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God Of War Difficulty Modes And Customization Outlined
God of War's difficulty modes have remained steady over the franchise's history with the exception of players being able to lower the difficulty in earlier entries. With the latest installment on PlayStation 4, Santa Monica Studio's Jeet Shroff took to the official God of War website to give players a detailed look into the difficulty options this time around.
"Give Me A Story" is for players who just want to experience the story of Kratos and Atreus with a lot of leeway with enemies and challenges. "Give Me A Balanced Experience" is exactly what it purports to be: a well-rounded difficulty that's not too hard or easy. "Give Me A Challenge" seems equivalent to playing on the usual Hard mode, which is simply described as being for those familiar with action games and God of War in general. Lastly, "Give Me God of War" sounds compelling in that it doesn't only make Kratos weaker and enemies stronger, but also enhances the intelligence of AI and their placement with encounters to keep players on their toes.
Considering how photogenic and cinematographically beautiful God of War seems to be, it only seems appropriate that it would receive a photo mode at some point since the launch release will not include one. However, at least there's an "immersion mode" for the gameplay, which is an easy option that strips down the HUD to only display crucial elements whenever necessary. Players can also customize which HUD elements they wish to see, so if you want to play God of War without a single stat or indicator popping up, you can do so.
In addition, another recent official update delved into how customization plays into the game. Lead gameplay designer Jason McDonald and creative director Cory Barlog discussed how Kratos' armor and clothing can be crafted as players see fit, lending a more personable angle to how abilities and stats can be altered extensively as well. While prior entries touted customization, it truly seems as though different playstyles - rather than just unlocking different abilities in alternate orders - will emerge with players placing varying emphases on damage taken or given, prioritizing certain cooldowns, and so forth.
God of War releases on April 20. You can tune into this week's Game Informer Show to hear Joe Juba's thoughts on the game as he discusses his upcoming review.
[Source: God of War website]
Our Take
I was hoping there would be an immersive option with the HUD! I couldn't tell you how many times I wish there was an option like that while I played through Final Fantasy XV with all of its beautiful locales. As for the difficulty, since I know you can't change it with the hardest option, I'll be sticking with the second hardest one. I love a great challenge, but I also like enjoying myself, so I wouldn't want to get stuck with every other encounter for an hour every time.
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