wanted by the end of Ragnarok. Can’t win ‘em all though.

[@redninja3056]

Honestly glad he didn't if he did all that character development out the window just to appease older God of war fans when they've done that plenty

[@chrisq6122]

@@redninja3056 it’s character development in a positive way to show he has mastered his old self and use it in a more matured and controlled way. That’s not just appeasing older fans (which btw is not something they should shy away from, the franchise is a success because of us), that’s intelligent use of his character and history.

[@redninja3056]

@@chrisq6122 um they already do that he's already mastered his rage that's what the first game was for again that's character development out the window, and yes there's nothing wrong with appeasing fans but they shouldn't do it if it gets in the way of the story

[@chrisq6122]

@@redninja3056 you’re wrong

[@redninja3056]

@@chrisq6122 I am not

[@Promance2300]

Angrboda isn't bad because including her is ultra woke in and of itself. She's bad because she's the crack in the wall, the foot in the door. The penny-sized hole which will lead to explosive decompression. Gatekeep what you love.

[@etceterax144]

Strongly agree. It's that one tiny coffee stain on the bavk of a papper. Extremely hard to see, but once you see it and connect the dots, you know it's there.

[@BusesAreFatCars]

True. As I said to drinker in another comment "If a (sequel) movie had an incredibly boring and out of place section (which could be removed from the game and near nothing would be lost) shoehorned in for purposes of adding "diversity" in casting, in a story where that character has then been race swapped you'd critique that movie into the dirt." He would. He applies a completely different standard to video games and many have noticed this for a long time now. Seems he's just fine with a little bit of wokeness. Though not too much. Drinker it does not work that way. You either block it or it will overwhelm and ruin everything.

[@troo_6656]

Ahhh but here's the issue are we going to overreact like bunch of zelots at everything, stifiling conversation around insiginificant crap, or are we going to talk about what the game achieved? Everybody has to make their choices. I keep the gates when there's something to keep them from, not from figments of my (or someone else's) imagination spending my time on other stuff instead.

[@Promance2300]

@@troo_6656 I think it's fair to say that Ragnarok was very good, but could have been better if more assiduously gate kept. And I think it is fair to presume that the cracks, once started, will grow in any upcoming projects. I'm just ahead of the curve in my own opinion. We shall see.

[@christopherjones5700]

sooner or later we'll get games that are just as bad as Jada Smith's Cleopatra story/characters/writing wise, but people will become apologists because it may have gameplay that somehow redeems its other transgressions. It'll always start with baby steps like Angrboda, and then devolve completely into a Last of Us II experience where you have to be okay with (indoctrinated) all the stupid bullshit that lieth therein in order to enjoy the game let alone replay it.

[@Cortanarama]

I was definitely more bored in Ragnarok than in 2018, but I agree that it wasn’t bad. My only gripe is when you’re exploring the ice realm, Kratos tells Atreus that you always have a choice. Then 5 min later, they kill the giant wolf, and Kratos is like we didn’t have a choice.

[@fredy2041]

Your a complete liar that did not played ragnarok

[@Cortanarama]

@@fredy2041 True, I just have the Platinum.

[@DioOdinson]

The issue with Angrbota is that she's a giant like Atreus, but nothing made her seem that way in action. And her parts were stupid and annoying and drawn out. They tried to make her important. In the mythology she marries Loki so you know they'll shoehorn her in more. It was definitely immersion breaking. Thrud was highlighted a bit too much as well. She was annoying and didn't add much. And the entire story feels rushed. There should've been a third game.

[@firenze6478]

In actual norse mythology, she’s a literal demon that births the world ending monsters. They threw all that potential away to just make her, geeky ethnically diverse teen who likes art and talks like she’s from modern New York

[@johnleonard9102]

Nope, Loki's concubine. While he was cunning and handsome, she was a pale brick-faced Jotun.

[@ncblock87]

That whole 2-hour Ironwood segment was so bad, it turned this game from a 9/10 to a 7/10 for me. It obliterates replayability.

[@Stoddardian]

I'm not ashamed to admit I shed a few tears playing this game.

[@michaelsmith2004]

This game hit me pretty hard. I had recently lost my father and this game reminded me so much of his lessons. It's a masterpiece in my opinion.

[@samwallaceart288]

As a guy who's ashamed of his father, the story hit hard for me as well; I'm no spartan and I can't even take a punch, but I know what Kratos is talking about when he wants to be better.

[@kevinlucko2902]

Thank you for this video review....your insight into things i genuinely care about, helps me have better days.

[@MamboSauce]

My main issue with the game is that for it to be the conclusion from the last game, it feels like there's still more to the story. We still don't even know who blew that damn horn.

[@lasjames7516]

I found Dad Of War underwhelming. I'd give the reboot series an 8 as opposed to the 10's other give

[@bitty_beastly47]

Then it's a 6 because no game in the world surpasses an 8

[@PrivateCitizen84]

@@bitty_beastly47 Dead Space 08 is a 11/10 for me. I replay a lot of older games, but that one feels like it was tailor made just for me. Played enough games so it was like finding a needle in haystack for sure. Must of played 3K+ games by now?

[@frankkennedy6388]

​@@bitty_beastly47RE4 (2005) and Dead Space are definitely 10/10 (8-9/10 if you're being critical). There are others.

[@frankkennedy6388]

​@@PrivateCitizen84What do you think of the Remake?

