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As we continue the journey to March 12, 2013, we want to further explore all aspects of the God of War universe, giving you deeper insight into the creation, lore, design, and gameplay of God of War: Ascension. Welcome to our third Monsters of Ascension feature.

The Satyr Captain in God of War: Ascension continues the evolution of the “Satyr,” an enemy that has featured in every God of War game from the beginning. This time, however, these grunts are getting a “pack master” in the form of the vicious Satyr Captain. In today’s post, our famed concept artist Izzy continues his dissection of the Monsters of Ascension. Let’s roll!

The God of War Satyrs are traditionally pretty formidable alone and even more so in groups. Now with the addition of the Goat Captain, they add rank and structure to their arsenal. Those are some pretty stacked odds that Kratos is up against. What sparked the idea to give them a commanding officer?

Izzy, concept artist, God of War: Ascension: I think there was a pretty great response to the commander classes we had in God of War III, specifically things like the Centaur. The main idea was to vary up the more difficult battles with these guys by changing the behaviour of the base grunts and alter their collective tactics. In keeping with this design philosophy we wanted to have a high level ‘commander’ grunt that we could spawn in lots of places, unlike the Centaur, which needed a lot of room to be effective. They are the mini-mini-boss…

Run us through the creation process of this character from beginning to end. What were some of the key points that you really wanted to nail down while making the Goat Captain?

Izzy: This guy had to clearly be the boss. I wanted to do something that would push his proportions beyond the rest of the Satyrs. Since we had already built an aesthetic of the more monstrous animal version of the Satyrs rather than the more human face with goat leg ones of the past, I thought he should be pushed into an even more feral direction. I experimented with longer limbs, and I think we settled eventually on the designs that gave him an almost slouched position with a long goat-like neck. This made the armor built around his shoulders feel denser, and gave him a strong tank-like appearance.

In the single-player demo that was shown at E3, we see the Goat Captain fiercely give the order of attack to his troops as he observes the fray from above. At one point he joins in the skirmish, almost as if heíd had enough watching Kratos make short work of his soldiers. When designing the Goat Captain, did you have that kind of “evil genius” persona envisioned for him from the start?

Izzy: As Iíve mentioned before, I find malevolent intelligence way more potentially scary compared to a more feral savage evil. For the Captain he needed to clearly be in command, so we showed this with his stronger, herculean-like armor, as well as those huge flat lightning bolt shaped horns.

He was always meant to be a commander or overseer of the action that would jump in to make short work of his enemies after they had been tenderized a bit by his cronies. When he gets in there though, he doesn’t mess around. His nasty falchion style sword does plenty of damage, when he’s not above calling in the troops, and brutalizing his enemies against the wall.

Click here to see more concept art and info on the Satyr Captain.

Oh, dude, your body. It's kinda messed up now.

#godofwar More »

PlayStation Plus subscribers will get first crack at a God of War: Ascension beta "soon," game director Todd Papy has revealed on the PlayStation Blog. Don't have a PS Plus subscription? Papy says "there may a few other secret inroads" to access the beta.

When you boot up multiplayer for the first time, you'll have to pledge allegiance to one of four gods: Hades, Ares, Poseidon or Zeus. Once you've got an affiliation, you can dive into the four-vs-four combat and earn XP, which is used to progress and fine-tune your character in pursuit of becoming your favored god's best pet.

"Each of our unique multiplayer maps and gameplay modes will have a variety of objectives and interactive multi-leveled environments," Papy says. "We'll be sharing more details as we get closer to our March 12, 2013 release."

God of War fans, it’s Game Director Todd Papy again with the latest and greatest on God of War: Ascension. If you saw the on-stage world premiere of our new epic single-player journey at E3, then you’re well aware Kratos will be as bad-ass as ever when Ascension hits stores on March 12, 2013. However, today I’m here to talk more about our ambitious multiplayer mode, a multiplayer experience we are confident will be worthy of the title, God of War.

Back on April 30th, I gave you an in-depth look at how our new multiplayer-mode works, combining the visceral combat and brutal finishing kills from single-player with an intense and fresh online 4v4 competitive mode. I’m excited to announce today that we will be launching a global multiplayer beta in the near future, available exclusively first to PlayStation Plus subscribers (there may a few other secret inroads). It’s critical to our team that we receive as much community feedback to tune and prime our multiplayer mode for one of the best experiences possible, come launch this March.

