God of War Ragnarok Originally Had a Completely Different…

Minor Spoilers Ahead After God of War (2018), many fans expected some form of time travel/time skip and the death of Kratos in the sequel, and while neither thing really happens, they almost did. The former expectation came from the role of the World Serpent during Ragnarok, while the latter was due to the mural found at the end of God of War. However, it seems both things did happen in some way in the "earliest outline" of God of War Ragnarok.

This outline didn't last long, according to narrative designer Matt Sophos during an interview with MinnMax, but at one point, Kratos did die in God of War Ragnarok, twenty years would have passed, and Atreus would have saved him from Hell, now as an adult. Sophos also revealed that it was thanks to game director Eric Williams that this did not happen.

As Sophos revealed, Kratos would have originally died in that first boss fight with Thor, and eventually be pulled out of Hell by Atreus, for some reason, twenty years later. Williams wasn't very happy with this direction, Sophos recalled, as it would have just been another meaningless death for Kratos. It would not have been the first time he died and came back, and because of that, there would not have been a good hook or any emotion for fans. "He was absolutely right, and so that's why it didn't last very long," Sophos explained.

Instead, Sophos explained, the narrative team on God of War Ragnarok wanted to challenge the notions of Norse Mythology. As fans of it and the game know, Norse Mythology is a circular series of events all about fate and prophecy that everyone, including the World Serpent, Thor, Odin, Loki, and so on are all bound to. Sophos revealed that Santa Monica wanted to challenge that, wanted the story to be instead about letting go and changing, and that the idea of repeating the same story and indicating that Kratos couldn't change would "suck."

Ultimately, it seems many would agree with Williams, Sophos, and Santa Monica, per the popularity of the game. Its story was definitely one of many, many highlights, as we wrote in our God of War Ragnarok review that it is "absolute proof that vision, artistry, and creative direction far outweigh hardware."

God of War Ragnarok is available now on PS4 and PS5.