[@PrivateCitizen84]

@@frankkennedy6388 The remake is like they messed with the Mona Lisa smile.

[@kellinwinslow1988]

I've played all 7 of the God of War games and actually enjoyed the direction they took 7 in. It looked good and the gameplay,while different,was fine. The ending lost me but the majority was fine. But when I heard that Sweet Baby Inc was involved with God of War 8 and that they were making a toned down,more sensitive Kratos I was done with the franchise. Frankly it's outlived it's usefulness as most Triple AAAAAAA games have. Now the only PlayStation game I'm looking forward to is Earth Defense Force 6. I'm done with modern games.

[@redninja3056]

Wow way to have your opinions chamge by sjw couldn't be me

[@dynastyfamily00]

WOW this review was refreshing in today's times of angry people yelling that everything is "woke", and weird people wanting their bedroom activities to be the main story. Thank you Critical Drinker (gamer). I wish more people had the ability to get their agendas out of their criticisms.

[@climbsta]

Never played being a PC/xbox guy. But I've spent hours listening to videos telling the games story, and it's absolute ear candy. The writers crushed this one

[@SirEebRhawl]

Ah man... you're so good at this, Drinker... I love your style of reviews when applied to an entirely different medium.

[@badasstasticusbadass4908]

I liked more the DLC rather than the main story, if you think about, 90% of the events in the main story just happens because Atreus is a little impulsive prick who doesn´t know how to control himself. Exploring the mind of Kratos, a man responsable for the literal destruction of a whole civilazation, carrying a massive grief and pain over his shoulders throghout his life, seeing him accepting his past mistakes and be willing to become a better man was FAR MORE interesting.

[@indedgames4359]

Well thats atreus role. As loki he is suposed to bring Chaos and change. Plus he us a teenager. He had alot of mistakes to make

[@andrewcharles6489]

I didn’t know drinker does games too!! He should play Ghost Of Tsushima. Damn game had me in tears 🤣

[@unknownrat2675]

The quest with your nanny after you get your father's armour was a fantastic side quest, even though its short you almost feel the pain from Jin when she dies

[@AeroZephron]

I'm glad you started doing reviews of the most important entertainment that actually matters.

[@jdanielortega]

Loving this content Will. Clean and critical as the main channel, hopefully you keep this coming 🍻 !

[@AlexSanchez-gd7wb]

Please do assassin's creed! Especially black flag! And Hogwarts legacy!

[@Fyrijou]

I hate Ragnarok. SMS saw that people loved the 2018 game and instead of giving it an organic trilogy to really let everything flow out naturally, it honestly has moments where it feels rushed af and completely uncharacteristic. Kratos whining for killing Heimdall when he had no issues killing Magni, Modi and Baldur beforehand. Kratos contradicting himself constantly with him repeatedly saying that he wants nothing more than to just protect Atreaus, but does actively actions that contradict his previous statements. Kratos letting Lunda call him „meatpie“ and the writers forcing him to say that he likes Angrboda when everything she has been doing behind his back would definitely lead to Kratos hating her guts. And not to mention that this game forces so much the picture of „these gods are good, these goods are bad“. In the original series, all gods are different shades of bad and that makes sense. They’re gods. You had gods like Haephestus, Aphrodite and Athena who don’t seem as ruthless as the other gods, but they also weren’t immediately „good gods“. Aphrodite only cared for once thing, Haephestus was ready to kill Kratos to protect his daughter and Athena was manipulative. Yet here? Freya is super good, Freyr is super good, Tyr is super good, Sif is super good, Odin is super bad, Heimdall is super bad and by all means, Thor is also super bad, but the game did a bad job trying to redeem him and making the story of it alcoholism…

[@user-ts9qz5oy3j]

Clearly you didn’t play the game or you just making excuses to hate it.

[@Fyrijou]

@@user-ts9qz5oy3j sure, because everything i mentioned in detail above is me „not playing the game“

[@user-ts9qz5oy3j]

@@Fyrijou you dare say “in detail”?! Yeah right, I play the game a lot and nothing that you say is conform to the scenario.

[@Fyrijou]

@@user-ts9qz5oy3j yes, i dare, because i paid for the game and wasted time playing it and the game does try to say that Thor isn’t „a bad guy“ because „it’s all Odin‘s fault“ even thou he has killed countless innocents before and trying to shove everything onto Odin would be stupid. I know what i played without having nonsense clouding my mind saying „it’s a story about maturing and growing up“ when in reality, it’s more a story of just alienating the series

[@user-ts9qz5oy3j]

@@Fyrijou then that’s on you. Not the game. And unlike what you think I’m not absolving Thor of what he did, just like for Kratos.

[@CelicaSound]

The way you eloquently break down plots is a very rare gift Drinker. Belting content 👍

[@tr3buh]

yes!! I'm glad you started reviewing games, hope this channel will be as successfull as channel with movies

[@Karlach_]

Can you please do 1080p uploads

[@peterjc1978]

Awesome to see the gaming reviews! I am so torn with the woke side of Ragnarok. The thing is, it was written in so well I didnt even notice it. Kratos is the only male left in the end. Thrude, Sif, Angraboda, Freya, Lunda, the valkaries...

