Should I Complete God of War Before New Game Plus?
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The short, definitive answer is a resounding YES. You absolutely should complete the main story of God of War: Ragnarok before diving into New Game Plus (NG+). The New Game Plus mode is specifically designed to be a replay experience, enhancing your second playthrough by carrying over your progress from a completed game. It’s not a standalone mode to jump into early. Engaging in NG+ without finishing the main storyline means you’re essentially missing the core experience that the mode is built upon. Let’s delve into why this is so important and what you’ll gain by finishing the game first.
The Importance of Completing the Main Story
New Game Plus in God of War: Ragnarok is not just about replaying the game; it’s about experiencing it with the full power and knowledge you’ve accumulated from your first playthrough. The mode is built on the premise that you’ve already witnessed the epic conclusion of the main storyline and want to further explore the world with an empowered Kratos.
Unlocking New Game Plus
The very first requirement to even access the NG+ mode is completing the main story quest, “The Realms at War.” This final quest acts as a gatekeeper, ensuring players have experienced the narrative’s conclusion before starting their upgraded replay. Without this, the “New Game +” option simply won’t appear on the main menu. This design choice emphasizes that the NG+ mode is an extension of your journey, not a shortcut.
Experience the Full Narrative Arc
Finishing the main story is crucial for understanding the context and nuances of the game. You’ll want to fully grasp Kratos’ emotional journey, his relationships, and the overarching plot before re-experiencing the world with all your collected gear. Jumping straight into NG+ would be like reading the last chapter of a book first; it lacks the emotional weight and understanding that comes from seeing the whole story unfold.
Understanding Gameplay Mechanics and Upgrades
Your first playthrough is where you learn the core combat mechanics, upgrade your gear, and experiment with different builds. This knowledge is vital for fully appreciating the enhanced difficulty and progression offered by NG+. You’ll understand how the weapons and abilities interact and be better prepared to tackle the more challenging enemies. The full completion of the game includes acquiring all base abilities and weaponry.
Full Appreciation of Progression
The true satisfaction of NG+ comes from seeing your character’s power grow even further with the ability to convert your fully upgraded gear into even more powerful ‘Plus’ versions. This progression relies on your initial completion of the game; you need to reach the maximum gear level of 9 in order to then access gear conversion and further level progression.
What to Do Before Starting New Game Plus
Before diving into NG+, it’s a good idea to wrap up any lingering activities and maximize your resources. This includes:
Completing Favors and Labors
While you can still do these in NG+, completing them beforehand will give you a wealth of experience and unlock valuable resources, making your second playthrough smoother. These side quests can provide unique rewards that enhance your combat abilities or provide additional lore and world building context.
Upgrading Gear
Ensure your armor, weapons, and shield are fully upgraded to level 9. This will maximize the starting power of your character and allow you to immediately start using the NG+ conversion mechanic to reach levels 9.1, 9.2, 9.3, and finally 10.
Collecting Resources
Accumulate plenty of Hacksilver, materials and other resources so you’re well-equipped to upgrade your gear further in NG+. The more resources you have, the more quickly you’ll be able to power up your upgraded gear.
Experiment with Builds
Take some time to experiment with different armor sets, talismans, and enchantments. This will give you a solid idea of what kind of playstyle you prefer going into NG+. Being comfortable with your preferred setup will be important when facing the more difficult enemies of NG+.
New Game Plus: What to Expect
Once you do begin NG+, be aware of what is carried over from your save and what needs to be unlocked again. You will keep all of your gear, but some core story elements will be reset.
Carried Over Elements
You will retain your:
- Armor
- Talismans
- Enchantments
- Runic Attacks
- Skills
- Weapons
- Hacksilver
Reset Elements
You will lose:
- Light Arrows
- Shock Arrows
- Story-locked Abilities (Like Atreus’ Arrows)
- All Favor and Labor progression, including Valkyrie fights
Enhanced Difficulty
Expect a more challenging experience. Enemies will be stronger, and you’ll need to be more strategic in your approach. The increased level cap for both you and the enemies adds an additional layer of challenge and progression to every encounter.
