With recent job listings suggesting that a new God of War game could be in the works at Santa Monica Studio, there’s some speculation as to what the story could be. Previously, it was confirmed that God of War Ragnarök would conclude the Norse saga of the series, leaving it as a duology, but in December 2023, the studio released a free, roguelike DLC, Valhalla, which took place after this ending, suggesting that there is room for more stories set within the Norse mythology.
The newer God of War games focus on the relationship between an older Kratos and his son Atreus, with the first game seeing Kratos teaching him to survive and fight as a warrior as they embark on a journey to scatter his mother, Faye’s ashes atop the highest peak in the Nine Realms. Throughout the story, Atreus learns more about his heritage, as it’s revealed that Faye was a Jötunn, and gave him the birth name, Loki. The second game in the series, God of War Ragnarök, lets players play as both characters as they follow Atreus’ journey following these revelations, struggling with his identity and seeing himself and Loki as one and the same. Throughout the game, he seeks more answers about his kind, and it’s extremely likely that a new game will continue to follow this thread.
While Valhalla saw Kratos reckoning with his violent past and featured several callbacks to the classic titles that reconciled the newer and older series, he and Atreus had gone their separate ways by this point, opening up another potential plotline Santa Monica Studio could follow in an upcoming game. Atreus believed that all the Jötnar were dead, which further added to his struggles, as he sought answers Kratos could not provide.
Later in the game, Atreus learned from Angrboda, one of the last remaining giants of Jötunheim, that this was not the case and that his ancestors were not extinct as he first believed, with there being the potential to resurrect his kind. At the end of the game, Atreus tells Kratos that he plans on setting out to find the other Giants alone, which Kratos accepts, acknowledging his son’s birthright.
This gives Atreus a definitive future quest to follow and potentially allows room for his relationship with Angrboda – who became close to him throughout God of War Ragnarök – to develop further if she were to accompany him on this venture. Given that God of War Ragnarök featured sections in which the player controls Atreus, fans have already speculated that the series’ next entry may be a spin-off game with Atreus as the sole protagonist, similar to what the Marvel’s Spider-Man series did where Miles Morales got his own standalone entry to grow and develop as a hero before working together with the original hero, Peter Parker, in the sequel.
With Atreus growing from being an NPC who accompanied Kratos in God of War to being a fully playable character in God of War Ragnarök, players already have some idea of how he will play as a character. While Kratos carried more weight to his gameplay due to his age, size, and years of experience, Atreus was far more nimble, using a bow given to him by his mother as his main weapon instead of the heavier kinds wielded by Kratos.
There were several moments throughout God of War Ragnarök that drove home that while he may have been trained, Atreus lacked the experience of his father, showing that he is still somewhat unrefined as an adventurer and warrior by trying to copy his father at times but not quite succeeding, leaving plenty of room to develop into a combat style of his own. While God of War Ragnarök certainly had a focus on Atreus at its core, an entire game centered around his standalone journey would allow players to see more of a transformation as he becomes more sure of himself and his abilities while discovering more about his legacy and the Jötnar.
Players have already experienced some of Atreus’ magical abilities firsthand, seeing him channeling giant magic through his attacks, and his equivalent of Kratos’ Spartan Rage mode seeing him transform into his wolf form. As Atreus learns more about his heritage and what the Jötnar can do, there’s the potential to see these abilities change and develop further as Atreus becomes even more skilled in them, ensuring that if he does reunite with Kratos in a future title after his spin-off, both characters would have experienced growth to potentially make them more equal in combat.
Of course, for now, Santa Monica Studio has yet to officially announce its next title, so this is purely speculation. The job listings did ask for candidates who “are fluent in the combat design choices, systems, mechanics, and enemies of God of War (2018) and God of War Ragnarök (2022)“, so it’s likely to be another entry in the God of War franchise. After every entry in the series focusing on Kratos, however, an Atreus spin-off would be a great way to change things up slightly while building upon what came before and would help continue the storyline set up at the end of the game while enabling Kratos to explore another kind of mythology in a separate title.