I'd like to point out one moment youve missed: when atreus tells kratos after the light incident "not like you'd even care if she was" and kratos immediately corrects him stating "do not mistake my silence for lack of grief" showing atrues that he DOES have feelings, just isnt the type to show it.
Yeah this is instantly one of the scenes I think of during this video, he tells Atreus that he has feeling he just doesn’t show them. I think this make Atreus pay much closer attention to how he acts and notice the much more subtle ways he shows feelings and intentions For example in the video how he mentions the slight action kratos makes in the fight with baldur and Atreus understands it, personally feel none of that would’ve happened without the scene you mention
And I wonder WHY he doesn't show his emotions. Maybe the fact that his uncontrollable rage was the reason why his original family died and how his rage caused the destruction of the greek world?
@@VonArmageddayes definitely, or he’s scared of himself and what he can be if he exerts too much and gets betrayed again with the ones he would make “close”
Holy crap, I just realized that when Kratos told Atreus he lost the knife, Atreus didn't say, "I'm sorry for losing the knife," he said, "I'll take better care of it from now on." He learned the lesson that Kratos taught him earlier: "Don't be sorry, be better." Such great writing, and thank you for the fantastic video!
When I first played the game, these exact lines gave me a good chuckle after giving the knife to Atreus. It did because I've straight up used that same line with a niece of mine who after making the same mistake serval times and apologizing for it, eventually I told her to be better. Just a few days before I played it, she made the same mistake and when I called her out for it, her response wasn't sorry, it was that she'd do better lol. Seeing that extract thing play out with Kratos and Atreus was really something.
@Sean-wi6hm Props to the writers for making both Atreus and Mimir actual likeable characters. It is very hard to make characters like that, since most of the time, they end up being super annoying.
@@strikeforce1500personally don’t find Atreus that likeable in either game, especially the 2nd he acts like a bratty child but hey could just be me. Love mimir though easily top 3 best characters
@@Im_helpless The writers for the Ragnarok game made Kratos more talkative, he doesn't seem like the god of war anymore. They missed the opportunity to show a colossal war and expand the lore of characters like Jormungander, instead they gave us a walk through the field of the tantrum boy and his crush
@@cristianibarra1330 exactly they focused so heavily on Atreus who’s such a boring and unlikeable character and killed or changed every likeable one, like killing Thor, brok and making sindri hate us
Atreus: I would NEVER stab you, I do get angry at you sometimes, but I would NEVER-EVER stab you Atreus: (in front of Baldur) proceed to shoot an arrow towards Kratos arm 😅
The history of young Kratos being a screaming ball of rage and vengeance honestly adds a lot to his silence. We're taught how much he's holding back and how much he has learned just from how little he says. But when he does get more vocal, it's not words. It's his grunts and shouts in combat, showing that how much control he's gained to channel all of that energy and focus it into battle. The combat tells that story too, with his moves and Runics being less flashy and over the top than the combos of the original trilogy, yet still feeling like they hit harder. Instead of wide sweeping attacks with the blades, we get tighter more focused and heavier swings with the axe. When he does retrieve the blades, the same moves from the old games have been updated to be slower, more methodical, and with a heavier punch to them
"The history of young Kratos being a screaming ball of rage and vengeance honestly adds a lot to his silence" This whole narrative about young Kratos being nothing more than just a "screaming ball of rage" is extremely ignorant and insulting to the writing of the first 5 games. Young Kratos had much more depth and character development to be called just a "raging ball". Also, there is nothing about Kratos fighting that is out of control. You people always seems to glaze over the fact that Kratos is a proud & accomplished spartan warrior, and not just any spartan warrior but Spartan general! You know? A very disciplined warrior race. All Kratos moves are calculated, precise and efficient.
I think one of the best parts of this, is how Kratos ends up breaking his silent streak at the end of the game by telling Atreus a long-winded story about where Atreus’s name comes from, showing us that he’s growing, and learning to be more open with his boy, and with himself
Ngl, that was such a happy moment for me lol. As a former child, it's always such a heartwarming moment when your dad, who's usually strict, finally softens up enough to share his stories with you.
Man I waited so long to play these games. So many recommendations and I for whatever reason never tried until about 2 weeks ago. I have like 60 hours in the game already it is such a masterpiece. I never played the original trilogy but watched older cousins play so i did remember some things about his character. Atreus and kratos story arch in this game is absolutely perfect as a person who is close with their dad and also been known to butt heads with him it was truly a heartwarming while also bad ass story. The part on the boat when he tells Atreus about the spartan he was named from and Atreus says I’m glad you picked that name it made heart happy lol. Also “wow you actually told a good story and mimir missed it” had me dying lmao.
I don't think Kratos will ever be a super chatty character, but especially in Ragnarok, he is opening his heart more not only to his son, but the friends and allies he makes. I don't expect he'll be super cuddly but he appears to be a little more generous with physical and verbal gestures of affection. As Faye said, "Open your heart to the world as you have opened it to me, and you will find every reason to keep living in it."
Just the fact that he is willing to call people with their names, only resorting to calling Atrues Boi only one time during the game, calling Mimir brother with no hesitation around others and only defending himself against Freya but never retaliating are clear indications off it.
I never noticed how little kratos speaks, let alone the fact that ATREUS is the first person to speak in the game, not him, because of how powerful Kratos' written character is
Kratos even in his younger years is a deceptively quiet person. The only times he speaks is to make threats or warnings. Reticent means to speak conservatively, to not waste words and say only what’s necessary and that’s Kratos in a nutshell. Kratos as an old man is even more quiet than his younger self and mostly just grunts either in acknowledgement or irritation.
4:35 When he is wrapping his wrists over the scars of chains he is reorienting his body to hide it from Atreus by using his body to cover it from his view. A small and genius way of showing his character through a small body gesture.
and at 15:40 i noticed what could be a callback to that scene, the first scene of the first game where he hides his scars from his son versus now at the end of the second game where he doesn't even care if atreus sees them at that moment, atreus likely noticed the scars but clearly "Can we go? We're so close!" shows that he'll probably ask about the scars when they get home, but he really just wants to spread the ashes. or maybe he didnt see the scars and that would deliver the same purpose of showing that atreus never would have thought about them in any negative way but with less weight.
