The creator of the iconic God of War video game series, David Jaffe, revealed recently that the series’ protagonist Kratos has lost some of his edge in the recent entries. In an interview with the gaming magazine Game Informer, Jaffe suggested that Kratos has become a relatively “nice guy” in the newer games.
“Kratos has changed a lot. I mean in the God of War III, you have a very angry character. Someone who is really, really vengeful and someone who doesn’t accept his own mistakes,” Jaffe said.
“But now, in the newer God of War game, we don’t have the same Kratos. He’s accepted his mistakes and he’s moved on with his life. He’s become more sensible and caring to his son and to others in general. He’s become more of a ‘nice guy.’
He continued: “Kratos has obviously softened, and to be honest I think he needed to. Games can become repetitive, and it makes it more interesting when characters really evolve and change.”
Jaffe further elaborated that the developers had to make sure that Kratos’ transformation wasn’t abrupt, as it would have been too much of a dramatic change for fans. Thus, they took a more gradual approach, with him showing more kindness and sympathy over time.
“One of the hardest things was making sure the transformation wasn’t too fast. Every journey needs to have a beginning, a middle, and a climax. We started off slowly, allowing Kratos to reveal more and more of himself, and then we took it to another level.”
Jaffe concluded by saying he believed that Kratos has indeed lost some of his edge, but that this was necessary in order to make the game more enjoyable and interesting. He also expressed his hope that fans would accept the change and continue to enjoy the series.