[@itschris2628]

I had one major problem with this game. The ending. Well major might be a bit much but I thought they could have done a better job. It felt a bit rushed but more importantly it didn’t feel epic enough. This is a God of War game. The ending needs to be massive. So I was heavily disappointed when it finished and I realised that the end of the last game was more grandiose than the final game. Anyway I decided to rewrite the end (mainly just the combat/boss fights). It’s obviously not in insane detail but here is what I wrote: War starts off with a huge battle between the Asgard armies and Kratos’s armies. All the armies of kratos line up with jurmangander behind them in the sea. The Asgard armies are directly in front of them. Kratos blows the horn and the war starts with the armies charging at the asgardians. You fight as kratos just against the eneirjahr. Then in the distance you see lightning building up and then it comes straight for kratos. Thor smashes kratos with miljnior and brings him up into the sky while he is talk shit to kratos. Then he uses miljnior and smashes kratos down towards the sea but jurmangander catches him. Thor comes flying down and attacks jurmangander. You have to hang on while Thor attacks the serpent and you also have to fight some enierjahr which are sent onto jurmangander. Then Thor comes crashes down onto jurmanganders head where kratos is and the first boss fight happens on jurmanganders head while he is moving around. Once that fight is over Thor throws miljnior at kratos launching him back towards the battle and flys up to him to talk more shit such as “Your just a mad man that killed my sons!!” Etc. Kratos try’s to tell him that Odin is the reason for all of this but Thor doesn’t listen. Then jurmangander smashes into Thor and Kratos and catches Thor in mid air. This launches Kratos back onto the battle field. You now switch over to Atraues (if the game wants the no cutting thing to be intact then the camera can zoom out when kratos got launched and lower down to show Atraues) who is fighting with Freyr and Indrade. You fight your way over to kratos who Atraues saw land in the distance. You fight eneirjahr. Eventually you get to kratos and then you make your way to the wall just like in the game. Everything goes the same as in the game up until you open the wall with Sindri (although before Ragnorok started Thors wife and daughter’s motivations for joining Atraues is improved greatly). Then you go into Asgard the same as in the game. Then when Thor hits jurmangander back into the past it’s different. In the distance you see Thor becoming extremely bright with lightning and loads lightning is striking down on him with loud deep thunder. Then Thor and jurmangander charge at each other and jurmangander is sent back to the past like in the game except the is a huge shock wave after he disappears causing some of the Asgardian wall to collapse. Then Thor comes flying in to fight kratos like in the game with the boss fight being the exact same as in the game. After the second boss fight with Thor it ends the same way as in the game (although Thor’s motivations for joining kratos is also improved before Ragnorok). Then Odin shows up and berates Thor. Thor says enough is enough and kratos and Thor fight Odin together. After this boss fight Odin is defeated and is lying on the ground. Thor stands over him ready to finish him with one final blow. But then Odin does what he does best (manipulation) and pretends to regret what he has done and apologises to Thor saying how he was blinded by is quest for knowledge which caused him to neglect Thor and treat him like shit and not caring about Thors two sons. Kratos for a second thinks he might actually have a change of heart but then remembers it’s Odin. Thor however is completely fooled by Odin thinking he has come to his senses. Odin lifts himself up and kneels under Thor still apologising. Thor puts his hammer down (Odin has a slight glance at the hammer being put down). Then Odin stands up quickly and stabs Thor with a spear threw the heart just like in the game. Thor looks at Odin and with one of his finally breaths he says softly “why?”. Thrúd, Sif and Atraues show up and see Odin kill Thor. Odin throws Thor to the ground and with is final breath he says to Thrúd while reaching out to her “I’m sorry”. Thrúd shouts “NOOOO You Bastard” and powers up with lightning striking down on her which she then shoots at Odin. Odin says it was kratos’ fault for turning Thor against him and picks up miljnior. In the distance you see Ragnorok breaking through the Asgard wall. You now fight Odin (who now has miljnior) again with Atraues, Thrúd and Freya. Odin mainly comes out on top in this fight but it’s mostly a draw until Ragnorok shows up and Odin turns his attention to him instead. Odin gets ready to fly up to fight Ragnorok but just before he goes kratos grabs his leg and Atraues grabs kratos’ leg too. You fly up to Ragnorok and Odin kicks you off and you fall onto Ragnoroks back. You now fight some eneirjahr on your way to Ragnoroks head. Once you get up there Odin is about to kill Ragnorok with one final blow with miljnior. Kratos spear tackles him before he can do it and the final battle with Odin happens on Ragnoroks head. Odin barely wins and is about to kill Ragnorok again with kratos and Atraues trying to get up. Just before he can kill Ragnorok Freya udon her hawk form flies up and stabs Odin in the back and whispers in his ear “That’s how it feels you bastard”. Odin elbows her and stumbles away kratos rages up one last time and charges at Odin. Odin throws miljnior at kratos but kratos dodges/deflects it with Faye’s axe. Kratos, Atraues and Freya then combo him like in the last game with Baldur with kratos smashing him off the edge of Ragnoroks head. Kratos and Atraues jump after him with Freya flying down as a hawk. Kratos uses his spear in mid air throwing them at Odin with Atraues shooting arrows too and with Freya scratching Odin’s face with her claws. Finally with one last powerful spear stab into odins chest kratos smashes him into the ground below which then collapses into Odins layer beneath with the green rift. Odin with his final words try’s to plead with Atraues to use the mask but like in the game kratos let’s Atraues choose and Atraues destroys it. Then Odin charges at Atraues with the little energy he has left. Atraues pins him to the ground and like in the game puts his soul into a marble. The rest is the same as the game with Freya choosing not to kill Odin but Sindri then does. Then Ragnoroks sword comes smashing through the ceiling with Freyr trying to hold him off. Kratos and Freyr try to stop Ragnorok from destroying Asgard in order to give time for the armies, civilians and the main group (Thrúd, Sif, Atraues and Freya) to escape. Atraues gets knocked out from a falling boulder and Freyr says to kratos “GO! Save your son! He needs you! So don’t die here with me!” Kratos’ nods and runs to save Atraues. Freya tells Freyr to run too but Freyr says “It’s fine Freya! Be… the queen you are meant to be!” Freya says while tearing up “I love you!” Freyr shouts back the same and the main group leaves. Freyr now says to Ragnorok “alright you big bastard! Show me what you got!” Freyr releases and is crushed by Ragnoroks sword. Asgard is destroyed but thanks to Freyr most people escaped. The game then ends the same as the game with Atraues waking up and talking to everyone and then going to rescue the giants. Fin.

