About God of War Ragnarök

God of War Ragnarök

God of War Ragnarök is an action-adventure game developed by Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. It was released worldwide on November 9, 2022, for both the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, marking the first cross-gen release in the God of War series. It is the ninth installment in the series, the ninth chronologically, and the sequel to 2018’s God of War. Loosely based on Norse mythology, the game is set in ancient Scandinavia and features series protagonist, Kratos, and his now teenage son, Atreus. Concluding the Norse era of the series, the game covers Ragnarök, the eschatological event which is central to Norse mythology and was foretold to happen in the previous game after Kratos killed the Aesir god Baldur.

The gameplay is similar to the previous 2018 installment. It features combo-based combat, as well as puzzle and role-playing elements. The gameplay has been revamped from the previous game: in addition to Kratos’s main weapons, a magical battle axe and his double-chained blades, he also acquires a magical spear and his shield has become more versatile, with different types of shields that have differing offensive and defensive abilities. His son Atreus, as well as some other characters, provide assistance in combat and can be passively controlled. Additionally, and for the first time in the series, there are some story missions where the player takes full control of Atreus; his gameplay is similar to Kratos, but he uses his magical bow as his weapon. There are also more enemy types and mini-bosses than in the previous game. Originally slated for a 2021 release, the game was delayed in part due to Kratos actor Christopher Judge’s health problems in August 2019, and later, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on development. A free downloadable content pack titled Valhalla was released on December 12, 2023, and serves as an epilogue to Ragnarök, following Kratos and companion Mímir in a series of trials within Valhalla in order for Kratos to come to terms with his past life in Greece.

Ragnarök garnered universal acclaim from critics and was praised for its storytelling, characters, visuals, level design, music, and overall improvements to the gameplay over its predecessor. The game sold 5.1 million units in its first week, making it the fastest-selling first-party launch week in PlayStation history, with over 15 million units sold as of November 2023. At The Game Awards 2022, Ragnarök received a leading 11 nominations, including Game of the Year, winning six. It received a leading 12 nominations at the 26th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, ultimately winning seven awards including Adventure Game of the Year. It received a leading 15 nominations at the 19th British Academy Games Awards, the most nominations for any game in the history of the ceremony, from which it won six awards, including the EE Game of the Year Award.

God of War Ragnarök System Requirements

Minimum

Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
OS: Windows 10 64-bit
Processor: Intel Core i5-4670 or Ryzen 5 1600
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: NVIDIA GTX 960 (4 GB) or AMD R9 290X (4 GB)
DirectX: Version 11
Storage: 110 GB available space

God of War Ragnarök System Requirements

GAMEPLAY

God of War Ragnarök is a third-person action-adventure game. It features an over-the-shoulder player-controlled camera, and the game is presented with no camera cuts or loading screens. The gameplay is similar to the previous installment, God of War (2018), including being single-player-only. Throughout the game, players battle Norse mythological foes, with more enemy types than in the prior entry, including newer enemies, such as einherjar, wyverns, stalkers (centaur-like creatures with antlers), phantoms, human raiders, and nokkens, among many others. The developers also added more mini-bosses to give the game more variety.

The player primarily controls the character Kratos in combo-based combat and puzzle game elements. Kratos’s main weapons are a magical battle axe called the Leviathan Axe, and his signature double-chained blades, the Blades of Chaos. He also dons his original Guardian Shield, and utilizes hand-to-hand combat. The Leviathan Axe is infused with ice elemental magic. It can be thrown at enemies and magically summoned back to his hand, similar to Thor’s hammer Mjölnir. The weapon can be thrown at environmental objects to trigger a damaging explosion, and freeze objects and some enemies in place for puzzle-solving until resummoned. The Blades of Chaos, infused with fire elemental magic, are a pair of blades attached to chains that can be swung around in various maneuvers. A new mechanic for Ragnarök is that the blades can be used like a grappling hook to traverse over chasms, and pick up objects to hurl at enemies. Kratos also obtains a new weapon called the Draupnir Spear, a close- and long-range attack spear that is infused with wind elemental magic and can make copies of itself; Kratos can throw multiple spears at an enemy then have them all explode at once. The spear is also used to traverse or unblock certain pathways. Each weapon has standard light and heavy attacks. They can be upgraded with runes to allow for magical runic attacks, with slots for a light and heavy magical attack, providing a variety of play style options. Additionally, a “Weapon Signature Move” ability was added, which unleashes a powerful magical attack for the equipped weapon. Another added mechanic is that if on a higher ledge, the player can leap down to perform a powerful weapon attack on enemies below.

