God of War 5 is definitely going to happen, it’s just a matter of waiting until it’s officially announced. Sony Santa Monica’s God of War video game franchise is one of the PlayStation’s biggest first-party franchises, something that started all the way back on the PlayStation 2 in 2005 - and it has continued in some form ever since.
The latest God of War installment stepped away from Greek mythology and put the focus on Norse mythology. And considering how critically and commercially successful 2018’s God of War was, which has since become a representation for the perseverance of single-player games, another sequel is all but confirmed. While nothing official has been revealed, there’s a lot that can be deduced from what has been revealed about the future of the God of War franchise thus far.
God of War 5 Release Date
Sony Santa Monica has not revealed God of War 5’s release date yet or even when to expect the new title. However, series director Cory Barlog recently said that the next installment won’t take another 5 years to develop like 2018’s God of War did. That means audiences should expect to see God of War 5 hit store shelves no later than 2022 - but, hopefully, a little bit earlier.
God of War 5’s Story Will Continue Norse Mythology
God of War 5 will continue the story left off by the last God of War game and explore Norse mythology in greater detail, just like how the original God of War trilogy did with Greek mythology. Shortly before the latest God of War game released in April 2018, Sony Santa Monica senior online community strategist Aaron Kaufman confirmed that additional installments in the franchise will follow Norse mythology and that gamers needn’t have played the original games to play and/or understand the sequels since the story has, in some ways, been restarted.
While the developer may not release another seven games in the series - with all of them focusing on Norse mythology - God of War’s ending did set up a new trilogy. Based on the events of the new title, it looks like Freya will be the main antagonist in God of War 5, with the overall story arc adapting the events of Ragnarok - a prophesied depiction of a series of events that will bring about the end of all things and the deaths of most of the Norse gods, such as Odin, Thor, and Loki. In the sequel, however, it seems Kratos and Loki will have to take on Freya, Odin, and Thor. This may, of course, carry over to God of War 6 as the conclusion of the Norse storyline.
God of War 5 Will Have Bigger Fights
God of War 4 wasn’t exactly an open-world game in the traditional sense, but it was open, something that differed from previous installments. Considering everything that went into the new game, it makes sense that God of War 5 not only would continue down that path but also be somewhat bigger in scale. That’s usually the case with sequels, after all. According to environmental artist Nate Stephens, a potential God of War 5 would also have bigger fights.
Almost two months of 2018’s God of War game released, Stephens revealed that if Kratos were to meet with Odin or Thor, it would have to be bigger and better than what they did with this new installment. Furthermore, the story itself would be much longer. Since God of War 4 was an astounding critical achievement, God of War 5 supposedly being bigger, better, and longer is everything fans could hope for.
God of War Director Has 5 Sequels Planned
God of War 4 took the franchise into a new direction, literally branching off from Greek mythology for the first time. Because of that, there are plenty of stories left to tell. And shortly after the 2018 installment hit store shelves, Sony Santa Monica creative director Cory Barlog revealed that he currently has five more games planned in his head (via Kotaku). Whether or not all those installments continue the Norse theme, or even end up happening at all, remains to be seen, but it’s safe to say that at least one or two will go gold one day. The question is, when?
Current reports indicate that Sony will release the PlayStation 5 by 2021. It’s unclear what the rumored video game console would consist of, but it will without a doubt be more powerful than what is already out today. Plus, given that 2021 is only three years away, God of War 5 will more than likely release on the PlayStation 5, though it’s also possible that it might be one of the last major first-party games to release on the PlayStation 4 as well.
However, developing God of War 5 for the PlayStation 5 isn’t something that Barlog is looking forward to, if a sequel happens. To him, as a developer, it’s time-consuming and understandably tedious to overhaul a game engine for a new platform, even if that platform comes from within the same company. And, since Barlog said the next game won’t take another half-decade to develop, it stands to reason that God of War 5 may have a release schedule similar to the original God of War game as well as Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us.
God of War 5 Trailer
Since God of War 5 hasn’t been officially announced or confirmed to be in development, there isn’t a trailer just yet - and there likely won’t be a trailer for another few years.
