David Jaffe, the creator of the God of War series, has expressed strong dissatisfaction with the latest game, Sons of Sparta. This new 2D side-scroller was announced during last week’s PlayStation State of Play and is developed by Mega Cat Studios in collaboration with Santa Monica Studio. The narrative focuses on Kratos and his brother Deimos during their youth at a Spartan training facility known for its harshness.
Upon its release for PS5, Jaffe critiqued the game in a nine-minute YouTube video, stating, "I don’t like it, I don’t recommend it." He went further, calling it "crap," "dumb," and "stupid." Although he acknowledged that the gameplay was “fine,” he questioned the need for the game’s existence.
Jaffe lamented the dialogues within the game, suggesting they disrupt the pace and criticized the quality of voice acting. He expressed confusion over creative decisions, particularly about the characterisation of Kratos, arguing that the team seemed to disregard the established values of the franchise. He stated that fans likely expected a game reminiscent of the earlier titles instead of what he saw as a generic interpretation of the character.
Moreover, he compared Sons of Sparta unfavourably with other recent games, arguing that it lacked the production quality fans expect. Jaffe posited that many players would not be interested if the game were detached from the God of War name.
In a promising development, Sony announced plans to remake the original God of War trilogy, though this project is still in its early development stages. Fans await further updates on this endeavour.
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Vocabulary List:
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AccentSpeed
Dissatisfaction/ˌdɪs.əˈsæt.ɪs.fæk.ʃən/noun
The feeling of being unhappy or displeased.
Critiqued/krɪˈtiːk/verb
Expressed a critical opinion or analysis.
Gameplay/ˈgeɪm.pleɪ/noun
The way in which a video game is played including the mechanics and rules.
Characterisation/ˌkær.ək.tər.ɪˈzeɪ.ʃən/noun
The representation of a character in a work of art or literature.
Production/prəˈdʌk.ʃən/noun
The act of creating or manufacturing something especially in large quantities.