In 2001, Santa Monica Studio made Kinetica for the PlayStation 2, and just four years later, they kicked off what is now a critically acclaimed six-part series. God of War is one of the biggest titles in gaming, being particularly lauded for its storytelling, high-octane action, and adherence to not monetizing single-player games with microtransactions.
The latest outings, God of War and God of War Ragnarök concluded a bold shift of the main character, Kratos, from the realms of Greek mythology to Norse. With Santa Monica Studio sticking the landing so resoundingly, gamers have been clamoring to work out where Kratos will go next. At the very least, we know that the studio that’s developed seven games in-house – six of them God of War – is already working on a new PS game.
End of Norse and hints at Egypt
Having swept up at the premier game awards ceremony in the UK, God of War Ragnarök went on to release a free, and rather hefty, DLC to offer a bit of catharsis for Kratos, let him work out some demons, and finally conclude his stint in this foreign realm. Presumably, this is in order to kick off a new adventure in another realm beyond his own – even with his new throne in this mythology.
A few in-universe clues have been offered regarding Kratos’ next move. The first came in the 2018 soft reboot. In Týr’s vault, a board showing the god of war was cornered by four symbols of war from other realms. These signs were from ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, Japanese myths, and Celtic folklore.
In Ragnarök, one of the hidden collectibles was an Ankh, said to be “an artifact from the River Empire,” per Mimir. Finally, while a much thinner lead than the hints above, in the final Valhalla expansion for Ragnarök, as the earth gets swept up into the sky, faint triangular structures can be seen being eroded, perhaps they’re the pyramids.
Ancient Egyptian mythology makes sense
Putting the in-game stories aside for a second, Sony will be banking on the next God of War being a huge hit as well, and the best way to guarantee those day-one sales is to go to a very popular setting. With ancient Greece and Norse done, ancient Egypt is the natural next step.
While the ancient Japan setting is surging in entertainment media, those three have historically been the most popular. It’s evident across video gaming as well as in the realm of casino gaming. In the ranking of best online slots in the UK, the top 20 features two ancient Greek, a Norse, and an ancient Egypt-themed game. The Cleopatra game is one of the most enduring slots of all time, outmuscling almost all games to be released since it arrived.
While Cleopatra isn’t part of ancient Egyptian mythology, she is a legendary historical figure. Still, the allure of the slot is much more about the theme and gameplay than the exact headline character. Spinners love ancient Egypt, as do swathes of gamers. It’s why Total War: Pharaoh still peaked at nearly 5,000 players on Steam despite scathing reviews and weak audience scores.
Looking directly at the mythical landscape, ancient Egypt doesn’t lack superb characters and crazy clashes between deities. The story of Isis, Osiris, Horus, and Set, revolving around murder and revenge, is one of the most famed. Given the tale of Kratos’ Norse duology, it isn’t difficult to see him stepping into the middle of this spat.
Everything points to Santa Monica Studio’s next game being another outing for Kratos, and while ancient Egypt seems to be the obvious choice, God of War could go anywhere next. After all, few would have expected a jump into the Norse realms.
