Kratos (God of War)

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Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 5/17/2008 3:04 PM · Permalink · Report

It is obvious that Kratos is an anti-hero. He is blood-thirsty and he commits many cruel deeds. And yet there is something in him that evokes sympathy. I can't get that character out of my head. Anyone else had such a sensation with this guy?

St. Martyne (3648) on 5/18/2008 1:43 PM · Permalink · Report

[Q --start JazzOleg wrote--]It is obvious that Kratos is an anti-hero. He is blood-thirsty and he commits many cruel deeds. And yet there is something in him that evokes sympathy. I can't get that character out of my head. Anyone else had such a sensation with this guy? [/Q --end JazzOleg wrote--]

SPOILERS

I agree. I like that twist in which it revealed that he's the one who killed his own family, it adds gravity to the dude's torment. However, I didn't like how easily manipulated he is. The Gods play with him, and he believes them every time, and the more they betray him, the more frustrated he becomes.

In the sequel he is manipulated by Titans pursuing they're own agenda. I won't be surprised if in the third game he will follow the will of space aliens. And not once a thought occurs to him, that he has to look out for himself. Sad fellow.

Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 5/18/2008 6:18 PM · Permalink · Report

SPOILER

Man, remember this terrifying part where he sacrificed a guy to Poseidon? He said: "Gods demand sacrifice from all of us". At that moment, I thought he was just being cynically cruel. But after I discovered what really happened to him, I understood the meaning of this phrase... I can't help feeling compassion to Kratos. It's as if his sins are forgiven because he himself carries this indescribable torment.

Long live Dostoevsky :)

Indra was here (20755) on 5/19/2008 2:17 AM · Permalink · Report

If such people like Kratos existed (many do), they lost their sense of compassion and humanity a long time ago. Any form of story suddenly identifying Kratos with a conscience or soul would be pushing it.

Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 5/19/2008 8:38 AM · Permalink · Report

Any form of story suddenly identifying Kratos with a conscience or soul would be pushing it.

If he didn't have a soul, why would he feel so tormented when he killed his family? Ares, for example, didn't even think that it would bother him. He said: "Yo dude, now you're like totally hip. Ain't got no one to care for, time to kick some real ass". But Kratos couldn't do that. Which means that, unlike Ares, there was still some humanity/conscience/soul/whatever left in him.

Indra was here (20755) on 5/19/2008 9:57 AM · edited · Permalink · Report

[Q --start JazzOleg wrote--]Any form of story suddenly identifying Kratos with a conscience or soul would be pushing it.

Aye, that's the problem, mate. The dude personally massacred his own family. There is a kind of unexplainable trauma for anyone who has killed a living being larger than a rat. Something in you dies. Any form of humanity left, should (hypothetically) kill whatever form of humanity was left in him. If he still had humanity left, after that episode, he would have been a very "humane" person to begin with. Unlikely.

We're talking about a blood-thirsty mercenary turned God of War. When you're a "god", one would imagine the whole "humanity" issue somewhat changes...different emotions, different priorities...hell, it's like looking at ants. Don't feel squat if you step on an ant, when you're a god...and a God of War, so to speak. Ares had human skins as wallpaper for crying out load (Greek mythology example) - which technically should make him 1000x more crazier than Hitler and Genghis combined.

I just figure that after all the shit Kratos went through, additionally being promoted to a God, he would not still "think" and "feel" like the average human. He's not. Therefore, he shouldn't. But that's just me...am I making any sense?

Unicorn Lynx (181775) on 5/19/2008 1:24 PM · Permalink · Report

But that's just me...am I making any sense?

Yes, you are. But I presume you're talking about Kratos the way he became in God of War II. In the first game, he is not yet a god, and it shows. The difference between him and Ares is that Ares doesn't care for anything. After all, it was his plan to turn Kratos into a "higher being" by cutting off the only real feeling this man had left. But since Kratos still couldn't stop caring - in fact, he suffered, we can see that he is still a human being. That is why his story is so touching. Remember the fight in which he had to hug his family to transfer his health to them? When such a ruthless man like Kratos does such a thing, it moves us much more than if it was done by a good person.