God of War Legend Cory Barlog Left the Sony Franchise Midway as He Was “Burned Out”

Cory Barlog is a well-known name in the gaming industry, all thanks to his contribution to the God of War series. Today, most gamers know him as the director of 2018’s God of War, however, his God of War journey started when he joined the development team of 2005’s God of War as the lead animator.

2005’s God of War was a massive success and Barlog was eager to continue the franchise. He decided to serve as the director and story writer of its sequel, God of War 2, giving fans another exceptional God of War game. Thanks to its success, Santa Monica Studio decided to create a third installment. However, Barlog left Santa Monica after the first eight months of its development. In 2019, he finally revealed why he left the franchise.

Cory Barlog Left The God of War Franchise Because He Was Burned Out

In 2019, Cory Barlog appeared for an interview with GamesBeat to talk about his 2018 game, God of War. During the conversation, Barlog talked about the time he left Santa Monica Studio during the production of God of War 3,

I’d been going for years without a break and shipping these games. I was burned out. I wanted, creatively, to get a different experience. I’m not certain how well I knew this or not, but I felt like I didn’t know a lot that I needed to learn, and I wasn’t going to learn it if I was making the same game over and over again.

Barlog explained that the development of 2005’s God of War was intense for him and a week to a week-and-a-half later he had to start writing and directing the second game. The same thing happened after the second game as he got a week’s break before he started writing and directing the third game.

The entire experience was quite hectic for Barlog, plus, he was interested in working on something else. Further in the interview, Barlog also revealed that Sony restricted him from exploring other projects. After his time at Santa Monica, Barlog also served as the cinematics director of 2013’s Tomb Raider.

Cory Barlog Returned To The God of War Franchise In 2013

In an official post on PlayStation.Blog, Cory Barlog announced in 2013 that he has returned to Santa Monica Studio. In 2018, he gave God of War fans a reboot of the series, once again proving why he is one of the best. For his work, he earned many prestigious awards, including awards for Best Game Direction and Game of the Year at The Game Awards 2018.

Even for 2022’s God of War Ragnarök, Barlog served as the creative director and producer. Barlog got his much-deserved break from the God of War series and it’s clear that the series needs his vision as his contribution has made God of War one of the best video game series of all time.