Týr’s Prophecy May Tell Us Where Kratos Goes After God of War Ragnarök

The fifth mainline game in the series that commenced in 2005, God of War Ragnarök will be the concluding chapter in Kratos’ second story in his second realm of mythology. Having slain the pantheon of gods of Greek mythology in God of War, God of War II, and God of War III, Kratos then made his way to the nine realms of Norse mythology. Here, he found only more battles in a place that seemingly rejects his very presence.

With games taking a lot longer to make these days, director Cory Barlog decided against another trilogy run for Kratos in Scandinavian mythology. There were eight years between the first and third of the original Greek trilogy, but God of War (2018) took five years to make, with Ragnarök now releasing four years later. So, this story will conclude with the apocalyptic-titled second game, which is fitting for the setting.

After Kratos has seen off the legends of Norse, few doubt that Sony will let one of its biggest IPs sit around for too long. So, the Spartan is bound to find himself in a new setting before the decade concludes, and where he goes next may have already been revealed.

Making it out of Ragnarök

Without a doubt, God of War Ragnarök is going to be one of the best games released in Q4 of 2022, and likely, one of the best games of the year. Based on the studio’s last game, the footage and inside looks given by the creators, and the hype swirling around its release, it seems almost unfathomable that it would fall short of Game of the Year contention – especially with one of gaming’s greatest warriors in full force.

The 2018’s God of War set up the Norse setting incredibly well, even filling in travel time with the recounting of myths and tales. It infused many key characters of the lore, showcased epic creatures, and teed up the royal rumble to come in Ragnarök. As we knew from the cinematic trailer launched alongside the game’s release date, the studio certainly didn’t scale back the awe factor, with the monstrous wolf Fenrir baring its teeth in the video.

The game has moved on slightly from the fallout of the first in the new series, with Kratos’ son, Atreus, being older, more headstrong, and more skilled than before. In theory, he’ll be better prepared to take on the biggest figures of Norse mythology that remained onlookers in God of War. With Fimbulwinter upon Midgard, the duo must travel the nine realms to find answers while the forces of Asgard commit to the prophecy of Ragnarök and prepare for the battles that will bring the world to its end.

Ragnarök is such a key part of Norse mythology, along with the grudges and hatred felt between key players in the lore, that it’s only fitting that the disruptive force of Kratos is there until the very end. He’s already killed off Baldur in this world – let alone the likes of Poseidon, Hades, Hercules, Cronos, Gaia, and Zeus in God of War III alone – so the Spartan will add more gods to his tally before moving on.

Kratos’ third mythical destination

In God of War (2018), Atreus, Kratos, and Mímir find a prophecy board looted by Odin depicting Týr and four distinct symbols in each corner. In the top right, there’s Greek mythology’s Omega for the beginning and end of all things. In the other corners, there’s the Triskelion of Celtic mythology, Eye of Ra from ancient Egyptian myth, and the Japanese Tomoe symbol.

Of them all, Egyptian looks to be the most popular in media right now. The MCU’s Moon Knight draws from Egyptian mythology and earned 418 million minutes of viewing in its first five days. Not only this, but it’s also an overwhelmingly popular theme in online gaming entertainment. At this online casino, the Top Games page alone features Mask of Amun, Cairo, and Wild Link Cleopatra. It’s also here that Norse games have found a strong footing, thanks to the likes of Thunderstruck II and Masters of Valhalla, but there’s little with Celtic or Japanese themes.

That said, the ancient Japanese theme is certainly picking up speed. Another PlayStation exclusive, Ghost of Tsushima, was a huge hit, raking in over 9.73 million copies sold and only releasing one paid DLC for the title. A little further back, and more fantasy-powered, was Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, which was also a critical and commercial success. Given the prominence of anime shows – particularly myth-intertwined ones like Princess Mononoke, Noragami, and Spirited Away – Japanese folktales and myths could also be in high demand.

However, perhaps the strongest argument to follow the Celtic rune is how underutilized the myths and tales of the ancient civilization have become in modern media. Hellblade blends Norse and Celtic, Folklore is held a couple of console generations back, and The Witcher has many elements that are inspired by Celtic mythology. Still, you only have to look to the series Britannia to see how intriguing the ways of the Druids were and could even blend in mythical Roman figures – which were predominantly just renamed from Greek lore.

The highly praised entry of Kratos in Norse mythology comes to an end in 2022, but the creators have already given the audience a potential look at where the God of War series will go next.