The Art of God of War

As a fan of art books for the games that I love or anticipate to be monumental upon their release, I pre-ordered this book as soon as I noticed it was available. I rarely do that on account of the increased price at face value upon release date, but I knew that this game was going to produce some of the most gorgeous, awe-inspiring art pieces in recent memory for the genre. The Art of God of War does not disappoint.The book clocks in at over 220 pages of concept art, models, environments, pre-production, and post-production items. Full page spreads adorn some of the more impressive vistas or artistic representations of action scenes that exhibit the tone that Cory Barlog was desperately searching for words to explain. If the phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words" then, indeed, these images speak volumes.What makes the book most impressive is how it is organized. The book is well written and recounts the expedition from the small "what if" that sparked back in 2013. It starts with a well-written foreword by Cory Barlog and introduction by Evan Shamoon. These paragraphs set the stage for the journey you are about to take through the book, strapping you in snugly before the fantastic and thrilling ride of game development. Part One is "Pre-Production," compiling everything that went into taking an idea and a re-imagining and putting thoughts and dreams to paper. Part Two is titled "First Playable," an interesting chapter regarding the not-often-witnessed pain-staking process of putting together pre-production materials into what was revealed at the infamous opening ceremony to the 2016 E3 PlayStation Conference - the moment that shocked audiences world-wide as Cory performed a hands-on "first playable" demonstration of God of War backed by a full symphony orchestra and choir. [Note: if you haven't seen this for yourself, be sure to YouTube the 2016 E3 PlayStation Conference to witness God of War's epic reveal.. something that I doubt will ever be replicated.] Part Three is "Opening Up The World," showcasing the real meat of putting rubber to asphalt and building upon the first-playable demo, expanding into each segmented part of the story and open-world aspects of the game. Finally, Part Four is titled "Production," and it is the equivalent to cinematic post-processing, editing, cutting floor, and polishing of Hollywood blockbusters. In this finale, you really see the shine finally come through on the finished masterpiece that Cory and his team at Santa Monica gave rise to, five years in the making.I could not recommend this book more to newcomers and beloved fans of the God of War franchise and legacy. Critics and fans have agreed that this game is a love letter to everything that makes video gaming near and dear to our hearts. It has redefined what it means to enjoy video games. It is powerful. It is smart. It is funny. It is heartbreaking. And this book by Dark Horse has overcome the immense obstacle of setting itself apart from its contenders in the same manner as the source material it depicts. 5 Stars.

It’s was one of the biggest game to come out last year, and it’s exceeding all expectations. Santa Monica Studio brought back Kratos in a brand new God of War game for the PlayStation 4. With this art book from Dark Horse, we get to see the detail and beauty that went into making this modern-day epic.When it comes to the production art of video games, I am a massive fan. I would buy the strategy guides just for glimpses at the artwork. Now, with this awesome book, you can enjoy pre-production artwork and notes, a look at the world created for this game, as well as the actual production of the series. From character designs, sketches, storyboards and more, we get a first-hand look at this amazing game. Set in a pre-Viking world deep in Norse mythology, it is a big departure from the previous titles, yet retains the core of the game nicely. Kratos has changed to match the new world he lives in, now with his son as a sidekick. We get detailed looks at our two heroes, the enemies they encounter, and the environment, which feels like a character in itself.I have gone through these pages over and over, and I still can’t get enough of this book. The Art of God of War should be a must buy for any fan of the series. Dark Horse knocks it out of the park with this one. Available digitally as well as a beautiful, hefty hardcover, I can’t recommend this book enough.

Not much else to say other than it's a thorough book that delves into the art and development of the 2016 continuity. Great for norse fans, GoW fans, and people who genuinely enjoy the aesthetic they provide.

The game itself is fantastic, one of the most beautiful games yet to be produced in my opinion (more amazing graphically than even Horizon Zero Dawn on a PS4 Pro which is saying something) and that’s what this book focuses on - the stellar visual design. If you’re a fan of the game, this book touches on the production itself, inspirations, and insights on various character and level designs. Norse mythology is not as well documented as for example Greek or Roman as used for inspiration in previous games in the series, and the book talks about the challenges of starting with very little in terms of source materials which was interesting considering how well it turned out.I have several other The Art of... books both from Dark Horse as this one is and others, and I have to say both in quality of production of the book itself and the content, this is far better than any others. It’s reference-quality cover to cover, you could pretty much blow up every page and frame it. Kudos to the team who worked over five years to bring this game to life, that it was a labor of love shows in this book and in the game itself. All the superlatives - game rocks, book rocks, pick it up and look at all the pretty pictures already!

Lets just start this off with the fact that I love the God of War series, I've been following it sense it's inception - and the newest one is not only amazing to play, but it's visuals are stunning and inspiring. This book shows you just about each and every step that the dev team took in order to bring this game. And if you're a fan of art books, this one is definitely one to pick up! Each page is coated in gorgeous pictures top to bottom, from starting sketches to fully rendered illustrations - it shows it all. From Kratos to Brok and Sindri, from the trolls to the dragur to the dragons, this book covers every scrap of information that the game has in it in beautiful, stunning detail. Sony and Dark Horse made a fantastic art book with this one, and I cannot say enough positive things. A true centerpiece in my artbook collection.

As a fan of the series since the olden days the art is incredible, the commentary from Barlog and others was awesome. Overall awesome and definitely worth it for fans. Also the book was WAY bigger than I thought it was gonna be which is a good thing imo.

Llegó en excelente estado, y es un excelente art book.