With so many plot threads to unravel and tie up, God of War: Ragnarok certainly has its work cut out for it. The last 10 minutes of the main story opened up a ton of questions that will hopefully be answered by the next game. Most of those questions have to do with Atreus and his alternate identity as the Norse god of mischief, Loki, but there's a lot of mystery surrounding Kratos as well.
God of War: Ragnarok will definitely delve deeper into the relationship between father and son, but Laufey, Kratos' wife and Atreus' mother, should be more present in the story as well. She's dead, so it would probably require some flashbacks, but the game's climax revealed what a crucial role Faye played behind the scenes and caused many more questions to pop up. The game is light on details about Faye and her relationship with her family, Kratos in particular, but God of War: Ragnarok has the opportunity to answer many players' questions by fleshing Faye out a little more.
God of War Doesn't Reveal Anything About Kratos' Relationship With Faye
Despite being the entire reason Kratos and Atreus embark on a journey in the first place, the game offers very little when it comes to explaining the relationship Laufey had with Kratos and Atreus. Of the two, though, Faye's nurturing relationship with her son is more developed. Faye taught Atreus to hunt, how to read and write, and taught him about Norse mythology. The only clue is that Kratos didn't take part in many of those lessons, as he often relies on Atreus to translate runes or explain the mythological implications of what's happening in the story.
The general vibe the game gives off is that while Kratos loves his family very much, he wasn't around a whole lot despite how isolated the little family was in the woods. He misses her and has no idea how to raise a son on his own, but almost nothing is known about the relationship he had with Laufey. Kratos didn't even know that his wife was a Frost Giant until the end of the game, so she must have kept a lot of secrets.
The story doesn't reveal how Faye and Kratos met or anything about their love story, but there had to have been one. It's easy to see why Kratos would have been attracted to Faye; she was renowned as a strong warrior but also had a gentle and nurturing spirit. It seems like they were good together, and Kratos and Atreus go to enormous lengths to fulfill her dying wish. But players don't get to see her or see the family interact at all. In God of War: Ragnarok, it would be great to hear more stories about Faye and Kratos or see moments between them played out in flashbacks.
It Was Hard to Care About Faye in God of War
Faye is the reason behind Kratos and Atreus' journey to Jotunheim but because players have no idea who Faye is or if they even like her, it's hard to be invested in that goal. God of War has a powerful and well-executed narrative with many epic and heartfelt moments, but taking Faye's ashes to Jotunheim just feels like an excuse to make all of those other amazing events possible.
To be fair, it does kind of feel like Faye set that up and might have manipulated her family into causing Ragnarok. She could see the future, so it makes a lot of sense. But from a storytelling perspective, it's hard to be invested in the overall goal when Faye has no meaning to the player. Faye isn't going to be the driving force behind the events of Ragnarok (even though she might have been the instigator), so it won't be as big of a deal in the second game. However, if it turns out she was the one pulling the strings and using her family to precipitate the end of the Aesir, players will definitely need more context.
Developing that lost relationship more would make Faye's possible betrayal all the more heartbreaking, or would endear the player to her so that the quests have more meaning. God of War: Ragnarok should definitely take the opportunity to establish Faye as a cornerstone relationship for Kratos- and there's already a big reason to believe that she was. Time travel is one of the most common theories for the sequel, so Faye could be present in some of those moments as well.
Kratos Changed a Lot Between the Past Two Games
The most recent God of War game is a soft reboot of the original series, which ended with God of War 3. A lot of time passes between those two games and Kratos is not the same person he was at the end of God of War 3. He still has a temper, but he's learned how to control it and desires to pass that ability on to his son. The wild, violent Kratos from the older God of War games has been replaced by one that is still capable of brutality but is more cautious and calculated.
Kratos aged a lot between God of War 3 and God of War (2018) as well, and a good amount of those years were spent with Faye. Kratos isn't one to have a lot of friends and close relationships, so Faye was likely one of the biggest influences that caused Kratos to rein in his temper. It's an important shift for the character that didn't get a whole lot of explanation.
Going forward in the God of War series, it's important that Santa Monica digs a little deeper into Kratos' arc and how he became the person he is now. Faye undoubtedly had a lot to do with his transformation, and it would make huge strides towards helping players understand Kratos' psyche and motivations. Kratos isn't the most expressive character in the world, which is fine, but it's important to have a glimpse into his more recent backstory to truly understand him.
If Faye Set Up Ragnarok, She Should Play a Big Role Going Forward
A lot of fans have theorized that Faye was actually the master manipulator behind Ragnarok, and if that's true, she'll be a huge part of the next game. The theory makes sense because, in addition to more or less being the end of times, Ragnarok is specifically fortold to be the destruction of the gods. The Frost Giants are locked in eternal conflict with the Aesir gods, and as one of them, Faye would have wanted them to meet their end as soon as possible.
Her wish for Kratos and Atreus to take her ashes to the highest peak in all the realms, which just so happens to be in Jotunheim, can't be a coincidence. She could see the future and knew exactly what that journey would result in. At the end of the game, her mural reveals that she knew Kratos and Atreus would be responsible for the death of Baldur, which is Ragnarok's inciting event.
If Faye used Kratos and Atreus to cause Ragnarok, it's hard to predict how that might impact the father and son. But for the reveal to have the kind of weight it should, players need to know more about Kratos and Faye and what their lives looked like together. Were there little clues hinting at Faye's true motives, or was she genuinely a loving wife and mother who wanted her family to find Jotunheim and learn the truth about her? Either option is very plausible- though one option is decidedly more interesting.
God of War: Ragnarok is in development for a 2022 release on PS4 and PS5.