New Equipment and Progression
The New Game Plus also allows you to convert all your max level gear into new ‘Plus’ versions to get even more powerful. This is how you can go beyond level 9 and reach 10. There are additional items and equipment available only in the new game plus mode, such as the incredibly powerful Zeus armor set.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Does New Game Plus make God of War harder?
Yes, New Game Plus significantly increases the difficulty compared to your initial playthrough. Enemies are stronger and more resilient, pushing your skills and build choices to their limits. This is not simply a replay with your old gear but is instead a more challenging version of the game.
2. Do you start with the Blades of Chaos in New Game Plus?
Yes, in New Game Plus, you start with the Blades of Chaos already unlocked, from the very beginning of the game. Kratos will be wearing them from the outset.
3. Does starting a new game delete the old one?
Starting a brand new game will overwrite your autosaves, effectively erasing your current progress. To avoid this, always do a manual save before starting a new game. New Game Plus saves are labeled differently in the save menu, but make sure to be cautious.
4. Do Valkyries reset in New Game Plus?
Yes, all Valkyrie fights and all favor and labor progression is reset in New Game Plus. This gives you the chance to experience these challenging encounters again.
5. Can you upgrade the Leviathan Axe in New Game Plus?
Absolutely, in New Game Plus you can continue to upgrade the Leviathan Axe, Blades of Chaos, and the Draupnir Spear using the rare resource Primal Flames, which are primarily obtained by defeating major bosses. These weapons can reach level 10.
6. What carries over in New Game Plus?
Most of your progress carries over to NG+, including armor, talismans, enchantments, runic attacks, skills, weapons, and Hacksilver. You retain all of your equipment, but lose the story related items.
7. What do you lose in New Game Plus?
You will lose Light Arrows, Shock Arrows, and your story-locked abilities (like Atreus’ arrows) in NG+. Additionally, all favors and labors, including the Valkyrie fights, are reset.
8. How many times can you play New Game Plus?
You can play New Game Plus as many times as you want, as long as you keep a save file from before you started NG+. Once you finish a NG+ playthrough, you can’t start another one with that save file.
9. What is the max level in New Game Plus?
The max level in New Game Plus is level 10. You reach this level by upgrading level 9 gear to its ‘Plus’ version and then to level 10.
10. What is the best armor in New Game Plus?
The Zeus Armor is considered one of the best, albeit high-risk, high-reward armor sets. It greatly increases melee and runic damage while simultaneously increasing incoming damage. Other armor pieces can be converted to higher level, ‘plus’ versions, so try to experiment to find the setup that you enjoy the most.
11. How do you get Zeus armor?
The Zeus Armor pieces are obtained by:
- War Belt of Zeus: Clear your fourth Remnant of Asgard
- Gauntlets of Zeus: Clear your sixth Remnant of Asgard
- Cuirass of Zeus: Defeat Valkyrie Queen Gna.
12. Can you finish side quests after beating the game?
Yes, there are no missable quests in God of War: Ragnarok. You can complete all Favors and Labors in the post-game or during NG+.
13. Do you lose story-locked abilities in New Game Plus?
Yes, all story-locked abilities, like Atreus’ arrows and specific abilities of the Blades of Chaos, need to be unlocked again in New Game Plus.
14. What is the benefit of playing New Game Plus?
The primary benefit of NG+ is replaying the entire game with all your unlocked gear, weapons, and skills, offering an even more challenging and rewarding experience. It also introduces new progression systems and powerful equipment like the Zeus armor.
15. Can you restart God of War with all your gear?
Yes, you can restart with all your gear by starting a New Game + from the pause menu or the title screen. This will carry over all your armor, talismans, enchantments, runic attacks, skills, and weapons.
In conclusion, completing God of War: Ragnarok before starting New Game Plus is not just a suggestion, it is a fundamental part of the game’s design. It ensures you have the narrative context, gameplay experience, and resources necessary to truly enjoy the enhanced challenge and replayability that NG+ has to offer. So, don’t skip the main course; savor every moment before you dive back in.