[@wardjunior1450]

The game does some silly woke things which is unfortunate, but they aren’t why the game is disappointing. 2018 is way better.

[@ProWalter2]

What woke things did they do?

[@risdamzuid]

​​@@ProWalter2 did you even play the game? The agrbodr stuff. But its light on the wokeness.

[@ProWalter2]

@@risdamzuid I did play the game, like 4 different times. What stuff about Angrboða was woke?

[@risdamzuid]

@@ProWalter2 the part of the skincolor. Its not a big deal. But its based on nordic myths. Back in the days only white folks live these. Apart from that, it was really not woke.

[@brandonnumbskull58]

Drinker, play God of War: Valhalla. It is well worth it for the harder combat AND ultimately the real ending of Ragnorak.

[@leoncca]

9:30 Well, the difficulty is absolutely soulslike, I would say more due to the higher damage intake and no Estus flasks, if you start playing in Give me God of War difficulty. I've played Sekiro, the Souls saga, Bloodborne, Lies of P... and absolutely the game has a lot to offer combat-wise, but if you stick to the lower difficulties, you're never gonna need to master the whole system to progress. Max difficulty Gná is absolutely a challenge that is on the level of some of the hardest bosses in the souls saga. She reminds me of (no summons) Malenia if her Waterfowl Dance weren't OP. I have the utmost respect to how much they've improved the max difficulty to offer a challenge because in the previous game it was a mess of spongy enemies, and they've absolutely spent a long time correcting their past issues with the telegraphs and sponginess.

[@austin21x]

2018 GoW is way better. I loved my first playthrough of Ragnarok. I recently replayed both and when i got to playing Ragnarok for the second time, omg it is a slog to get through. The Atreus sections drag this game down bad. Enough that i never beat it a second time. Ive replayed the 2018 one three times. One of my favorite storys to play through among RDR/Witcher/GoT. But damn Ragnarok does not do it at all for going back in for seconds

[@Seventh27Seal]

I just really hope atreus doesnt wnd up taking the mantle :/ i didnt enjoy playing as him during his segments so i hope they dont split the next game 50 50 between kratos and atreus

[@Iobsterpeterson]

Aye, you got any plans to review the OT? They run laps on the Norse duology.

[@epj0211]

GOOOOOODSS!! WHERE IS MY WIFE’S SOOOOOOON!?!?

[@hcook1023]

Hearing the Critical Drinker talk about the difficulty of this game compared to Elden Ring really brought home even though video games are my favorite hobby I'm a long ways from my teenage years and early twenties That's probably what I liked so much about some of the newer games is they have great combat like God of war and Soler Blade It's not a souls game won't be spending an hour on every boss fight, but it's hard to admit that I become a casual because life caught up with me and I don't have the free time spend with a 20-game backlog already

[@clydedenby1436]

When is the Critical Drinker going to be reviewing adult beverages? Which flavor of Toilet Duck is best for memory erasure?

[@Fraulein_Sausageball]

The best flavor is the one Father Jack is drinking that day.

[@thomascannone3111]

Ragnarok is definitely at least a bit woke I don't see any other reason to race swap Angraboda. if it were a character from Asian or African mythology I doubt they would have put a white guy in there but thankfully it doesn't affect the story just my immersion. It also doesn't help that she is introduced in the worst section of the game Yronwood which is a super drawn out chore that makes it feel like they are forcing us to spend more time with her in the hope of endearing her to us but it just made me associate her with a feeling of boredom and annoyance. still though apart from that Ragnarok is a great game 8 or 9 out of 10 easily.

[@samwallaceart288]

I think Hildesvini is way more unnecessary. Like, they really went and picked the most inconsequential character they could think of

[@theshoguun4967]

3:39 the script in god of war 2005 wasn't even that bad, it was fitting for the sword and sandal tragedy narrative. God of war 3 is the one with horrifically bad dialogue which 2018 mercifully improved upon.

