God of War Ragnarök details you may have missed
Every day's a skál day.
After months (and months) of anticipation, God of War Ragnarök finally released this week. Now that it is out in the world, many - myself included - are taking some time to marvel at how truly packed the nine realms really are.
The amount of detail Sony Santa Monica has put into its game is astounding, from animals scurrying through trees right down to Kratos' wrinkled elbows. But some of these details and Easter eggs are easily missed, so here is a small selection of ones that I have noticed so far.
Please note, some of these details could be considered spoilers. If you're still reading and want to go into the game blind, this is your cue to head elsewhere now.
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First of all, there are the charming references to other PlayStation games. The Last of Us, Horizon and Ratchet and Clank, to name but a few, have all been referenced in Ragnarök thanks to the work of the poet Kvasir.
These poems can be found and collected throughout the nine realms. I won't detail all of them here to keep some a surprise, but the one that I found especially fun was the Uncharted one, which you can see in the picture below.
There is another, perhaps more surprising, PlayStation game referenced in God of War Ragnarök, and this one may well easily pass you by completely. So, Mimir will actually tease Kratos a little bit about his inclusion in PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale - Sony's attempt at a Smash-like brawler.
When the duo are passing the time during a more sedate period of gameplay, Mimir starts asking Kratos about his past encounters. He presses Kratos about a "tournament" he was part of that saw him fighting against "beasts, scoundrels, princesses, the undead, automatons, and... history's greatest musician."
This is all referencing the likes of PaRappa the Rapper and Big Daddy from Bioshock, who were also playable characters on All-Stars' roster alongside Kratos. When Mimir brings them up, Kratos curtly replies he "will not speak of this". I mean, that's understandable, but just for old time's sake, here is a video of Kratos in action for PlayStation's brawler.
Elsewhere, someone on the Santa Monica team is clearly a fan of 80s music, namely Toto.
One of the runes players can read is the Vanaheim Lullaby, which goes "I bless the rains of Vanaheim." This is further elaborated on, with the entry saying the rain reminded those in Greece to worship the gods.
"Do the people of these lands worship the rain alongside their gods?" the text asks.
The last one I have for today is from early on in Ragnarök's story, when Kratos and Thor do battle in Midgard.
Here, on Kratos' death, Thor will break the fourth wall by mocking the player for their death by saying (while scoffing) "Oh no... I say when we're done!" Gameplay will then continue, with Thor stating he will not be leaving the fight until he sees "the real", famed god-killer Kratos.
Some, as you can see in the tweet below, have likened this moment in Ragnarök to similar moments in Hideo Kojima's Metal Gear Solid games.
I am sure there will be plenty more details still to come, and I will be keeping my eyes and ears out for them all.
In the meantime, if you are also making your way through Kratos and Atreus' story, why not check out our guides to help you along. Here is one all about the Nornir chests and here are all the Raven locations. Happy adventuring all!