History TearJerker / GodOfWar

Bear in mind, a Game franchise about a Heroic Psychophatic Spartan who slaughters gods that stands in his way isn't complete without it's moments of Tragedy and Sorrow.

*** As this [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BF2EsI7Vo5Y Youtuber]] points out, mashing the circle button usually happens when Kratos needs to use every ounce of his strength for something, and it takes ''three'' of these for him to push Calliope away. In other words, the strength it took to push away Calliope was roughly equivalent to the strength it would take to kill '''three minotaurs'''.

* It's easy to miss, but when Kratos is explaining his past to Atreus after killing Baldur, his voice cracks slightly when he says the word "god", as if the mere ''thought'' of Ares is almost enough to make him cry. Even after 100 years, no one haunts Kratos quite like the original god of war does.

** The ending. Kratos finally kills Zeus, but has destroyed the world in the process. Athena pulls a FaceHeelTurn and demands Kratos surrenders the power of Hope. The spartan moves to finish her off, raises the Blade of Olympus... and then flips it around and runs himself through. Hope rushes across the world while Kratos bleeds to death, the screen going dark as he gasps for breath. The last shot is a blood trail leading over the edge of a cliff, while the sun shines through for the first time since Helios' death.

* On somewhat the same level as Hephaestus' death; Athena. At that point she was practically the only god feeling something akin to sympathy for Kratos and then he runs her through with the sword meant for Zeus'. Hers was probably the only death he regreted. Made worse by the fact that Zeus, her father, [[UngratefulBastard ''leaves'' her there]]. If you think about it, it makes it even worse for Kratos, because he just saw a father abandoning his daughter.

* Hephaestus's death. Believing that Kratos would kill Pandora, Hephaestus attempted to crush Kratos but failed and gets impaled on his own anvil. With his dying words, he plead Kratos to spare Pandoras's life and ask her for forgiveness. Even after killing him, Kratos remains sympathetic to him and possess no ill will or grudge at him, as Kratos acknowledges that Hephaestus only did what he was supposed to do as a father.

* Kratos being forced to MercyKill Orkos. Orkos is one of the few truly noble characters in the franchise, and even Kratos has come to respect Orkos as a friend. However, the Furies have ensured that Kratos will only be free if he kills Orkos. Kratos genuinely doesn't want to do it, and it's only when Orkos begs him that Kratos ascents to do it. Than the memories that will haunt him the rest of the series resurface. It's at this point that it all goes downhill.

*** ''"What you did to me...(sobs)...WHAT YOU DID TO ME!!! (Cries his eyes out)" '''

* Hephaestus's death. Believing that Kratos would kill Pandora, Hephaestus attempted to crush Kratos but failed and gets impaled on his own anvil. With his dying words, he plead Kratos to spare Pandoras's life and ask her for forgiveness]]. Even after killing him, Kratos remains sympathetic to him and possess no ill will or grudge at him, as Kratos acknowledges that Hephaestus only did what he was supposed to do as a father.

* [[spoiler: Hephaestus's death]]. Believing that Kratos would kill [[spoiler:Pandora]], [[spoiler:Hephaestus attempted to crush Kratos but failed and gets impaled on his own anvil. With his dying words, he plead Kratos to spare Pandoras's life and ask her for forgiveness]]. Even after killing him, Kratos remains sympathetic to him and possess no ill will or grudge at him, as Kratos acknowledges that [[spoiler:Hephaestus]] only did what he was supposed to do as a father.
** On that note, [[spoiler: Pandora's death.]] Especially cruel since it's one of the few times Kratos is trying to ''stop'' something horrible from happening.
*** Not to mention that [[spoiler:the box was empty and Pandora died for nothing.]]

* Kratos' reaction if he fails to [[spoiler:protect his family from Ares' clones, before they jump on him and tear him to bits:]]
--> '''Kratos''': [[spoiler:I couldn't stop them, they were too strong...]]
* [[spoiler: Kratos' mother was cursed to turn into a horrible monster if she revealed to him where Deimos was being held captive. She does it anyways, even knowing her own son will have to kill her. Kratos does the deed and mournfully carries her body out of the temple.]]
* Kratos being forced to [[spoiler: MercyKill Orkos]]. Orkos is one of the few truly noble characters in the franchise, and even Kratos has come to respect Orkos as a friend. However, the Furies have ensured that Kratos will only be free if he kills Orkos. Kratos genuinely doesn't want to do it, and it's only when Orkos begs him that Kratos ascents to do it. Than the memories that will haunt him the rest of the series resurface. It's at this point that it all goes downhill.

* In ''God of War (2018)'', all [[spoiler:Atreus needs is lots and lots and lots of hugs... And only does after melting that thick wall of ice around Kratos' heart.]]
** [[spoiler: Baldur's final moments near the end of the game. After a lifetime of being unable to feel anything (and going mad as a result), his last moments are spent with a wondrous smile on his face as he finally feels the snow...]]
* Speaking of [[spoiler: Baldur]], the backstory-revealing scene of him when spotting him suffering an illusion in Helheim, showing that he is [[AlasPoorVillain utterly depressed and suffering immensely]], thanks to his invincibility spell taking away his ability to taste, enjoy warmth, feel pleasure, drown his sorrows, anything! And it's revealed that not only was [[spoiler: Freya]] the one responsible for all this, but she is his mother! Imagine having such a horrible fate inflicted by your own mother! Not to mention, in both the flashback illusion and the present day, [[spoiler: Baldur]] bursts into tears, over the way his mother ruined his life.