{"id":425622,"date":"2026-02-14T16:28:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-14T16:28:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/425622\/"},"modified":"2026-02-14T16:28:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-14T16:28:09","slug":"one-of-the-worst-decisions-ever-made-god-of-war-creator-tears-total-crap-2d-title-apart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/425622\/","title":{"rendered":"‘One of the Worst Decisions Ever Made’: God of War Creator Tears ‘Total Crap’ 2D Title Apart"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"'One<\/a><\/p>\n

God of War<\/a> creator David Jaffe is not happy with Sons of Sparta<\/a>, the newly released side-scrolling spin-off in the long-running series.<\/p>\n

In an almost 10-minute tirade, the ex-Santa Monica Studio lead tears the title to pieces, saying it\u2019s \u201cinsulting to the fans [and] the people who worked on the game\u201d.<\/p>\n

While he concedes the core experience is acceptable, Jaffe\u2019s criticisms seem to come from the price, production values, and, most importantly, the characterisation of Kratos.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat were they thinking?\u201d he exclaims. \u201cLike, what were they thinking? Why is this in existence? I don\u2019t understand \u2013 I just don\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Sons of Sparta is set before the events of the original God of War trilogy, and focuses on a young Kratos before he became the character we know and love.<\/p>\n

He fumes:<\/p>\n

\u201cI only played about an hour and I\u2019ll never go back to it. Like, just get over yourselves, man. They just kept stopping over and over again and having the characters just talk and talk. And the voice acting is not very good. Who the f*ck wants to play this?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jaffe posits that, based on a conversation he had with an ex-employee of Santa Monica Studio, this may be because the first-party developer is increasingly focusing on story. He points to the sequence in God of War Ragnarok<\/a> featuring Atreus and Angrboda, which temporarily slows the pace of the plot, as evidence of this.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not his only criticism: he also rips into the decision to focus on Kratos\u2019 younger years, as opposed to the character we\u2019re all familiar with.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody likes the character we\u2019ve built billion-dollar franchises on,\u201d he remarks sarcastically. \u201cLet\u2019s just make him some generic kid like we\u2019re watching a WB Kids TV show or something. It makes no f*cking sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jaffe then proceeds to compare the game to other side-scrollers like Blasphemous<\/a>, Neon Inferno<\/a>, Ninja Gaiden Ragebound<\/a>, and Shinobi: Art of Vengeance<\/a>. He points out that all those games look and play better, but can be purchased for less than the $30 being charged here.<\/p>\n

I played a little over an hour of the new GOD OF WAR game, GOD OF WAR-Sons of Sparta! <\/p>\n

It’s well made but genric and dull. <\/p>\n

It’s also one of worst decisions the God of War team has ever made. It’s very existence is super confusing. And offensive.https:\/\/t.co\/2b2FbgU0pW<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/ZTrGMnM5H1<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 David Jaffe (@davidscottjaffe) February 13, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Personally, we like the style of Sons of Sparta, as its pixel art reminds us of classic Amiga games like Shadow of the Beast<\/a>, which we think is the look dev Mega Cat Studios is going for<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also worth mentioning that, with just an hour on the clock, Jaffe has barely scratched the surface of the game here \u2013 although it clearly hasn\u2019t held his attention during that time, which is still a valid criticism, we suppose.<\/p>\n

For what it\u2019s worth, we felt the foray showed enormous promise during our initial hands on, and you can read our thoughts so far through here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But in a concluding rant, Jaffe goes on to tear the decision makers at Sony to pieces.<\/p>\n

He vents:<\/p>\n

\u201cThis makes me really angry. Not just because I have a personal connection to the brand and the franchise, but because it shows such a collapse of the great creative work Sony has done in the past.<\/p>\n

The fact that they would think this is what people want from God of War, I don\u2019t know what to f*cking tell you. It\u2019s crap, it\u2019s dumb, it\u2019s stupid \u2013 I would say avoid this f*cking thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Readers, we don\u2019t think he likes the game.<\/p>\n

[source youtube.com<\/a>]<\/p>\n

\tRelated Games<\/p>\n

\tSee Also<\/p>\n

\"Sammy<\/p>\n

As the Editor of Push Square, Sammy has over 15 years of experience analysing the world of PlayStation, from PS3 through PS5 and everything in between. He\u2019s an expert on PS Studios and industry matters, as well as sports games and simulators. He also enjoys RPGs when he has the time to dedicate to them, and is a bit of a gacha whale.<\/p>\n