Here’s a brand-new multiplayer trailer to whet your appetite, this is what God of War: Ascension multiplayer is all about:

Where and how you begin as a Warrior in God of War: Ascension multiplayer is a mystery you’ll discover at launch, there is a story to “you,” notwithstanding, your first decision will be to pledge your allegiance to one of 4 familiar Gods: Zeus, Hades, Ares and Poseidon. Each God will offer a unique combat play-style and devastating abilities in battle. You’ll unlock special magic abilities, new and upgraded armors and weapons, mystical relics and other treasures as you earn XP to level up your Warrior.

While each will have an incredible array of combat maneuvers, the “attack-style” of the God you align with is critical to your Warriors “path.”

Our Warrior customization and XP system is going to keep you serving your God for centuries to come. It is your goal to become a true God of War, a Champion of the Gods. When you head into battle with friends and foes, you will have teammates aligned to all of the Gods, not only balancing out the strengths of each team, but creating a mythical and diverse combat war in every match.

In our signature multiplayer mode, Favor of the Gods, the first team to accumulate a target amount of “points” will claim victory (at E3 this was set to 5,000). Points, known as “Favor,” are earned by kills and other methods. When you’re not in the middle of destroying your enemies with brutal elegance, you can also help your team earn points by capturing altars, collecting red orbs from chests, and setting deadly traps for opposing players. Every multiplayer level is also littered with power-ups that will give you a quick edge in battle with special abilities, such as the power of Hermes Boots to boost your speed, and many more.

Finally, we’ve always believed God of War is about “epic larger than life moments,” and our multiplayer mode will fulfill that in a variety of ways. In our first map reveal, you’ve witnessed the awe-shocking terror of “Polyphemus,” a skyscraper sized giant Titan who wants to squash you to a pulp. When a team has earned a certain threshold of “favor points,” the Gods will drop down the Spear of Olympus; the only weapon known to man that can destroy Polyphemus. The first team to acquire this weapon and destroy the Titan may win the match, or turn the tide of the battle.

Each of our unique multiplayer maps and gameplay modes will have a variety of objectives and interactive multi-leveled environments. We’ll be sharing more details as we get closer to our March 12, 2013 release.

If you’re going to be in Germany at Gamescom this week, you’ll be among the first in the world to get hands on with our new multiplayer mode. It doesn’t stop there, you will also get the very first hands-on with our single player demo as well, and lay waste to The Elephantaur with your own hands.

For those of you stateside, we will also be bringing God of War: Ascension to PAX at the end of this month. We’re also proud to announce we will be doing the first-ever God of War Panel at PAX as well. Watch for more details on our PAX panel discussion and booth presence in the coming weeks.

So, how will you prepare for God of War: Ascension coming this March 12, 2013? There’s only one way right now – reliving Kratos’ epic journey step by step, every earth-shattering larger than life moment, every treacherous God destroyed on his quest for revenge and redemption, in the God of War: Saga Collection, coming this August 28th for just $39.99.

The Blades of Chaos will reign a blistering and heart-pounding fury in glorious high-definition as the God of War: Saga includes every God of War game and a PlayStation Plus 1-month voucher, perfect for getting into the God of War: Ascension MP beta when it hits PSN later this year.

Our dedicated team here at Sony Santa Monica is working harder than Kratos’ path to vengeance to make Ascension the biggest and most ambitious God of War game ever, and your passion for the world of God of War fuels us daily. Follow and give me a shout at @ToddPapy or @SonySantaMonica. You should like and check out our brand new God of War Facebook page for the latest and greatest news about the game, our awesome Collector’s Edition, and Mythological Heroes Multiplayer Pack pre-order DLC. Watch our Facebook page for news in the near future about how you can get early access to the multiplayer beta and more.

Now, back to the Pantheon…

God of War: Ascension’s Elephantaur is a Minotaur hybrid unlike any ferocious enemy you’ve seen yet in the God of War universe. You could call him an evolution of the Minotaur… or perhaps the beginning? We’ll let our famed concept artist href="https://twitter.com/cannibalcandy">Izzy answer that for you. Let’s roll!

Now that you’ve given us a glimpse into the creative process that spawned the monstrous Polyphemus, let’s plunge our blades into God of War’s newest baddie: The Elephantaur! Tell us a bit about its history and how you managed to turn one of nature’s most noble creatures into such a hulking juggernaut.

Izzy: For God of War III I had worked on the Berserker class Argus monster that was later cut. When I originally started doing sketches for that guy, I had done a painting of a pale elephant coated in blood like a gladiator. That image got scrapped, but ever since, I’ve wanted to do another scary elephant monster.

