God of War Ascension Gets Multiplayer Treatment

God of War Ascension will feature a multiplayer mode in which players can fight four-on-four and duke it out with the same brutality of protagonist Kratos. In a short gameplay trailer we are able to get a glimpse of what to expect in God of War's new multiplayer component.

 In a game mode called 'Execution' combatants from Troy and Sparta fight to gain the favor of the Gods. Giant cyclops Polyphemus known for being outsmarted by Odysseus struggles while bound in chains on this specific map. The object of Execution is to be the team to kill Polyphemus or whichever other titan or monster is present. Gaining control of specific territories on the map earns your teams 'rewards' from the Gods. So far, these rewards seem to be different weapons that we've become familiar with in the God of War series such as the Spear of Olympus. After your team has the weapons in their possession you can properly dispatch of or at least damage Polyphemus.

The objective of the game shifts throughout as teams must use attack and defend strategies depending on whether they are capturing or trying to hold an already captured territory. Apparently losing control of already captured points will lose you the favor of the Gods causing Zeus, likely the utmost authority to take away weapons they originally bestowed your team with; so it's important to maintain already captured points if you want to win.

Game director, Todd Pappy also gave some insight on what player customization will be like. Players will in a sense create their own character instead of choosing from a roster of God of War characters featuring gods and Kratos himself. This will give players a greater sense of ownership and besides, who doesn't like some fun customization. Before you begin multiplayer, you have to pass a series of trials that also act as a tutorial for multiplayer. In the trials, players are faced with an enemy that they cannot defeat which forces them to offer their souls to one of four gods if they wish to live and prevail victorious over this foe. The four gods you have to chose from are Hades, Ares, Poseidon, or Zeus. Each god provides the player with a specific set of armor, weapons and perks which the player is able to test out.

Once selected which god you will sell your soul to, you can customize even further how your character's armor will look. You will be able to customize armor parts that include your tunic, pauldron, boots, gauntlets, chest piece and helmet. You will also be able to upgrade your character's combos, perks, and unlock other goodies to be used online. I like the idea of the customization aspect because it definitely lets you own your character and make them unique to your specific play-style.

So far, Execution has been the only game mode announced but others are surely to come. Sony teased that they are working on a horde mode which would be played by players cooperatively. Sony promises more barbaric action to come from both God of war Ascension's multiplayer and the single player campaign. I personally like the idea; while it's bold it's innovative and offers more to fans of the God of War series than just a single player campaign mode. It makes the game that much more valuable and that much more fun. Check out the video below as well to see the game in action.