God of War Laufey’s Combat Is Nostalgic
PlayStation’s June State of Play revealed 20 uninterrupted minutes of what is supposedly the beginning of God of War Laufey, blending gameplay and cinematics in the franchise’s signature new no-cuts storytelling direction. Brandishing a mysterious sword (fashioned with a talking ribbon named Rue) from a talking cube named Phranque, Faye’s gameplay is distinguished apart from Kratos and Atreus’ in large part due to her being able to double-jump and juggle enemies midair with a string of attacks.
Air juggle combat is certainly new to this Norse mythology God of War era, considering how limited Kratos’ mobility and traversal is, and yet this combat feature is the bread and butter of God of War’s original Greek games. For it to now be inherited by God of War Laufey and molded into the franchise’s new third-person, parry-heavy combat after God of War and God of War Ragnarök abandoned it is a treat for fans old and new.
Another staple of the God of War franchise is that Kratos typically has a rich catalog of weapons or artifacts he can employ in combat, such as Medusa’s head, the Nemean Cestus, or the Claws of Hades. It’ll be neat to learn about the lore teased for Faye’s new sword, which she apparently acquires at the beginning of the game, and to see whether she wields it exclusively throughout God of War Laufey.
God of War Laufey’s Rue and Phranque are established as accessories that will travel with Faye on her journey (as determined by their prominence in the game’s key art), to be fair. Plus, they are technically artifacts/weapons employed alongside her as much as they are NPC companions.
God of War’s Greek Trilogy Remake Is Around The Corner
Air juggle combat looks excellent in God of War Laufey gameplay, and there is a likely reason as to why Santa Monica might have chosen to imbue Faye with this fluid maneuverability while Kratos has been more or less glued to the floor in God of War and God of War Ragnarök. Santa Monica is remaking the classic Greek God of War trilogy, and it’d make a whole lot of sense now if its combat marries God of War and God of War Ragnarök’s Blades of Chaos combat with God of War Laufey’s air juggle combat.
Long before God of War adopted the combat that God of War and God of War Ragnarök possess, the Greek era’s classic trilogy was centered around crowd control and hack-’n-slash combat.
Furthermore, it wouldn’t be surprising at all if an Atreus-led God of War game inherited air juggle combat, as well. Either way, while we may not yet be getting the long-rumored God of War game where Kratos navigates the sand-swept Egyptian mythology, God of War Laufey is maybe Santa Monica satisfying its longstanding promise of letting players explore new mythologies by hurling every possible one at them, and doing that in what is essentially a purgatory for the gods is decidedly novel.
God of War Laufey is currently in development for PS5.
Developer(s)
Santa Monica Studio
Publisher(s)
Sony Interactive Entertainment
Prequel(s)
God of War, God of War Ragnarok
Number of Players
Single-player
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