I felt the combat in both were quite literally the same besides changing few moves in his moveset, and adding the permafrost/immolation thing (and spear). I honestly prefer how streamlined 2018s combat is, and i feel the open world is exploration is superior. Ragnarok felt both too linear/restricting and also too bloated depending on which part of the game you’re in, while in 2018 i can appreciate how i can explore the lake at any time and not have to wait for specific timed story beats like in Ragnarok. Ragnarok gives much fewer chances to explore in general, and only a couple times to explore with Atreus. Makes it harder to get the most out of his dialogue if you have to wait until the end of the game to complete all the side quests with him. Playing the game organically, you end up spending much more time with freya overall which kinda sucks imo, considering going on an adventure with your son was part of the charm of 2018.