Ghost of Sparta, Kratos finds his brother, and battles death

When we last saw Kratos he had returned to Atlantis to find the Death Gate. It was the portal to bring us into another world. The conspiracy to kidnap his brother was starting to come into focus. Sparta was attacked by an unknown army when Kratos was a young man. A large warrior on a war horse took his brother Deimos. Kratos tried to fight back but was knocked away by the warrior. A female warrior was accompanying him, she said the Fates had said the one with the markings was destined to cause the fall of Olympus. Now that they had the marked one they were to leave the other boy alone. They rode away. We learned that it was Ares, and Athena that had attacked Sparta that night.

Ares needed to ensure Deimos would never fulfill the prophecy. Had he killed the boy then his soul would have ended up in Hades. Once there he could have gone to the fields of Elysium, or the pits of Tartarus. In either case he would have grown up in the land controlled by the Olympians. He would be able to train with other deceased warriors, and recruit like-minded souls. Eventually he would have raised an army like his brother, and then overthrown Olympus. Ares had to take Deimos as far from Olympus as possible. In this case it was the Domain of Death. The Olympians had no power over the forces that existed before them, the Primordial realms. He left Deimos in the charge of Thanatos, the god of death. The only way Ares could have entered this world was if he had a key. In his case he had the Skull of Keres, the goddess of death. He kept it hidden in his temple on Sparta.

This portion of the game had brilliant design. It was as well themed as the other locations featured in the Ghost of Sparta. As far as we could see there was no sun, or moon in this place. There was no horizon. The realm of death went on to the infinite. In the background we could see a massive building.

Kratos made his way to the Temple of Thanatos. Avoiding supernatural birds, and vines that would strike him. The Bane of Thera allowed him to burn away the living plants.

When he reached the doors to the temple Thanatos spoke to him. It was the third time the effect had been used in the game. Thanatos was not happy that Kratos had trespassed into his domain. He challenged the Spartan to continue if he wanted to meet his destiny.

The only atmosphere in this place was a steady breeze. What I thought made is unique was that the wind carried dust. In every portion of this world there was dust. It was cascading down the walls. It was flowing down stairs, and pouring in through the cracks. I could only assume that this was the dust from where all things were made, and how we would end up. There were a few versions of the Bible through history that had a version of the phrase “From dust you have come, and to dust you shall return.” This was from the book of Genesis.

The Temple of Thanatos was eerie. The constant wind brought life to the stage even though there were no residents. The scale of this place seemed too massive for a solitary being. Of course it was all designed to be imposing. It was eternal, it existed before time, and would exist after the end of the universe.

There were several massive traps scattered within. They were large, brutal, and powerful enough to kill a god.

There was a rotating bridge separating the temple from the vault that held the prisoner Deimos. Fire would periodically shoot across the bridge, making it impossible to get across.

Kratos would need the Arms of Sparta to figure out the trap. He could use his shield to reach the bridge rotating mechanism. Then he could temporarily jam the gears on the vault with a spear attack. The gate on the vault would close, and allow Kratos a moment to rotate the bridge.

The fire would continue whether the gate was opened or closed. While it was down the face of Thanatos could be seen glowing with every burning pulse. It was an awesome site.

Kratos eventually reached the inner vault, and found his brother suspended by chains.

It wasn’t enough that Thanatos had imprisoned him. He had tortured Deimos for decades. His mind was not what it once was.

When Kratos lowered him it wasn’t a warm reunion. Deimos was filled with hate. It gave him strength, and power well above that of a normal human. The birthmark covering his body was now glowing with a similar rage to what filled Kratos.

Thanatos had left Deimos with large metal gauntlets. He would be able to use them against his brother, or any person foolish enough to release him. Deimos brutally attacked Kratos during the boss fight, and hit Kratos hard enough to break his gauntlets. Kratos would not strike back because he still cared for his brother. Once Deimos stopped pummeling his brother Thanatos showed up. He was enormous, taller than even Zeus. He grabbed Deimos with his claw-like fingers, and walked away. He knew Kratos had killed his daughter, and now he was going to return the favor. He jumped away from his temple. Despite his injuries Kratos followed after.

Thanatos landed on the Suicide Bluffs in Athens. He was going to drop Deimos just steps away from where the original GoW game started. It was a brilliant callback to the title that launched a franchise. Kratos saved his brother, and they reconciled. Deimos remembered the advice that Kratos gave him as a child. “A Spartan never lets his back hit the ground.” He nodded, and gave Deimos the Arms of Sparta. The two started a hunt for the god of death.

What followed next was an amazing battle. Both Kratos, and Deimos could strike at the same time. Thanatos used a giant sword to deflect the Blades of Athena, and spear attacks. When the duo were getting the upper hand Thanatos would transform into a giant beast. The creature was far larger than the monster Erinys could turn into. Little by little they were able to break through Thanatos’ armor-like skin. Just as they had the god of death weakened he struck the brothers. Slamming them each against the cliffs with tremendous force. The godly strength of Kratos saved him, but Deimos was mortal. He didn’t survive the final strike.

Kratos destroyed the giant monster form with his rage, then beat the human-sized Thanatos with his bare hands. As the god of death coughed up golden blood he filled in the blanks to the story. He told the god of war that the Sisters of Fate had already determined the marked warrior would destroy Olympus. There was no way to escape his fate. Kratos punched through his chest, and finished him. With his brother gone it was a hollow victory.

Kratos carries his brother up the cliffs, where an old friend is waiting. The Grave Digger appeared to Kratos as Crete was burning, and advised him to give up his quest. Now it was too late to do anything to avert his destiny. He has a hole prepared for his brother. Kratos lays him in the ground, and the Grave Digger begins covering him. Kratos wonders what he has become, the Digger replies “Death, the destroyer of worlds.” Athena appears through the portal of Olympus, and says now that he no longer had any ties to the mortal world she would fulfill her promise. She would wipe Kratos’ memories. He would no longer remember his family. Not his wife Lysandra, his child Calliope, his mother Callisto, or brother Deimos. He would remember only his life as a god. Kratos refuses, and uses the portal to return to Olympus. He vows to make the gods pay for what they did to him. His disdain for Olympus has grown tenfold. Athena regrets her decisions and apologizes under her breath, calling Kratos her brother. The seeds have been planted. We just witnessed the events leading into GoW II.

After the end credits we are treated to a special cut scene. The Grave Digger places the body of Callisto into the grave next to Deimos. He had a third grave prepared, and says “Now only one remains.” Then we see Kratos wearing his God Armor, sitting on the throne of Ares. It was a brilliant ending to a brilliant game. I said it at the start of the blog series, and I’ll say it again. This might be my absolute favorite GoW game, and easily one of my favorite games of all time. I’d like to hear from you. Did you play the Ghost of Sparta? What did you think? Did you have a favorite game in the series? I’d like to hear about it. Let me know in the comments section please. As always if you would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!