This is just a wild guess, but I don’t think I’ll be the only person whose first God of War game will be God of War Ragnarök. Lucky for me, the developers were already anticipating players who didn’t play God of War (2018). As you start up Ragnarök, a very convenient option appears at the top of the main menu, titled “God of War Recap.”
At first, I thought it would help people like me going into Ragnarök to confidently know what happened in the previous game and what to expect from this game. However, after watching it, I’m more convinced that it’s actually meant for those who haven’t played God of War in a while. That’s because the minute-and-a-half-long video jumps incoherently from scene to scene and is delivered without context or any real summary of the first game’s direct plot. Even though I saw it, I have no idea what happened. So I decided it would be fun to write a post about what I think happened in God of War based on the official summary in the Ragnarök main menu.
let’s get started
There is a big, strong boy named Kratos and a little boy named Atreus. At least I can understand that because, surprise, I already knew who they were. The game begins because Atreus’ mother dies and he and his father want to scatter her ashes on a mountain top.
Image: SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment
It seems like quite a difficult task because a random lady says that the region is a realm of the gods. I don’t know if this is the mountain region they have to go to, but I’m going to assume it is, because why on earth would they want to go there any other way. Kratos tells someone he is a god; however, I do not know whether it is addressed to Atreus or to this lady, Freya. I’m guessing it’s Freya, because the synopsis shows her using magical powers that can make plants grow, and she refers to being the leader of the Vanir.
Kratos cuts off the head of a guy named Mimir and then quickly presents him to a giant dragon. I don’t know why Mimir would invite Kratos to chop off his head, but the clip shows Kratos lifting his head, so I think Kratos did. Mimir mentions that Kratos killed the sons of Odin, who I assume are gods. Kratos then talks about himself. Apparently he chose to become a man, but he is actually a god. So now I don’t know if he is a god or a man or just a very strong man.
Atreus discovers that he is a god. He says he’s a giant but I think he’s normal height. This makes Atreus think he can do whatever he wants as a god, so he goes and kills another god. (This god doesn’t look like he’s fighting a kid, somehow.) Kratos looks really upset because he yells and tells Atreus that there are consequences if you kill a god.
Image: SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment
At this point, the story becomes more dramatic. Another guy named Baldur enters the picture. He doesn’t seem to like Kratos or Freya. And I guess Kratos and Freya bonded again, so I guess Freya serves as a guide for Kratos. But now everything looks bad because this Baldur guy gets angry and Kratos turns his head and kills him. I don’t really know why he’s angry, but it might be because Atreus literally killed a god. Meanwhile, Freya mourns Baldur’s death and calls him her son, so I guess he’s her son.
Atreus then mentions that someone told him Loki and asks him about it. Kratos doesn’t seem to mind explaining anything! Deflect Atreus’ question. So I guess Atreus is not just a god, but a very special god because Loki is a pretty big Marvel character.
In the end, we see them high in the clouds and somewhat calm, so it looks like they accomplished their goal of scattering the ashes. (Though again, I’d like to know why it was important.) The synopsis doesn’t say if Atreus is directly related to Kratos, which seems pretty important. Overall, there seem to be a lot of unresolved plot points from the first game that will play out in Ragnarök. The recap wasn’t surprising, but you know what? I’ve just resigned myself to scouring wikis when I need a little extra background.