Now that an official release date has been set for the upcoming God of War installment, fans are ecstatic to learn that the game is just around the corner. Due to arrive in April, the title will feature the Ghost of Sparta himself Kratos, but he’ll have a companion this time around. That tag-along, however, is his son Atreus.

When gamers learned about the inclusion of Kratos’ child, speculation and worry began to flood the gaming community. Many believed that the game would essentially boil down to one long escort mission, but game director Cory Barlog has come to the rescue. In a recent interview, he let fans know that this is not the case when it comes to God of War, and that Atreus will not require a babysitter. “From the beginning, I wanted to make sure we weren’t making an escort-mission game – one where you’re constantly feeling like the A.I. messed you up,” Barlog stated. Lead gameplay engineer Jeet Shroff went on to add the following:

You have all the standard stuff you have to deal with – getting in the way, not stealing too much limelight from the hero, making sure they’re not doing things you don’t want them to do. Any kind of typical A.I. development deals with that. There are secondary parts of that: feeling like you constantly have to take care of them, being able to escort them, and all that kind of stuff. We knew we had to deal with that right out of the gate. So focusing a lot on making sure Atreus had a significant supporting role was a big part of establishing that pillar, not so much as a secondary or tertiary thing, but as a key component throughout the entire development.

Atreus has grown and evolved so much throughout the development of this project. It’s primarily because, to be honest, a lot of what we thought would work never ended up working. What we thought was how a companion character – in this type of environment, with this type of hero – could work made a lot of sense on paper. In development, as the hero evolved and the systems around Kratos started to get fleshed out, Atreus was always being adapted to adjust for that.”

While players won’t have their hands full trying to keep a close eye on somebody that is basically a glorified NPC, they will be occupied with raising a son. Influencing the young one’s choices, skills, and more throughout the game can shape Atreus into the rage-filled individual that you and Papa Kratos know he can be. Just be sure to eat enough vegetables and drink plenty of water… and don’t forget a coat!

God of War is set to arrive on April 20, 2018 for PlayStation 4. Keep it tuned to Don’t Feed the Gamers as this story develops, and for other gaming news, check out the following:

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What say you, gamers? Are you glad that young Atreus won’t need constant babysitting throughout God of War? What other parts of the game are you excited for? Sound off in the comments section below, and be sure to follow DFTG on Twitter for live gaming and entertainment news 24/7!