00:00Hello, I'm Corey Barlog, director of God of War.
00:03And if you haven't played God of War, spoilers abound.
00:06Go away, come back after you finish playing,
00:08and then I'll give you a little insight on how we made the game.
00:11Alright, so here we are at the start of God of War.
00:16This opening sequence actually came about a little late.
00:21We knew the opening level,
00:23but the opening sequence of Kratos at the Tree
00:26and kind of having the quiet, solemn moment
00:29was a lot of discussion for us to figure out
00:33the right moment to start this game.
00:35And it needed to be not a big, bombastic action moment
00:38to really show people that things are different.
00:41We needed to show them that Kratos has a little bit more going on
00:46in this game than any of the previous games.
00:49It was important that you actually use the button
00:51to chop the tree down.
00:54Another thing, spoilers,
00:56the chopping of this tree down
00:58is Kratos' wife, Faye.
01:01She had selected these trees.
01:03And these trees are very specific
01:05in the stave, the magical stave
01:08that is protecting their forest.
01:10She knew cutting this tree down
01:12would make them exposed to the entire Norse pantheon,
01:16to everyone on the Outer World.
01:18And that was her way of saying that,
01:20you know, Kratos sometimes likes to procrastinate.
01:22And given the opportunity,
01:23he's going to just stall as much as possible.
01:27And he's unaware of this,
01:29which is why he even tells his son,
01:31you know, you're not ready.
01:33This moment, like, this is really cool.
01:36I really wanted more of these kinds of moments
01:38throughout the game.
01:39The theme of the wounds that will not heal.
01:41So these burn marks on his forearms
01:45have not healed
01:47since they were seared on his forearms
01:49all the way back in the first God of War game.
01:54And now he's even unable to
01:58show his son
01:59just the wrapping of that,
02:02which is, you know,
02:05wordlessly explaining so much
02:06of this relationship between these two characters.
02:11And I've said this before,
02:12but, I mean, I was,
02:14this is such a blatant inspiration
02:17from Commando.
02:18You know that?
02:19When I was a kid watching that movie
02:21and seeing Arnold carrying this giant tree.
02:23And the first tree that they gave me
02:25was really small and normal size, you know?
02:28And I kept saying bigger and bigger and bigger.
02:30And I wanted to go even bigger than this,
02:32but at that point,
02:32I think they cut me off
02:33and kicked me out of the office
02:34and said,
02:35we're just not going to listen to you anymore.
02:36Still want me to tie it to the boat?
02:37But I wanted it to feel like, you know,
02:40there's Arnold carrying a tree,
02:41but then there's, you know,
02:42Kratos carrying just massive tree.
02:44And, of course,
02:45his son completely unfazed, right?
02:48Because he doesn't know anything more
02:49than just dad is dead, right?
02:50He's always been strong.
02:52No big deal.
03:02I like the slowness of all of this.
03:05Just kind of doing very everyday things.
03:09Chopping a tree down,
03:10lashing it to a boat,
03:12you know,
03:12going down the river.
03:15But still giving you those quiet,
03:18softer moments
03:19that help build
03:20towards what this eventually
03:21will become.
03:31This line,
03:34so much weight behind this line.
03:36This is like that line
03:37at the beginning of Iron Man 2
03:39when Don Cheadle
03:40is a war machine
03:42and he pretty much just said,
03:43what are you doing here?
03:44I'm here to deal with it.
03:45Let's move on.
03:46That line is all about
03:48that sense that everything
03:49has changed.
03:51It's a communication to Atreus
03:52as much as it is to the audience.
03:54Everything's different.
03:55Try not to dwell on it.
03:56Take in the experience.
03:58Roll with us on this route.
04:02Daniel Basuti.
04:03Oh, so brilliant
04:05as the witch in the woods
04:06or Freya.
04:08Spoilers.
04:10And here,
04:11very important
04:11that this is the moment
04:12of quiet.
04:13There is no music.
04:15It is the sounds
04:16of their feet
04:17crunching against
04:18the leaves
04:19as they walk up
04:21in silence, right?
04:23This is,
04:23neither of them really knows
04:25how to relate to each other.
04:26This is the slightly
04:27uncomfortable
04:29silent moments
04:30as you're slowly
04:32beginning to understand
04:34that something else
04:34is going on.
04:35And if you've never
04:37played before,
04:37you still are wondering
04:38like, okay,
04:39so what is happening?
04:40If you've not experienced
04:41any spoilers
04:42from the internet,
04:43it is a surprise
04:44when you first see
04:45Atreus walk through the door
04:46and see what really
04:47is going on.
04:56That was the last.
04:59Then he just goes
05:00and tears this tree up
05:01and in a few minutes
05:02the whole thing
05:02is broken down.
05:03See?
05:04Gods can chop wood
05:05fast.
05:09I love this
05:10little breath.
05:16Just stealing himself
05:18before he walks in.
05:20Oh.
05:28And so much of
05:31what we had done
05:32is being open
05:32on the set
05:34to try to figure out
05:36what works best.
05:37And this
05:37sort of
05:40abbreviation
05:40of the
05:41Viking prayer for the dead
05:43was added on the set
05:44when I was just like,
05:45I don't really want him
05:46to do the whole poem
05:47because we're taking place
05:48in the time before the Viking.
05:49So imagining this
05:50is kind of the
05:51straw henge
05:52to the stone henge
05:53version of that full poem.
