Acclaimed actor Ryan Hurst has been cast by Sony Pictures Television and Amazon MGM Studios as Kratos in the upcoming Prime Video God of War TV series. The BAFTA award-winning Hurst previously delivered a legendary voice-acting performance as Thor in God of War: Ragnarok and played the iconic character Opie Winston in the FX drama series Sons of Anarchy.
Kratos Battling Thor in the opening of God of War: Ragnarok
The new series has already secured a two-season order, with pre-production underway in Vancouver. Emmy Award-winning director Frederick E.O. Toye has signed on to direct the first two episodes. Toye brings experience from several critically acclaimed series, including Shōgun, The Boys and Fallout. His previous directing credits also include episodes of Watchmen, Snowpiercer and The Walking Dead.
Ronald D. Moore serves as showrunner, executive producer, and writer, best known for his work on Star Trek. Moore brings decades of experience to the production. He previously wrote for Star Trek: The Next Generation and later earned Hugo Award nominations for his work on the films Star Trek: Generations and Star Trek: First Contact.
A long list of executive producers that have also joined up includes names like Cory Barlog, the current creative director of video game development at Santa Monica Studio, and Maril Davis, a 70-episode alumna of the TV show Outlander. Cory Barlog, especially is widely credited as the one who brought the God of War franchise back into the spotlight with his passionate work on God of War (2018).
Ryan Hurst Portraying Opie Winston in Sons of Anarchy
God of War follows the journey of Kratos and his son, Atreus, as they travel through the realms of the World Tree to spread the ashes of their wife and mother, Faye. Ryan Hurst will most definitely do the character of Kratos justice based on his role as Thor, although living up to Christopher Judge’s performance in the games is a high bar to jump over. Fans of the game have expressed surprise at how well Thor is playing Kratos, but some remain skeptical about whether the show should even be made.
As of today, the TV series does not yet have a release date; however, with the show entering pre-production, the wait is almost over.
God Of War – a product of its time (Sony Interactive Entertainment)
Despite constant frustration and badly dated gameplay, a reader can’t bring himself to completely hate the PlayStation 2 version of God Of War.
God Of War came out in 2005. I love the film Jason and the Argonauts and since gaming’s introduction to Kratos focused on similar themes and reviewed well, 20 years ago, the landmark title developed by Santa Monica Studio was a compulsory purchase for me.
Kicking off with a spot of giant Hydra trouble in the Aegean sea, the high level of polish and artistry in this game is immediately apparent. Ancient Greek exteriors and interiors are consistently atmospheric and handsomely realised. God Of War’s core mechanic is hacking and slashing, so it’s a relief that the combat here is beyond satisfying.
This is one of those games in which you look forward to a scrap, to unleash your many moves. As well as the iconic Blades of Chaos, and the lesser known Blade of Artemis, Kratos collects various magic attacks on his journey through the game’s levels. For me the highlight in this enchanted arsenal is the Army of Hades, obtained fairly late in the day, after defeating one of the game’s bosses. Activate the Army of Hades and a fiery demonic swarm materialises around Kratos and homes in, like a salvo of guided projectiles, on any local enemies.
Everything’s upgradable by gathering red orbs, which fly out of opened chests, vanquished enemies, and smashed objects. While you run around solving simple puzzles and slaying monsters you collect green orbs to replenish your health meter and blue orbs to fill up your magic meter. These meters can be extended by finding Gorgon’s eyes and phoenix feathers.
So there’s plenty to do while Kratos embarks on an epic quest which takes him and you to Athens, to the Temple of the Oracle, through the desert of Lost Souls, and on to Pandora’s Temple. The end goal here is to quell the bad dreams that haunt Kratos. In some sort of thematic duality, Pandora’s Temple is where the game starts to turn into a waking nightmare.
I’m fairly certain that 20 years ago I did finish this game. Tackling God Of War again now, I wonder how I managed. Reading other players’ comments on the internet the following hurdles are repeatedly mentioned:
That notorious jump over a certain second lava pit. The stingy amount of time allocated in the spike room. The desperate dash past spinning saw blades to access the Architect’s Tomb, before his door shuts in your face. And what about that bit in The Challenge of Hades, when you try not to fall to your death on narrow suspended planks, while at the same time double jumping over rotating blades that you can only see when they’re seconds away from hitting you?
Climbing those rotating spike towers in the Path of Hades often gets remarked upon as a place where one’s patience is tested to breaking point, but on this playthrough I found that fighting the Pandora Guardian was worse.
How could I complete those quick time events if the developers gave me insufficient time to do so? By doing a bit of research online it turned out that controlling the thumb stick with just my thumb was probably where I was going wrong. If I pinched the left stick around its edge with my thumb and finger I could match the lightning fast QTE prompts.
The final battle with Ares also uses QTE prompts, that appear and then cruelly disappear in a blink. I could only react fast enough to these prompts by holding down every face button on the DualShock 2. A messy and botched solution. Was it deliberate?
I have more issues with God Of War other than it started to make me hate gaming. Medusa was entirely wasted. Here the snake-haired Gorgon is sold short as a mid-level boss and a way of obtaining an, albeit interesting, magic attack.
Perhaps the best scene in the rather hit and miss 1981 movie Clash of the Titans is Perseus’s fight with Medusa. The sequence almost invites a direct video game conversation. Fight a terrifying foe by relying on your wits and the reflections in your shield. Try not to be put off by those lifelike statues that stand, crouch, and cower nearby.
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And the advent of Pandora’s Temple is disappointing. Instead of leaping onto the summoned titan, that carries the temple on its back Shadow of the Colossus style, a potentially epic part of your quest is handled by a cut scene.
