Now that Sony and Santa Monica Studio have formally unveiled God of War: Ragnarok, discussions and theories about what we could see in the upcoming sequel are going to be a dime a dozen. That goes hand-in-hand with the hype surrounding any release as major as this one, and of course, it also helps that this series inherently encourages those kinds of discussions, especially with how many mysteries and questions God of War (2018) raised that fans are hoping will be resolved in its sequel.
And one of many questions we have it- what characters are we going to see in the game? Obviously, the likes of Kratos, Atreus, Freya, Thor, and Odin have been confirmed, but from characters that might potentially return after their appearances in the 2018 game to completely new characters that God of War: Ragnarok pull from Norse mythology, there are quite a few possibilities. Here, that’s exactly what we’ll be discussing.
FENRIR
Ragnarok is going to be a crucial event in the game, obviously (the marketing buzz phrase for the game isn’t “Ragnarok isn’t coming”, is it?), which means that there are a few characters that we haven’t seen in this series yet but we can assume will almost definitely have an important role in the game. One of them is obviously Fenrir, the giant wolf that is fated to kill Odin during Ragnarok. Given Atreus’ affinity to wolves and the fact that Loki is supposed to be Fenrir’s father, God of War (2018) laid it on pretty thick with its setup for Fenrir’s inevitable introduction. And of course, with Angrboda, the mother of Fenrir and Jormungandr, having been confirmed as a character in God of War: Ragnarok, Fenrir’s introduction pretty much seems to be locked in.
VIDAR
After the death of Magni, Modi, and Baldur, the Aesir are going to be coming after Kratos and Atreus with everything they’ve got, and while Thor will of course be leading the charge, the father and son duo will have to fight against other powerful figures as well. One of them may very well be Vidar, the part-Aesir part-Jotun son of Odin most commonly associated in Norse mythology with vengeance (which Kratos is very familiar with, of course). Vidar’s quite an important figure in the myths as well, since not only is he the one who kills Fenrir after Odin’s death, but he’s also one of few Aesir figures who survive Ragnarok. Of course, Magni and Modi also survive Ragnarok, and they’re very much dead in the God of War universe, so you never know what might happen with Vidar if he does show up.
HEL
Loki and Angrboda have three children. Of these, one – Jormungandr, the World Serpent – is already part of the equation in God of War. The second, Fenrir the wolf, who we just spoke about, it likely going to show up as well. Then there’s the third child- their daughter Hel, ruler of Helheim and all the dead. Could we possible see Kratos and Atreus going up against her in God of War: Ragnarok? She is basically the Norse mythology equivalent of Hades, and we all know how much God of War used to love Hades at one point. Of course, that doesn’t guarantee Hel a place in the story, but we could definitely see Kratos and Atreus taking another trip to Helheim and facing off against its ruler. Interestingly enough, in actual Norse mythology, Hel plays an important role in the attempted resurrection of Baldur after Loki causes his death- there’s no telling if that’s something Santa Monica Studio will use in their game, but it could certainly be an interesting plot point.
SKOLL AND HATI
The two wolves, Skoll and Hati, were mentioned in God of War (2018), so they obviously do exist in this universe, and given how closely they’re tied to Ragnarok, it wouldn’t be surprising at all to see them in the next game. Will they actually end up swallowing the sun and the moon though? God of War has a history of taking mythological source material and twisting it in unexpected ways, so that’s not guaranteed, but their appearance, at they very least, is still likely. Oh, and given the fact that they are Fenrir’s children and Loki’s grandchildren, it should be interesting to see how they are portrayed in the game (if they are even in it, that is).
SURTR
Much like with Fenrir, it’s hard to imagine Surtr not showing up in a major role in God of War: Ragnarok. The fire giant is, of course, a crucial player in Ragnarok, not only because he’s heavily involved in the conflict against the Aesir, but also because it’s ultimately his blazing sword that causes the end of the world. Given the state God of War 3 left Greece in, it’s a very real possibility that Kratos will leave the Norse realm in ashes- and if that does happen, Surtr may very well be involved in some capacity.
HEIMDALL
Kratos and Atreus are going up against the Aesir and the forces of Asgard in God of War: Ragnarok, which means that there are a few characters that are basically guaranteed to show up in the game as bosses. Thor and Odin are two of them, of course, but another crucial figure that is bound to show up is Heimdall- the all-seeing, all-hearing protector of the Bifrost, and guardian of Asgard. His enmity with Loki is something that Norse mythology talks about often, what with both of them being destined to kill each other during Ragnarok. Of course, we don’t know exactly how Kratos and Atreus’ encounter against him is going to go down, but we are quite sure that there will be an encounter.
HRAESVELGR
Hraesvelgr, better known as the giant bird in Helheim, is someone we’ve mentioned quite a few times in our God of War features (and quite recently, too), but there’s a very good reason for that. For starters, you can’t expect to put that imposing figure in a God of War game and then not have it be a boss fight (or anything other than background art) and not expect people to talk about it. Hraesvelgr was, of course, originally supposed to be a boss fight in God of War (2018) before being cut out of the game due to time constraints, so we think there’s a pretty good chance Santa Monica Studio will find a way to put him in Kratos’ crosshairs in its sequel.
SIF
We’ll be very, very surprised if Sif isn’t in God of War: Ragnarok. She is the wife of Thor, after all, and an important Aesir figure in Norse myths, and with Thor being one of God of War: Ragnarok’s central antagonists, there’s a very real chance that Sif too will have a role to play. We know for a fact that Kratos and Atreus will be heading to Asgard at some point in the game, and if they do cross paths with Sif, especially if it’s after they have killed Thor, that should be a very interesting meeting.
ULLR
Speaking of Sif- her son (and Thor’s stepson) Ullr could also potentially be in the game. In Norse mythology, he’s most often associated with archery and hunting, which is something that, funnily enough, you’d associate with Atreus as well. And sure, this is nothing but wild speculation at this point, but maybe we could see a different interpretation of Ullr’s character in God of War: Ragnarok? Perhaps one that sees some friction between him and Thor, which maybe leads to him become an uneasy ally of Kratos and Atreus’? Or maybe they could just play it straight and have him fight alongside Sif (if she does show up, that is) after the duo has killed Thor? Either way, he would make an interesting addition to the list of Aesir that Kratos and Atreus have to go through in order to achieve their goals.
ATHENA
This one could go either way. Even now, more than three years after God of War (2018)’s launch, there’s still fierce debate over whether Athena’s appearance in the game was actually herself, or whether she was just a figment of Kratos’ imagination. If that was the real Athena, then there is obviously no way she won’t have a role to play in God of War: Ragnarok as well. There’s just no way the game will leave that important a narrative thread unresolved. If that wasn’t the real Athena though- well, then, the chances of her showing up again for a similar scene are much more slim.
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