Mythology has long been a subject of creative inspiration such as stories told around campfires to explain the fire that comes out of the mountain sometimes. More modern interpretations include Neil Gaiman’s popular American Gods series.
One game franchise that’s been on the go since 2005 is Santa Monica Studio’s series known as God of War. In them, the anti-hero Kratos explores his roots in Greek mythology. In God of War 4, the most recent game, he travels further afield and settles in the Far North.
With God of War: Ragnarok slated for a 2021 release, players might want to give God of War 4 a quick replay to familiarize themselves with the story – especially since it deviated from the mythology of previous games. Here are 10 facts about Norse mythology players might have missed on their first playthroughs.
10 Jörmungandr
In Norse mythology, Loki is famous for a number of strange things that could easily land him a spot in Ripley’s Believe It Or Not. Quite a few of those things are his children – some of whom he gave birth to himself. But the three children of his which most unnerved the Æsir were born of the giant Angrboda.
One of these children grows to be known as the Midgard Serpent and also grows so large that his scales can coil around the entire world. While he is feared by the Æsir in the mythology and goes on to kill Thor during Ragnarök, he is friendly towards Kratos and Atreus and helps them in their journey around the nine realms.
9 Freyr
After the first major boss fight in God of War 4, Kratos and Atreus leave their homestead and head off on their mission. Along the way, Kratos decides to test his son’s skill as a hunter by having him track and bring down a boar. However, when Atreus only wounds the boar instead of fatally killing it, the pair chase it to the witch who asks for their help in saving “her friend”.
Though it is not explicitly stated that there is any more to the animal than meets the eye, there is a Norse deity known to take the form of a boar — Freyr. The god of fertility, peace, and rain, Freyr is one of the Vanir and features in many of the Sagas and stories.
8 The Bifröst
Although the game chooses to make some narrative changes to the mythology it draws inspiration from, there are still several good references. One that is altered quite drastically from the source material but very well done is the Bifröst or the bridge between the nine worlds.
Traditionally, the guardian of the Bifröst is Heimdall but in God of War 4, it is Tyr. The team likely made this change because he is cast in a pretty prominent role in the backstory. But the updated, mechanized machinery is an excellent twist on the Rainbow Bridge and very on-brand for the game. In the game, players need to align the bridge depending on where they need to go with certain areas being unavailable due to disrepair or intention.
7 Brok and Sindri
Pretty quickly in the game, Kratos and Atreus come across a pair of dwarves: one (Sindri) who is very germaphobic and one who is very belligerent (Brok). One of them gets very excited by Kratos’ axe — which had belonged to Atreus’ mother — as they recognize their own workmanship. Players can visit them throughout the game to upgrade their gear.
Brok and Sindri (as well as the unnamed Sons of Ivaldi) play a vital role in Norse mythology as the craftsmen behind Mjölnir. Loki, seeking to regain favor in Asgard after cutting off Thor’s wife’s hair, sets the two groups of dwarves against each other to create bigger and better treasures. Self-replicating gold, an immense ship, a new wig for Sif, and Thor’s infamous hammer are amongst the haul.
6 Mimir
An overarching theme of many Norse myths is Odin’s search for knowledge. He does this not just because he likes to be in on the secret, but because he is looking for a “get out of jail free card” to prevent Ragnarök. Odin is willing to go to some very extreme means for knowledge — including sacrificing his eye to Mimir’s Well. The Mimir that we meet in God of War 4 is a little different from the mythology. His limitless power seems to be in his own head instead of in his well. He’s also managed to get on Odin’s bad side which is typically not a good place to be.
Just how he gets to be Kratos’s unwilling traveling companion from where he has been bound to Yggdrasil is a grim tale, but his commentary adds a lot more witty dialogue to the game than God of War fans may be accustomed to.
5 Seiðr
Norse mythology stands out amongst other mythologies for having a lot of different names for different types of magic. Perhaps the most known of these is Seiðr which was practiced by both humans and deities in the late Scandinavian period as well as by modern practitioners. It deals with future-telling and the incantation of spells and has a similar etymology to the word soothsayer.
Seiðr was best known as feminine magic and Odin’s knowledge of it made many view him a bit differently. However, in some stories, he learned Seiðr from Frejya, a member of the Vanir (gods who lived in Vanaheim and famously allied with the Æsir). Of course, in God of War, Frejya’s view of Odin is not so favorable…
4 Níðstangs
More commonly referred to throughout the game as “scorn poles”, Níðstangs were a particularly nasty bit of Norse culture that weren’t for the squeamish. In God of War 4, these traps need to be disabled in order for Kratos and Atreus to progress and require teamwork to dismantle. But why were they erected in the first place?
Níðstangs are used to curse an enemy and traditionally consisted of a long pole with a horse’s head on the end. The most detailed story of one is given in the Icelandic Egil’s Saga. Runes would be carved into the wood and the head would be aimed at the homestead of the person who had wronged you. It’s possible that the ones in the games are remnants of past arguments or they may have been set by Odin or Baldur to slow the heroes down.
3 Laufey
By far, the best-kept secret in God of War 4 is the mysterious identity of Atreus’ mother and Kratos’ wife, Faye. Apart from being the driving point of the game’s plot — with Kratos and his son journeying to scatter her ashes in her homeland — Faye is also a figure from Norse mythology herself: the giant (or Jötunn) Laufey.
Now, MCU fans might be a little confused because the Marvel universe incorrectly labels Laufey as Loki’s father. However, Laufey is important in Norse mythology in that Loki refers to himself by the matronymic Laufreyjarson as opposed to the traditional patronymic Fárbautason. Little is known about her except that she was “both slender and weak” and is sometimes referred to by a name meaning ’needle'.
2 Fafnir
Throughout the game, Kratos and Atreus undertake many side-quests, many of which involve helping dwarves. At one point, they are sent by Brok and Sindri to a makeshift prison up in the mountains to free somebody that they know: a dwarf by the name of Fafnir. But when the team gets there, what they find instead is a… dragon.
It turns out that that dragon is Fafnir.
Overcome by greed, Fafnir slew his own father, Hreithmar, in order to gain the vast amount of gold he was gifted by Odin as compensation for the loss of one of his sons. Upon doing this, Fafnir is cursed by Odin and turns into a dragon. He is later killed by the young hero, Sigurd, in the Völsunga saga. While not a traditional Norse story, this well-known Germanic tale involves the same pantheon of characters.
1 Dökkálfar & Ljósálfar
A fun element of God of War 4 is the mechanism that players unlock early in the game that allows them to travel to other realms. While some of them are supplementary, some are a vital aspect of the plot. The two most prominent are Alfheim and Niflheim — the home of the Light Elves, or Ljósálfar, and Dark Elves, or Dökkálfar, respectively.
One thing that God of War does well is to portray these creatures not as elves so much as fairies. This is more in line with how the Norse saw them, as well. To the Norse, elves were much more like a separate culture living within the nine realms. There are still debates as to what the terms mean.
NEXT: God Of War: 14 Gods Kratos Killed (& How He Murdered Them)