[@treymykel]

Yeah you're completely missing what people was complaining about with God of war The fact that look where in the Norse mythology there should not be any black people there at all. And the section with atreus and that girl was just unnecessary The game is also supposed to be about Ragnarok The fact that we don't really do that much with Ragnarok and it kind of happens at the last minute instead of being built throughout the entire game is a problem. They kind of ignored most of everything that's supposed to lead into the events of Ragnarok the gods didn't feel like a threat Asgard look gross and dirty like the things that people wanted from God of war rat in the rock just didn't happen cuz basically this is just a glorified expansion pack and that was more of the problem than anything else but yeah. It was more of the choices that was made with atreus and the female characters was the problem for most people. But honestly I'm glad that it's over and we never have to revisit this again honestly I rather them do another reboot and go back to classic God of war I don't know who knows but at this point just in the God of war franchise because the whole father-son thing which is fine and you know I'm glad that they were able to tell a story it just felt slow and slog and that was the most thing for me is that I was bored halfway through the game and it felt like what Kratos was doing in the story was more like a side mission while atreus when he does stuff feels like the main story and that's a problem.

[@tylerhunter6379]

I know the original creator of GoW and hates the direction the story went, but I think the character “change” works cause Kratos developed and changed throughout the years after the Greece shenanigans.

[@indedgames4359]

He hates storytelling..if kratos stayed the same it would be boring

[@peteybakedziti8908]

The original GoW and 3 both gave much more fitting conclusions to Kratos as a character. It was always supposed to be a greek tragedy. His arc in the norse games are unnecessary and only exist because of creative bankruptcy and using an iconic character just makes it easier to advertise

[@christopherjones5700]

I think trying to justify Angrboda's randomly being black is just cope (respectfully) because you liked the rest of the game lol, it is undeniably woke and makes no sense, but I mean, we're all guilty of accepting this ****. I put 400 hours into Baldur's Gate III, and that game is 30x more woke than Angrboda, but I won't pretend like the cringe parts weren't out of place. It's just how it is now, unfortunately.

[@brightblue6184]

Besides her skin color, is there anything wrong with Angrboda?

[@Tagmon]

Have u ever looked up Norse Mythology? Angrboda is described as Dark Skinned in the Prose Edda. Get off that "Woke" bullshit

[@akme1974]

This was a well thought out and honest review. Thanks Drinker

[@ayushnegi7477]

Combat wise Ragnarok is amazing. Kratos is much agile. You can stop some runing attacks by dodging. Many of the 2018 runic attacks have been made as basic moveset replacing some old moves. The continuous boss battles at the beginning was over the top. It was great, however ending still felt rushed. The Ragnarok causing mayhem in Asgard could still be more visually impactful, The final boss fight was okay. I would say Ragnarok is better graphically or performance wise and for combat and boss battles. However, story wise I think 2018 is still much better. The way the story unravels, introduces a new Kratos, his relationship with his kid, some epic cinematic finishers, heart punching dialogues. I think Sony should remaster 2018 at some point in time say for Ps6. 😂 2018 was better for the story, the weapon attacks looked more vibrant and impactful, and oof, Sigrun.

[@ryanerasmus4738]

The race swopped angrbroda section and her deep south accented grandmother nearly made me stop playing . Thanks sweet baby Inc.

[@chuck9483]

What about Jewish Odin?

[@ryanerasmus4738]

@chuck9483 you are correct sir.

[@chuck9483]

@@ryanerasmus4738 I feel like it isn't mentioned. The creator is Jewish. I feel like the story is about yahweh destroying paganism.

[@redninja3056]

That just sounds like plain old racism to me

[@liubei3058]

​@@chuck9483Mind sending a bit of proof that Odin is Jewish here. That just... Doesn't click for me right now.

[@matheuszache7943]

You're review is refreshing coming from someone who is not on the woke sphere of gaming. I've been defending Ragnarok's story in more conservative circles for a while now and seeing that you actually enjoyed it's narrative and saw through to the core message of the thing makes me realize I'm not going insane. Despite Sweet Baby Inc participating in the script, (I can def see their influence in Angrboda's and Thrud's personalities) it's clear that Cory and Eric (the two directors of the game) left progressive breadcrumbs to appease ESG investors without ever losing site of what story they wanted to tell in the first place. The "be better" motif, although can sound progressive-coded, actually makes sense for a man who destroyed an entire civilization in the past and now is trying to raise his son into becoming something other than a destroyer of worlds. The norse games also don't lose site of Kratos' masculinity, he still powerful, protective and stoic like before but more in touch with his past mistakes. People need to remember that this was the man drunk on power who killed his wife and daughter without even realizing until it was too late. Even the lack of the famous sex minigames makes sense in this context because Kratos doesn't have his nightmares from before (he used sex like a way to silence his mind) but he's also mourning his dying wife. The problem isn't with the tropes or tendencies of letting go of the more edgy and try-hard masculine fantasies, but how you justify them in the story without pandering and talking down to your audience. This is how maturity is reached without becoming patronizing. In the end I think the road for gaming to survive this new ESG landscape is what GoW Ragnarok and even Alan Wake 2 did. You can take in consultations and unfortunately let them influence bits and pieces of your narrative, but if you have a strong creative vision for what you want to tell and how, you can def rise above this pile of trash investors want to shoehorn into your game.

[@kwamekuma360]

I'm sure kratos still has his nightmares. There was no indication of him not having them.

[@matheuszache7943]

@@kwamekuma360 My interpretation is that it left him once he changed regions. His nightmares were a result of a spell that the oracle cast on him. Later in Ragnarok Freya explained that spells are tied to the land so once you leave, it doesn't work the same way anymore. Either way it can be that Kratos learned to control himself but the norse games never mentioned this once so I thought they got rid of it.

[@Javixk17]

Im happy youre doing these games reviews now

[@registereduser]

Loving the increased gaming review videos.

