Last week it was announced that a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game based on the 2020 comic miniseriesThe Last Roninwas actively in development. The announcement thatTMNT: The Last Roninwould seek to borrow elements from the twoGod of Wartitles set in Norse mythology also served to drum up excitement for the title and set the bar high in terms of the level of quality the studio was aiming for. The saga of Kratos and Atreus that unfolded over 2018’sGod of Warand last year’sGod of War: Ragnarokwas one with plenty of emotional depth, andTMNT: The Last Roninwill be a much more mature tale than other games based on the TMNT franchise given its source material.
The most recent TMNT game (the excellentTMNT: Shredder’s Revenge) was based on the 1989 animated series, so the premise of a new TMNT game that uses the story from one of the best comic releases of 2020 as the basis for its narrative is an exciting one. One area that the new TMNT game already mirrors 2018’sGod of Waris in its darker tone and somber narrative. IfThe Last Roningame is going to borrowother elements fromGod of WarandRagnarok, there is a considerable pool of ideas and mechanics from which it could draw.
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God of War’s Combat is a Perfect Fit for TMNT: The Last Ronin
InThe Last Ronin, three of the four Ninja Turtles have died after a tragic occurrence that played out years prior to the events covered in the comic. Michelangelo now wages a one-turtle war against the illegitimate son of Shredder’s daughter Karai in a dystopian future that brings to mind the post-apocalyptic cyberpunk aesthetic of Frank Miller’sRonin. In order to become a one turtle army that is capable of tackling any situation thrown at him,Michelangelo utilizes not just his signature nunchakubut the entire arsenal of his deceased brothers.
One of the most well-known video game protagonists to swap weapons on the fly to fit any combat scenario is Sony’s Greek-turned-Norse god Kratos. Given the narrative connection to why Michelangelo would use multiple weapons, borrowing the hot-swappable arms andon-the-fly strategy ofGod of War’s combatwould be a natural fit forTMNT: The Last Ronin. Additionally,God of War’s combat successfully achieved a twin sense of both speed and weight, which would lend itself perfectly to the flow of combat in a game where players control Michelangelo - a Ninja Turtle whose loose combat style should feel both powerful and fluid.
Taking Cues from God of War’s World-Building and Traversal
In bothGod of WarandGod of War: Ragnarökplayers are able to travel freely between the 9 realms of Norse mythology after reaching pinnacle moments in each game.The Last Roninfeatures not only a diverse set of locations where the action takes place but a cast of ancillary characters both new and old that assist and hinder Michelangelo on his quest for revenge. IfTMNT: The Last Roninis using theGod of Wartitles as inspiration, players should be able to travel freely between these environments and have characters such as April O’Neal and Casey Marie Jones be helpful NPCs that Michelangelo routinely visits for weapon upgrades and item purchasing, mirroring the roles of Brok and Sindri fromGoW.
BothKratos' axe and bladesare important items for traversal as much as they are implements of destruction, and Michelangelo’s arsenal should serve a similar dual-purpose inTMNT: The Last Ronin. It is not difficult to imagine environmental traversal scenarios where Michelangelo would use Donatello’s bo staff to pole vault over gaps and shuriken to cut ropes or vines that could then be grabbed and used for climbing. Given the diverse nature of the locations inThe Last Ronin, there are numerous options as to how the arsenal of the Heroes in a Half-shell could be used for more than just combat.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Roninis currently in development.
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