When the Elephantaur came up, it was originally an assignment to reskin the Minotaur from God of War III for God of War: Ascension. We had planned to do a different kind of Minotaur, and I did several sketches of ideas for the monstrous herbivore. I did my due diligence and tried to make a new version of the classical creature, but I kept running into a lot of the tropes that have been used before. I wasn’t very satisfied with those and kept getting more and more exotic with my influences. I whipped up some anthropomorphic bulls, yaks, bears, lizards, turtles and even a rhinoceros…but in my heart I wanted to bring back that elephant.

It’s also not a commonly known fact that the “peaceful and noble” elephants are, sometimes, total ****. I had a bad run in with an elephant in Thailand that thought it was really funny dunking me in the river Kwai again and again. The locals thought it was hilarious, too. But ever since… I’ve known them for what they really are: the giant grey bullies of the forest! So as an artist I drew from my suffering and humiliation to really make this guy an evil bastard. It fits our God of War universe perfectly.

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This franchise is known for producing the most visually stunning take on the colossal beasts of ancient Greek mythos to date. How much of a challenge is it to constantly up the ante on the design of these legendary creatures?

Izzy: Character design on a franchise like this is both a blessing and a curse. You have the profound joy of painting monsters and certain scandalous body parts for a living. You get the thrill of being part of a project steeped in bad-ass myth that is vibrant with history and exciting imagery. The cost is rough, however. We are always trying to top ourselves.

Our benchmark for bad assery is so high that the pressure is nail-bitingly intense. My team’s task is simple. Kick-ass. Constantly. It’s very hard, but much like Kratos, we just snarl, leap in, and hack into the meat of these things!

Early concept art for Elephantaur (left) Final Elephantaur design (right)

At first glance, the Elephantaur looks like a towering brute with an anger issue! However, if you pay attention to the intricacies, there is a ton of detail there. He is decked out in full battle gear, everything from his barbed tusks and morning star trunk to his gigantic, man-sized club just screams BOSS! What was the intent of giving him that many tools of destruction?

Izzy: The Minotaur in the last God of War game was a savage beast. We toyed with some versions where the creature was armored up, and a bit more intelligent, but something really primal won out on that one. I feel that the Elephantaur is the perfect marriage of brutality with homicidal intellect. I felt he should have weapons and armor that were deadly but also a little elegant. His tusks have long nasty blades attached to them, and he grips a deadly elephant-style cestus with his trunk.

All of this was meant to give him the appearance of a heavy martial artist that had total command of his tools. I included a massive club for him to use as well. If you pause our E3 gameplay footage you will see that it’s made of the tusks of his fallen enemies. I like to imply some culture and history in these designs, and that small tidbit makes me imagine the culture he comes from.

For much more on the Elephantaur, including additional concept art, head on over to the official God of War site now.

God of War Saga Collection is reportedly in the works for August, according to a Siliconera source. The site's insider doesn't give any details beyond the name, but since there's already a God of War Collection with the first two games, if the Saga Collection is true, logic would dictate this adds the third.

God of War: Ascension, the next installment in the series with a multiplayer focus, will unleash March 12, 2013.

#godofwar After our hero Kratos wrestles the elephant monster in God of War: Ascension to the ground, he—you—can make him stab the creature in the head. You can make him stab repeatedly. Then, at your command, Kratos slits the head open to reveal the monster's brain. More »

#preview To some jaded eyes, the new God of War revealed this past spring looked too much like the old God of Wars. Oh, they added multiplayer this time, but what was so fresh in the game's solo campaign? More »

In an interview with IGN, Sony Santa Monica's David Hewitt admitted the team's scaled back on the violence towards women in God of War: Ascension. The team is of the mind that showing such a thing would make a statement and define the character in a way that doesn't befit Kratos. "There are some things we've pulled back from. I think where this has been an issue is with violence against women - the team's pulled back from some of that and assessed that a little more carefully," Hewitt admitted. "There are certain things that carry has a different kind of resonance that we don't want to get into. This isn't about statement-making in that regard. It's about fleshing out this character."

The overall interview focuses not just on violence on women, but violence in general. As one of the most criticized games of E3 in this regard, Hewitt justifies God of War: Ascension's body count by saying Kratos doesn't languish in the slaughter, nor does he particularly enjoy it. Kratos is constantly pushing forward, moving toward his goal of revenge, so Hewitt doesn't feel the violence is particularly glorified.