The developers also revamped the shield for versatility beyond a minor parry; different shields can be obtained and used offensively or defensively depending on which is equipped. Smaller shields are more for parrying and can stun enemies while larger ones are more defensive and can create a large wave of energy to knock enemies back. Kratos’s Spartan Rage ability was also updated to three variants: Fury, Valor, and Wrath. Fury is the standard mode for Spartan Rage and is identical to the previous game in which Kratos uses bare handed attacks to greatly damage enemies. Valor consumes rage energy to restore health and can also be used as a parry if activated precisely, while Wrath unleashes a powerful weapon attack for the equipped weapon.

The character Atreus provides assistance through artificial intelligence (AI), helping in combat, traversal, exploration, and puzzle-solving. The player can passively control Atreus by dictating where he fires his arrows with his bow, either in combat or for puzzle-solving, as well as what magical spectral animals he can summon to further assist with combat. Additionally, Atreus’s combat was updated to reflect his character’s growth. He has longer chained combos, may initiate a fight before Kratos, and his magical abilities were expanded. There are also points in the game where another character will accompany Kratos instead of Atreus and they too can be passively controlled. For the first time in the God of War series, the player can play entirely as a character other than Kratos (not including Ascension‘s multiplayer). This only occurs during some story missions when Atreus goes off on his own without Kratos and the player takes full control of Atreus. His gameplay is similar to Kratos in that he has close range combat by hitting enemies with his bow, and he has long range attacks by using his bow to shoot arrows. Additionally, he has special magical arrows, can create a shield from magic, and can summon magical spectral animals to assist in combat. Atreus also has his own rage ability in which he transforms into a wolf (and later, a bear) to deal greater damage. During these missions, Atreus typically has another character accompanying him and the player can passively control this character just as they do with Atreus when playing as Kratos. For some missions, Atreus has a magical floating sword called Ingrid that replaces the accompanying character.

The game retains the role-playing video game (RPG) elements of the 2018 installment. This includes the crafting system with many of the same resources to create new armor or upgrade existing armor and weapons with better perks. There are also many side quests found outside the game’s core narrative. Ragnarök also adds armor transmogrification, which allows the player to change the appearance of their equipped armor to any other acquired armor without losing any of the equipped armor’s stats.

Ragnarök has over 70 accessibility options. The game’s user interface (UI) system was redesigned “to allow for more flexibility and readability”, and more customization options for combat and interaction systems were also added. All accessibility features from the 2018 installment were retained but also expanded upon to allow players to adjust the gameplay to suit their own play style and needs.

The downloadable content (DLC) pack Valhalla, released on December 12, 2023, uses elements of the roguelite genre. Players play solely as Kratos through a series of trials in random procedurally generated levels, selecting what relic, shield, and rage ability to use throughout a trial run. At the end of each challenge within a trial allows players to select an upgrade to either a weapon, relic, or stats, such as strength or defense, but these upgrades only last for the duration of that trial run. Each run-through and the completion of specific gameplay challenges unlocks further rewards that are permanently unlocked. Death resets the player back to the start of the trial. The DLC also added new enemies, as well as returning ones from the Greek era games, such as cyclopes and minotaurs. A new variant of the rage ability was added called Legacy which lets the player wield the Blade of Olympus, like the rage ability from God of War III (2010); this ability can be used in New Game Plus (NG+) of Ragnarök. New cosmetic armor appearances were also added, including Kratos’s appearance from the original God of War (2005); these can also be applied in NG+.

STORY

Near the end of Fimbulwinter, Kratos and Atreus return home—fending off an ambush from a vengeful Freya—to find their wolf Fenrir as he dies. Atreus’s grief transforms him into a bear and he battles Kratos before returning to his senses. Thor arrives with Odin, who proposes leaving them alone if Atreus abandons searching for Týr. Kratos refuses and duels Thor to a stalemate. Odin tells Atreus he will leave Kratos alone if the former comes to Asgard. Kratos, Atreus, and Mímir take refuge at Sindri’s home on a branch of Yggdrasil, and later rescue a pacifistic Týr in Svartalfheim. At Gróa’s shrine in Alfheim, they learn only Asgard is fated for destruction while other realms survive under a new champion, implied to be Atreus under his Loki identity. Kratos and Atreus argue over the latter’s supposed destiny.

While asleep, Atreus is transported to Jötunheim where he meets Angrboda, who shows him a mural seemingly foretelling Kratos’s death in Ragnarök and Atreus serving Odin. Atreus is entrusted with spiritual stones containing Giants’ souls, putting one into a snake’s body. Atreus returns to Midgard where Freya attacks again but relents, agreeing to spare Kratos if he helps her break the curse binding her to Midgard, which she temporarily circumvents by transforming into a falcon. In Vanaheim, Kratos opens up to Freya about his family’s deaths in Greece, his vengeance against Olympus, and the emptiness of revenge. After breaking the curse, Freya and Kratos make amends.

