Santa Monica Studio had a massive problem. They'd spent years rebuilding Kratos from a one-dimensional rage-monster into a grieving, stoic father, and then they had to figure out how to kill the world without losing the heart of that story. Honestly, God of War Ragnarok shouldn't have worked as well as it did. It’s bloated. It’s dense. It’s occasionally frustrated by its own scope. Yet, it manages to stick a landing that felt almost impossible back in 2018 when we first saw that "Fimbulwinter is coming" teaser.
Most people think this game is just about the big fight at the end. It's not. It's actually a massive, sprawling therapy session masked by golden armor and runic summons.
Why the Pacing of God of War Ragnarok Divides Players
The game is long. Like, really long. If you're just rushing the main path, you’re looking at 30 hours, but a completionist run easily pushes 50 or 60. This creates a weird tension. You have these high-stakes moments where the world is literally ending, but then you’re forced to spend two hours picking fruit in Ironwood as Atreus. Some players hated that. They felt the momentum died. But if you look at the narrative structure, those slow moments are the only reason the ending carries any weight. Without the slog, the payoff feels unearned.
Kratos has changed. He’s not the guy who slaughtered the Greek pantheon because he was grumpy. He’s tired. You can see it in the way Christopher Judge carries himself in the mo-cap. Every step looks heavy. The game uses a "single-shot" camera technique, just like the previous entry, which means there are no cuts. This forces you to sit with the awkward silences between Kratos and Atreus. It’s uncomfortable. It’s meant to be.
The Mechanical Shift: Beyond the Leviathan Axe
Combat in God of War Ragnarok feels familiar but "crunchier." The addition of the Draupnir Spear changed the math for a lot of veteran players. While the Axe is for crowd control and the Blades of Chaos are for speed, the Spear is about rhythm. It's a technical weapon.
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- You can't just mash buttons on Give Me God of War difficulty.
- Elemental Siphon allows you to steal a buff from an enemy and use it against them.
- Detonating spears embedded in a boss’s hide is basically the only way to break certain posture bars.
- Shield variety actually matters now; the Dauntless Shield rewards frame-perfect parries, while the Stone Wall Shield is for players who just want to soak up damage.
Eric Williams took over the director's chair from Cory Barlog for this sequel, and you can feel his history as a combat designer. The verticality is much more pronounced. You’re grappling up to ledges and performing death-from-above slams that weren't really a thing in the 2018 reboot. It makes the arenas feel less like "flat circles where enemies spawn" and more like actual environments.
The Problem with the "Hinting" System
We have to talk about the puzzles. It’s the one thing almost everyone agrees is a bit much. You walk into a room, look at a gear for three seconds, and Mimir or Atreus immediately shouts the answer. "Brother, try hitting that target with your axe!" It’s annoying. It robs the player of the "aha!" moment. Santa Monica Studio eventually patched in some settings to reduce the frequency of these hints, but the core design philosophy was clearly tilted toward keeping the player moving at all costs. It’s a strange choice for a game that otherwise respects the player's intelligence so much.
The Side Quests Aren't Actually Side Quests
In most open-world games, side content is filler. In God of War Ragnarok, the "Favors" are where the real writing lives. If you skip the Crater in Vanaheim, you’re missing about 15% of the game's best content. This hidden area is massive. It has its own ecosystem, its own boss fights, and it fills in the backstory of Faye (Kratos’s late wife) in a way the main story never quite manages.
The relationship between Mimir and Sigrun, or the tragic history of the Huldra brothers, isn't just flavor text. It’s the backbone of the theme: Can people actually change their nature?
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Odin is the perfect foil here. He isn't a hulking brute like Zeus. He’s a manipulative, fast-talking academic. He’s a guy who invites you into his house, offers you tea, and then ruins your life. Richard Schiff’s performance is legendary because he plays Odin like a tired CEO rather than a god. It makes him much more terrifying. He doesn’t want to destroy you; he wants to use you.
Understanding the "Prophecy" Loophole
The entire plot hinges on the Norns—the Norse version of the Fates. When Kratos goes to see them, expecting a way to change his destiny, they basically laugh at him. They tell him there is no destiny. There is only "the script" that people write for themselves because they are too predictable to change.
"You kill gods. That is what you do. So you will kill more gods."
That’s a meta-commentary on the franchise itself. The game asks if a series known for mindless violence can ever truly evolve into something else. By the time the credits roll, the answer isn't a simple yes or no. It's a "maybe, if you work at it every single day."
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Technical Performance and 2026 Standards
Even years after its initial release, the game holds up. On PS5, the 60fps performance mode is the only way to play. The haptic feedback on the DualSense makes the snap of the Axe returning to your hand feel physical. It’s one of those rare games that actually uses the controller as a narrative tool. The PC port further pushed this with unlocked framerates and DLSS support, making the realms like Svartalfheim look absolutely staggering.
The transition from the PS4 hardware to PS5 did leave some "hidden" loading screens—those long crawls through cracks in the wall or slow elevator rides. They’re a bit dated now, but the art direction is so strong you barely notice.
What to Do After Beating the Story
Once the main quest is over, the world changes. This is a detail some people miss. Certain NPCs move. The dialogue changes to reflect the fallout of the final battle. It’s not just a "reset to before the last boss" situation.
- Hunt the Berserkers: These are the replacement for the Valkyries. They are significantly harder than anything in the main story. King Hrolf Kraki will test every single mechanic you've learned.
- Visit Gna: The new Valkyrie Queen is tucked away in Muspelheim. Do not go there until you have Level 9 gear. You will die. Repeatedly.
- Find the Real Tyr: There is a side quest involving Niflheim and the Aesir prison that provides a massive revelation about the characters you spent the whole game with.
- The Valhalla DLC: This was a free update that transformed the game into a roguelite. It’s actually a brilliant epilogue that focuses entirely on Kratos’s internal struggle with his past in Greece. If you haven't played it, you haven't finished the story.
God of War Ragnarok is a heavy game. It’s about the burden of being a parent and the terror of letting go. Whether you're there for the combos or the tears, it remains a high-water mark for what big-budget gaming can be when it actually has something to say.
Next Steps for Players:
If you've finished the main campaign, head to the Nilfheim Raven Tree area. There are several chests that only unlock based on how many of Odin's Ravens you've killed. More importantly, check the wreckage of the prison in Niflheim—it contains the single biggest "holy crap" moment in the post-game content that recontextualizes several major scenes from the first 20 hours. Afterward, dive into the Valhalla DLC; it's free, and it serves as the true emotional conclusion to Kratos's journey from the original 2005 game.