Why did Kratos go bald?
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Kratos’ baldness is not due to alopecia, but rather a design choice made by the game developers to help define his character, with early concept art created by Charlie Wen depicting Kratos with a full head of luscious hair, which was later scrapped during development. The decision to make Kratos bald was influenced by the difficulty of animating “flowing things” and game director David Jaffe’s desire for Kratos to appear unconventional.
Frequently Asked Questions
About Kratos’ Appearance
- Did Kratos ever have hair? Early concept art created by Charlie Wen depicted Kratos with a full head of luscious hair, which was later scrapped during development since “flowing things” were generally difficult to animate and because game director David Jaffe wanted Kratos to appear unconventional.
- Why does Kratos not shave? Kratos’ large beard helps keep him warm in the throes of Fimbulwinter, and removing it makes the Ghost of Sparta look very strange.
- Does Kratos not grow hair? Kratos can’t grow much scalp hair; he’s had a receding hairline since he was 18.
About Kratos’ Background
- What race was Kratos? Kratos is Greek, more specifically Spartan, not black, and there is no such thing as African American until 1776.
- Why did Kratos say no to Odin? Kratos cares about Freya and Odin threatened her in his offer for peace, and he also trusts Mimir who advised him against trusting Odin’s offer.
- Is Kratos actually aging? Kratos is not immortal, but the power he has from the gods means he is nearly impossible to kill and ages far slower than any normal person, which makes Kratos’ age difficult to determine.
About Kratos’ Abilities
- How tall can Kratos grow? Just like Ares, Kratos as the God of War can change his size into a nearly 500-foot tall giant, however, Kratos seems to only possess this ability as a God, as he never shows this again past the original trilogy.
- Who is taller than Kratos? Thor towers above Kratos, making him quite the foe for our protagonist, Kratos likely wouldn’t match Thor’s height even on tip-toes.
- Why does Kratos hate his blade? Widely feared throughout Greece, the Blades of Chaos personified what Kratos had become during the darkest period of his life: a monster who killed his own family out of bloodlust, turning him into the infamous Ghost of Sparta.
About Kratos’ Equipment
- Why doesn’t Kratos use his wings anymore? After a certain period, the wings began to wither and lose feathers, which resulted in Kratos’ eventual fall to the ground, opening air vents or shafts allowed Kratos to fly higher and farther.
- Why does Kratos only have an axe? Cory Barlog explained in an interview why it was important to separate Kratos from his signature weapons, “We were experimenting with lots of different weapons, lots of different things,” Barlog said, “I think we wanted to create an identity, because to me the blades represent a very dark time in [Kratos’] life.”
About Kratos’ Physical Characteristics
- Is Kratos’ skin fading? The ashes on Kratos are fading, and this was also confirmed by Cory Barlog, though he didn’t care enough to give a reason, in the newer games it’s pretty evident that the ashes on Kratos are fading.
- Is Kratos a full god? While he wouldn’t know it for most of his life, Kratos was a demigod as he is the son of Zeus, but he would later become a full-on god, the God of War to be precise, after killing Ares.
About Kratos’ Strength and Age
- How heavy can Kratos lift? Cronos was stated by a worker of the game to be a close match to Atlas’ strength, Atlas is strong enough to hold the Earth’s crust, which represents 0.5-0.4% of Earth’s mass, this means Kratos’ strength should be around 30-24 quintillion tons.
- How old is Kratos in human years? They add, too, that “10 years of service makes Kratos around 38 when he becomes the God of War,” this would, therefore, make him around 50 years old by the end of God of War III, when he had been God of War for 12 years, there you have it, Kratos is likely around 1,055 years old and still kicking all sorts of arse.