Kratos and Atreus argue regarding the latter’s deceitful behavior, causing Atreus to flee to Asgard to attempt to prevent Kratos’s death. He works with Thor and Thrúd to prevent Ragnarök by reassembling an ancient mask for Odin that supposedly grants infinite knowledge. Meanwhile, Kratos, Freya, and Mímir visit the Norns who say Heimdall is destined to kill Atreus. Kratos and Brok consequently forge the Draupnir ring into a spear capable of harming Heimdall. In Helheim, Atreus releases the soulless giant wolf Garm, who tears holes between realms. Reunited with Kratos, Atreus resurrects Fenrir by transferring his soul into Garm, and Kratos and Atreus reconcile. In Vanaheim, Kratos is forced to kill Heimdall and claims Gjallarhorn, setting Ragnarök in motion.

Atreus returns to Asgard and assembles the mask before escaping with it. Týr agrees to fight and asks for the mask; suspicious of Týr’s change of heart, Brok realizes he is calling Atreus “Loki”, like Asgardians. Týr fatally stabs Brok, revealing himself as Odin in disguise. He is driven away but a grief-stricken Sindri blames Atreus for Brok’s death and abandons the group. Atreus and Kratos commit to Ragnarök, entering Muspelheim to help Surtr achieve a destined primordial form to destroy Asgard.

The realms’ united forces gather under Kratos’s leadership; he sounds Gjallarhorn to begin the siege of Asgard. The battle begins poorly: Elves and Vanir struggle with Asgard’s defenses, Sindri comes alone to avoid more dwarven deaths, and the army is forced to rescue Midgardian refugees. The tides turn when Angrboda arrives with Fenrir and the snake Atreus saved, now grown into Jörmungandr, who battles Thor while Sindri destroys Asgard’s wall. Thrúd and Sif defect after discovering Odin used refugees as shields. Thor knocks Jörmungandr back in time and battles Kratos, but is convinced to stand down to help his family, only to be killed by Odin for disobeying. Kratos, Atreus, Freya, and Mímir overpower and defeat Odin. Atreus shatters the mask and traps Odin’s soul in a spiritual stone, which Sindri smashes. Surtr destroys Asgard as the group escapes to Midgard.

Angrboda shows Kratos and Atreus a mural Faye had destroyed so they could determine their own fate. Atreus resolves to find surviving Giants and bids farewell to Kratos, who then discovers a mural depicting himself as a beloved god of peace and justice. Overcome with emotion and finally hopeful about his future, Kratos recruits Freya and Mímir to restore peace. Asgard’s Einherjar are cleared out, Freya kills the vengeful Valkyrie Queen Gná and reclaims her mantle, the Aesir relocate to Vanaheim and achieve peace with the Vanir, Thrúd wields Mjölnir to honor Thor, and the real Týr is freed in Niflheim.

In the secret ending, Kratos, Freya, Mímir, and an unforgiving Sindri attend Brok’s funeral in Svartalfheim.

DEVELOPMENT

During the development of God of War (2018), that game’s director, Cory Barlog, confirmed that the 2018 installment would not be Kratos’s last game, and that future games would continue to be set in the Norse environment and include Atreus. A sequel was then teased at the end of that game; it ended with Ragnarök looming, as well as a secret ending that showed a vision of Thor confronting Kratos and Atreus at the end of Fimbulwinter. Following this saw various pre-release marketing materials that included the hidden phrase “Ragnarök is coming”.

During the PlayStation 5 (PS5) Showcase event on September 16, 2020, a new God of War was officially announced for a 2021 release on the newer console. After Sony Interactive Entertainment revealed their plans to support their previous console until at least 2022, it was later confirmed that the game would also release on the PlayStation 4 (PS4), in turn marking the first cross-gen release in the series. The game’s title was confirmed to be God of War Ragnarök during the following year’s showcase event, although earlier that year, the title had accidentally been leaked. Although the 2018 installment was ported to Windows (PC) in January 2022, Barlog, who served as a producer and creative director for the sequel, could not confirm if Ragnarök would also receive a PC port.

Development of the game was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. In June 2021, head of PlayStation Studios, Hermen Hulst, confirmed that the game had been delayed, partly due to the pandemic, as he stated that there were issues getting access to performance capture and talent. Santa Monica Studio issued a statement regarding the delay, which said that while they were focused on delivering a top-quality game, they also wanted to maintain the safety of those involved with the development.