As we begin the journey to the launch of God of War: Ascension on March 12, 2013, we want to further explore all aspects of the God of War universe to give you deeper insight into the creation, lore, design, and gameplay that’s being poured into the game. Welcome to our first “Monsters of Ascension” feature.

In God of War: Ascension, we are introducing an epic, unprecedented multiplayer experience. You will become a Champion of the Gods, but not before you encounter and conquer one of the biggest Titans seen in the entire God of War series — Polyphemus.

The Titan cyclops Polyphemus — the gargantuan one-eyed son of Poseidon — is a brutal boss on our desert multiplayer map. He will literally crush you and your foes (repeatedly) until you earn enough favor from the Gods to be granted the Spear of Olympus — the only known weapon that can destroy Polyphemus.

I sat down with Izzy Medrano, Lead Concept Artist for God of War: Ascension, to discuss his contributions to the game.

Aaron Kaufman: What inspired your visual creation of Polyphemus? Any other particular monsters, movies, comic-book villains, a recent to trip to Mesopotamia, or perhaps a particular dev team member? He’s a beast!

Izzy Medrano: Ironically, I pulled a little bit of of his body type from myself and similarly shaped guys. I’m pretty barrel chested and sport a proper tummy. Someone else noticed the similarity so I even painted a quick version of Polyphemus with my trademark curls, spiral earrings, and a hoodie – it got some laughs in the review!

I find with a lot of these sort of classic Greek monsters, I’ll mix something really traditional with something highly unusual. In this case horns came up pretty early as a nod to the old Harryhausen Cyclops, and Polyphemus’ restraints came from a sort of modern bondage / piercing angle.

The other thing I brought into his shape was the knowledge that the original myths of the Cyclops are said to come from early Greeks encountering ancient elephant skulls. It wasn’t until way later in the days of Hannibal that elephants became known to the culture at large, so it was likely that they invented the Cyclops tale to account for these massive fossils. With that in mind I added some short tusks to the character’s jaw line, and added just a bit of an elephant texture to his skin. There may be an underlying tone of “elephant” throughout God of War: Ascension because of me. Just sayin’.

AK: How do you feel about Polyphemus being a featured boss in multiplayer instead of traditional single-player epic bosses that you’re accustomed to creating for God of War?

IM: I am really content with Polyphemus’ role in multiplayer. He’s the first God of War multiplayer boss ever created, and in many ways has to break a lot of new ground. Not the least of which is on the technical side. This is a full-blown God of War Titan boss that players are accustomed to seeing in single-player, but now in eight-player multiplayer mayhem. It’s incredible! He may not be what I’ve become accustomed to, but he iss definitely a monster all his own,like a boss.

AK: Tell me what’s bad-ass about Polyphemus.

IM: If you pay attention to the piercings on our big, dour friend, you’ll notice that there are three gigantic piercings holding him in place. Two are impaling his arms. They separate his biceps from the humerus bone in what could be considered the most intense body modification ever. The pain of constantly having your muscles tugged from the bone must be incredible. Yet he pulls against his bonds with all of his giant’s might to destroy the measly humans at his dinner table.

For even more details, you can read the full “Monsters of Ascension” feature here.

Well, okay, maybe not that Animal Collective, but this God of War: Ascension walkthrough from Sony's E3 press conference does predominantly pit Kratos against a cadre of half-man, half-animal manimals. The demo also showcases Kratos' newly acquired reconstructive abilities, as well as the quick-time events we've all come to expect from the series.

As far as creature design is concerned, we have to admit that we're pretty enthused by what we see here -- we're quite partial to the elephant man, ourselves. No, not that Elephant Man.

Buried in a PlayStation Blog post from E3 was an announcement of a collector's edition for God of War: Ascension. If you're surprised to learn of the existence of a collector's edition of a major console game, allow us to welcome you to this generation.

Amazon is now taking pre-orders on the $79.99 pack, which includes an "Exclusive 8" Kratos Statue," a steelbook case, a digital soundtrack, avatars, a dynamic theme, a pass for "all future DLC releases," a code for double XP in multiplayer, and an Operation: Elephant Monster Lobotomy Edition board game. We made one of those up.

Kratos is back for more blood in God of War: Ascension.

Brutally kill your way to become the ultimate god in the multiplayer mod of God of War: Ascension.

Pick up weapons and augment your attacks using the World Weapons system in God of War: Ascension.

Killing in the most brutal way possible earns you more points in God of War: Ascension.

I don't think that Kraken has ever played a God of War game, you never expose your tentacles to Kratos.

