God of War has been hailed as one of the greatest single-player games of all time and director Cory Barlog is still collecting flowers from it years later. The franchise was revisited with a breath of fresh air, and it was a no-brainer for Sony to pass up the director’s creative vision.
The gaming community believed that Santa Monica Studios was ready to move on to a new story and permanently close the chapter in Kratos’ book but did the complete opposite, as revealed in the iconic E3 demo, and the director remembered that day down to the smallest detail.
God of War Director Was Terrified to Deliver the Best PlayStation Reveal
Barlog was inspired by his experiences in real life and injected it into the narrative and it paid off immensely. At the moment, Barlog is reportedly working on something new and praises the studio’s talent and commitment.
Santa Monica Studios made significant changes in the gameplay department, leading players to think of it as both a soft reboot and a sequel. Barlog played the demo live along with a live orchestra, which was an ambitious and impressive feat.
trying to seem cool but underneath scared as hell im gonna fuck it up in front of the whole damn world.🤣 https://t.co/LhdwzmsAbK
— golrab of the frost (@corybarlog) June 4, 2024
Mihir Sheth, a fellow developer and colleague of the director, shared his two cents and his fair share of worrying during the live demo.
The stress… knowing the bugs that were possible… Pretty sure I saw every reaction video, every forum post, every tweet etc about our reveal lol. Fun fact: at the sony party that E3 @ShawnLayden looked at me sternly, said "now you feel the pressure" and laughed ☠️ https://t.co/5zpbYFhy6M
— Mihir Sheth (@youtheremehere) June 4, 2024
The PlayStation brand has always been strong in the gaming industry, but the reveal of this game was a game-changer and boosted the platform. All the preparation and practice for the live demo have paid off.
Barlog may seem cool, calm, and collected during the event, but given the pressure riding down his back, it wouldn’t be fair to expect him to be at ease. Looking back years later, the game deserved all the praise and accolades and the effort that went into it was well worth it.
Director Cory Barlog Was Right to Be Nervous During the God of War Reveal
Succeeding in delivering a great live demo has set the standard for what the base game would be like, and failure would paint a bad picture of the studio. Fortunately, Barlog and his team didn’t just succeed; they delivered what most of the fans believe to be the greatest reveal in gaming history.
The reaction from the live audience echoed into social media and the world has collectively agreed that this reveal single-handedly carried the Sony presentation of E3 2016. Players have been longing for the days of similar events in today’s time, but they shouldn’t hold their breath.
Perhaps the success of the reveal is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of deal and Sony is playing it safe moving forward. Reveals like this can have breaches in security and it is wise to share them on their terms.
The director’s calm and humble nature during the demo was an indication that the gaming community was about to be spoiled. Reflecting on the demo makes players appreciate how far gaming has come.
What were your thoughts during the God of War reveal in E3? Let us know in the comments section below!