05:55And really all he's doing
05:56is calling out
05:58to his mother
05:58and his father
05:59as she's being ushered off.
06:02He's laying down
06:04mistletoe.
06:08Oh there do they call to me.
06:11Oh there do they call to me.
06:14Oh there do they call to me.
06:15We had a bug
06:16for the longest time
06:18where in the middle
06:19of this sequence
06:20the model would just
06:21jitter a little bit
06:22so everybody would be like
06:23she's not dead.
06:33She's ready.
06:36This part coming up
06:38is so beautiful.
06:39Ivor's music is
06:41just astounding.
06:42I mean Bear did an amazing
06:43job on this score.
06:44This moment
06:45the first time
06:46he gave me
06:47the first draft
06:47of the score
06:48and we put it
06:49to the rough animatic
06:50of this.
06:52You know Kratos'
06:53sort of true
06:55desires right here.
06:57You're free.
06:59You are free.
07:00That's all he wants.
07:02Like she got what
07:03he could never get.
07:14It's interesting
07:15because we didn't do
07:16a lot of
07:17modifications on this.
07:18Once we
07:18had done our
07:20pre-visualization
07:20of this scene
07:21it ended up being
07:22almost exactly
07:23as we first
07:24realized it.
07:26The only changes
07:26were getting the camera
07:27to work
07:28really well
07:29over the fires.
07:30That was the
07:31big trick.
07:34orchestrating
07:34all the
07:35complex camera moves
07:36with these big
07:37objects all over
07:37the set
07:38was definitely
07:39one of our
07:40biggest challenges.
07:42And then
07:42also not feeling
07:43like you're
07:43getting dizzy
07:44from moving
07:45the camera
07:45back and forth
07:46and back and forth.
07:48The initial
07:49pre-vis we did
07:50was a lot longer
07:51and we kind of
07:52before we got
07:53on the set
07:53started cutting it down.
07:56It was definitely
07:57a part of me
07:57that felt like
07:57maybe this was
07:58a little too fast
07:59but I think
08:00it ended up
08:00working overall
08:01for the pacing
08:02but I really
08:03wanted the fires
08:03to burn
08:04for a little
08:04bit longer
08:05the knife
08:05can heat up
08:06and then he
08:07grabs it
08:07but I think
08:08it still works.
08:10I love this.
08:11I'm sorry.
08:12He apologizes
08:14for getting burned.
08:17And then
08:17let's just
08:18squeeze
08:18simple
08:19put the snow
08:21in his hand
08:21and a piece
08:23of Kratos
08:24a knife
08:24at the beginning
08:25of this journey
08:26a piece of his
08:27father
08:27a piece of
08:28the memories
08:30the wounds
08:31that never
08:31heal
08:31are on his
08:32hands
08:32he's carrying
08:32that throughout
08:34and a piece
08:35of his father
08:35and a piece
08:36of his mother
08:44I love his reaction
08:45in there.
08:59It's just
09:00such an amazing
09:01work by our
09:02cinematics team
09:03to be able to
09:03really catch
09:05so many of these
09:06moments
09:06a lot of weird
09:07choreography had to
09:08go on
09:09but so worth
09:10it.
09:11The lighting
09:12here is just
09:13absolutely
09:14beautiful.
09:16It did not
09:16come online
09:17until the very
09:18end.
09:18The artist
09:19actually came
09:19in to this
09:21level
09:21and told me
09:22I'd like to
09:23redo a few
09:23things
09:24you know
09:24we're in the
09:25last six months
09:25of the game
09:26and I thought
09:27okay cool
09:27we'll redo
09:28a couple of
09:28rocks
09:29or change
09:29some textures
09:30or even
09:30adjust the
09:30lighting a little
09:31bit
09:32and then a
09:33producer runs
09:33in my office
09:33like three or
09:34four weeks
09:35later yelling
09:35at me
09:36why did you
09:37tell them
09:37to redo
09:37the whole
09:38level
09:38and I was
09:38like what
09:39are you
09:39talking about
09:40and they
09:40just
09:41they weren't
09:41satisfied with
09:42it so they
09:42went in
09:43and they
09:43really just
09:43redid
09:44everything
09:44and it's
09:46for the
09:46better
09:46that's the
09:47level of
09:47kind of
09:48perfectionism
09:49that everybody
09:49has at the
09:50studio
09:50that a level
09:51that was done
09:52that I was
09:53like pretty
09:54happy with
09:54and I gave
09:54them you know
09:55thumbs up
09:56and said
09:56this is good
09:57let's move
09:57forward
09:58and they just
09:59were not happy
10:00they wanted
10:01to take it
10:01even further
10:02and I feel
10:03like that's
10:03reflected in
10:04every aspect
10:04of the game
10:05everybody's desire
10:06to go
10:07one step
10:07beyond
10:08what we
10:09think is
10:09like okay
10:09well that's
10:10done
10:23all right
10:24well that is
10:25the opening
10:26of God of
10:27War
10:28and I'm
10:29very happy
10:29to be able
10:30to give you
10:30a little bit
10:30of insight
10:31on what it
10:32was to
10:32develop this
10:32game
10:33playstation
10:38and I'm
10:38a little bit
10:38like that
10:38I'm
10:38like that
10:38I'm
10:38like that
10:38you know
10:39let's go
10:39and it's
10:39in the
10:39world
10:39you know
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