Beautiful destruction: God of War III gets an HD makeover for PS4

By Will Fulton Published March 20, 2015

god of war 3 remastered announcement iii — Image used with permission by copyright holder

God of War III is coming to PlayStation 4 in a new, remastered edition on July 14, 2015. All of the series’ trademark minotaur-skewering and chimera-eviscerating action will be rendered in eye-popping 1080p graphics, in what should be one of the most visually lush mythological bloodbaths ever. It should help tide over fans until the new game, which is still a ways off, according Sony Santa Monica creative director Cory Barlog.

The release comes 10 years after the first God of War hit PlayStation 2 in 2005, setting a high bar for action-adventure games of the era. The series was also instrumental in popularizing quick-time events (QTEs) as a gameplay mechanic. It follows Kratos, a perennially angry Spartan warrior who takes a homicidal tour through Greek mythology, brutally murdering everything from lowly harpies up through the gods and titans themselves. God of War III, first released in 2010 for PlayStation 3, continued the series’ trend toward more weapons, bigger boss fights, and more brutal finishing moves.

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Check out the PlayStation Blog announcement post for reminiscences about the franchise by Barlog, who has worked on it since the first game. It also includes a Twitch stream for a speedrun of the first game, in celebration of its 10-year anniversary.

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Will Fulton is a New York-based writer and theater-maker. In 2011 he co-founded mythic theater company AntiMatter Collective…

Gaming

God of War TV show officially ordered to series by Amazon

Kratos looks at the Leviathan Axe.

Amazon Studios and Sony Pictures Television will move forward with developing a live-action television series based on the God of War series of games.
Variety reports that Amazon has ordered this previously-rumored show to series and that it will focus on adapting the narrative of the 2018 game, where Kratos explores the Norse realms with his son Atreus while on a quest to spread his wife's ashes from the highest peak in Jotunheim. This God of War show will also add to a strong lineup of notable fantasy IP on Amazon Prime, as the service also features shows based on The Lord of the Rings and The Wheel of Time. In fact, The Wheel of Time executive producer Rafe Judkins will act as the God of War series' showrunner.
Joining Judkins will be writers Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, who are known for their work on Children of Men, 2008's Iron Man, Cowboys & Aliens, and The Expanse. God of War director Cory Barlog will be an executive producer alongside Asad Qizilbash, Carter Swan, Yumi Yang, Jeff Ketcham, and Roy Lee.
Recently, PlayStation has been making a significant push into the film and television scene with movies like Uncharted and shows like The Last of Us, which airs on HBO in January. Projects based on Twisted Metal, Ghost of Tsushima, and Jak & Daxter are also in the works. It makes sense to expand God of War to the medium of television, especially after November's God of War Ragnarok became Sony's fastest-selling first-party game of all time.
It will be interesting to see if any elements from that sequel, and the original trilogy on PS2 and PS4, also make their way into the first season of this show. The God of War live-action series does not currently have an announced release date or cast.

Gaming

Monster Hunter Rise won’t support cross-progression between PS4 and PS5

A glowing purple monster being attacked from all sides.

Monster Hunter Rise will not support cross-saves or cross-progression between PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. This means that players who start their journeys on PlayStation 4 will have to start anew if they wish to play on PlayStation 5 later on.

Yesterday, Capcom announced that Monster Hunter Rise was coming to PlayStation and Xbox in January 2023. Microsoft stated that players can continue their progress between Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and the Xbox app on Windows PC.

Gaming

God of War Ragnarok shares a key strength with The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Hafgufa flies away in God of War Ragnarok.

God of War Ragnarok’s main story is memorable, but some of the smaller moments are what have stuck with me most since completing it. I'm not just talking about its moments of quiet, but its optional Favors as well. These sidequests can be entirely ignored, but skipping them is a mistake as they contain some of the game’s best scenes. It's a trait that God of War Ragnarok shares with The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, one of the best RPGs of the last decade.
In some large RPGs, sidequests can often boil down to boring fetch quests, or they simply may not have as much polish put into their writing. As a result, they can feel like content bloat that does more harm than good to the game’s pacing. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and God of War Ragnarok avoid this problem by elevating these sidequests, making the entire adventure feel more cohesive and ensuring that the small moments stick out as some of the best.
More than a side thing
Like God of War Ragnarok, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt features a lengthy main story full of memorable characters, set pieces, and boss fights. While those alone would have made it a strong RPG, it’s remembered as an all-time great because of how rich its world is, something that's reflected in its side content. There were quests like Ghosts of Past, which pays off the character arc of Witcher 2 character Letho, but it's entirely possible to finish the game without ever seeing it.

Others, like Return to Crookback Bog, turn what could just be some fun supernatural fights into a chilling tale about abuse and broken families. While The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt’s main narrative is strong, these side moments are what make it a game that sticks with you years after release. I can already tell the same will be true of God of War Ragnarok, as some of my favorite missions in the game are entirely optional Favors.
An early game Favor called The Weight of Chains sees Kratos, Mimir, and Atreus freeing a giant Lyngbakr sea creature that Mimir imprisoned while working with Odin. They manage to break its chains, but find that it now struggles to move and do what it used to. This sidequest takes a series of somewhat standard combat encounters and puzzles and spins them into critical aspects of a memorable tale. The Weight of Chains reflects on how Kratos and Mimir’s reckless actions have had irreversible consequences, but they now have an opportunity to be better people in the future.
Another standout Favor called Secret of the Sands, where Kratos and Atreus free a trapped jellyfish-like creature called a Hafgufa, is also quite beautiful. The short story shows what Kratos will do to be able to spend more time with his son in the face of Ragnarok. However ordinary these sidequests may be from a gameplay standpoint, their narrative relevance and level of polish are on par with some of God of War Ragnarok’s main quests. This high effort even applies to some side missions that wholly exist with NPCs in the game’s overworld, ones that aren't even built around huge set pieces. For example, there’s The Lost Treasure quest.