Seems like a lot of work for a problem that really shouldn't be there in the first place. I mean, I love God of War as much as anyone in here but this really should be fixed/altered. Not gonna be justifying it just because I love the game. 

I basically only use axe, I go for blades only for enemies that resist axe (like some have that charm) and big swarms everyone else, even fast enemies I grind them on the axe and as much as possible I keep the distance and keep throwing, otherwise Give me God of War is almost impossible in several battles.

It doesn't bother me, but with so many complaining I do agree SSM should use the advice and give opportunity to turn off/on tips for puzzles (and why not give also a slider that let's say you chose how many minutes stuck without finding the next step they will tip you)

Trust me, there are so many puzzles in the game you will not lack for being able to solve them yourself and as I stated once you get to mid to late game, the side character say nothing and the puzzles become more complex.  Just think of the beginning as a tutorial as Don stated.  

In the higher difficulty you really have to use your elemental effects as those will either stun or improve a lot on damage in GOW fights.  Building up frost and then switching to blades and adding fire add that extra damage.  You can also upgrade the moves you use the most to deal better damage, elemental or stun by going to niflheim and practicing those moves.  It really makes a big difference in delivering damage since the harder difficulty you can basically get one shot and the enemies are basic sponges for damage.

I usually finish the game on balance first before trying the harder modes because you cannot really perform those nice combos because the enemies just power through most attacks and do not stagger or stun as much. 

I'm already over mid game, 35h in, and almost no combos given. When dealing against boss I try to build up the energy on the weapon and inflict status, but the status go over very fast =p

And even basic enemies don't stutter much unless you are focusing all attacks together with ally on it, so combo is very hard to pull

That's why I don't like those kind of difficulty settings, they tend to make the combat a chore instead of fun occurrences. Part of the thrill of the game is chaining those attacks, staggering weak foes or sending them into the air and then dodge when the others get too close. Fighting huge damage sponges who don't flinch as I wail on them ain't my cup of tea. 

Well there is fun in winning these challenges, but yes there is frustration and limitation for those of us that aren't super human.

Anyone else feeling a bit let down by the game? Especially after exceptional reviews.

While I am not complete, I do feel like I am in far enough to give comment on the experience. A few complaints in comparison to the first:

1. Standard difficulty mode is a lot harder than before - making you feel very underpowered especially as Kratos. Personally I feel at the start of the game enemies should have had less health. I understand that enemies are weak to certain weapons and strategies but it shouldn't be that fixed.

2. Constant chatting between characters - not a fan. I prefer some more impactful cutscenes and then a bit of a break from the story and chit chat. Sometimes it does work - but other times its too much.

3. PS5 controls woefully underused. Certain scenes when you push R2 to swing the axe down, could have made a huge difference if they synced the pressure of the button with the swing down of the axe.

4. In hindsight i know this is basically a continuation of the story but almost 5 years have passed since the original game. For me GOW 2018 was a fresh, visceral and exciting experience that truly ushered in the PS4. Ragnarok feels solidly like a PS4 game, 2 years after the PS5 has released. I get that some new mechanics are introduced with the weapons but i feel like something a bit more drastic needed to be done. Those that played the game will know that there are other additions to Ragnarok ( I will not spoil here) but even that felt underwhelming and personally I think they picked the wrong direction in regards to that. Santa Monica studio is probably holding back all the crazy ideas for there first true PS5 game...which at this rate will release when the PS6 comes out.

1 - That is the new standard for GoW. In Give me God of War you seem like a mortal fighting gods, you die taking 3 hits (sometimes a single one) and need at least 12 to kill enemies. Some arrangements are quite hard with enemies that fight close, others with projectibles and some that close the gap instantly and laser aimed. Since the number of enemies wouldn't change on easier difficult if the enemies died to fast you wouldn't have much combat at all.

2 - I love the talking, a lot of people talk when they are walking and traveling, they don't chit chat during combat.

3 - I don't see that as a problem even more as the game is a PS4 one and the added aspects for PS5 can't break the gameplay between versions.

4 -There was basically no need to have major changes as the game was basically on very high level on almost all aspects so improvements and increments were the way to go, even more considering this is on the same storyline and pantheon so changing to much would make less sense. If they do a new storyline then bigger changes could be expected.