It’s difficult to believe that it’s been nearly four years because the discharge of God of War. Santa Monica Studio’s reinvention of the staple PlayStation series became an immediate classic if this hit PlayStation 4 in 2022, bringing the once-dominant action franchise into the spotlight greatly. Now, with a highly-anticipated sequel in route, God of War is reaching an all-new audience the very first time.
Continuing the trend for Sony, God of War is the latest PlayStation game to hit PC, following within the footsteps of Horizon Zero Dawn and Days Gone. It won’t be the last either, with upcoming games like Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection and certain many more following suit in the future under Sony’s new PlayStation PC publishing label.
So, how does God of War endure on PC? Could it be a cluttered port similar to Horizon Zero Dawn at launch, or is it a smooth experience closer to Death Stranding’s initial PC launch? Thankfully, the God of War PC port is among Sony’s best to date, giving PC players the chance to experience this journey without many compromises.
It’s not a secret that God of War is an excellent gaming. Sitting at an incredibly impressive 94 on Metacritic, it’s widely hailed as one of the defining achievements of the last console generation. We praised pretty much every part of the game in our original overview of the PS4 version, awarding it a score of 4.5/5 stars. Everything that people loved about the game on PlayStation 4 continues to be contained in the PC version, however the power and flexibility of the PC platform elevate the knowledge to new heights.
The original PlayStation 4 version of God of War ran at 1080p and was locked at 30 FPS. The resolution was increased to some checkerboard 4K resolution on PlayStation 4 Pro, and today PlayStation 5 users can savor the game at a locked 60 FPS because of a free update. With a 4K/60 FPS patch on PlayStation 5, can the PC version really be that much better? The reply is yes, because of a few PC-exclusive features contained in the main harbour.
While the original game looks beautiful on its own, laptop computer version features enhanced graphics settings that provide the game a much cleaner look. It’s not likely to look anywhere close to nice since it's upcoming sequel, but setting items to High or Ultra produces a noticeable improvement. The biggest quality increases come in the type of sharper textures and shadows. It’s not a radical difference, however it can make the original graphics settings look a little muddy in comparison.
Performance can also be great using the pc version, that is super important for a game like God of War. The game uses the initial PS4 settings as a baseline, much like previous PlayStation PC ports, and also the game runs very smooth on that preset without having to sacrifice any graphical fidelity. Obviously, performance takes a hit if you bump things up to High or Ultra, but God of War features NVIDIA’s DLSS technology to help you boost your framerate. With DLSS set to Balanced, I was in a position to hover around 90 FPS on maximum settings at 3440×1440. Granted, I was using an RTX 3070, however, you should be able to hit a decent framerate as long as you meet the recommended settings.
As far as actually using PC goes, the keyboard and mouse controls work surprisingly well. Most people will want to plug in a controller (DualShock 4 and DualSense controllers are supported natively), but the game is fairly playable having a keyboard and mouse. Playing an action game such as this without a gamepad might seem strange to some, but its slower speed compared to other games makes it easy to manage. It helps that the default keybinds are great too. There’s also NVIDIA Reflex Low Latency support, but the game already feels quite responsive without them enabled, so your mileage may vary with that setting.
All of these PC benefits go a long way to enhance the overall experience. God of War places heavy focus on its narrative, therefore the game feels at home on the 21:9 ultrawide display. Close-ups of characters’ faces look better than ever before if you crank the settings up, and environmental textures are extremely sharp. The game looks great, which is to be expected from the title that already looked so great on PlayStation 4.
Since the sport came out such a long time ago at this point, it’s simple to forget precisely how stellar it really is. Playing with the opening segment is definitely an immediate reminder of methods well-written God of War is, and obtaining the Leviathan Axe again after all these years felt like returning home. Again, our original review of God of War goes into a lot more detail about how excellent the sport is, but its quality really can't be overstated.
God of War isn’t the first PlayStation game arrive at PC, nor if it is the final. It’s a trend which should continue, and there continue to be plenty of other previously exclusive games that could someday make the jump to PC. Just like Horizon Zero Dawn and Days Gone, God of War proves that PlayStation games have a home on PC. The PlayStation PC lineup seems to grow larger and larger as the months go by, so it may be merely a matter of time before we have seen other Sony icons on the Steam store alongside Kratos, Aloy, and Nathan Drake.
If you never got the opportunity to play God of War, whether that be from not having a PlayStation or simply skipping the title back in 2022, you owe it to you to ultimately jump in to the PC version. This game has among the best stories of the last generation with thrilling action combat to complement, and it’s a game title that PC players shouldn't skip. Even if you’ve already platinumed the sport on PlayStation 4, the PC version is good enough to warrant another playthrough to prepare for God of War Ragnarok. Whether you’re revisiting the frozen Norse realm or diving into Kratos and Atreus’ journey for the first time, there’s never been an easy method to experience this epic tale.
