Redemption Of Kratos: God of War
God of War is a video game series that tells the story of a spartan warrior, Kratos, who is troubled and abused by the Greek gods of Olympus. Hoodwinked into doing the biding of gods without them holding up their end of the bargain. Kratos’s loyalty was always taken for granted by the gods of Olympus which kindled a sinister hatred inside Kratos. The hatred inside Kratos takes him on a quest to exact his revenge, “in the end there will only be chaos”. But toward the end of his journey there comes a point where he has to ask himself was the revenge worth the cost, and could he redeem himself from his grizzly past. In this 4-part saga we as viewers see Kratos’s growth from his lowest points all the way through redemption, all while living through Greek mythology through Kratos himself. Parallax to Kratos’s growth we see how the story is advanced over the years with the evolution of technology as well.
Let’s start from the beginning (2005) with god of war 1. The game begins with a tattered Kratos staring sorrowfully off of the highest mountain in Greece, stating “the gods of Olympus have forsaken me… and now there is no hope”. Soon after Kratos steps off the mountain to plummet to his death, but before he hits the bottom the game teleports the gamer to three weeks before the jump. We are teleported to the moment Kratos ask Athena and the gods of Olympus to take the bad memories of his families murder away from him, so that he may find peace. Athena then assigns Kratos the task of eliminating her brother Ares, the god of war, and Kratos’s mentor in battle. This sends Kratos on a bloody, gruesome quest through the countless mythical beast and figures of ancient Greece to obtain the power inside Pandora’s box so that Kratos may defeat Ares. In the end Kratos succeeds but in vain it seems because the gods granted him forgiveness for his sins, but proclaimed “…no man, no god can ever forget the terrible deeds you have done”. The next scene is Kratos at the top of the highest mountain in Greece, just as he was in the beginning and he steps off. He has no hope of ever being rid of the horrible nightmares he witnesses night in and night out of his family’s blood on his hands. As Kratos is about to plummet into the Aegean Sea he is teleported to the tomb of Ares and is crowned the new god of war.
The second installment in the series (2007) begins where the first game left off. Kratos has become the new god of war but fell prey to becoming a chess piece in the uprising of the Titans. The Titan Gaia grants Kratos the rage of the Titans to fuel his gnarly blades to take down the King of Olympus, Zeus, who imprisoned the Titans and caused Kratos to suffer so greatly. Once Kratos and the Titan’s obtain the upper hand, their efforts are thwarted by Athena who sacrificed herself to save her Father, Zeus. This only made the spartan, warrior turned god, take a detour to the sisters of fate and turn back the hands of time to the moment of the siege of Olympus. With Athena out of the way, the only thing to worry about is the gods themselves.
The third installment in the saga (2010) starts where the last left off, The siege of Olympus. Kratos again overcomes every trial thrown at him, while also paralleling many myths of ancient Greece. He finds himself one on one with the big man himself, Zeus. Only this time Kratos triumphs in victory… but if Kratos won, why does he not feel satisfied. While pondering on his thoughts Kratos is paid a visit from Athena’s ghost who wants the power within Kratos for herself. In the end Kratos has a revelation that hate, and vengeance had blinded him. All the killing and fighting were for naught. But hope is what saves lives. Hope is the power that was bestowed upon Kratos in his battle against the gods to defeat Zeus. Hope is the power that was deep inside Kratos all along. Kratos realized after defeating Zeus that the power of hope should be shared to the people of world and not harbored by one entity alone, so… Kratos stabbed himself dispersing the power within, to the world. This seemed as though it was the end for the spartan warrior, who restored hope and power to the world. But after credits roll we are given another cut scene of a blood trail that disappears off the mountain and the camera pans out to the sea.
The fourth and final installation to the saga to date (2018) takes place in the realm of Norse Mythology. In the installment of God of War, we see a bulkier, aging, grey bearded Kratos with a companion. A son! Turns out Kratos escaped the grips of death once more and set sail for a new land. There he grew old and had a child which reminds him every day of his humanity and he does not have to live through his tragic past alone. Kratos has started a new chapter in life to raise his son to be a warrior with humanity unlike his dad, Kratos, who had a past full of merciless slaughtering.
This saga and each individual game that form the series are good examples of digital media through their reliance on viewer interaction for the story to progress, unlike traditional film. God of War definitely has the classic troupes and cinematic cut scenes of traditional films, but it includes so much more. The story would not be the same if the viewer could not explore the landscape and take part in the battle for Kratos’ life in the many obstacles Kratos has faced. There are many landmarks scattered through the landscape which must be explored to fully understand the story of Kratos, but also how Greek mythology so intricately intertwines with Kratos’s story. The sounds, the way the controller vibrates as you play, and the button combos you press to take down the enemy all make the narrative. The game also leaves little Easter eggs from other Greek stories such as: Perseus, Hercules, Icarus, Atlas, and many more. The makers of god of war took characters and elements from old films and made them fit within the new world order of Greek mythology that has been created.
The moral lesson to be learned from the games all together is that hatred is bad and blinding, but hope is a person’s saving grace, when all else is lost we hold onto the that love and hope we have. Even the vilest offender can turn life around. You cannot erase what you did, but you can move past it toward a brighter future and pass down this knowledge to the next generation. With that being said I believe that God of War beautifully intertwines storytelling elements with new age technology to deliver a powerful story that would not be possible without elements of the old and new present.
