Anyone familiar with the adventure of Percy Jackson as described in “The Last Olympian” will find Kratos’ final journey eerily similar. The only difference in the plots comes in the form of the role of the protagonists of the series where one is helping the Gods nestled on top of Mount Olympus whereas the other gleefully skips and hops from one massacre to another. Similarities and differences aside now that Kratos’ final journey has been completed, we sat down to ponder on what direction should the franchise be headed in order to keep it fresh and unique than become more of the same.
One of the most common methods would be craft out a prequel as being done with the current generation Halo series and dissect into the rage that boils within Kratos. Though this may serve as an interesting anecdote it will fall into a category which will have to be contained within the franchise. The setting will have to remain the same and there might be very little freedom to experience a myth that offers a vivifying depiction of carnage.The next logical step to be taken in the franchise will be to take the series into present times and craft out a world which mixes elements of modern combat, adds the vengeance that boils within the spirit of Kratos and displays cities that are on the brink of war and destruction. A similar theme was touched upon “Darksiders”, which places players in a post apocalyptic world rummaging through the chaos that has descended upon earth.
Crafting a God of War set in modern times will allow the developers to envisage and incorporate elements of all the wars that mankind has bore witness to the last hundred years. This imaging of the series will open up myriad set of abilities for both combat and character creation for the game thereby adding a dimension of depth and replayability to the overall experience. Customization is the key to building and retaining a successful franchise. If Sony Santa Monica is able to allow players to craft out a war god consumed by the hatred mankind has to offer in their own defining manner, we would probably be witness to ten different versions of Kratos each with their unique set of abilities and disabilities. This would also allow players to diversify combat and weaponry which can be unique to each player and brutal allowing them to exploit the dimension of multiplayer combat which the series lacks till date. The concept of upgrading weapons can easily be modified into crafting one’s own weapons for combat.
The set pieces can also change depending on the arena where Kratos is pushed into battle. Imagine fighting the titans atop the Petronas Towers or the Empire State building, Kratos will finally not be geographically bound and follow his quests across the world (even in Japan) butchering the Gods that are perhaps reborn in a modern day iteration of Mount Olympus. This intermingling of Greek myths set in a modern universe has already been seen in a poorly received game called “Legendary”. But given the amount of polish the developers at Santa Monica put into crafting their games, we are sure that these visions if realized by the developers will bring forward a new flavour to the series which retains the chaotic and brutal nature the series has stood upon and looks to take the franchise into a new direction which reinvents the concept of war in modern times.