Some creative freedom was used to make the story flow better.
Myths are fun because they can be used in many different ways, like how the Marvel Cinematic Universe took a Norse myth and changed it. God of War: Ragnarok and its predecessor, which came out in 2018, have done that and more than just put a Greek god in Midgard.
Sony Santa Monica made it possible to talk about how myths were told while still having fun. It has died out over time, so historians and artists can figure out what people in the past believed in. On top of the usual ways people change myths to make their own stories, this has led to some guesswork and creative freedom.
Loki And Angrboda Had Children
Table of Contents
In the second and last part of the duology, Atreus’ Jotnar name, which is his Giant name, is Loki. Even though he has some deeper ties to the story, he is still Kratos and Faye’s son. In Norse mythology, he is made up of many different parts. People who have seen other media, especially the MCU, may know that he likes to get into trouble.
In the myths themselves, he was a god and nothing else. Atreus makes a friend named Angrboda while he is in the games. They are more likely to meet in the myths. They have three kids, some of whom may sound familiar to people who played the Norse games made by the same studio. Their children were the huge wolf Fenrir, the goddess and ruler of Helheim, Hel, and Jormungandr, the World Serpent.
Fenrir: Pet Or Child?
At the start of Ragnarok, players meet Fenrir and then watch Atreus cry as he holds his pet in his last moments before dying. In the myths, this wasn’t the case, because the wolf was Loki’s son and much bigger (which we see later in the game when the soul transfer happens in Helheim).
When the gods met the wolf, they were afraid of him. They bound him with powerful magic to wait until the realms were destroyed by the cataclysm on which Sony Santa Monica based the sequel to God of War 2018. We also saw a fight between the wolf and Tyr, the Norse god of war, which caused Tyr to lose his hand.
Everyone Is Tattooed
Even evil, all-powerful gods look cool with tattoos. God of War gives gods a lot of different tattoos. The Angrboda shows that not only gods but also most magical beings have some ink. It looks cool, but it’s not true to history.
Vikings were not the best at keeping records, and because of this and other things, much of their history has been lost over time. So, we don’t know if the gods the Vikings and Nordic people worshipped had any body changes. Still, it’s a great way to make characters stand out in a video game.
Travel Between Realms
It wasn’t clear how gods or other beings moved from one realm to another. The Bifrost can travel across the rainbow bridge that links Asgard and Midgard. It’s not as clear how to get to the other realms as it is for Kratos to find every collectible in the game.
Kratos, Atreus, and their allies use a Bifrost in a machine that is connected to the World Tree. In Ragnarok, you can use the Mystic Gateways, which connect to the World Tree and let you move quickly, to get where you want to go quickly. As the tree is a big part of how the realms were made in Norse mythology, this is a smart way to break down the source material to make it work in the game.
Týr The Lawful And The Brave
In Ragnarok, we meet Tr for the first time. He was the brave Norse god of war, as shown in the PlayStation game. But he was more than that; he also cared a lot about law and justice.
In the game, he is a soft-hearted god who won’t fight after Odin takes him prisoner. Sony Santa Monica made up this history between him and the All-Father. He was more respected, and when war was needed, he didn’t turn his back on it. Also, as we’ve already said, he loses a hand while the gods tie Fenrir up. He has both hands in Ragnarok.
Freya
Freya is the Witch of the Woods and Odin’s ex-wife in God of War. Odin was married to Frigg, so the developers aren’t being very accurate about her past. Some people say that Freya and Frigg were the same god or that there were two of them because of Odin. Still, the games don’t change the myths about who she is.
Freya was the goddess of love, sexuality, and having children. She was the goddess of many things, but these were the ones that people knew her for. What the games got right was that she wasn’t an Aesir god like Odin and the other gods from Asgard. Instead, she was a Vanir god. She gave birth to Hnoss and Gersemi, while Baldur was born to Frigg.
Thor, The God Of Thunder
Thor is shown in Ragnarok in a pretty accurate way. He is a warrior with red hair and unbeatable strength, mostly because of his hammer, Mjollnir. When the Giants were shown to the Aesir, the Aesir didn’t like them, so they killed most of them. Thor tells Atreus on their journey to Muspelheim that he worked hard at that job. Mimir says in God of War 2018 that he doesn’t get along well with Jormungandr.
His relationship with Atreus/Loki is different from what Norse mythology said about it. Loki and Thor were not brothers, even though Marvel makes it seem like they were. Even though Loki tricked Thor, they weren’t enemies and didn’t have to work together in 8 Ball Pool.
He also has a different personality and relationship with other gods. He was well-liked and one of the gods who was worshipped the most. He drank a lot of mead, but in Ragnarok, it seems like he has cut back on how much he drinks. He could drink a lot of alcohol without getting drunk. So, when he wasn’t killing for Asgard, he could be a fun person to be around.
