Kratos almost died in God of War Ragnarok’s alternate plot, which would have killed him off for 20 years.
Both narrative director Matt Sophos and story lead Richard Gaubert featured on the MinnMax podcast, have revealed new information about Ragnarok’s plot.
In the Ragnarok-specific episode, Sophos and Gaubert discussed how Kratos was supposed to be killed by Thor in the first act of the game’s narrative.
Sophos stated, “He was going to die, but it wasn’t going to be permanent.” “What was meant to happen was that Atreus would drag him out of Hel, but 20 years had gone since then. There would be a significant spike. That was one, but ultimately it didn’t feel right.
Director of Ragnarok Eric Williams reportedly objected to the plan since Kratos had previously perished and fled from the underworld too frequently during the series.
As the story was being created, Sophos said, “we were aware that we wanted the subject to be one about letting go and changing. We wanted to say, “That’s bullshit—nothing is written that can’t be unwritten. We know that Norse mythology is all about fate and prophesy and everything.
You are not constrained by fate as long as you are determined to change your life. We knew Kratos couldn’t pass away once we settled on that as the plot we intended to tell.
That opening scene was included in the final game in some form. If the player loses the fight with Kratos, he briefly “dies” before being promptly restored by Thor to carry on the battle. But rather than defining the plot, it only serves as an amusing spin on what the player may anticipate from a boss fight.
For more information on topics like the famed companion commentary on puzzles and whether the romance between Freya and Kratos was ever a consideration, see the complete interview on MinnMax.
