When I first heard rumors about a Metroidvania-style game tied to God of War being in the works, I was ecstatic. While God of War has always been an action series first and foremost, I could easily envision a way for the most important aspects of the franchise to be transposed onto the framework of a Metroidvania title. So when God of War Sons of Sparta was surprisingly revealed and released earlier this month, I couldn’t wait to jump into it.
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Sadly, Sons of Sparta has left me more confused and disappointed rather than thrilled after playing it. Although it’s not a bad game by any means, the new God of War prequel feels like an overly basic 2D action title that does little to stand out in a crowded landscape. Given that it’s tied to one of the biggest franchises that PlayStation has, Sons of Sparta could have, and should have, been so much more than it is.
Rating: 2.5/5
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Abilities and various items are fun to use | Combat gets much too repetitive |
| Plenty of challenges to beat and collectibles to discover | Art direction is bland at best, ugly at worst |
| Return of TC Carson as Kratos is great | Story doesn’t flesh out the backstory of Kratos and Deimos in an important way |
Sons of Sparta Doesn’t Add Much to the God of War Mythos
God of War Sons of Sparta is chronologically set before every other game in the series. It centers around a young version of Kratos who is still finding himself as both a man and a warrior. In between trying to prove himself to the powers that be in Sparta, Kratos is also looking after his younger brother, Deimos, who is dragging him along on a journey that Kratos is hesitant to join in on.
Generally speaking, centering Sons of Sparta around a teenage version of Kratos is something that I’m not against. This time period in the character’s life is one that has been left unexplored, and there’s a lot of potential in returning to his roots. The issue is that the story and characterization on display in God of War Sons of Sparta are equal parts boring and unimportant. While Kratos does learn a lesson by the end of Sons of Sparta, it’s one that doesn’t feel pivotal to how his character is represented in future games at all.
The role of Deimos in Sons of Sparta I also find to be lackluster. For the most part, Deimos is a blank slate, as he only ever appears in God of War: Ghost of Sparta. Because of this, there was so much more that I wanted to see done with him throughout the game. While there are moments of enjoyment found in interactions between Kratos and Deimos, the latter doesn’t come across as anything more than a naive younger brother most of the time, which doesn’t do much to recontextualize how he’s viewed in Ghost of Sparta.
Combat Is Fine, But Leaves a Lot to Be Desired
The biggest element of the God of War series that makes it what it is is fast-paced combat. This focus is readily found here in Sons of Sparta, but the execution of its combat mechanics is a bit disappointing. Most combat scenarios from the start until the finish of Sons of Sparta boil down to nothing more than endless button-mashing with some dodging or blocking sprinkled in. In some sense, you could say that this is always what God of War has been, but there’s a supreme lack of inventiveness when it comes to the combos that Kratos can carry out.
While you would think that combat is rudimentary because there is a lack of unlockable combat skills, you would be wrong. Sons of Sparta actually has a pretty extensive skill tree that can be unlocked (with red orbs, of course) throughout the game. Most of these upgrades end up feeling pretty bland, though, and aren’t very cohesive with the other attacks in Kratos’ repertoire.
In addition, some of the combo variations that Kratos can add to his kit are locked behind certain pieces of loot that have to be equipped to the spear or shield. This element is something that is borrowed from the newest God of War games, and in that sense, I can see why it was included here. Still, the need to individually upgrade all of these items, which can be difficult to do, means that you’ll more than likely only choose one or two of the items to heavily index into, which can lead to your combat options feeling redundant.
The best thing that can be said about playing Sons of Sparta is that some of the additional weapons and abilities that Kratos unlocks are some of the most fun to use. Not only are they some of the best to take on enemies and bosses with, but the way in which they open up new avenues that were previously unaccessible are quite creative. Exploration ended up being my favorite part of Sons of Sparta, as running back through its world to collect every item and take on every secondary challenge was very enjoyable.
The “Retro” Aesthetic of Sons of Sparta Isn’t Appealing
Perhaps the worst element of God of War Sons of Sparta, and the thing that started to bother me the longer I played, was the game’s aesthetic. Developer Mega Cat Studios is going for a sort of retro style with Sons of Sparta that calls back to the early era of gaming. Instead, Sons of Sparta feels like it has a “retro” filter slapped on top of it that is meant to make it feel old-school, and nothing more.
Not only did this faux-pixelated look make me pine for true pixel artwork, but the game’s animations often look stiff and awkward. The default running animation of Kratos and Deimos is particularly strange, as each looks uncomfortably hunched over while traveling about. In a time when art direction is better than ever from indie studios, Sons of Sparta will make you appreciate just how great some other games in recent years have been.
God of War Sons of Sparta is not a terrible game by any means. Even in spite of all of its flaws, this is a very competent Metroidvania that will undoubtedly scratch any itch you might have to play a game in the genre. Still, Sons of Sparta is a major swing and a miss on PlayStation’s part. This game had the potential to establish God of War as something new outside of the mainline series that could help keep it fresh for years to come. Instead, I’m now hoping that we see fewer experiments with the IP going forward if this is how they’re going to pan out.
God of War: Sons of Sparta is available now, exclusively on PS5. A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for the purpose of this review.
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Official art by Bastien Lecouffe-Deharme -
Image Courtesy of MAPPA -
Image Courtesy of DC Comics
