That SIE Santa Monica are working on a sequel to God of War shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. Sony may not have officially announced it, but they don’t need to do that to let everyone know that the game is being made, given how critically and commercially successful it was. Santa Monica have been staffing up for the sequel with new recruits for a while now, and a couple of new job listings posted by the studio on LinkedIn give us a hint of the narrative ambitions they have for the game.
A job ad for Lead Narrative Designer talks about “creating defining games” and “writing complex narratives.”
“The ideal candidate not only has deep knowledge of writing complex narratives for games but is capable of executing the narrative within the game through the intended player experience,” the ad reads. “This individual will be responsible for architecting and designing the narrative systems which realize the Game Directors’ vision.”
Another ad, this one for a Lead Writer, talks about similar things, mentioning “powerful storylines, strong character arcs, and compelling dialogue” as well as “the marriage between gameplay and narrative.”
“The ideal candidate has a mastery of storytelling, and deeply understands the marriage between gameplay and narrative,” the ad reads. “This individual will be responsible for crafting powerful storylines, strong character arcs, and compelling dialogue, while maintaining an equal focus on building and developing the writing team.”
Given how much 2018’s God of War excelled at telling its story, it’s no surprise that Santa Monica want to surpass themselves with the sequel- if that is indeed what they’re doing all this recruiting for.
But it probably is.