Elden Ring VS God of War: Which Deserves Game of The Year?

Although God of War: Ragnarok and Elden Ring have received the finest reviews of 2022, a comparison exposes both their differences and unexpected parallels.

A huge critical hit, God of War Ragnarok has received accolades for its enjoyable action, compelling storyline, and gorgeous aesthetics. The feedback has been so encouraging that it is presently only surpassed by this year's other heavy hitter, Elden Ring, for the title of the highest-rated original game of 2022. Some people may be curious about how the two games compare to one another in terms of gameplay, story, and length given that they both take place in a fantasy world influenced by ancient myth.

The epic sequel to 2018's Norse mythology-focused God of War is titled God of War Ragnarok. It chronicles the struggle of Kratos and his son Atreus to thwart the schemes of the cunning god Odin and avert Ragnarok, the predicted end of the world. Elden Ring, in the meantime, follows the player's unnamed Tarnished on a quest to reclaim and rule over the Great Runes of the Lands Within, formidable natural forces that, when combined, form the fabled Elden Ring, the foundation of creation.

Both games' narratives include people who actively conceal their true motivations in order to advance their own goals while centering their plots around legendary world-altering stakes. They are also largely comparable in terms of gameplay, with Ragnarok and Elden Ring focused on both melee and ranged combat.

The recurring themes in their histories and stories are one of the two games' most striking points of similarity. For instance, although they are presumably extinct at the start of the game, the ancient giant, or jotun (plural jotnar)prophecy of Ragnarok, serves as a major plot point in Ragnarok. Atreus' mother Laufey gave birth to him, and he is even half-giant. In contrast, the world of the Elden Ring reveals that giants were once strong beings who were all but wiped off by the introduction of the Elden Ring and the Golden Order's way of thinking.

Given that God of War is based on Norse mythology as distinct to Elden Ring's use of Irish and Celtic mythology, this shouldn't be too surprising. Due to their shared Indo-European origins and extensive historical contact, many aspects of Norse mythology are believed to have influenced both Celtic and vice versa cultures. Elden Ring also makes extensive use of runes, mystical symbols that give the player strength in a manner similar to how Ragnarok's Norse runes do. Players may discover strange parallels between the worlds they create by playing both games, however Elden Ring may require a little more effort to put the pieces together.

Ragnarok and Elden Ring are utterly dissimilar from one another in terms of narrative and storytelling. The narrative of Ragnarok is undoubtedly the biggest incentive to play it because it follows the expansive and sentimental God of War with a similarly vast and moving tale. The father-and-son protagonists, know-it-all Mimir's severed head, the goddess Freya, as well as the dwarven artisan brothers Brok and Sindri are all members of Ragnarok's ensemble cast, who remain present throughout the game's narrative and offer a variety of viewpoints, thoughts, and motivations as it goes on. Even though it travels across open-world exploring areas, the game's cinematic tale proceeds in only one direction.

On the other hand, Elden Ring's story purposefully reflects the splintered and shattered quality of the surroundings. Despite having a substantial array of NPCs and characters, the player must use their imagination to fill in many of the details based on what they have seen and accomplished in the game. The deep mythology of Elden Ring's planet has many unique and fascinating features since George R.R. Martin, the writer of the A Song of Fire and Ice books, significantly contributed to it by writing its past. It does not, however, hold the player's hand; rather, it lets them explore and learn about the world at their own leisure, in contrast to Ragnarok.

The narrative of Ragnarok is linear, much like that of Uncharted or The Last of Us, but it goes further in terms of the amount of explorable content it offers the player. After the bulk of the plot has been resolved, the player is strongly advised to explore this content in depth. While Ragnarok's open world and coming end are dwarfed by Elden Ring's vast, linked terrain, Ragnarok consistently achieves a superior balance between action and narrative. Both games emphasize combat as one of their core concepts and encourage players to experiment with their variety of combat instruments.

The player in Ragnarok is somewhat constrained by Kratos' arsenal of abilities. Kratos excels in mercilessly challenging his enemies with weapon loadouts like the cold Leviathan Axe or the blazing Blades of Chaos because he is a (retired) god of war. As a result, he uses magic in the form of his melee weapon skills rather than casting spells. His numerous allies also possess magical abilities, such as Atreus, whose role in God of War Ragnarok is to aid his father by shooting magical bolts at his foes.

The player can change their Devalued into any variety of fantasy archetypes in Elden Ring's battle, including a traditional wizard, a sneaky rogue, a holy knight, and many more. Innumerable tools are also made available by the game to encourage player creativity. While Elden Ring's reward comes from defeating challenging bosses and opponents utilizing the skill set the user, not the game, has chosen, Ragnarok's combat might be said to be far more geared toward making the player feel good and appear spectacular while they are shooting down enemies. This is not to argue that Ragnarok lacks combat customization; Kratos may be tailored in a variety of ways to deal with a specific type of harm or play a certain way. Simply put, there is far less than in the Elden Ring.

