https://www.gamespot.com/articles/god-of-war-ps4-dev-talks-about-how-some-wanted-to-/1100-6457767/

Kratos is the hero of God of War, but his role in the franchise was at some point put into question, however briefly or non-seriously it might have been. In a new interview, creative director Cory Barlog said Kratos has always been important to him personally, but some inside Sony--and some fans--questioned if it might be time to leave Kratos behind.

"A lot of people, throughout the development process, [in the public] and in the studio, were like: 'Why keep Kratos?'" Barlog told IGN. But when asked directly if Sony ever seriously considered dropping the character, Barlog said, "No." However, there was a point in development that Barlog was apparently being pushed to drop Kratos' son, Atreus, but he pushed back.