@@The_Sleepiest_Socialistthey're both great at the version of the character they portray. Judge is great at portraying the Kratos that is trying to be better, while TC is great at portraying the unhinged Kratos. They can coexist. Judge wouldn't have worked for the young wrathful Kratos who shoved an innocent person into a gear mechanism to keep a door open, just like TC wouldn't have worked for the older and wiser Kratos trying to be a good father and role model despite all he's been through
@@The_Sleepiest_SocialistI think they serve two very different purposes. Christopher judge wouldn’t be very good as the screaming revenge driven kratos but he does a wonderful job as the thoughtful regretful, and quiet kratos. Terrence Carson is great as violent ball of rage kratos but he wouldn’t be as good with the new kratos. It’s all about the type of character, not necessarily the voice actor.
I like how Kratos' bandages act as a metaphor for his suppressed emotions towards his son. When they become loose, he hides them from Atreus as he binds them back up, not allowing Atreus to see. When Atreus burns his hand and Kratos shows kindness to him by putting snow in his palm, Kratos takes a piece of the bandage and ties his hand. Opening up to his son made him lose part of the binds to his past. In the end, after he comes clean, the bandages come off completely.
If you ask me, the best way to describe the writing of Kratos in the Norse saga would be laconic, which is fitting considering his Greek heritage. Fewer words, greater impact.
You know, it goes deeper than just Greek. Laconic literally means Spartan, as in, from the city of Sparta. They were all stereotyped as being like this in real life, and the idea of Laconicism stems from that ancient stereotype.
@@kaznrg Slight correction, Laconic is a bit less specific than Sparta. It comes from Lacadaemonia, the region of Greece of which Sparta was the major player. But your point stands I'm just being autistic on main
what I love about how Kratos teaches lessons to Atreus is that the writers never forget them. What I mean is, at the end of the second game when Kratos and Atreus are going to part ways, Kratos asks Atreus if he is afraid. Atreus replies that he is, which Kratos says back “Then that is why you must do it.” The thing about this line is that you may think it’s just generic advice you’ve heard a father tell his son in other media and figure it’s just one of those lessons Atreus was taught off screen because of course he was and think it’s just a fine line of dialogue, however in the first game there is a specific side quest you go on where you get to actually witness Kratos teaching Atreus this lesson with a soul eater, to players who put the time into side quests like me, having that have a callback in the finale of the sequel was just so precious and it’s something I’ve never seen anyone mention.
I mean in God of War Ragnarok theres this moment where it shows that Kratos have actually learned how to read.. so yea that proves the idea that he wants to learn from his kid even more.. I love this
I think the long silence and Kratos' delayed continuation of the conversation when killing fathers is brought up is because he himself killed his father. Hearing Atreus' comments on the matter probably made Kratos mull over the conversation for quite a while. And Kratos himself was angry at his father, so then also hearing Atreus say he's angry at him sometimes probably worried him. Not worried him like "Atreus is going to want to kill me", but yeah.
One important thing missed out. Kratos distanced himself from Atreus because of the trauma of loss of his first child, Calliope. His fear was loving a child again and seeing them die. He kept calling him "boy" to disconnect, and started calling him "Atreus" when the youngling was in danger. As the game progresses, he realises that the son is capable and not fragile (when he gets pulled out of the light) and starts to see his son differently.
The "when have I made you angry" exhange is my favourite between Kratos and Atreus because of how you can tell that while fighting and doing puzzles Kratos has been thinking about it from the moment he heard it. Kratos doesn't want his son to be angry, particularly with him, and it bothers him that to know that he makes him so. I love that. Theres plenty of great father/son moment but to me there isn't one that really illustrates his thoughtfulness and care towards Atreus.
Props to the writers for having the foresight and faith in not only their actors and scene designers, but in the audience for being able to communicate so much subtext without words. So many of Kratos' most emotional moments in this game and its sequel are delivered wordlessly, and not even with a large motion either. We know how stoic and guarded he is with emotion so we know that a slight emotional action conveys a much stronger reaction below.
Chris Judge deserves all the props for how well he portrayed Kratos. He's like Johnny Depp and PotC, without him it would simply not be as good as it is
I think his inner voice that’s telling him not to do certain things also comes from losing he’s daughter. I feel like he’s trying to not get to close to Atreus to prevent what he felt from losing his daughter
After seeing almost no movement on the patreon I am unfortunately straying away from my original intent and enabling ads on some of the videos, as there is almost no channel income without them. I am sorry for that. There will still be no mid video ads. Thank you for understanding.
There’s a line that has stuck with me “your ability to express yourself is limited by the language you use”. Silence is not always the absence of expression, rather a way to express what cannot be said concisely or precisely. A single stare and a little nod as Kratos hands Atreus the ashes said more than any dialog could. And it’s special since you can’t really translate the feeling of that moment into words but you still fully understand it.
Do not forget that kratos is a man who has already lost a family, all of his measure and restraint when it comes to showing affection towards atreus, comes from past experience, he is afraid, afraid to get close to someone else, afraid to care for someone again. Every person he has cared for in the past , he has lost, whether it be his mother, deimos, his former wife, his daughter, athena and even zeus who he cared for at some level, seeing all that and watching him stopping himself from showing too much affection whether it be atreus, mimir, freya or the dwarves to growing to care for them in ragnarok is just insane writing from santa monica
4:28 I noticed how his hand, instead of going to Atreus, goes to the knife. A symbol of violence. Kind of shows how his violent past makes it hard for him to be there for his son and how Kratos chose to protect his violent past, rather than tell Atreus anything until the end of the game.
i think another point at 10:55 is more about how atreus was probably really surprised his dad cared enough to understand when he’s mad at kratos and less on the fact that he’s young and the convo didn’t really matter to him because atreus looks like he’s at least 12 or 13 and i certainly remembered conversations that happened if they meant something to me and i’d reckon that meant something to atreus
I have a deep love for Kratos here because he is SO MUCH like my grandad who passed away a few months ago. My grandad raised me and it was so similar to this. Quiet, all action no talk, stoic but overall gentle at heart. Playing this game again after the passing of my grandad showed me a different perspective of my grandad and also kratos himself. This video really solidifies it for me. Thank you for this ♥ it helped bring me some closure in my struggle to process my grief
I think an important detail you left out is that Kratos thinks so long about Atreus saying he can get angry at him after they meet the guy who was killed by his own son because Kratos himself killed his father and is deeply worried throughout the whole game about history repeating itself if he does not teach Atreus right
Another thing of note is that the language kratos is speaking is not his native tongue(Greek) I have to give massive kudos for your ability to throughly examine the character with nay but a single hint of spoiling anything in the story.