#godofwar The latest God of War is PS Vita bound. Dubbed God of War: Ascension, the game is slated for release in March 2013. More »

Work your way from an unknown hero to a well-known god in the multiplayer mode of God of War: Ascension.

Sony just showed off the first singleplayer content for God of War: Ascension. Kratos is back in action fighting all kinds of baddies, including both a goat man and a half-elephant, half-man of some kind. Kratos showed off a nice arsenal of various weapons, including his trusty chainblades, and quite a few environmentally-obtained tools of destruction, as well as a few new stun moves and some very nice counter attacks.

Kratos also has one other big move: When a dock is destroyed, he can use something on his wrist (and a shiny green glow) to rebuild the dock's crane, Red Faction: Armageddon style.

The demo ended with Kratos diving right into the belly of a large kraken, undoubtedly ready for more killing. The game is coming out March 12, 2013.

Just a few moments ago we brought our annual E3 press conference to a close, which marked the official kick-off of E3 and one of my favorite times of the year. As I’ve said previously, gamers are PlayStation’s lifeblood and we will do everything in our power to continue to entertain and amaze you.

Nearly four months after the U.S. launch of PlayStation Vita, we continue to be overwhelmed by the positive response from our gaming community. As demonstrated a few moments ago, we’ve only begun to scratch the surface of PS Vita’s capabilities and gameplay. With new titles like Assassin’s Creed 3: Liberation, Call of Duty Black Ops Declassified and PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, in addition to a deep lineup of more than 60 titles that will be available before the end of the year, we continue to build PS Vita’s content library with jaw-dropping titles that demonstrate its full power and unique features. The next few months will be extremely exciting for PS Vita and our fans.

In the home, PlayStation 3 continues to deliver rich, immersive games that can only be found on our platform. PS3 provides developers with the industry’s most powerful palette to create from, and our extremely talented team at Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios is taking full advantage. We will bring more of what you love with hard-hitting adventures, fast-paced action and suspense-filled mysteries in four new PS3 exclusive titles: Beyond, God of War: Ascension, Last of Us, and PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale. Words can’t do justice to these titles, so be sure to watch the new content we shared tonight. Our publishing partners also demonstrated some amazing content, including Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed 3 and Far Cry 3, both of which will offer exclusive DLC for PlayStation customers.

In addition to the core games you love, we also introduced Wonderbook, a completely new experience for PS3 unlike anything you’ve ever seen. Wonderbook puts a physical book in your hands, and when paired with a PS Eye camera, brings to life stories and adventures that allow you to interact with them like never before. We’ve been working with one of the most popular book franchises in the world for our first title: WonderBook: Book of Spells is a collaboration between PlayStation and J.K. Rowling, creator of the magical world of Harry Potter. Book of Spells will feature exclusive and new original writings from J.K. Rowling, and will utilize PlayStation Move – in the form of a magic wand, to help gamers learn and master the art of spell-casting.

All of our platforms are enhanced by the industry’s most robust online entertainment network, PlayStation Network. We strengthened our offering for you tonight by announcing a free new library of games for PlayStation Plus members. PS Plus members now have immediate and instant access to an ever-expanding lineup of great titles that can be downloaded anytime. At launch, the game collection will feature 12 games, including inFAMOUS 2, LittleBigPlanet 2 and Saints Row 2. All of these games will be available to members starting tomorrow, and new games will be rotated in all the time.

PlayStation Suite – which as of today will be called PlayStation Mobile – is about delivering the world of PlayStation to open operating system-based portable devices. It’s our goal to make sure that wherever you are and wherever you go, PlayStation’s quality content is always available for you to enjoy. Tonight we announced that HTC will be our first non-Sony group partner to have its smartphones PlayStation-certified, which will help expand the PlayStation experience to even more devices and entirely new audiences.

PlayStation Nation has made PlayStation the global leader that it is today and I thank you for your support. As I said onstage just a few moments ago, our one wish for all of you is that you never stop playing. Keep pushing us. Keep driving us. We will continue to do everything in our power to meet and exceed your expectations, providing a gaming universe where you always feel welcome, challenged and amazed.

It’s an exciting time to be part of the PlayStation family…and the best is yet to come.

Jack Tretton

Kratos's next adventure will be out on March 12, 2013, Sony said today at its E3 press conference. More »

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Did you know that many of the most creative, influential people in gaming are named “Mark?” Neither did I… until this week. In this episode, we dive deep into God of War: Ascension‘s multiplayer and gameplay innovations with Sony Santa Monica Studio Lead Designer Mark Simon, and then get the lowdown on Call of Duty: Black Ops 2‘s surprising new direction with Treyarch‘s studio head Mark Lamia.

