Has kratos shown the most character growth of a videogame character in the last 14 years?

[Scustin Bieburr]

Nearly 20 years ago the first God of War game dropped. Kratos was essentially "guy who is pissed off" for most of the game and that became his main character trait.

Then 2 and 3 came out and he was just mad for different reasons. The way 3 ended was the logical conclusion of a guy who is angry all the time.

Then the 4th game dropped and we got a more introspective character who understood that he had been given a second chance to be a father and you can see him understanding how his worst impulses could get passed down to his son. The part in the game where he's realizing that he may essentially have inadvertently created a second Zeus(I can do whatever I want to whomever I want for whatever reason I want to because I have powers and others don't!) and the mix of disappointment and sadness he has when it hits him had a huge impact on me.

I haven't played ragnarok yet but I imagine there's more of the aspects of his son growing up and as a teenager trying to assert his own identity while Kratos fears losing him. He doesn't want any more dead family members and the fact that he may have to put down his own son or his own son may have to kill him fits so well with the Greek tragedy theme.

I can't think of another character who has evolved in their franchise in such a refreshing and thematically relevant way.

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

 

[Jaguar93]

Kratos was always a deep character. The og GOW series was literally a Greek tragedy.

 

[Diondon]

Greatest reboot ever
that's why Jaffe stay pissed

 

[DaSk8D00D]

Not mad at this take Kratos is likely the right answer Ragnarok had some pretty deep character shyt for Kratos that could not have been pulled off in those older games

 

[Ciggavelli]

I wanted to think of somebody else, but I think you are right. I was gonna say Aloy, but nah...

 

[Jaguar93]

One game but

 

[Neuromancer]

Yes.

 

[winb83]

Greatest reboot ever
that's why Jaffe stay pissed

You might be pissed too if somebody took something you created and made it into something it was never supposed to be. Kratos was supposed to be all that rage and shyt. It was never that deep. It's like what if they turned Mario into a complex layered character? That isn't who he's supposed to be.

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

You might be pissed too if somebody took something you created and made it into something it was never supposed to be. Kratos was supposed to be all that rage and shyt. It was never that deep. It's like what if they turned Mario into a complex layered character? That isn't who he's supposed to be.

It’s not his character so he doesn’t get to dictate what he’s supposed to be. Just like Steve Ditko doesn’t ultimatly decide what spider-man ends up as

Anything Jaffe feels about god of war at this point is purely fan fiction

 

[Jaguar93]

You might be pissed too if somebody took something you created and made it into something it was never supposed to be. Kratos was supposed to be all that rage and shyt. It was never that deep. It's like what if they turned Mario into a complex layered character? That isn't who he's supposed to be.

 

[Scustin Bieburr]

You might be pissed too if somebody took something you created and made it into something it was never supposed to be. Kratos was supposed to be all that rage and shyt. It was never that deep. It's like what if they turned Mario into a complex layered character? That isn't who he's supposed to be.

So he's mad that someone else made his character deep and people loved it.

He's a hater because he doesn't have the juice no more. How you go from making twisted metal and God of War to indie games that nobody plays? What a falloff. shyt id be mad too


Maybe he can translate that anger into a new character

 

[winb83]

I nominate this a$$hole from the Trails series.

It’s not his character so he doesn’t get to dictate what he’s supposed to be. Just like Steve Ditko doesn’t ultimatly decide what spider-man ends up as

Anything Jaffe feels about god of war at this point is purely fan fiction

He might not own the character but he's still the original creator.

 

[Cladyclad]

Nathan Drake deserves a mention

 

[Gizmo_Duck]

I nominate this a$$hole from the Trails series.

He might not own the character but he's still the original creator.

Multiple people wrote kratos, and multiple people (especially people still at the studio today like Cory Barlog, and Eric Williams) have been with the series since the first game. Jaffe never had sole ownership over Kratos even in figurative sense.