God of War Ragnarok is a grand journey across the realms, with players visiting every realm there is like Svartalfheim, Alfheim, Helheim, and so on, if sometimes to varying degrees. As God of War Ragnarok players advance through the game, they may find a puzzle or environmental interaction that they can't yet do something with. The world design encourages players to revisit certain areas later, after enough progression, and that's exactly what the gold cracks and wind spouts seen around the world are.
God of War Ragnarok is the pinnacle of an action-adventure game, complete with environment puzzles and combat that go hand in hand. Players will use the Leviathan Axe and Blades of Chaos to solve many early puzzles, but they will do nothing when they see giant, golden-glowing cracks in walls or holes where air is shooting out. These are important environmental puzzles, and fans should rest assured they'll get to use them eventually.
Once players unlock the necessary weapon in God of War Ragnarok, players will be able to throw it and make the golden cracks explode. The air spouts can be closed, with Kratos able to use this closure to reach new locations. For those curious, they will unlock this weapon about halfway through God of War Ragnarok's story, which takes about ten hours to get to.
NOTE: The rest of this guide may contain MINOR SPOILERS fans may want to avoid.
God of War Ragnarok: The Weapon You Need for Gold Cracks and Wind Spouts
About ten hours into the game, Kratos will forge an important weapon - the Draupnir Spear. It is deeply connected to the game's Norse Mythology, but to keep it simple, it is a spear that can trigger an explosion. This is how it will destroy gold cracks, with two inputs necessary to do so (Throwing it and then pressing Triangle to detonate it), while throwing it into wind spouts will allow Kratos to use it to climb up/swing on to reach a new location. These are the most common puzzles the Draupnir Spear is used for, but as players advance even further than this, they should be prepared for puzzles that utilize the Leviathan Axe, Blades of Chaos, and Draupnir Spear.
With this weapon unlocked, players should also be aware that they have the capacity to complete most of God of War Ragnarok's puzzles now. Those taking it slow can return to other realms and access new areas, while these places will still be available in the God of War Ragnarok endgame, should players want to proceed with the story.
God of War Ragnarok is available now for PS4 and PS5.