We’ll also talk PlayStation All-Stars: Battle Royale, for we have beheld it, and are already formulating strategies. Then we cast Nick off with a tearful, beardy goodbye, as he’s undertaking a month-long pilgrimage to his South African homeland.

As always, we’ve got the facts you crave: new PSN releases, user questions and tips, and which PlayStation game character Rey is dating now. Do join us!

The Cast Sid Shuman – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Specialist Jeff Rubenstein – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Manager Nick Suttner – PlayStation Sr. Product Evaluator Rey Gutierrez – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Specialist

[Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game
details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating
descriptions.]

• Thanks to Cory Schmitz for our beautiful logo and Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music. Special thanks to Astro Gaming headsets for providing audio gear.

#godofwar Sony's made a big revelation today with the disclosure of the multiplayer component coming in God of War: Ascension. Our preview explains the motivations and mechanics of the mythological prequel's gameplay, but what if you just want to see it in action? More »

Last week, IGN was lucky enough to take part in an early reveal of God of War: Ascension, one that chronicled some of the game's multiplayer fare. But that left plenty of PS3 gamers wanting. After all, God of War has always been a single-player game and a vast majority of the franchise's fans want to know about Ascension's campaign...

Wondering what that just announced multiplayer focus will look like in God of War: Ascension? The game's creative lead Todd Papy is currently setting up shop with the US PlayStation Blog's Jeff Rubenstein and will be broadcasting footage of the game across the interwebs any minute now. What's that, you wanna ask questions too? Thanks to the power of the internet, you can do just that via Twitter with Sony's synergistic hashtag "#GodofWarAscension."

But don't ask if Kratos is still gonna be super upset in this one. We've got that news for you right here: he totally will be.

A familiar face appears on the screen, moments before a demo for God of War: Ascension was about to begin at a press event earlier this week. Zoomed in, the angry mug resembles every one's favorite antihero, Kratos. But as the camera pans away, it becomes obvious that this is someone completely different.

Suddenly, a Cyclops bursts through a wooden door near the new character and the demo begins. The new character, decked out in armor inspired by the Greek God Poseidon, moves with the swiftness of Kratos. His sword pierces the lumbering ogre's skin as he leaps away from attack from it's giant club. In the blink of an eye, another character jumps onto screen and smashes the around around the beast with a giant hammer. The pair of soldiers mercilessly cut the Cyclops down, working together to mount the creature and slice its belly apart. As blood and guts slide out of the monster's gut, the area around the two characters explodes into a set of orbs.

Without a moment of hesitation, the pair walk through the newly opened structure before them, coming to the mouth of a large canyon. In the distance, the giant one-eyed Polyphemus, son of Poseidon and Thoosa, attacks a large group of soldiers already in the middle of a fierce battle. But it isn't a battle between A.I.; Ascension introduces God of War fans to team-based multiplayer.

#godofwar I'm sitting in a cinema; the lights come up. The God of War: Ascension presentation is over. Amidst a hum of whispers and seat shuffles, there is a call for questions. Reluctantly I raise my hand. I'm handed a microphone. More »

Hello PlayStation fans! As I mentioned on the 19th, at 8 AM PDT (11 AM EDT) today we’ll be streaming live from Santa Monica Studios, where our team is busy building the next evolution in the franchise. I will be talking with Mr. PlayStation Blog himself, Jeff Rubenstein, about God of War: Ascension and my past experience with the franchise. And of course I will be answering some of the questions from fans on Twitter. As promised, if we read your question live on air, we’ll be reaching out to you (via @PlayStation) so we can send you a signed God of War: Ascension poster.

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But wait, there’s more! During our live broadcast, I’ll be sharing the scoop with Jeff, and of course all of you, about our brutal new multiplayer mode. Yes, that’s right. God of War: Ascension will feature a ground-breaking new online multiplayer mode. We wouldn’t do multiplayer in God of War unless we knew we could do it right. That’s why I’m extremely excited to finally be able to talk publicly about it and share all the gory details with you live. I even have some exclusive gameplay footage to share with you, so be sure to tune in to see it all live.

And if you missed our announcement on the 19th, be sure to check out the announce trailer and initial game details here before the show starts. Stay tuned because we go live at 8 AM Pacific!

Let us know what you’re looking forward to most in God of War: Ascension, and what you think of the new multiplayer mode!