[@playstopplay]

The first GoW was better imo, new, challenging, better story, the valkyrie fights were great, the niflheim stuff was cool. Ragnarok fell way short because all of those non-Kratos sections sucked. It really slowed down the pacing of the game and it just wasn't as fun shooting arrows or swinging a bow. The berserker boss fights weren't as good as the valkyrie ones, and the Svipdagr the Cold and Sisters of Illska battle was downright the cheapest and most frustrating! The King Hrolf Kraki and Gna fights weren't as tough as I thought. But the most puzzling and disappointing decisions the developers made was to not have Atreus with you at the end after all the time invested with him, and not following up or having a pay-off with getting Brok back! They always mentioned getting a piece of Brok's soul from wherever it is but the game ends with Sindri being pissed and you never see him again. The final act felt so rushed and empty. I'm not sure if they were leaving it open to another sequel or what, and I haven't tried the DLC yet, but I didn't care for the direction of the story. And the skill mods for the skill tree was a bit excessive lol.

[@indedgames4359]

The thi g is Atreus wastrained. You kinda need to Show the pay off in gameplay

[@xSergisX]

funny thing about thor - hes written all sympathetic but he killed all the giants he could find so a significant part of the game is spent being buddies with essentially literally hitler

[@seb1520]

Really love this review, great work drinker

[@vodkavecz]

It was a really good game for sure. Altho I have to disagree with boss fights being more casual friendly. Yeah sure the main story bosses are. But step outside of that and do some sidestuff, and you gonna get your ass handed to you many times. There were several side content bosses where after many tries I said 'ok you won, for now. I'll return to you later.' The other problem I had (besides characters telling me the solution for puzzles in 5 seconds) is the "open" world design. It's really limited to the paths, I think they should've committed more to the open nature. There were several instances where another secion was just blocked by a stone even I could've jumped over. So if they continue the series, I think they should add a dedicated jump/climb button or something.

[@keithbalbi3927]

I loved the older GoW games and also loved the new direction they took with the first modern one. But I absolutely hated Ragnarok - it was mostly just a filler game, and the big final battle was handled so poorly that there really isn't anything of value in the game at all. Of course, most people hyped it up so much and anyone who dared point out flaws received backlash. It's not that it's a bad game, it's just not particularly any good at anything and fails to deliver.

[@TheHulkfan]

Can't help but notice how diminuish or even straight up ignore some parts of the game, focusing more on the Kratos and Atreus story and talking VERY little about everything else. He shrugs off Angrboda being turned black while making seem like she's the only character that got that threatment, when there are other characters that got turned into something that resembles little or nothing at all what a northman would look. He ignores how Asgard, the house of the northern gods, is just a mere longhouse and a couple of simple looking houses. He ignores that, while mostly okay, Freya has her moments of "stronk female", like when commenting on how she could have killed Kratos or her Slay Queen moment with Odin. There's even a side-quest story about the relationship between two man, with even the rainbow colors in the background. The moments are there. Maybe they doesn't make the game bad per se, but they sure sour the experience. Yet Critical decides to ignore them or downplay them. If this was in a movie, he would have teared the movie apart and mocked them, but apparently in the games they are fine? Because those moments are NOT fine. And the success of this game made sure to spread the Sweet Baby virus to many other games, with worse effects than in Ragnarok. The Suicide Squad Kills the Justice League is a proof of that.

[@christianhartman1298]

"Turned black" Please tell us where in the poems that Norse mythology is based on that her skin color is described. Also you poor incel, you had to see a gay couple.

[@DaneofHalves]

I liked the gameplay and challenges. I liked the level design and boss battles. I, mostly, was okay with the story when it was just about the father and son relationship and their goals towards unraveling the mystery their mother left behind. I did NOT like the Disney channel romance I was forced to endure. And this is the first time in all of God of War history I did not get to play as Kratos for the entire game. Made it to eight games and I was forced to play as discount Sora for a 3rd of it. This problem is compounded by the fact that I just never liked Kratos's kid and I had to endure more of him in this game than the 2018 game. I didn't mind his dynamic when paired with father but on his own, he is unbearable. Being as this is a "M" rated game, most of the people playing are adults and playing as yet another angsty teen in a sea of angsty teen games wasn't something I wanted from "God of War". Still, the rest of the game was enjoyable enough. I just wish Thor was more an important character than he was and Odin didn't seem like someones tax attorney rather than the father of the norse gods he should have been. Zeus fit that bill better as an antagonist. The original trilogy still stands out in my head in comparison and this final game didn't quite measure up. I give it a pass though for nostalgia's sake. But I won't be doing a replay anywhere in the near future though. Believe that. 😆

[@PrimeTimePaulyRat]

The fact that he said that the gameplay isn't challenging tells me he did not play this game on GMGOW. Don't criticize a game for not being challenging enough while also not playing it on its hardest difficulty.

[@defeqel6537]

Indeed. And I, being shit at games these days, found plenty of challenge in the minibosses around the world

[@alexan2930]

Nah. That'll be fine. I'm still skipping this woke trash. Atreus is THE most annoying character in the rebooted games. Couldn't finish the first one either because I lost interest.

[@scotch3554]

Are you high?

[@michaellombardi5831]

I like the combat. Hated what they did to characters like Kratos, " We gotta be better." F@#$ off. And Angraboda was completely a SBI insert for DIE money and served absolutely no purpose. To me Zeus felt like the good guy.