The delay brought a unique issue with Atreus actor Sunny Suljic, who was going through puberty during the time of production. Due to the change in his voice, supervising dialogue designer Jodie Kupsco said “We had to go in and even out that performance so [that in the game] it sounds like it took place over a short period of time”. Senior producer Ariel Angelotti noted there were no changes to cinematics as a result of the delay, but they had to get creative in how they made the content. In following pandemic guidelines, they had actors “stand in” for background characters in some scenes “to avoid a situation where too many people were on-set”. In a series of tweets posted by Kratos actor Christopher Judge in late September 2021, he said that he was the reason that the game was delayed due to surgery he needed in August 2019, and that Santa Monica allowed him time to recover and rehabilitate before continuing production.

During the 2021 PlayStation Showcase event, Eric Williams, who worked on every previous installment, was confirmed as the game’s director, continuing the previous era’s tradition of having a different director for each game. It was also revealed that Ragnarök would conclude the Norse era of the series. The main reason Santa Monica decided to end the Norse era with Ragnarök was due to the game’s size and scale. The 2018 installment and Ragnarök each respectively took about five years to develop, and they did not want to take another five years, totaling nearly 15 years, to tell one story. Lead writer Rich Gaubert said there were pros and cons to doing a trilogy or ending the Norse era at two games. The developers debated this and said that Ragnarök could have been split into two games, as it was much larger in scope than they had originally planned. They also had worry if Ragnarök would do the apocalyptic concept justice in just one game. This caused some of the team to have concern if the game would be good as they originally thought that the Norse era would be a trilogy with Ragnarök split into two games. The decision to end the Norse era with Ragnarök was ultimately left to Barlog, and Williams stated that although they had to make adjustments for pacing, the story was not scaled back.

Barlog told Williams that with the second game concluding the Norse saga, the three important plot aspects of the story that had to be retained were that Ragnarök would happen, Atreus would depart from Kratos in the game’s conclusion, and Brok would be killed off, which was a decision Barlog had made during the development of the 2018 installment, as Brok was described as the “family dog”. Thematically, the game explores what kind of man Kratos would be without his son, and what kind of god would Atreus be without his father. Narrative director Matt Sophos revealed that during early development, there was an idea pitched in which Kratos died during his first battle with Thor and then there would have been a 20-year time jump where Atreus would rescue him from Helheim. This was rejected as Williams did not like it, but he also did not want to repeat a plot sequence that had been done during the Greek games. The emotion and main hook of Ragnarök‘s actual story were also missing in this proposed idea, and the actual ending worked better for what they wanted to do, which was to say that prophecy and fate are not predetermined.

On July 6, 2022, a new cinematic trailer was unveiled, which confirmed a worldwide release date of November 9, 2022. Another trailer was shown during Sony’s 2022 State of Play event on September 13, and it was confirmed that just like the 2018 installment, Ragnarök was done in one shot. Additionally, the game supports options for players to run the game in either higher resolution or better performance, including 4K resolution at 30 frames per second (fps), 1080p resolution at 60fps, a high frame resolution mode in 4K at 40fps, and a high frame performance mode that syncs to 120 hertz. The latter two high frame options are only available for the PS5 version and require monitors with HDMI 2.1. Animation director Bruno Velazquez stated that Santa Monica wanted to ensure that Ragnarök was fully optimized for the PS4, and as such, it does not utilize all of the capabilities of the PS5. Velazquez said that the PS4 version is a visual improvement over the 2018 installment and noted that all of the studio’s design goals were achieved on the PS4 version, so the PS5 version “is essentially an enhancement of what’s already possible [on the PS4]”. The game does, however, include several features exclusive to the PS5 hardware, such as 3D audio, haptic feedback, higher frame rate, and overall better graphics. In terms of design, Velazquez said there were no compromises for the PS4 version and that the game would essentially be the same experience on both consoles. Santa Monica also confirmed that the game would have a photo mode, but it would be added in a post-launch update.

On October 7, 2022, Santa Monica announced that the game had gone gold. Additionally, it was revealed that eight other studios contributed to the development of Ragnarök, including PlayStation Studios Creative Arts, Valkyrie Entertainment, Bluepoint Games, Red Hot, SuperAlloy Interactive, Jetpack Interactive, Super Genius, and Original Force. The exact contribution from each studio was not detailed, except SuperAlloy, which worked on motion capture. SuperAlloy specifically assisted with combat choreography, and the studio provided stunt coordination and stunt work for the game and key characters. Eric Jacobus also revealed that he again did the combat motion capture for Kratos, just as he did in the 2018 installment, as well as for some other characters.