When thinking of God of War’s most recent entry and its weapons, the now-iconic Leviathan Axe is most likely what comes to mind. Yet, Kratos was equipped with much more than his axe during his journey, including the Guardian Shield. This weapon was gifted to Kratos by his wife on the anniversary of their meeting, and Kratos is able to utilize it in a ton of ways.
Kratos is able to parry and repel projects with the Guardian Shield, as well as utilize various skills with it such as Block Break, Countering Crush, Guardian Sweep, Haymaker’s Crush, and much more. There’s even more when utilizing the shield during Spartan Rage, and while it’s a beloved weapon, God of War Ragnarok is looking to take it up a notch.
During an interview last month, director Eric Williams revealed there would be a bigger shield variety in God of War Ragnarok than the first game, as well as different defensive abilities related to those shields. It’ll be interesting to see if they are just treated as defensive armaments, given how offensive Kratos could be with them, and on the assumption both offense and defense are on the table, shields in God of War Ragnarok have a ton of potential.
God of War Ragnarok Shields
While it remains to be seen, there are a ton of ideas that could work speculatively speaking. Svaliin, for example, is a famous Norse shield that is incredibly cold but manages to stand before the sun. Svaliin could give Kratos unique abilities in certain environments, in theory, given how all nine Norse realms are in God of War Ragnarok. Perhaps Kratos could embrace Captain America’s style, utilizing a shield that defies gravity and can be used offensively to hit several enemies at once.
Another interesting style of shield would be one emphasizing great defense to push back with an even greater offense. For example, Kratos could find a shield that’ll absorb certain ranged or magic attacks, charge it up, and allow him to unleash it at some point, spicing up that already enticing combat between Thor and Kratos.
With Kratos and Atreus attempting to prevent Ragnarok, it would seem that large-scale battles may be par for the course. Another way to level the playing field against hordes of enemies is a shield that can deploy a bubble or dome, locking Kratos in melee with several enemies but protecting him and Atreus from ranged attacks.
Perhaps these shields come from legend or perhaps they come from nightmares, with some shields capable of giving Kratos abilities to taunt, paralyze, or otherwise terrorize his enemies. Meanwhile, a ballistic shield—or something to that effect—would be even more terrorizing given Kratos’ newly refined muscle in God of War Ragnarok. Shields from the past, like the Scorpion Shield or Ascension’s World Weapon, could make for an interesting return with newly refined defensive capabilities.
Either way, while the full details are not yet known, God of War Ragnarok’s Kratos will get a few new tricks including with new shields. For now, that’s likely enough for many fans, but developer Santa Monica Studio will likely confirm more in the coming months.
God of War Ragnarok releases in 2022 for PS4 and PS5.