The Game Awards are around the corner. Which games have impressed gamers around the globe the most this year? Immediately, the fresh-out-of-the-oven God of War Ragnarok from Sony’s Santa Monica Studio comes to mind. The sequel to the beloved God of War (2018) was released on November 9 and has been garnering overwhelmingly positive reviews. Could Kratos add another Game of the Year Award after snatching the title in 2018? While God of War Ragnarok is one of the main contenders for the big prize, another 2022 big hitter will make this year’s Game of the Year race a real neck and neck: Can Sony’s sequel beat FromSoftware’s Elden Ring?
God of War Ragnarok does not disappoint
God of War Ragnarok has been one of this year’s most anticipated games. As a sequel to the beloved game God of War (2018), the expectations were immensely high. Could Kratos fill the shoes of his predecessor self, who went on to get the Game of the Year Award in 2018? The sequel is finally out, and the answer is undoubtedly: yes, he can. God of War Ragnarok received critical praise already ahead of its release, raking in 10/10s from media outlets across the board. At review aggregator Metacritic, it’s sitting at an impressive 94 at the time of writing, putting it on the same level as God of War 2018. Kratos did it again.
Fans of the first part will be relieved to see that the sequel offers more God of War that they know and love. It picks up where the first one left off and brings an even bigger action adventure. Without reinventing the wheel, Ragnarok builds on its predecessor with a continued deep narrative and character development, improved mechanics, new types of combat and enemies, and overall more polish to bring Kratos and Atreus to Sony’s next-gen consoles.
A journey to Midgard
It’s hard to believe God of War originally came to be in 2005 when the first title of the series was released. While there were a bunch of games released on several platforms in the years that followed, it was God of War (2018) that reinvented the series and was a major breakout success with a new concept and setting. This time around, Kratos was no longer in the realm of Greek gods, but dove into the legends of Norse mythology.
This change proved to be a major success and put God of War back on the radar for gamers around the globe. After all, Norse mythology is a theme that players of all kinds of games love. Look no further than Ubisoft’s most recent entry in the Assassin’s Creed series: Valhalla takes the brotherhood into the North with endless Norse legends and gods. The following year, the indie survival game Valheim set within Norse mythology by developer Iron Gate Studio was released and unexpectedly saw tremendous success. Even classics such as casino games get inspired by the mighty gods and legends. The online platform VegasSlotsOnline offers a wide variety of free slot machines that depict all kinds of themes and topics on their reels. Norse gods can often be found within the games, as slots such as Age of the Gods: Norse Gods and Giants and Fury of Odin Megaways show. The myths, legends, and gods never fail to impress, just as they do in God of War Ragnarok.
Can Kratos beat big-hitter Elden Ring?
Ever since God of War Ragnarok was announced, people expected it would be a strong Game of the Year contender once it came out, unless Santa Monica Studio really dropped the ball. Luckily, they did not, and God of War Ragnarok is a critical success. Will it come out at the top at this year’s The Game Awards and snatch the title for Game of the Year once more? The race is on, and it will be a neck and neck. God of War Ragnarok is up against Elden Ring by FromSoftware which was released in February this year and dominated the gaming industry throughout 2022. While there were many other great games released this year, as listed on Vulture, Sony’s and FromSoftware’s titles are this year’s main big hitters that are most likely to dominate The Game Awards. Which one will make the race to the top and win Game of the Year?
The Game Awards will take place on December 8, and it will be exciting to see if Kratos can snatch the main prize once more.
