During last year’s E3, God of War developer Santa Monica Studio announced the return of the beloved franchise, this time with a son in tow. Since then,, questions have run rampant as fans try to figure out what exactly will we be seeing in the next entry to the story. The game will be much different from previous God of War games, seeing an older, more wise Kratos as he mentors his son. It is known that the game will be set in the North and feature a Norse Pantheon of gods and goddesses though little else has been revealed. Upon being questioned about the state of the game on Twitter, Cory Barlog, God of War’s game director revealed that production is going well, though it’s an “emotional meat grinder” on the daily.

Its going well. Its a daily emotional meat grinder but i feel very good about what we are doing.

— golrab of the frost (@corybarlog) May 6, 2017

It sounds as though development is rough, but with the ambitious nature of the upcoming God of War that’s to be expected. The game is switching its design around from previous titles in the series with a free camera, no combo counter, and more.  Instead of eviscerating Gods by his lonesome self, the protagonist will be able to call upon his son to help in the fight as well. The storyline for the upcoming game also appears to take on a more gritty and emotional turn. Perhaps this is the emotional meat grinder Barlog was referring to.

Barlog also took the time to write out a reply to a creative fan who said, “Tell me the release date” with runes to which Cory replied, “I think I could but I don’t want to yet”. There are quite a few conflicting rumors out there regarding the coveted date. A Portuguese retailer has the release set as September of this year, while the game’s voice actor hinted at the release being in 2018. With any luck, this year’s E3 will hold more details.

ᛁ ᚹᛁᛋᚺ ᛁ ᚲᛟᚢᛚᛞ ᛒᚢᛏ ᛁ ᛞᛟᚾᛏ ᚲᚾᛟᚹ ᛃᛖᛏ ᛋᛟᚱᚱᛃ

— golrab of the frost (@corybarlog) May 3, 2017

Amidst all the rage, the God of War series has always had a tinge of sadness to it. Hopefully, the development team will create a story which will send players on an emotional meat grinder of their own. Is the new direction for God of War a good thing? Let us know what you think of the God of War series in the comments section below. As always, don’t forget to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter for 24/7 coverage of all things gaming and entertainment.