This game has taught me so many things as a father that I take with me today and use with my son. The level of appreciation I have for this game is priceless.
Despite the spoiler warning in the beginning, I appreciate that you purposely avoided mentioning spoiler-y things such as when Kratos fought a "powerful enemy" or when he had to go to "a certain place"
One thing I love about Kratos evolution from the OG trilogy to the new God of War, its how Kratos slowly turns into a better father from the beginning. Realizing he isn't raising a spartan soldier,like he was, on top of grieving, but raising his son proper. It also shown how much Kratos still struggles to be 'humane' with Kratos. Kratos, with good reason, struggles to be social due so many traumas and betrayals
Amazing video! You've analyzed and described Kratos so flawlessly, that you actually made me appreciate him (and his writing) even more than before, although he's already been one of my all-time favourite fictional characters, for years! Keep it up, man, you're content's great!
@@AdamSrayi Looking forward to it! The Mass Effect trilogy is one of my top 5 favourite games (I'm counting all three as a single game, otherwise three out of five of the top 5 would be Mass Effect, lol).
One of my favourite little non-verbal tells about Kratos was never actually in the games, but in the gameplay reveal from 2016: in that build of the game, when Kratos yells at Atreus and snatches the bow from him after spooking the deer, Kratos' Rage meter appears in the bottom left of the screen and flares up before stopping and receding as he calms himself. It's clear from their interaction that Kratos is angry, but seeing the meter flow and ebb in response to his behaviour really impressed me, as it demonstrates how integral Kratos' rage is to his original personality and how he's making an effort to suppress (and later, channel) it for the sake of his relationship with Atreus.
because nothing from Ragnarok is not consistent with the character in 2018. He explain entire greek life with the deepest dark moments, like killing his family, or his brother death, unasked and so casually, like it was nothing. The man who in 2018 it s hidding his scars from his son entire game, in ragnarok wouldn't just shut up a moment like in this video is explain
I absolutely love the deer hunting scene because it shows how much Kratos has changed since he left Greece. When Atreus messes up, he starts doing what familiar players would expect: shouting, berating, etc. But you SEE the moment he recognizes what he's doing and corrects his own behavior to be calmer and more instructive. OG Kratos absolutely did not have that level of control over his anger and it shows the player just how much he's grown between series. The games still give him plenty of room to grow in the fatherhood department but he's already leagues better. You can tell how hard he's trying.
The best part about that "when are you angry" comment. Is it almost shows anxiety on Kratos's part. Self-reflection, that after a little passing comment, he fixated and thought it. Much like many of us do when we make comments that we are looking back and thinking we should have said differently, or when someone says something, or someone looks at us. At least that's my read, maybe I'm protecting. But honestly you don't see that kind of stuff in much writing, people always forget all the parts of characters that aren't dialog or physical actions. This and the way they actually talk through their issues in ragnarok are just amazing
I just discovered your channel. Thanks to this video, I now better understand my own father. Thank you for providing such a valuable lesson, without I might never have understood, or more like misunderstood the actions if my father. I never played a GoW game, but in the small sections you showed, I really felt a sense of familiarity. I hope your channel grows. More people need to understand.
These 2 games are arguably one of the greatest games in all of history. The first had a little bit of an anticlimactic ending, but the second was just absolutely glorious. The world building, the voice acting, the character development and the story are just absolutely a 10/10.
I still don’t have a clue how people see games done this well and say it’s a movie game. What happened to appreciating peak even if ragnarok wasn’t paced well these games are amazing
dude hearing those vocals when kratos is just standing in the doorway actually gave me shivers, I dont even know WHY but they just (literally) tingle my brain (and spine I guess) the right way
That moment when Kratos continued the conversation about why Atraius was angry connected with me. There have been times when something happened and I stew in my feelings and thoughts about it for hours even days. Then I try to bring it up so I can voice my feelings on the subject or, like Kratos, try and get more information but some people get confused why I'm so hung up on it
I'm trying to write a book, my character is in a world where audio kills you so they are forced to wear headphones, hence. no speaking, so i needed this
It felt like I listend to books worth of Kratos in these last two games, when in reality his lines were far and few in between. And i gotta praise not only the writers for that, but especially Christopher Judge here. The excellent mo-cap gave kratos a voice when his mouth couldn't. Kratos is the perfect example of "Show, dont tell."
Kratos as a father connects with me in a very deep way. Though my father was far more loving and affectionate than Kratos, he rarely lost his temper like Kratos in the beginning. He did teach me lessons in much the same way, where when I had questions or a problem needed to be solved, my father would never directly tell me the answer to any inquiry. He would only ask questions and point out details to force me to work through the issue myself and solve it using problem critical thinking. As a child I was frustrated by it but as an adult I thank him every day for that
And there are still people saying that Kratos became weak in those two games. I Just will never understand how you cannot see incredible writing like this. Truly a masterpiece in writing.
I myself would also like to point out, during many of the bigger battles, where both tend to launched to a new part of the land, Kratos' first action is to make sure his son is safe, but when he cannot find him, or does not know where he is, he calls out for him. It is a small and easily overlooked thing, but it is important, to now that almost every other thought for Kratos is, 'is my son safe right now?'
