The 10 Most STRESSFUL Moments in God of War Games
The Rhythm Mini-Game
God of War III (2010)
God of War III is rife with stressful moments for both Kratos and the player. But if theres one moment that stands out, its The Flame of Olympus puzzles in the Olympian Citadel. Specifically, its the giant harp puzzle! And if you ever want to fight Hercules, youre doing that music puzzle. Its not the most difficult thing in the world and maybe it was designed to break up the pacing a bit, but it seems to be a little too good at that and it just takes you out of the game! Why is Kratos struggling with a puzzle like this?
Berserker Trio
God of War Ragnarök (2022)
Everyone knows the Berserker mini-bosses are difficult, and there seems to be a trend with recent games including extremely hard duo bosses. But in Ragnarök its the Berserker trio, with Svipdagr The Cold and the Sisters of Illska. Its already a top contender for difficulty, but in terms of stress this boss battle easily takes the cake! Svipdagr will rush you down with two axes while each sister respectively zones you with projectiles. Their combined relentless offense means that youll be spending most of your time dodging with barely any opportunities to strike back.
The Trial of Archimedes
God of War: Ascension (2013)
God of War: Ascension is a prequel but they really didnt have to take the hellish level design from the early games with it. Nevertheless, here we are with the Trial of Archimedes. As mentioned before, this level design would make Hades cry. Its pretty much just puzzles at first glance which doesnt seem so intimidating, but the real challenge comes from the gruelling combat youll have to endure in-between. This thing is so tough that it was patched to make it easier, and even then its still a herculean task to overcome.
Sigrun
God of War (2018)
Sigrun is a name that inspires fear and awe in many. Gamers remember the trial and error they had to endure against this absolute monster of a foe, and if theres one boss fight in the same vein as the trio of berserkers, itd be Sigrun. She has since become an infamous God of War boss and has become ICONIC for her difficulty. Many controllers have died in her name, and many more are sure to fall in future attempts against her. Each Valkyrie leading up to her is challenging in their own right, and she puts together every single element of that in her moveset. Sigrun is not to be made fun of!
Death of Deimos
God of War: Ghost of Sparta (2010)
For a lot of people, the God of War PSP games seem insignificant, but that couldnt be further from the truth and they play a huge role in Kratos character development. We learn of a prophecy that perfectly describes Kratos and his brother Deimos, which leads to Deimos getting abducted by Ares and Athena, when it shouldve been Kratos. We end up having to fight Deimos, and theres nothing more painful than having to take out someone you both feel indebted to and also failed to save. Kratos tries to redeem himself by saving Deimos, but it just wasnt meant to be. Deimos dies anyway while fighting Thanatos, the God of Death, together with Kratos, and this was the last straw to push Kratos over the edge and finally decide that all the gods must die.
Saving Kratos Family
God of War (2005)
Theres nothing more morbid in God of War than Kratos own backstory. These stories haunt him, and throughout the first game they manifest as nightmares and visions that Kratos has as you progress the story. Until Ares uses it against Kratos, as a dirty trick to try and win their fight. But this isnt actually here for how stressful it is for Kratos, but rather how stressful it is for us, the player, to fight the Kratos clones. Although its definitely stressful for Kratos too. But these things get BRUTAL on the harder difficulties! The music is dramatic, the scene changes as you fight, and the Kratos clones are really hard to deal with. Its a perfectly stressful concoction.
Leaving Calliope
God of War: Chains of Olympus (2008)
In God of War: Chains of Olympus, Kratos spends a majority of the game hearing Calliopes melody on his adventure. It lured him to Elysium and Persephone, who helped him enter Elysium to see Calliope again. Unfortunately, the consequences for doing so are too dire and Kratos would forsake everything if he stayed there. Having been betrayed and tricked by Persephone, Kratos has to leave Elysium and his daughter behind, and its almost poetic how the hardest quick time event in the series would be Kratos pushing his daughter away rather than his typical boss fights against the gods. Its an immensely stressful lose-lose situation.
Atreus Sickness
God of War (2018)
As weve established by now, if theres one thing that can get Kratos to act its his family. Faced with the fear of losing his child again, Kratos must rush back after Atreus mysterious sickness takes hold in a fight with Modi. The game has built up the dependency and relationship between the two up to this point, just to make it actually sting now that you might lose him. Kratos is so scared that hes in the literal sense, willing to travel to hell and back for a cure. So he digs back up his past and takes up the Blades of Chaos once more, all while being haunted by Athena, taunting him. Its simultaneously one of the most stressful and badass moments of God of War 2018.
Fighting the Real Tyr
God of War Ragnarök: Valhalla (2023)
With all the things Kratos has been through in God of War, its no wonder hes got some knots and problems to work out. Narratively, that pretty much sums up what hes going to do in the Valhalla DLC too. But mechanically and systems-wise, the God of War Ragnarök: Valhalla expansion is a roguelike. And at the end of each run, hell face off with Tyr, who can be seen as his therapist in this regard. However, Kratos therapist is immensely powerful, and taking all that effort to get there just to get absolutely destroyed by Tyr is very stressful. Thats the thing with Tyr, hes a total powerhouse, and his boss fight gets harder and harder each run. Theres barely anything more stressful than reaching Tyr just for it all to be in vain and having to start over!
Escape From Hades
God of War (2005)
With everything weve covered so far youd think it couldnt get any worse. But anyone whos played the first God of War could tell you theres one moment we havent covered yet! Of course, theres no stressful God of War moment quite like The Path of Hades. Kratos is thrust into the underworld and has to escape whats essentially Greek hell, but what no one expected was for the real hell to be the horrible platforming gameplay going through it. Just look at this. And once you get to the vertical pillar with the spinning blades, if you get hit once youve gotta climb it all over again. Theres no doubt that this is THE most stressful moment in all of God of War!
Which moment was the most stressful for you? Let us know in the comments below!
