This much was revealed during a discussion Barlog had with PlayStation Blog, in which the God of War director touched on the project’s origins and the inspirations surrounding the title, which eventually led to the subject of series “homages” and “hallmarks” cropping up throughout the game. When asked if including such familiar gameplay mechanics as opening chests, wall climbing, and skirting across ledges were conscious decisions, Barlog replied, “Oh yeah. I’m a lunatic when it comes to that stuff. There are secrets and references hidden everywhere. And I mean literally everywhere: We’re talking about physical packaging, menus, load screens when you hit the Options button, and stuff like that.”

According to Barlog, such highlights were included in God of War to not only elicit a feeling of nostalgia in fans and remind them of previous installments, but also to ensure that the title’s content is rich in value, as the director wants people to remember the PlayStation 4 exclusive well into the future. As explained by Barlog, “That’s one of the things I hope for a long time after, people saying ‘Did you know…?’ I think that’s awesome. That’s the fun part about making games. There is a lot of complexity, but that complexity allows us to hide things that are really interesting and some that are really deep cut.”

God of War’s release date being less than a month away from now, fans thankfully won’t have to wait much longer until they can start hunting for all of the hidden secrets the team at Santa Monica Studio has sprinkled throughout the game. Should they want to begin now, though, Barlog has previously stated that the aforementioned E3 2016 demo contains a trove of Easter eggs that many have not discovered, with those being just a fragment of the allusions to the GoW franchise available in the sequel.

All things considered, God of War looks like it aims to be a solid entry point for newcomers, as well as a much-needed revitalization for long-time fans, but the fact that Barlog made sure to add as many nods to the title’s precursors as possible shows his dedication to the series and to the core fan base as a whole. With this being the case, one can only hope that a particular iconic series staple of weaponry will make its way into the forthcoming title in some shape or form.

God of War is set to release on April 20, 2018 for PlayStation 4.

Source: PlayStation Blog