Kratos isn't really a quiet person in God of War Ragnarok tho. Maybe because he's more open to Atreus and had Mimir as a "brother", not just a friend or head anymore
He's revealed much of his past trauma to both Atreus and Mimir, thus he feels as if it's less of a burden to keep hiding from other people he trusts like Freya.
The growth of Kratos' character in God of War, showing his more caring side in Ragnarök to his comrades and especially his son, makes the embrace of father and son during their reunion in Ragnarök, after all those differences and quarrels even more rewarding. I rarely get really emotional with a story but this scene had in me tears. Beautyfully written characters in both games. Masterfully done.
Being a dad and playing this game I think really helps to understand what Kratos is thinking. Also the lack of dialogue allows me to feel more of the moments.
Just watched your cyberpunk video and that brought me here. great content man, u got a sub and cant wait to see you blow up with the other video essay channels bc your quality is already there
Another aspect not really touched upon is how Kratos is silent but dramatic doing everything as if it has a heavy weight while Atreaus still being a kid will take things hyper literally and often deflate drummed up dramatic tension. He does this with Kratos and Fraya a lot.
I'm playing Spider-man 2 at the moment and all the reviews are calling it "the pinaccle of the PS5" but i just can't agree... 2018's God Of War still exceeds it in every single way, and it was a PS4 creation! The story, the writing, the performance, the gameplay, the visuals, the music, the sound, the EVERYTHING is just unrivalled - a true masterpiece.
I also love the other small gestures of care that Kratos displays toward Atreus: always making sure he goes through gaps first, helping him climb, etc.
i just love it whe atreus says something to kratos and kratos just replies with a very deep "hmmm" almost like a growl. just shows that in writing you dont always need to answer with words.
Man, I never get tired of listening retrospective about Gow franchise. I'm so in love with Kratos ❤! He has a big soul, even if Ares stole it long ago.
Great video! Subbing to your channel. One of the internal battles going on with Kratos you didn't mention is his spartan upbringing. His culture, his childhood is being thrown to the wolves as a kid with no help, no compassion. Just will you survive. Part of why it's so hard for him to show emotion or conform Atreus
I am so happy I stumbled upon this video! I have so much love for Kratos and Atreus- both individually and their relationship together. I’ve felt like I haven’t had a way to explain or for fully understand why that is, but this video gave me SO much eloquent insight into it. I think it’s so incredibly beautiful how they wrote these two characters and both of their character arch’s have been so beautifully written and developed throughout the 2018 game and even further in Ragnarock. The way they interact with themselves, the world around them and with each other is SO layered and your video did an amazing job at peeling away those layers and I really enjoyed watching it and breaking down their character arch’s with someone else who sees and appreciates it! Thank you!
0:48 I never noticed the look on Kratos' face. Such a sorrowful, longing look. I wonder what other stuff like that I missed on my first and NG+ playthrough
I'd like to point out one moment youve missed: when atreus tells kratos after the light incident "not like you'd even care if she was" and kratos immediately corrects him stating "do not mistake my silence for lack of grief" showing atrues that he DOES have feelings, just isnt the type to show it.
Yeah this is instantly one of the scenes I think of during this video, he tells Atreus that he has feeling he just doesn’t show them.
I think this make Atreus pay much closer attention to how he acts and notice the much more subtle ways he shows feelings and intentions
For example in the video how he mentions the slight action kratos makes in the fight with baldur and Atreus understands it, personally feel none of that would’ve happened without the scene you mention
don’t know how he missed this
And I wonder WHY he doesn't show his emotions.
Maybe the fact that his uncontrollable rage was the reason why his original family died and how his rage caused the destruction of the greek world?
@@VonArmageddayes definitely, or he’s scared of himself and what he can be if he exerts too much and gets betrayed again with the ones he would make “close”
@@VonArmagedda I think it's just how he was raised. Through sheer control. That might make him not speak unless something needs to be said
Holy crap, I just realized that when Kratos told Atreus he lost the knife, Atreus didn't say, "I'm sorry for losing the knife," he said, "I'll take better care of it from now on." He learned the lesson that Kratos taught him earlier: "Don't be sorry, be better." Such great writing, and thank you for the fantastic video!
When I first played the game, these exact lines gave me a good chuckle after giving the knife to Atreus. It did because I've straight up used that same line with a niece of mine who after making the same mistake serval times and apologizing for it, eventually I told her to be better. Just a few days before I played it, she made the same mistake and when I called her out for it, her response wasn't sorry, it was that she'd do better lol. Seeing that extract thing play out with Kratos and Atreus was really something.
@@goofistmcnutty3280that's nice, did she actually do better?
@@anthonydunkley7844 Well she ain't making the same mistakes, so I'd say so lol.
@@goofistmcnutty3280 yep, kinda step one of improving from a mistake: dont repeat the mistake
@Mutrax4706 the second step is being more careful so you don't repeat the mistake.
To be honest, I never realized how quiet Kratos is because his actions are so loud through out the game.
Also because mimir is always saying something interesting
@Sean-wi6hm Props to the writers for making both Atreus and Mimir actual likeable characters.
It is very hard to make characters like that, since most of the time, they end up being super annoying.
@@strikeforce1500personally don’t find Atreus that likeable in either game, especially the 2nd he acts like a bratty child but hey could just be me.
Love mimir though easily top 3 best characters
@@Im_helpless The writers for the Ragnarok game made Kratos more talkative, he doesn't seem like the god of war anymore.
They missed the opportunity to show a colossal war and expand the lore of characters like Jormungander, instead they gave us a walk through the field of the tantrum boy and his crush
@@cristianibarra1330 exactly they focused so heavily on Atreus who’s such a boring and unlikeable character and killed or changed every likeable one, like killing Thor, brok and making sindri hate us
Atreaus: who would kill there father that's crazy.
Kratos sweating and breathing: yeah who does that
Atreus: I would NEVER stab you, I do get angry at you sometimes, but I would NEVER-EVER stab you
Atreus: (in front of Baldur) proceed to shoot an arrow towards Kratos arm
😅
@@yemiprotector868 well he didn't stab him....
