Heartwarming / God of War

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• From the first game - "ARES! There is nothing you can put in my way to stop me! I will save my family!" Even Kratos' detractors can't help but think damn straight and cheer for him when he shouts this in defiance at Ares after the God of War summons a bunch of Doppelgangers of Kratos himself who are closing in on avatars of his family. Especially since this line comes right after Calliope cries "Daddy!" Heroic Resolve if I've ever seen it. Also counts as a Moment of Awesome. Subverted, in that Kratos - despite his best efforts - fails in preventing his family dying a second time, which turns this sorta into a Tear Jerker.
• When you think about it, Kratos' brief moments with Prometheus. He talks rather comfortably with the bound titan, and asks him who placed him in his torment, and then accedes to his wish to be released from his torment. It is somewhat ambiguous whether Kratos/Gaia had anything to gain from that that they were aware of, as what Gaia says about getting help from "my Titan brother" could refer to Prometheus or Typhon, and there didn't seem to be a plan or intended outcome to what happened on the mountain that is shown to us, so it is possible that Kratos, partially or completely, showed Prometheus mercy (in his own way) because they had both been screwed over by Zeus. Even without that, Kratos probably was the first person to come across Prometheus and give him something to do other than suffer in a very long time, if not ever. A notable example of how, even as he descended into further and further brutality, the Spartan still had some ability to help, consider, and sympathize with others, if in his own cold and grim way.
• From Ghost of Sparta - Kratos regains his brother Deimos' trust and the two fight side by side as Spartans for the first and last time.

  Deimos: A true Spartan never lets his back hit the ground. Right, brother?

  Kratos: I will not lose you again. Come! The fight is not over!

• "My Lord? I knew you could not be killed! I never lost faith." Leave it to the Last Spartan to inspire humanity in Kratos and Video Game Caring Potential.
• From Kratos' fight with Zeus at the end of GOWII:

  Kratos: I won't let you destroy Sparta!

• The way Kratos rages after Deimos dies and when Zeus insults Pandora, questioning her humanity. When you see Kratos, of all people, literally drip with rage, you know he gives a damn.
• A subtle one, but in the E3 demo for Ascension, Kratos is on the boardwalk. Three soldiers/sailors are running towards him, away from spears. Two of them get killed, but as the third spear approaches the survivor, Kratos pushes/shoves him out of the way, saving his life, without even looking. Sure, Kratos rushes into combat afterwards like nothing happened, but in later games, he would've just let the guy get killed. This really shows that, even after just killing his wife and child, Kratos still has some humanity left in him to care for some of his fellow man.
• In God Of War Ascension, the Furies try to tempt Kratos back into the service of Ares with a series of increasingly blissful illusions. First, they try to tempt him with a (fake) sex mini game, but Kratos doesn’t buy it. Second, they try to appeal to his pride and loyalty to Sparta, something Kratos has always valued in spite of his brutality. It ALMOST works. The real kicker though is the third and final attempt, when he is granted a vision of what his life would be if he had never killed his family. Thus far, every attempt to fool Kratos has set him off like a powder keg. This is the one time he’s tempted to accept a life of slavery to the god who ruined his life, even after he discovers that it’s all just an illusion. Just being able to dream of better times means that much to him.
  • Also note that during the third and final illusion, Kratos smiles. And we're not talking a Slasher Smile, or a Psychotic Smirk - this right here is a genuine, touched smile that he rarely if ever expresses.
• Orkos. In a series of black vs. black morality, where the decent or innocent people can be counted with one hand, he is probably the most selflessly motivated character to ever cross paths with Kratos. Even Athena turned out to be just another power hungry jerk, but Orkos? He remains faithful to his ideals even to the point where it kills him, and he faces even that with dignity. A being born of violence and insanity, he was truly the antithesis to both.
• At the end of the game, Kratos makes a pyre for Orkos out of remains of his old home. It's one of the few times Kratos has ever bothered to give someone a proper burial, and in the one place he remembered fondly no less.
• The true heartwarming moment in Chains of Olympus when Kratos is reunited with his daughter Calliope. We see Kratos smiles genuinely and happily for the first time in entire series. So heartwarming, seeing how vicious Kratos is when he is in action.
• Kratos holding the Oracle's hand as she dies in Ascension. What's more, having seen her death coming, she doesn't even blame him and even forgives him since it more of a Mercy Kill to her having lived so long. She even tell Kratos what he wants to know and after she expires, Kratos actually shows a bit of sympathy for her.
• The new game trailer in E3 2016 unveils Kratos, now sporting a beard and... is acting like a father figure towards a boy, teaching him to hunt. This is usually a far cry from the normally screaming-with-rage God-killing warrior he was known for. Of course, a Troll then ruins their day, but Kratos still shows how badass he is... and still have time to let the boy have the finishing blow. Of course, the boy botched it and shot at Kratos instead... and Kratos ain't even mad at him. These whole years after destroying the Greek Pantheon must've been pretty good to him.
  • When the boy screws up the hunt and scares the deer, Kratos begins to yell at him... only to suddenly stop, take a breath, and calmly yet sternly finish. And when the boy says he is sorry Kratos says "Don't be sorry... be better". He might still have anger issues but he is working hard to not let them rule him.
  • After helping the boy kill the deer Kratos sits with him and almost hugs him but can't quite bring himself to do it. Still, he does sit with him and they calmly look out upon the land.
  • The simple fact that after all these years of being a lonely brutal,violent,warrior Kratos was able to find someone and have another child giving him a second chance at being a husband and father.
• Kratos actually sympathises with Hephaestus, even after the God tried to kill him, acknowledging that he did what every father should do: try and protect his child. Even after all the awful things Kratos has done, he still remembers what it's like to be a father. Slightly helped by the fact that Kratos gave Hephaestus quite possibly the most peaceful and least gruesome death of all the gods by a long shot and allowed him say a final request.
• The fact that Kratos's family made it to Elysium. Despite him murdering them accidentally because of Ares, Hades still showed enough mercy on them to let them go into the best possible afterlife.
• In God of War Ascension, the leader of the slaves tries to reasonably convince Castor that the slaves need food and rest in order to complete the task but he is killed by Castor for speaking without permission. It would have been easy for the leader to try to pin the blame on a random slave or try to make an excuse but he regards the other slaves as his brothers and tries to get them better working conditions at the cost of his life despite Castor's history as a Bad Boss and because he might have received the role as leader after Castor most likely killed the previous leader for rule breaking or failing to complete the tasks given to him.
• In God of War (2018), despite the fact that she is still a colossal douche-bag, Athena still has her affectionate nickname of "Spartan" for Kratos. Shame she is an undeniable ass-hole this time...
• Also in the 2018 game, Despite clashing numerous times, when Kratos confronts Baldur for the last time he puts himself between the other God and his mother, whom Baldur really wants dead, and quietly tells him "This path you walk? Vengeance? You will find no peace. I know." Just the fact that Kratos tries to talk him down, using his own experience to highlight that he understands Baldur's rage, shows how much he's actually grown as a person and is extremely touching. He only fights at all to protect Freya from her son and not for any personal grudge against Baldur. He even gives Baldur a chance to simply walk away or talk it out rather than fight.
• Given the implications of a Stable Time Loop in God of War II, it's very likely that Zeus still ended up destroying Sparta even after Kratos gained the Fates' time powers. When Kratos calls upon the "Army of Sparta" in God of War III, he's allowing his fallen brothers-in-arms to avenge their homeland along with him. This also shows that even through all the death and destruction Kratos brings about in III, the Spartan spirits still fully support their god.

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