God of War has one of the best endgame challenges in video games thanks to Sigrun and her Council of Valkyries. After completing the main story (or before, if players grind hard enough early on), players can adventure through the realms and find various Valkyries that have been imprisoned by Odin. Mimir warns Kratos and Atreus that he can't think of a more formidable foe than a Valkyrie, and he's quite right. In God of War, the Valkyries are the most challenging bosses, demanding resilience, determination, and a lot of grinding.
The Valkyries serve as a great motivator for players to fully complete the game in preparation for the fights, and the boss fight designs are incredible, requiring players to use everything they've learned in the game. Something would be missing if God of War: Ragnarok didn't implement a similar challenge, but what that challenge could look like is up to speculation.
God of War's Valkyries Explained
There are a lot of things that make God of War's Valkyries special, and one of the main ways is how they continue to build upon Norse mythology and teach the player about the world. The Valkyries are an important part of Norse mythology and deserve the spotlight. There's also an interesting story surrounding the Valkyries' imprisonment, which makes the challenge worthwhile.
Valkyries are an elite class of female warriors that collect soldiers from the battlefield and determine which ones are worthy of going to Valhalla, which, rather than being a paradise, is more of a training ground for the Einherjar. The Valkyries train the Einherjar in preparation for Ragnarok, where they will fight for Odin. Valkyries are legendary and formidable, as anyone who has accepted the God of War challenge has experienced.
In God of War, Kratos and Atreus find Valkyries locked up, having been imprisoned in their physical forms. The story slowly unfolds as Kratos and Atreus hunt down and free each Valkyrie, revealing that Odin corrupted the Valkyries after Freya lost her position as the Valkyrie Queen. When he corrupted them, Odin trapped the Valkyries in their physical forms.
Being in a physical form is not natural for a Valkyrie, and causes them to go insane after a prolonged period of time. When Sigrun realized what Odin had done, she made the decision to imprison the Valkyries and herself so that they would not put anyone in danger. By destroying their physical bodies, Kratos and Atreus free the Valkyries and restore the lost Council.
God of War: Ragnarok Will Have More Valkyries
For God of War: Ragnarok to do something similar to the Valkyrie challenge, the most straightforward idea is that there could simply be more Valkyries. Kratos and Atreus faced the Council of the Valkyries, which was made up of 8 Valkyries and their queen, but there are many, many more than just those 9 that could pose interesting and unique threats.
At least two new Valkyries are confirmed to appear in God of War: Ragnarok: Hrist and Gna. Erica Lindbeck and Evanne Elizabeth Friedmann anounced their roles on Twitter back in September, so that's at least two Valkyries that will be present. Technically in Norse mythology, Gna is a servant of Freya rather than a Valkyrie, but this wouldn't be the first liberty Santa Monica has taken with the original mythology.
Apart from Hrist and Gna, there are dozens of other Valkyries that were never named in the previous game. Simply repeating the Valkyrie formula could feel a little lackluster, but it's definitely possible. Considering that the true Valkyrie Queen Freya will play a large antagonistic role in Ragnarok, Valkyries may play a bigger role in the main story this time.
The only thing is that the challenging Valkyrie bosses were optional, and Freya is probably a main villain. She plays a significant role in the story and threatened Kratos pretty dramatically at the end of the first game, so she'll be tracking Kratos down rather than the other way around. Unless the final Valkyrie boss is Freya with her wings, it's hard to imagine anyone that would top the infamous Sigrun.
God of War: Ragnarok's Challenge Could Be the Einherjar
However, it's very possible that God of War: Ragnarok will go in a completely different direction. Valkyries will be present in the game, but they may not be foes. Instead, it's very possible that players will be fighting high-ranking members of the Einherjar. The Einherjar is Odin's personal army comprised of the best warriors, hand-picked from the battlefield by the Valkyries. In preparation for Ragnarok, they spend their days training for battle and get drunk in their free time. Come Ragnarok, the Einherjar will fight to defend Odin and Asgard.
The Einherjar is an entire army, not a small group of elite soldiers, but every army has to have some sort of ranking system. Just like nine Valkyries found themselves on the Council, there are probably high-ranking, especially skilled members of the Einherjar who act as generals or gatekeepers of some kind. Especially considering how relevant the Einherjar are to Ragnarok, it would be fitting to have them be God of War: Ragnarok's challenge. They spend almost all of their time fighting, which means they could make worthy foes for Kratos.
The great news is that whether they serve as the Valkyrie-esque endgame challenge or not, the Einherjar are confirmed to appear in God of War: Ragnarok. Mimir specifically mentions them just before Kratos and Atreus fight Sigrun, which could be foreshadowing, and there are already some confirmed voice actors. Laura Stahl, Anna Brisbin, and Aaron Phillips all confirmed on Twitter that they are playing members of the Einherjar. One way or another, the elite class of warriors will be in the game, and since they're Odin's puppets, they'll pose a threat.
The Einherjar are also closely related to the Valkyries, who help train them to become better warriors, so it's fitting from every angle. Whatever the endgame challenge is in Ragnarok, though, the story might force it to look a little different. If the world ends, there won't be a lot of exploring to do after completing the main story, and the Einherjar will have met their end.
If Ragnarok has a more rigid conclusion, players should still be able to go back before the final boss battle to grind and complete an endgame challenge. Whether it's more Valkyries, the Einherjar, or some other elite challenger, it's important that Ragnarok continues the legacy of God of War's Valkyries.
God of War: Ragnarok releases in 2022 on PS4 and PS5.