He may be known as the tempestuous protagonist of Sony's popular God of War franchise, but when it came to including Kratos as a PlayStation exclusive in Mortal Kombat, all parties were in peaceful agreement that the match-up was a natural.

"We kind of felt it was meant to happen," says Ed Boon, in a sitdown blog for Playstation.com. Discussing the collaboration alongside God of War III director, Stig Asmussen; Boon reveals an intense attention to detail that saw scrutiny in all stages of the process from Sony Santa Monica Studios -- the studio responsible for the God of War series. The crossover was a work of mutual respect, though.

While both sides had to adapt to the unique situation Kratos presents in Mortal Kombat, the end result gets the thumbs up from both directors. Even though his character will be subject to dismemberment and brutality the likes of which has never been seen before, Asmussen gives the game the olympian stamp of approval:

“I will say that I’ve never seen his skull before this game,” “But [...] you guys really pulled through. I’m proud of that game

With regards to the working complexities of such compromises, the blog provides answers. Kratos will have an arcade ending in the game, which Boon describes as more elaborate than previous incarnations, but adds that, "From the start, we decided we wouldn’t put him into the story and have him interacting with Scorpion or things like that." Kratos also won't be taking part in Test Your Might mini-games, or [as yet unconfirmed] comedic Friendship finishers, as an apparent mark of respect for the character, "There’s just no humorous side to Kratos.”

Fans can also look forward to a stage fatality on the God of War III end-game inspired stage, which takes elements from Kratos' epic battle against Zeus in the Chamber of Flame. Kratos will also possess his trademark arsenal, bringing the Bow, Cestus, Blade of Olympus, Icarus Wings, Helios head and the Blade of Chaos to the fight, in an unprecedented array of weapon attacks. The literal translation ends there, however, as the team remains dedicated to keeping Kratos balanced. His group-fighting techniques, with penchant for long range melee, will be toned down to suit the one on one expectations of Mortal Kombat.

This isn't the first time Kratos has made the transition to traditional fighting games, of course. In 2009, the God of War guest starred in PSP weapon fighter, Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny.

Kratos will appear in Mortal Kombat when the game hits US shelves April 19 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, with Europe just a couple of days behind.

Kratos appears exclusively on the PlayStation 3 version, which also includes stereoscopic 3D, as previewed in the recent March PlayStation Network demo [full story]. For a closer look at the God of War in action, don't miss the new Kratos Gameplay trailer!