Toward the end of the God of War trilogy, Kratos wasn't exactly a character easy to root for.
From God of War 2 on, the character become consumed with vengeance and hatred, brutally murdering anybody and anything that stood in his way. Whether they were allies or even his own mother, Kratos butchered them all with hardly a second thought.
So, when Kratos appeared to have died at the end of God of War 3, it seemed for the best. He had slain nearly the entire Greek pantheon and then some. The character had finally had his vengeance, and after being consumed by it for three games, could end his life.
Of course, this is a hit video game franchise we are talking about, so the door had to be left open for an inevitable sequel. A post-credit scene shows a blood trail left by Kratos leading to a cliff, implying that he crawled his way over the edge to fight another day.
Fast-forward to E3 2016, and fans now know where Kratos ended up: in the realm of the Vikings. However, this isn't the Kratos fans are used to. The angry, murdering psychopath that Kratos transformed into over the course of three games appears to be a new man. He has a new son now, and presumably, at some point, had a wife. What happened to her is still unknown, but it seems important that Kratos seems to have made peace with her apparent death or disappearance.
There's still hints of anger in Kratos. He briefly lashes out at his son in the trailer shown during Sony's press conference, but he quickly quiets his voice and corrects himself. That doesn't mean he's not still a bit of a jerk. He's still a no-nonsense, no-excuses type character, but he's genuinely attempting to teach his son how to succeed in the harsh and dangerous world they call home.
Rest assured, there's still brutal action, too. In the trailer, fans get to watch Kratos fight a gigantic troll-like creature as well as some smaller supernatural soldiers. He beats them to bloody pulps using his new two-handed axe. However, what stands out most about the new God of War is not the over-the-top action but the quiet moments in between, the moments when Kratos talks to his son, the moment he coaches him through shooting the deer and later, ending its life.
These are moments that have no precedent in previous God of War titles, games that focused more on ridiculous levels of violence and spectacle than emotional storytelling. It's a breath of fresh air for a franchise that seemed to have written itself into a corner. This is a new God of War for a new generation.
That being said, it seems a given that Kratos will once again be battling gods, this time of the Norse variety. Thor and Odin will no doubt soon be in his sights. After all, it's in the name of the game. Some terrible tragedy will unfold. Perhaps the young boy in the trailer will be killed. Perhaps he will be captured. Or maybe some more surprising event will unfold that will throw Kratos head-first back into his god-slaying ways.
Regardless of how the development team at Sony Santa Monica decides to propel the story forward, it would be a shame for this new bearded Kratos to quickly devolve into his usual irrational, murderous self. Fans have been there and done that. What this reveal trailer shows is a new side to Kratos that fans haven't seen before. God of War is fresh and exciting once again. Maybe, just maybe, it will stay that way.
