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God of War Ragnarök is one of the year's most anticipated games, and it's hard to believe it's finally here. We left Kratos and Atreus on a cliffhanger, and we've been waiting four long years to see how their story ends. Now that it's finally in our hands, we can share our impressions of the first few hours. How does it stack up to the lofty expectations we've had over the past years? Extremely well.
Three Years Later
God of War Ragnarök begins three years after Baldur's death, and the Nine Realms are in peril. Ragnarök is hanging over everyone's head, and Kratos and Atreus are no closer to finding a solution than they were at the end of the previous game. Travel between the realms has become impossible, and, stuck in Midgard; they continue to live within the log home we set out from in the first game.
However, Odin and Thor have their own plans for Ragnarök. After a chance encounter (and a thunderous, epic battle with Thor), the dwarven brothers Sindri and Brok appear to reveal they've found a way to travel the realms through the branches of the Yggdrasil Tree, bypassing Odin's lock entirely. We also learn that Atreus has been secretly searching for the Norse god of war, Tyr, who may be imprisoned instead of dead.
We also get a new base that's beyond Odin's reach. Sindri's expansive cabin is built in the branches of the Yggdrasil Tree. It gives our heroes a home away from home to strategize and rest between excursions. However, our moments here are fleeting, and soon we're whisked away to a realm not seen in the original game, Svartalfheim.
New Horizons
Svartalfheim is home to one of the dwarves and is the first realm we've visited in the Norse duology that contains a functional civilization. In contrast with the humans of Midgard or the warring elves of Alfheim, the dwarves have a functioning society in the village of Nidavellir. It's a quaint change of scenery but one we can't enjoy too long since the dwarves are intensely wary of outsiders.
We reach the first fork in the road after leaving the village. After that, we can either continue the story by heading to the Jarnsmida Pitmines or explore the Bay of Bounty and drink in a heaping helping of lore and side quests. I chose the latter, but it doesn't seem like those who want to stay on track will be significantly penalized. Like in the first game, exploration is optional and can be accomplished at your pace.
Starting Over
Fortunately, Santa Monica Studio avoided any sort of contrived scenario as to why Kratos and Atreus are starting over at Level 1. Your enemies are more powerful because it's Fimbulwinter, and you've gotten a little rusty in three years.
In the early part of the game, you have access to most of the combat options you discovered by the end of God of War (2018). So, you don't have to earn the Blades of Chaos again, and early skills seemed easier to unlock this time.
My one criticism so far is that early on, the combat feels very similar to the last game. I still love juggling enemies and those oh-so-chunky axe chops, but I hope some unique options open up later that spice things up.
High Hopes
Santa Monica Studio promises to wrap up God of War's Norse chapter with Ragnarök, and the opening hours show the promise of an epic adventure. However, it feels like there's a lot of ground to cover before the credits roll, so it's hard to tell if it'll live up to the expectations set by its predecessor. From what we've seen so far, however, it looks like it'll more than meet this extremely high bar.
God of War Ragnarök is set to debut on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 on November 9, 2022.
About the writer
Brittany Vincent is a Newsweek gaming editor based in Kentucky. Her focus is reporting on video games, the game industry, ... Read more