But it seems picky to complain. There’s much to enjoy here. An ancient city under siege. A fearsome bestial roll call, straight out of Greek mythology. You’ll swim through underwater domains that are eerie and peaceful. A dramatic sense of scale is used to great effect in one sequence.
Due to a representation of perspective, Kratos shrinks down to the size of an ant and yet you’re still able to control him. And the game’s epic score suits the onscreen mayhem perfectly. Although the sound that you might learn to love is the angelic call of the save points.
I cannot wholeheartedly recommend God Of War 2005. Parts of it are the gaming equivalent of deliberately slamming a door on your hand. However, if you have a penchant for classic monsters, swordplay and high adventure then you should definitely check out a certain Spartan’s debut because it is, for the most part, a brilliantly realised classic.
The PlayStation 2 era was a long time ago now (Sony Interactive Entertainment)
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Amazon’s TV adaption of Sony’s God of War games has landed an Emmy award-winning director for the first two episodes. Frederick E.O. Toye has signed up and should be familiar with historical violence having directed Shogun for Disney, and also The Boys for Amazon.
He joins Ronald D. Moore, creator of the highly acclaimed Battlestar Galactica remake, who will be the showrunner for the two seasons that have been ordered. The series was announced in 2022 with Rafe Judkins as the showrunner, but he left the project in 2024 due to creative differences.
“’God of War’ is a compelling, character-driven franchise that we believe will captivate our global customers as much with its expansive and immersive worlds as its rich storytelling,” Vernon Sanders, head of global television at Amazon Studios, said. “We are honored to share in the adventure of exploring the God of War mythology in such a momentous way with Sony Pictures Television, PlayStation Productions, and Santa Monica Studio.”
Sony has a Horizon Zero Dawn movie in the works and a sequel to the Uncharted movie was announced years ago, but that seems to be dead in the water, perhaps due to Tom Holland’s busy schedule. Sony Pictures are also producing the Metal Gear Solid movie.
The entire gaming industry is merely a farce: a place where people gather not to play games but to hope for new ones. It's the ultimate assembly of tinfoil hatters, who predict, decrypt, and huff and puff the hopium. And this time, it's the HL and GoW fans doing it together.
After Geoff Keighley, the host of The Game Awards, shared two cryptic images portraying some sort of demonic portal and a desert in the middle of nowhere, fans were quick to conjure up hype. For what? No one seems to know, but some think it's a new God of War game that is to be announced at the upcoming TGA.
There's a lot to back this up: the portal has various fantasy creatures that are reminiscent of the last two games, and a chest plate on it is strikingly similar to one Kratos wears in God of War: Ragnarok. The portal is in more ways than one borne out of the fantasy genre, which is hard to connect with Half-Life. But that hasn't stopped its eager fans.
Jumping on the second image shared by Geoff, the one showing just a desert in California (that curiously contains the name of the road running through it, Yucca Mesa Road) Half-Life fans are convinced this is red hot desert proof that HLX is going to be announced at The Game Awards. I mean, Half-Life starts in a desert and a facility called Black Mesa, so this is as clear cut as it gets? Right? Maybe. Probably not, though.
Geoff Keighley is known for sharing images that are oddly similar to various games, usually done to generate hype and excitement for annual events like the Summer Games Fest or The Game Awards. Sometimes these are actual teases of what is to come, but usually end up being something completely different to what fans imagined.
HL fans are extra eager to believe anything and grasp at any straws they can reach for, given how much hype was generated for Half-Life 3 in previous weeks. This hypothetical final game in the 27-year-old series hasn't been talked about more ever since HL2 Episode 2 came out, so I can understand the fans who are desperate to get closure on one of the biggest cliffhangers in the industry's history.
The Game Awards is going to give us a ton of good announcements, that much is sure, as it does every year. Whether or not that'll end up being a new God of War or Half-Life (or even both) is anyone's guess. But I think it's safe to say that no, Geoff did not just reveal these two games to us.
Amazon’s TV adaption of Sony’s God of War games has landed an Emmy award-winning director for the first two episodes. Frederick E.O. Toye has signed up and should be familiar with historical violence having directed Shogun for Disney, and also The Boys for Amazon.
He joins Ronald D. Moore, creator of the highly acclaimed Battlestar Galactica remake, who will be the showrunner for the two seasons that have been ordered. The series was announced in 2022 with Rafe Judkins as the showrunner, but he left the project in 2024 due to creative differences.
“’God of War’ is a compelling, character-driven franchise that we believe will captivate our global customers as much with its expansive and immersive worlds as its rich storytelling,” Vernon Sanders, head of global television at Amazon Studios, said. “We are honored to share in the adventure of exploring the God of War mythology in such a momentous way with Sony Pictures Television, PlayStation Productions, and Santa Monica Studio.”
Sony has a Horizon Zero Dawn movie in the works and a sequel to the Uncharted movie was announced years ago, but that seems to be dead in the water, perhaps due to Tom Holland’s busy schedule. Sony Pictures are also producing the Metal Gear Solid movie.
With more than 117 million units sold, it’s clear that Sony’s PS4 was a very successful console. It has naturally amassed a vast wealth of both first-party and third-party releases, and this list runs down 20 of the best games it has to offer in no particular order.
God of War
There aren’t many games that are able to deliver a stunning experience in such a smooth manner as Sony Santa Monica was able to do with the 2018 reboot. This story sets the protagonist in a new setting; new boss fights and outstanding level design. It’s both fresh and recognizable at the same time, and the new combat and the camera on offer also embodies the spirit of modern third person game while making it more intentional. The 2018 reboot is definitely one of the best games on the PS4, and is a great starting point for newcomers.
