While 2018's God of War drastically revamped the franchise's combat system, its sequel, God of War Ragnarok, builds on the system by outfitting Kratos with more gear and abilities than what was previously thought possible. The new moves and combos blend seamlessly with Kratos' original moveset and showcase just how much he has grown between the two games. He may still be a old Greek god, but even he can learn new tricks.
Players have more options than ever as to where they can allocate their experience points. In addition to unlocking new combat moves, they can amplify moves they have mastered (this is done by performing them a certain number of times in combat), upgrade Runic abilities, and modify both combat and Runic abilities to their liking. God of War Ragnarok lets players feel like they are playing a combat-experienced Spartan, but it stumbles slightly when it comes to Kratos' charged elemental attacks.
God of War RAgnarok: Charging Into Battle
To make things clear, charged elemental attacks are the moves Kratos has access to after holding down the triangle button in most cases. The players' input after holding the button determines the type of attack Kratos does. Among other moves, Kratos has access to a charged light attack, a charged heavy attack, a charged light ranged attack, and a charged heavy ranged attack. Each of Kratos' weapons has its own special charged attack moveset that deals more damage, stun, and elemental build-up than its regular moves. These effects can be upgraded further by players to suit their personal combat preferences.
While charged elemental attacks are powerful, the act of charging them drastically reduces Kratos' movement. Players have to stand almost completely still as they wait for their weapons to charge up before reaping the benefits. This not only leaves them extremely vulnerable to enemy attacks in God of War Ragnarok's combat arenas but also creates gaps in the combat flow that could otherwise be filled by any of Kratos' other moves. Players might not like charged elemental attacks simply because of how easily they can break the catharsis of cutting through swaths of enemies.
God of War Ragnarok Offers Remedies That Come Too Late
It isn't all bad, however. The sheer power players get from charged attacks can offset the cost of the vulnerable state they put themselves in. Not only that but certain skills can be unlocked later on in the game that help circumvent this cost. To give an example, Kratos' Leviathan Axe can be upgraded so that he can charge the axe while moving, after recalling the axe, or pressing the charge button between each of his attacks. These abilities have to be unlocked by upgrading Kratos' weapons which cannot be done until later in the game.
While these abilities are helpful, the fact that they require certain endgame materials means they come much too late for many players' liking. By the time they unlock these abilities, players would have gotten used to holding down the charge button to power up their weapons. Having to shift their playstyle to accommodate these new moves so late into the game can initially feel more cumbersome than it is rewarding. No one likes to adopt a certain combat style for the majority of Kratos and Atreus's journey only for it to be replaced by something much easier later on.
In this regard, God of War Ragnarok's charged elemental attacks seem intent on replacing moves in players' arsenals rather than making their moveset evolve naturally. It might have been better to introduce these abilities earlier on so that players can get accustomed to them or to simply make these abilities the default methods of charging Kratos' weapons. As it stands, however, players have to spend at least a good ten hours before they can start fleshing out the Greek god of war's moveset in this regard.