[@redninja3056]

What? What a nonsense comment lol

[@samwallaceart288]

I saw it as a natural progression on "Don't be sorry, be better" from the opening scenes of GOW 2018. It's good advice, my guy. Falcon using the line shittily doesn't change that.

[@MrTrueCaller619]

I have GOW 2018 in 3rd place on my all-time list, that being said; RAGNAROK is at most top 50 . I was so disappointed by it . I'm glad SweetBabyInc didn't ruin as much as in Suicide Squad .

[@jonfall7941]

When Freya regains the ability to travel the realms and Kratos reconciles with her about taking her "choice" to let herself get killed by her own son (so he chooses to kill her son).. to me that felt slightly preachy about men having no place in the pro choice movement. Like, it makes sense in the context of the situation, and maybe it's just how much "choice" was emphasized and how much the manly guy says "he took her choice from her and he had no right" but it just brought to my mind current politics rather her traumas for some reason. That's my one and only complaint about the game that gives credit to it's "woke influence", but I'm not sure there's anything to that or it was just me

[@avelonzx]

Funny how Drinker praises Sweet Baby Inc's story in this game. The hypocrisy is overwhelming.

[@samwallaceart288]

It's not their story, they just threw some darts at it on its way out the door. Ignoring the superficial stuff the underlying story is solid and I'm not gonna act like that's nothing just because of a few cringe moments

[@Leawsome9]

I agree I didn’t see the woke in this game like people are saying to me everything felt natural even the Girl Power Moments for Freya this game was awesome

[@samwallaceart288]

Yeah Freya's moments weren't some generic glass ceiling bullshit; they were hard divorce issues too many of us know firsthand

[@j.faulkner2593]

The biggest issues I had was the ending wasn't as cool as it could have been. The Thor and Odin fights were missing more spectical than the first Thor foght.

[@DannyPBell]

Maybe change to ‘that’s all I’ve got for this game, go away now’ for the gaming channel. Just an idea.’loving your work.

[@nickjohnson1997]

I was wondering about the "woke" arguments for this game, especially when I saw Sweet Baby was involved. From the way you're describing it, I question how much influence they actually had. I think I'd like to see another "What is Woke?" video. Maybe some examples of why this works, but other games like Forspoken or Suicide Squad don't.

[@user-qq1id7wg1q]

they even tried to defend sweet baby inc

[@justlivin2499]

Yea this game clearly had very little influence from theme, I don’t know why they try and act like they had a big hand in writing it

[@blooocki]

​@@justlivin2499 I am 100% sure the boring af collecting veggie dogchow on a buffalo section was their doing

[@Daniel_C_Griffin]

@@SMACKYOURB1TCHUP Freya is not a girlboss, she is just as flawed as Kratos, and the section with the Norns really highlights this when it shows HER breaking her own sons neck. She is very powerful, yes, but that is because she is queen of the Vanir, and that's not some modern contrivance, Freya has always been a goddess. Seriously, you people see a girl on the same playing field as a man and shit your pants.

[@BusesAreFatCars]

Woke, in relation to media, is anything that has been influenced to conform with intersectionality. Through that lens this game is woke through and through. It influences the story, the characters, the toned down violence, the character models, the "diversity", everything. Yes, it's more subtle than some other games, though absolutely it is there and Drinker knows it. He's being disingenuous by saying otherwise and doesn't want Mauler to drive up from Wales and attack him because Mauler nearly loses it whenever someone criticises this game.

[@cocod7272]

The 1 game sweet baby inc didn't ruin

[@nunyabiz012]

They came pretty damn close though with the Angbroda section....

[@PanzerShrek94]

It's kinda ironic that Loki and Angrboda are supposed to be lovers but i felt more chemistry with Loki and Thrud who are not supposed to have anything.

[@hondoshaver7651]

Awesome review! I am one of the guys who couldn't make it through the opening "movie" lol so I'll give it another look

[@DizzyMamba]

Am I the only one that found Freya absolutely insufferable?

[@jneilson7568]

The endless therapy walks and Freya's passive aggression made this game unbearable at times. So dull.

[@firenze6478]

The backseat driving in the nihogg boss fight still makes me cringe. “I can’t help you if you don’t attack!” I’m dodging his breath attack! There’s a big pool of aoe damage surrounding him. Get’s hit once. “ I can help you if you can’t do this yourself!”

[@johnleonard9102]

She was an unhinged monster like Kratos was in GoW3, but she's never punished for it. Killing Nidhogg would have led to the destruction of all the realms, but Kratos takes the blame and nobody calls out Freya for being the one who actually did it.

[@stianbrudvik4552]

Sorry but I don't agree with you on this. They stripped Kratos of his personality and the game just feels meh compared to older titles. Don't get me wrong, it's still a decent game. It just lacks something to get me to replay it like i do the older ones...

[@holysecret2]

Kratos' characterization for me was the strongest part of the game. He is depicted as wise, powerful, charismatic, a strong leader struggling with and overcoming past trauma and horror. By "stripped Kratos of his personality" do you simply mean he loses aspects of his original personality? Because that's kind of the point of him overcoming certian darker aspects of his past self. He was driven by rage and hatred, treated innocent people around him in cruel and unnecessary ways. But this game does something that I would have expected anti-woke people to celebrate, which is not to completely deny, whitewash and condemn his past self, but to accept and integrate it. I think that is an incredible writing decision and very powerful.

