Behind the Glory: How God of War (2018) Almost Became a Horror Story for PlayStation
It was 2018 when something magical happened in the gaming world. Santa Monica Studio did not just release a new game; they revived a legend. God of War (2018) emerged, not as a sequel, but as a bold reinterpretation of the franchise. Players and critics were both amazed, with it receiving showering praise and awards. Yet behind this victory success story was a story of near disaster, a time when the future of this legendary franchise was in doubt.
Yoshida's Terrifying Encounter
Shuhei Yoshida, one of the important PlayStation folks during God of War's creation, shared a revealing anecdote about his first experience with the game recently. He recalled the buzz on the project – a large reboot for a popular franchise. But his hands-on time with an early preview build left him, as he described it, "terrified."
I was scared. It's not that I thought the game was bad itself. it was a massive project, a huge game in development. There were huge expectations, and the announcement had been wonderful. But this was six months before the planned 2017 release.
Yoshida went to Santa Monica Studio, and the game's director, Cory Barlog, invited him to play it. The game was reportedly 80% finished at this stage. But Yoshida saw none of that refinement. He recalled having one level be unfair and frustrating:
Corey let me play, and the level that he gave me was extremely hard for me to finish. Enemies were firing at me off-screen I got cheated. And to top it off, there were frame rate issues, mechanics that weren't working right…
A Moment of Panic
For Yoshida, it was a nightmare. Six months before the release date, the game was hardly underway. He remembers clearly the wave of anxiety that engulfed him:
I started thinking about how much time the team had left, about the enormous company and public expectations… We have a huge problem Corey is such a talented and really sweet guy, I couldn't possibly let him know directly just how worried I was. But I'm sure my face probably did speak for itself.
The Crucial Decision: Time to Polish
Realizing the tremendous potential of God of War, and the precarious state of the build in its present form, Yoshida made a decisive call. Irrespective of the pressure to release the game within the original 2017 schedule, he decided to delay it. Sony obligingly made provisions for Santa Monica Studio by allowing them an extra six months – effectively a whole year's additional development time.
A Delay That Led to Triumph
This delay was a stroke of genius. That extra year afforded Santa Monica Studio the opportunity to polish, buff, and tighten God of War. The result, as we all know, was a work of art. The game dropped in 2018 to general critical acclaim and commercial success and became one of the highlight games of the PlayStation 4 generation and a testiment to what can happen if you give game developers more time.
Yoshida's initial "horror" turned into relief and soon, celebration. The story is a firm reminder that even the most ambitious and promising projects can face critical breakdowns in progress, and that sometimes the brash and most effective decision is to back away and value quality over timelines.