Their*
I've currently the drunken power of 999 vs. 1k likes. Your comment made me laugh, your worthy.
In Kratos' defence Zeus was a dick who deserved to die
The history of young Kratos being a screaming ball of rage and vengeance honestly adds a lot to his silence. We're taught how much he's holding back and how much he has learned just from how little he says. But when he does get more vocal, it's not words. It's his grunts and shouts in combat, showing that how much control he's gained to channel all of that energy and focus it into battle. The combat tells that story too, with his moves and Runics being less flashy and over the top than the combos of the original trilogy, yet still feeling like they hit harder. Instead of wide sweeping attacks with the blades, we get tighter more focused and heavier swings with the axe. When he does retrieve the blades, the same moves from the old games have been updated to be slower, more methodical, and with a heavier punch to them
The swings feel way more realistic and feel like they have an impact to them
Excellent erxplaination.
he was called Grumbles for a reason
could not have said it better
"The history of young Kratos being a screaming ball of rage and vengeance honestly adds a lot to his silence"
This whole narrative about young Kratos being nothing more than just a "screaming ball of rage" is extremely ignorant and insulting to the writing of the first 5 games.
Young Kratos had much more depth and character development to be called just a "raging ball".
Also, there is nothing about Kratos fighting that is out of control. You people always seems to glaze over the fact that Kratos is a proud & accomplished spartan warrior, and not just any spartan warrior but Spartan general! You know? A very disciplined warrior race.
All Kratos moves are calculated, precise and efficient.
I think one of the best parts of this, is how Kratos ends up breaking his silent streak at the end of the game by telling Atreus a long-winded story about where Atreus’s name comes from, showing us that he’s growing, and learning to be more open with his boy, and with himself
Ngl, that was such a happy moment for me lol. As a former child, it's always such a heartwarming moment when your dad, who's usually strict, finally softens up enough to share his stories with you.
(Spoiler Warning)
Like at the end of the Valhalla dlc where Kratos talks to his younger self.
Man I waited so long to play these games. So many recommendations and I for whatever reason never tried until about 2 weeks ago. I have like 60 hours in the game already it is such a masterpiece. I never played the original trilogy but watched older cousins play so i did remember some things about his character. Atreus and kratos story arch in this game is absolutely perfect as a person who is close with their dad and also been known to butt heads with him it was truly a heartwarming while also bad ass story. The part on the boat when he tells Atreus about the spartan he was named from and Atreus says I’m glad you picked that name it made heart happy lol. Also “wow you actually told a good story and mimir missed it” had me dying lmao.
I don't think Kratos will ever be a super chatty character, but especially in Ragnarok, he is opening his heart more not only to his son, but the friends and allies he makes. I don't expect he'll be super cuddly but he appears to be a little more generous with physical and verbal gestures of affection. As Faye said, "Open your heart to the world as you have opened it to me, and you will find every reason to keep living in it."
Just the fact that he is willing to call people with their names, only resorting to calling Atrues Boi only one time during the game, calling Mimir brother with no hesitation around others and only defending himself against Freya but never retaliating are clear indications off it.
I know right, thats why I love that game ✌
unfortunate that ragnarok's story is nothing more than a mess of retcons and bland cliches that don't fit together
@@peterh4049bro ragnarok is legit the best god of war game 😭
@@TurtlesInTheSun_ is that why it has the lowest user score out of the entire franchise on metacritic
I never noticed how little kratos speaks, let alone the fact that ATREUS is the first person to speak in the game, not him, because of how powerful Kratos' written character is
He's a strong man and a good father. His mere presence and calculative actions speaks for him when he's quiet.
Kratos even in his younger years is a deceptively quiet person. The only times he speaks is to make threats or warnings. Reticent means to speak conservatively, to not waste words and say only what’s necessary and that’s Kratos in a nutshell. Kratos as an old man is even more quiet than his younger self and mostly just grunts either in acknowledgement or irritation.
Bruh how
4:35 When he is wrapping his wrists over the scars of chains he is reorienting his body to hide it from Atreus by using his body to cover it from his view. A small and genius way of showing his character through a small body gesture.
and at 15:40 i noticed what could be a callback to that scene, the first scene of the first game where he hides his scars from his son versus now at the end of the second game where he doesn't even care if atreus sees them at that moment, atreus likely noticed the scars but clearly "Can we go? We're so close!" shows that he'll probably ask about the scars when they get home, but he really just wants to spread the ashes. or maybe he didnt see the scars and that would deliver the same purpose of showing that atreus never would have thought about them in any negative way but with less weight.
Nope, he did the voice acting as well.
@@cleudesjunior9355what?
Small correction if I may: Christopher Judge was the performance actor, not just a voice actor. He actually embodied Kratos.
One of the best performances in videogame history.
@@kitchensarehot8769way better than the original guy who voiced him. Anyone who says the original voice actor is better can go pet their cat.
@@The_Sleepiest_Socialistthey're both great at the version of the character they portray. Judge is great at portraying the Kratos that is trying to be better, while TC is great at portraying the unhinged Kratos. They can coexist. Judge wouldn't have worked for the young wrathful Kratos who shoved an innocent person into a gear mechanism to keep a door open, just like TC wouldn't have worked for the older and wiser Kratos trying to be a good father and role model despite all he's been through
@@The_Sleepiest_SocialistI think they serve two very different purposes. Christopher judge wouldn’t be very good as the screaming revenge driven kratos but he does a wonderful job as the thoughtful regretful, and quiet kratos. Terrence Carson is great as violent ball of rage kratos but he wouldn’t be as good with the new kratos. It’s all about the type of character, not necessarily the voice actor.
@@danielclark653 Plus, he can portray the rage of Kratos very well with his grunts, roars and screams when he enters Spartan rage
I like how Kratos' bandages act as a metaphor for his suppressed emotions towards his son. When they become loose, he hides them from Atreus as he binds them back up, not allowing Atreus to see. When Atreus burns his hand and Kratos shows kindness to him by putting snow in his palm, Kratos takes a piece of the bandage and ties his hand. Opening up to his son made him lose part of the binds to his past. In the end, after he comes clean, the bandages come off completely.