The length of each game is a key factor to consider when picking which to play, and there is a significant difference. In addition to the main storyline, which in God of War Ragnarok takes 20 to 30 hours to complete, there is a ton of additional stuff to discover. A completionist round will add an additional 15 hours, bringing the total to 45. Players might need to spend about 50 hours to complete Elden Ring's plot on their own, and that doesn't include some of the most intriguing extra missions.

Elden Ring can be defeated after spending hundreds of hours on it. God of War Ragnarok does contain a very compelling and well-written story as well as spectacular cinematic set pieces, even though Elden Ring has significantly more gameplay material. It depends on the player's priorities when comparing the two games because their strengths are considerably dissimilar.

Elden Ring features non-linear gameplay that gives you the freedom to explore any location, face any boss, complete side quests, learn the game's lore, and pursue different meanings based on your choices. The Site of Grace will send you in the direction of a more useful location, but you are not compelled to follow it. It is only there to keep players from becoming lost and stagnating in their advancement.

On the other side, God of War: Ragnarok has a more linear gameplay style and an epic storyline. While we won't reveal anything, unlike Elden Ring, the game's plot is not influenced by your decisions. Furthermore, God of War: Ragnarok is significantly less enjoyable to play and has a wider variety of battles than Elden Ring. However, God of War: Ragnarok is significantly less enjoyable to play and has a wider variety of battles than Elden Ring. God of War: Ragnarok still offers the best gameplay and combat in its genre, only being surpassed in terms of excellence by Elden Ring.

Games in the Soul-like genre were first characterized by Demon Souls, which was followed by the launch of Dark Souls games. Elden Ring is indeed a genre-defining game because it combines an open environment with a formula akin to Souls. God of War: Ragnarok, on the other hand, continues the tradition of its predecessor by offering a more sophisticated action-adventure hack-and-slash experience.

Furthermore, compared to God of War: Ragnarok, Elden Ring delivers a darker narrative and tone. However, there are roughly six distinct endings in Elden Ring, compared to just one in God of War: Ragnarok. The plot of God of War: Ragnarok is more straightforward and linear, yet you can finish the game and still not understand what happened to the Elden Ring.

The candidates for the 2022 Game Awards have just been revealed, and God of War Ragnarok appears to have an advantage against Elden Ring with 10 nominations total across all categories. Elden Ring still has a chance of winning big on December 8 because it has a collection of seven nominations. The rivalry is incredibly severe, though, as God of War Ragnarok & Elden Ring are pitted against one another in a complete of six categories. It appears safe to believe that God of War Ragnarok will win the prize over Elden Ring in the category of Best Narrative. God of War Ragnarok presents a short, beautiful, epic storyline that is easy to comprehend but thematically complicated, in contrast to Elden Ring's storytelling, which is interesting and engaging but still retains that characteristic FromSoftware obtuseness that beginners may find a touch off-putting.

Given that both games' art directions have distinctive, enduring aesthetics that visually enliven their own universes, the prize for best art direction could potentially go either way. Another award that could go either way is Best Score and Music. Elden Ring's boss' music is among FromSoftware's greatest, but God of War Ragnarok's uses it to enhance every scene. Both may also have an equal chance of getting Best Audio Design, albeit based on previous years' outcomes, a different contender on the list is somewhat more likely to win.

It really is anyone's game but when it comes to the big two, Best Game Development and Game of the Year. Fans of Elden Ring may contend that the game's non-linear design, FromSoftware's willingness to try something new, and its enormous, enchantingly grim world are sufficient to win both honors, but God of War Ragnarok supporters may disagree, contending that the game's more focused story, epic scope, improved combat mechanics, and enhanced enemy variety are what truly merit the victory. Naturally, it's always feasible for different games to sneak in unannouncedly and steal their prizes from under them. For instance, Immortality is possibly a front-runner for Best Narrative and may win more prizes than some people might anticipate. The powerful metal anthems of Metal: Hellsinger, which are a genuine standout this year, could win the prize for Best Music and Score.

Much of this relies on how much importance you assign to particular game features. Given that Elden Ring's story is primarily focused on deciphering the mysterious lore of the country rather than creating any type of emotionally captivating narrative through individual NPCs, God of War Ragnarok's writing, story, and characters are far above Elden Ring. Although I find the setting of Elden Ring to be fascinating, nothing in the game was even close to making me cry, in contrast to many Ragnarok instances.

The combat in God of War might be more 'fun' because you can swing your axe and blades while using a skill system that has been improved. You can also use some amusing mods and armor sets. However, Elden Ring's ridiculously wide range of combat philosophies is entirely unfounded.