God of War (2018)
Scored 9/10. Kratos the father, the Leviathan Axe, and one unbroken camera shot from start to finish.
The old Kratos screamed at gods. The 2018 Kratos whispers at his son and the whisper hits harder. Santa Monica Studio rebuilt its loudest series into a father and son journey through Norse myth, shot as one continuous take with no cuts, and it works on every level.
THE AXE CHANGES EVERYTHING
Throwing the Leviathan Axe and calling it back to your hand is one of the great game feels, full stop. Atreus is a partner, not an escort mission. The realms open up at a pace that respects your curiosity, and the Valkyrie fights waiting at the edges will test everything the main road taught you.
WHY A CLEAN 9
A few RPG gear menus clutter a game that is otherwise all flow, and the enemy variety runs thinner than the setting deserves. 9 flat: a reboot that honored the past by refusing to repeat it.
THE INDUSTRY NUMBER
Two scoreboards live on this page and they never mix. The score at the top is Moe's, argued above and signed. The industry's number, the collective critic aggregate, sits here for reference: Metacritic 94. Same game, two verdicts. Read both, then play it yourself.