Well written, and true, its so beautiful!
more like a symbol in this case, and yea its pretty beautiful once you know
If you ask me, the best way to describe the writing of Kratos in the Norse saga would be laconic, which is fitting considering his Greek heritage. Fewer words, greater impact.
Just like that one green squirrel in Ragnarök
You know, it goes deeper than just Greek. Laconic literally means Spartan, as in, from the city of Sparta. They were all stereotyped as being like this in real life, and the idea of Laconicism stems from that ancient stereotype.
@@kaznrg Slight correction, Laconic is a bit less specific than Sparta. It comes from Lacadaemonia, the region of Greece of which Sparta was the major player. But your point stands I'm just being autistic on main
What a great thing to wake up to, a 17 minutes Adam Srayi video about my favorite character in any video game
I didn’t even realize it was 17 minutes until it was over
what I love about how Kratos teaches lessons to Atreus is that the writers never forget them. What I mean is, at the end of the second game when Kratos and Atreus are going to part ways, Kratos asks Atreus if he is afraid. Atreus replies that he is, which Kratos says back “Then that is why you must do it.” The thing about this line is that you may think it’s just generic advice you’ve heard a father tell his son in other media and figure it’s just one of those lessons Atreus was taught off screen because of course he was and think it’s just a fine line of dialogue, however in the first game there is a specific side quest you go on where you get to actually witness Kratos teaching Atreus this lesson with a soul eater, to players who put the time into side quests like me, having that have a callback in the finale of the sequel was just so precious and it’s something I’ve never seen anyone mention.
Nice
I mean in God of War Ragnarok theres this moment where it shows that Kratos have actually learned how to read.. so yea that proves the idea that he wants to learn from his kid even more.. I love this
I bet Mimir had a lot of hands off-screen in helping him learn runes.
@hansalanson3497 well, he did put his head in the game 😂😂
I think the long silence and Kratos' delayed continuation of the conversation when killing fathers is brought up is because he himself killed his father. Hearing Atreus' comments on the matter probably made Kratos mull over the conversation for quite a while. And Kratos himself was angry at his father, so then also hearing Atreus say he's angry at him sometimes probably worried him. Not worried him like "Atreus is going to want to kill me", but yeah.
He was worried he was hurting Atreus, far, far more than any fear for his life.
One important thing missed out. Kratos distanced himself from Atreus because of the trauma of loss of his first child, Calliope. His fear was loving a child again and seeing them die. He kept calling him "boy" to disconnect, and started calling him "Atreus" when the youngling was in danger. As the game progresses, he realises that the son is capable and not fragile (when he gets pulled out of the light) and starts to see his son differently.
14:08 wow! I never realized that Kratos made a head signal to begin the attack. That is brilliant.
The "when have I made you angry" exhange is my favourite between Kratos and Atreus because of how you can tell that while fighting and doing puzzles Kratos has been thinking about it from the moment he heard it. Kratos doesn't want his son to be angry, particularly with him, and it bothers him that to know that he makes him so. I love that. Theres plenty of great father/son moment but to me there isn't one that really illustrates his thoughtfulness and care towards Atreus.
Props to the writers for having the foresight and faith in not only their actors and scene designers, but in the audience for being able to communicate so much subtext without words. So many of Kratos' most emotional moments in this game and its sequel are delivered wordlessly, and not even with a large motion either. We know how stoic and guarded he is with emotion so we know that a slight emotional action conveys a much stronger reaction below.
The best showmanship of "Show, Don't Tell."
Chris Judge deserves all the props for how well he portrayed Kratos. He's like Johnny Depp and PotC, without him it would simply not be as good as it is
Well, we should also give props to TC. Carson, without whom, Chris’ performance wouldn't have this depth.
I think his inner voice that’s telling him not to do certain things also comes from losing he’s daughter. I feel like he’s trying to not get to close to Atreus to prevent what he felt from losing his daughter
it’s genuinely such a nice change to see someone provide actual analysis rather than just describing the plot
After seeing almost no movement on the patreon I am unfortunately straying away from my original intent and enabling ads on some of the videos, as there is almost no channel income without them. I am sorry for that. There will still be no mid video ads. Thank you for understanding.
Dude, enable it! Get paid for your work man, absolutely masterful format! Video flows and is very interesting prospective!
Dude turn them on you good, you earnin' the revenue
do what you gotta do bro. things will be changing overtime. we'll be here though supporting.
Turn the ads on bro don’t worry about it. Take care of yourself
could have an ad every minute and nobody would mind, your video quality is so good and you deserve to earn the money you deserve from them:)
That first dramatic axe swing made my eyes well up…
There’s a line that has stuck with me “your ability to express yourself is limited by the language you use”. Silence is not always the absence of expression, rather a way to express what cannot be said concisely or precisely.
A single stare and a little nod as Kratos hands Atreus the ashes said more than any dialog could. And it’s special since you can’t really translate the feeling of that moment into words but you still fully understand it.
Do not forget that kratos is a man who has already lost a family, all of his measure and restraint when it comes to showing affection towards atreus, comes from past experience, he is afraid, afraid to get close to someone else, afraid to care for someone again. Every person he has cared for in the past , he has lost, whether it be his mother, deimos, his former wife, his daughter, athena and even zeus who he cared for at some level, seeing all that and watching him stopping himself from showing too much affection whether it be atreus, mimir, freya or the dwarves to growing to care for them in ragnarok is just insane writing from santa monica
When you said the delicacy of a pastry chef, you gained a subscriber
4:28 I noticed how his hand, instead of going to Atreus, goes to the knife. A symbol of violence. Kind of shows how his violent past makes it hard for him to be there for his son and how Kratos chose to protect his violent past, rather than tell Atreus anything until the end of the game.
i think another point at 10:55 is more about how atreus was probably really surprised his dad cared enough to understand when he’s mad at kratos and less on the fact that he’s young and the convo didn’t really matter to him because atreus looks like he’s at least 12 or 13 and i certainly remembered conversations that happened if they meant something to me and i’d reckon that meant something to atreus
I have a deep love for Kratos here because he is SO MUCH like my grandad who passed away a few months ago. My grandad raised me and it was so similar to this. Quiet, all action no talk, stoic but overall gentle at heart. Playing this game again after the passing of my grandad showed me a different perspective of my grandad and also kratos himself. This video really solidifies it for me. Thank you for this ♥ it helped bring me some closure in my struggle to process my grief
I never payed too much attention to Kratos's demeanor, not like this. Knowing all this makes the ending scene of Ragnarok so much more special.