[@stianbrudvik4552]

@holysecret2 It's exactly what you say, strong and wise because of what he's been through. And yet somehow he feels weak and lack the determination and confidence he used to have. The Kratos I know, would not be so soft and weak. These are God's, not simple humans. They are supposed to be egotistical, narcissists, and merciless brutal a-holes. This just gives me Marvel cinematic vibes. I respect your opinion @holysecret2 but I respectfully don't agree with you.

[@holysecret2]

​@@stianbrudvik4552 Do you also not like the portryal of Freya and Tyr (from what we are told of him) in GoW 2018? Freya being kind and motherly, Tyr being an ambassador of peace and understanding across multiple realms and cultures. Both also quite far from your narcissistic, merciless framing of how gods should act and be. Come to think of it, wasn't it revealed in the original trilogy that the gods had fallen to darkness due to the opening of Pandora's box, and they weren't always so egotistical and "evil"? On that note as well, comparing the Greek pantheon and the Norse pantheon strikes me as a tricky thing in and of itself. From what I understand of the Norse pantheon, the gods are portrayed quite a bit closer to human characters with individual strengths and weaknesses and on a moral spectrum than many other pantheons. Some Norse gods are more flawed than others, some are quite humane and benevolent, others more narcissistic and power hungry. A spectrum of characters and personalities not that unlike humans, just elevated in more extreme in either direction. Viewed from that perspective, it seems to me they managed to capture a decent range of that moral spectrum, everything from evil to manipulated to abused to deranged to neutral to troubled to kind.

[@holysecret2]

Oh and as for the last point, I'm not quite sure how to understand your point about "marvel cinematic vibes". I'm assuming you mean relatively neutered and morally "light grey" to better fit modern sensibilities, along those lines? I'm just struggling to square that with the depiction of the gods in Ragnarok. From everything we hear and see of Thor, he is quite the brutal fellow, having committed a number of murderous atrocities, including a genocide. Of course, his inner conflict and trauma might be seen as a weakness unbecoming of a god, but I think it's a interesting dynamic between him and his father. Whatever it may take away from Thor (I would argue it adds rather than takes away) it adds to Odin's characterization. He too committed atrocities, exploitation of the dwarves, manipulation, abuse, he should also be held responsible for the genocide he committed through Thor as well. I don't think many of these aspects are that neutered, to be honest. If you are referring more to the "good guys" Vanir gods, I'm personally not all that familiar with their actual Norse lore, so I'm not sure how realistic their depiction is. But they do seem to be relatively morally uncomplicated, to be sure. I think they could have certainly been explored / characterized more than they were.

[@stianbrudvik4552]

@holysecret2 First of I'm Norwegian, so I grew up hearing about Thor, Loki and Odin especially. Freya and Tyr not so much. But I liked Freya and Tyr in GOWR, think they were well represented. But I have issues with Freya forgiving Kratos way to easy and quickly. Tyr was a warrior God, but he was firstly bound by law and order. He for me is mostly known for keeping Åsgård safe by sacrificing his arm to Fenrir. He was also the one who decided who should win in battle. That said, Tyr in my opinion had a darker side to him. He was in fact a God of war too. But yes, there was benevolent Norse God's. Pandoras box, it was locked away yes. But it was also the natural order of things before the God's locked it up. So it was always a part of the God's before they created pandoras box. So they had to purge it out into the box and so on.. Yes it's difficult to compare the two. Although if you are willing to give it a go without GOW in mind, Thor and Zeus have a lot of similarities. But yes there were many Norse God's, many not so famous and as you say benevolent and good. Some betrayed very much like humans, but they were still God's with powers of a God. But the case is that the Norse God's in GOWR was the top tire God's, you can't simply step on the Norse God's toes without consequences. Odin should have been stronger and more "dark". The whole game should have been draker in my opinion. But the thing I was really bummed about was how weak I felt as Kratos. I felt like a weak "bad word".. They completely stripped the bad ass out of Kratos in my opinion. He used to rip head off Greek God's for f sake! And now he rolls over and and takes it? Nope, not buying it. He needs his brutality back. So yes that is what I mean by Marvel vibes, it's just so tame and neutered. Morally light grey as you say.. But at the end of the day, I didn't make this game and this is just one man's opinion on the matter. I might have the wrong opinion, but I'm ok with that.

[@thekarma220]

This game is Dad of War, Kratos is nerfed in this game, he did show empathy and emotion in the older games but this was too dramatic for me, as for the combat the close camera angle was not made for large number of enemies but great for one on one or one on two battles, you can't go batsh!t crazy with this game's combat unlike the previous.

[@Miasaint10]

While I believe he could be "tired". He's by no means weakening or dying (in my opinion). Greek gods get stronger as they get older, and even though he is nearly a few thousand years old... He's young by God standards.

[@darryledwards4453]

I am genuinely wondering if you got paid for this review lol compared to the first game the story was awful at times because of issues you have criticised in other media.

[@Match25]

They did shove a gay love story into a side quest

[@gutsonthemic5261]

They really shouldve made game into a trilogy.

[@Napalmdieter]

Ah, great to see the drinker has his own gaming channel now! Instantly subscribed! However, if I may, I do have one request: Could you please increase the bitrate slightly? On a 65" TV the pixels are larger than fist-sized 😉

[@NaughtyJuri]

The original Three GOW games plus the PSP Titles are the only good games these newer games are walking simulators and the devs are into ESG garbage