I played this back on PS4, after clearing the rest of the series on PS3 through the Bluepoint HD collections, plus III and Ascension respectively. I wasn't happy with the new combat system, mostly for the enemy roster not being all that fun to fight compared to past titles and the radial danger system being a poor crutch for the new camera perspective. I also wasn't happy with several sections being blatant filler, the very short list of spectacular bosses, Atreus/Mimir giving plenty of redundant barks during combat, and some challenges boiling down to how well your gear and abilities will prepare you for them. Bear McCreary does great work but his talent was wasted on what was a very forgettable soundtrack compared to previous titles. Probably the most damning thing for me personally, for one reason or another, was the replacement of TC Carson as Kratos, who no doubt the script was written with his specific delivery in mind. All that being said, for a game about a destroyer of worlds finding solice and purpose in a new realm of mythology, it was pretty damn promising for the future of the series. Presentation is top-notch, the combat had a much greater identity than the usual action-RPG, and the overall expansion from the linear gauntlet to an open-world campaign was the shakeup the series truly needed. Despite my gripes leaning on personal preference for what I would've seen as a more ideal return for Kratos, along with narrative and design constantly being at odds with each other, the game overall did a lot right. How Ragnarok continued (squandered) this potential is a whole other can of worms, but the work done on God of War '18 still makes it one of the best of its kind. Now if I can just get the Greek saga remastered (not remade) on PC, I can stop being an old man yelling at clouds.
For about every cool and interesting aspect Killer is Dead has, it's got another that feels undercooked or not quite planned out. Story isn't straightforward but it doesn't answer every question it raises. Combat can have its moments in its simplicity, but it doesn't really start feeling better until you've invested in upgrades. Unlocking subweapons makes some enemies more trivial to deal with, but they're locked behind the Gigolo missions, which they themselves are divisive depending on who you ask. So why play it? Well, it's kinda crazy, especially the boss fights; they're definitely this game's high points and their levels fit their respective characters pretty well. Music is pretty moody and atmospheric too, with a couple standouts. Overall, it's definitely got the Grasshopper charm, which can ultimately be the deciding factor on investing time and money in it over other games. Dual audio is a nice feature too. The end package can be best described as "it either clicks with you or it doesn't". If you have reservations, it's probably best at a discount. Otherwise, you're better off playing other 3D beat-em-ups that carry less jank and have more than their charm to offer. PSA: The Nightmare Edition (the PC port) has a couple of annoyances: capped at 30fps, third boss crashes the game on dual-core CPUs, Japanese voice option excludes in-game sounds, etc. Fixes for these issues you can read up here. https://www.pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/Killer_Is_Dead