Strap up it’s Valhalla time
I think an important detail you left out is that Kratos thinks so long about Atreus saying he can get angry at him after they meet the guy who was killed by his own son because Kratos himself killed his father and is deeply worried throughout the whole game about history repeating itself if he does not teach Atreus right
I love that you went out of your way to say 'loosing' the arrow after kratos says 'fire' - respect.
Another thing of note is that the language kratos is speaking is not his native tongue(Greek)
I have to give massive kudos for your ability to throughly examine the character with nay but a single hint of spoiling anything in the story.
Ive watched my fair share of god of war video essays.
This one is exemplary. Succinct whilst focusing on actual unique points.
This game has taught me so many things as a father that I take with me today and use with my son. The level of appreciation I have for this game is priceless.
Despite the spoiler warning in the beginning, I appreciate that you purposely avoided mentioning spoiler-y things such as when Kratos fought a "powerful enemy" or when he had to go to "a certain place"
One thing I love about Kratos evolution from the OG trilogy to the new God of War, its how Kratos slowly turns into a better father from the beginning. Realizing he isn't raising a spartan soldier,like he was, on top of grieving, but raising his son proper.
It also shown how much Kratos still struggles to be 'humane' with Kratos. Kratos, with good reason, struggles to be social due so many traumas and betrayals
Adam: How to write a quiet character.
Kratos: ZUESSSSSSSS
Everytime atreus is in trouble ,kratos is willing to stop pulling punches a bit to solve things
Amazing video! You've analyzed and described Kratos so flawlessly, that you actually made me appreciate him (and his writing) even more than before, although he's already been one of my all-time favourite fictional characters, for years! Keep it up, man, you're content's great!
Thank you so much Garrus!
Btw I love mass effect and will absolutely be making a mass effect video one day
@@AdamSrayi Looking forward to it! The Mass Effect trilogy is one of my top 5 favourite games (I'm counting all three as a single game, otherwise three out of five of the top 5 would be Mass Effect, lol).
One of my favourite little non-verbal tells about Kratos was never actually in the games, but in the gameplay reveal from 2016: in that build of the game, when Kratos yells at Atreus and snatches the bow from him after spooking the deer, Kratos' Rage meter appears in the bottom left of the screen and flares up before stopping and receding as he calms himself.
It's clear from their interaction that Kratos is angry, but seeing the meter flow and ebb in response to his behaviour really impressed me, as it demonstrates how integral Kratos' rage is to his original personality and how he's making an effort to suppress (and later, channel) it for the sake of his relationship with Atreus.
This is great, the fact that you had so much to say about his character and you haven’t even touched his redemption arc in Ragnarok says a lot.
because nothing from Ragnarok is not consistent with the character in 2018. He explain entire greek life with the deepest dark moments, like killing his family, or his brother death, unasked and so casually, like it was nothing. The man who in 2018 it s hidding his scars from his son entire game, in ragnarok wouldn't just shut up a moment like in this video is explain
@@razvan12101"unasked"
Mimir, Atreus and Freya: Guees who's back
I absolutely love the deer hunting scene because it shows how much Kratos has changed since he left Greece. When Atreus messes up, he starts doing what familiar players would expect: shouting, berating, etc. But you SEE the moment he recognizes what he's doing and corrects his own behavior to be calmer and more instructive. OG Kratos absolutely did not have that level of control over his anger and it shows the player just how much he's grown between series. The games still give him plenty of room to grow in the fatherhood department but he's already leagues better. You can tell how hard he's trying.
The best part about that "when are you angry" comment. Is it almost shows anxiety on Kratos's part. Self-reflection, that after a little passing comment, he fixated and thought it. Much like many of us do when we make comments that we are looking back and thinking we should have said differently, or when someone says something, or someone looks at us. At least that's my read, maybe I'm protecting. But honestly you don't see that kind of stuff in much writing, people always forget all the parts of characters that aren't dialog or physical actions. This and the way they actually talk through their issues in ragnarok are just amazing
I just discovered your channel. Thanks to this video, I now better understand my own father. Thank you for providing such a valuable lesson, without I might never have understood, or more like misunderstood the actions if my father. I never played a GoW game, but in the small sections you showed, I really felt a sense of familiarity. I hope your channel grows. More people need to understand.
This video took 3 weeks to make. If you were the only viewer and comment this video ever got, it will have been worth it
@@AdamSrayi
love this.
@@AdamSrayiLovely interaction
These 2 games are arguably one of the greatest games in all of history. The first had a little bit of an anticlimactic ending, but the second was just absolutely glorious.
The world building, the voice acting, the character development and the story are just absolutely a 10/10.
I still don’t have a clue how people see games done this well and say it’s a movie game. What happened to appreciating peak even if ragnarok wasn’t paced well these games are amazing
dude hearing those vocals when kratos is just standing in the doorway actually gave me shivers, I dont even know WHY but they just (literally) tingle my brain (and spine I guess) the right way
That moment when Kratos continued the conversation about why Atraius was angry connected with me. There have been times when something happened and I stew in my feelings and thoughts about it for hours even days. Then I try to bring it up so I can voice my feelings on the subject or, like Kratos, try and get more information but some people get confused why I'm so hung up on it
Idk why this video made me cry so I’m gonna try to hang out w my dad
I'm trying to write a book, my character is in a world where audio kills you so they are forced to wear headphones, hence. no speaking, so i needed this
That's a cool premise. Good luck with the book
"jump off this cliff with me", Kratos signals wordlessly to his one and only son.
Kratos has been always a favorite character of mine and you just made me love him even more. This game is truly one of a kind
17 Min flew fast, agreed with most points you made and analyzed Kratos his personality pretty good
It felt like I listend to books worth of Kratos in these last two games, when in reality his lines were far and few in between. And i gotta praise not only the writers for that, but especially Christopher Judge here. The excellent mo-cap gave kratos a voice when his mouth couldn't. Kratos is the perfect example of "Show, dont tell."
Kratos as a father connects with me in a very deep way. Though my father was far more loving and affectionate than Kratos, he rarely lost his temper like Kratos in the beginning. He did teach me lessons in much the same way, where when I had questions or a problem needed to be solved, my father would never directly tell me the answer to any inquiry. He would only ask questions and point out details to force me to work through the issue myself and solve it using problem critical thinking. As a child I was frustrated by it but as an adult I thank him every day for that
YES. finally someone mentions how restraint enhances these games
And there are still people saying that Kratos became weak in those two games. I Just will never understand how you cannot see incredible writing like this. Truly a masterpiece in writing.
There’s a mute character in my book that I probably dont do this enough with.
11:00 that was honestly really clever, props to the writers
Actions speak louder than words especially when it cones to video game MCs
this breakdown was so beautiful i want to hug my dad 🤧
I myself would also like to point out, during many of the bigger battles, where both tend to launched to a new part of the land, Kratos' first action is to make sure his son is safe, but when he cannot find him, or does not know where he is, he calls out for him.
It is a small and easily overlooked thing, but it is important, to now that almost every other thought for Kratos is, 'is my son safe right now?'
One thing I love about Kratos isn’t he isn’t necessarily holding back too much, he just doesn’t need to say a lot to convey his point
Kratos isn't really a quiet person in God of War Ragnarok tho. Maybe because he's more open to Atreus and had Mimir as a "brother", not just a friend or head anymore
He isn’t very quite in any of the old games either he is just more stoic now that he is an older god
He's revealed much of his past trauma to both Atreus and Mimir, thus he feels as if it's less of a burden to keep hiding from other people he trusts like Freya.
The growth of Kratos' character in God of War, showing his more caring side in Ragnarök to his comrades and especially his son, makes the embrace of father and son during their reunion in Ragnarök, after all those differences and quarrels even more rewarding.
I rarely get really emotional with a story but this scene had in me tears. Beautyfully written characters in both games. Masterfully done.
This been kratos from the start of the og games my dudes. Just at the end of that he went full goblin mode on everybody by 3.
perks of having a big a well made background
Kratos and his son are so well written and I love it so much
I love this take on Kratos, not mentioning a single thing about the previous games.
The best moment was when he drinks the wine with artrues and they say “aaaahhhhh”😂
This guys voice is so easy to follow, great vid bro
I love how spoiler free and full of spoilers this is, love this game so much and this video is a really great analysis
Being a dad and playing this game I think really helps to understand what Kratos is thinking. Also the lack of dialogue allows me to feel more of the moments.
Just watched your cyberpunk video and that brought me here. great content man, u got a sub and cant wait to see you blow up with the other video essay channels bc your quality is already there
Thank you for the sub and the kind words! Glad you like the videos
Another aspect not really touched upon is how Kratos is silent but dramatic doing everything as if it has a heavy weight while Atreaus still being a kid will take things hyper literally and often deflate drummed up dramatic tension. He does this with Kratos and Fraya a lot.
Very well made video. It Makes me want to play God of War again.
stumbled on this video randomly and at the end i wondered where all the views were. great analysis & underrated channel.
Fantastic Video, great writing, editing, and style. You deserve more subs.
I'm playing Spider-man 2 at the moment and all the reviews are calling it "the pinaccle of the PS5" but i just can't agree... 2018's God Of War still exceeds it in every single way, and it was a PS4 creation! The story, the writing, the performance, the gameplay, the visuals, the music, the sound, the EVERYTHING is just unrivalled - a true masterpiece.
I also love the other small gestures of care that Kratos displays toward Atreus: always making sure he goes through gaps first, helping him climb, etc.
masterful and subversive observations!! saving this in the archive
i just love it whe atreus says something to kratos and kratos just replies with a very deep "hmmm" almost like a growl. just shows that in writing you dont always need to answer with words.
What an absolute masterpiece of an essay so incredibly well done.
Beautiful analysis! Your attention to detail, editing, and voice over was so calming and fulfilling. Thank you for this!
Man, I never get tired of listening retrospective about Gow franchise. I'm so in love with Kratos ❤! He has a big soul, even if Ares stole it long ago.
Fine. I'll play God of War 2018 again.
Kratos is my favorite video game character
Great video! Subbing to your channel. One of the internal battles going on with Kratos you didn't mention is his spartan upbringing. His culture, his childhood is being thrown to the wolves as a kid with no help, no compassion. Just will you survive. Part of why it's so hard for him to show emotion or conform Atreus
Christopher Judge acting skills are legendary.
I am so happy I stumbled upon this video! I have so much love for Kratos and Atreus- both individually and their relationship together. I’ve felt like I haven’t had a way to explain or for fully understand why that is, but this video gave me SO much eloquent insight into it. I think it’s so incredibly beautiful how they wrote these two characters and both of their character arch’s have been so beautifully written and developed throughout the 2018 game and even further in Ragnarock. The way they interact with themselves, the world around them and with each other is SO layered and your video did an amazing job at peeling away those layers and I really enjoyed watching it and breaking down their character arch’s with someone else who sees and appreciates it! Thank you!
Very well done video, came from a similar channel with 100k subscribers and didn't even notice a quality drop. You're gonna go far on this platform
The music just gives me goosebumps
0:48 I never noticed the look on Kratos' face. Such a sorrowful, longing look. I wonder what other stuff like that I missed on my first and NG+ playthrough
The sound tracks throughout the game too was done so good during different type of situations throughout the game
this is such a great video! i love this game dearly and it's always great to find more people sharing incredible insightful videos about this
"Actions speak louder than words."
And in Ragnarok, Kratos knows how to read. Good job big guy