Image: PlayStation Studios
If you’ve already beaten Kratos and Atreus’ final adventure, now is a good time to beat it again.
Developer Santa Monica Studio revealed God of War Ragnarok’s New Game Plus mode this week, and it brings players a lot more postgame content than they might have expected. Not only will they get to replay the story with all their equipment and weapons unlocked, but there are now new armours, gear enchantments and more to seek out in the Nine Realms.
Ragnarok’s NG+ mode offers the usual replay incentives: players can start a new save file with all of their gear, weapons and skills carried over from a previous playthrough. However, they won’t be able to start the game with access to Sonic and Hex arrows - presumably because these are used to unlock paths later on in the main story, and having them earlier would break the campaign.
Fans of the sequel have been clamouring for Kratos’ dark cloak to be added to the game, since it appears in an opening cutscene and vanishes immediately after. Santa Monica, ever the people-pleaser, has added that cloak in the form of the Armor of the Black Bar, a new armour set that focuses on Strength and Defense. NG+ also adds Spartan Armor, which actually gives Kratos zero perks and stats, locked at Level 1. This is for players who want a true challenge and a bare-chested Kratos. Understandable, either way.
Ares and Zeus Armor sets will return from God of War (2018)’s NG+ mode, with the former focusing on melee bonuses and the latter on health bonuses. There’s also a new shield to find in the form of the Spartan Aspis, which grants players a much shorter Parry window for more damaging rewards. In addition to these new armour sets, 13 of the game’s existing armours now come in new styles and colours for players to mess around with.
Kratos and his enemies can also become far more powerful than before, with the existing Level 9 cap pushed even further in NG+. All existing Level 9 equipment can be converted into ‘Plus’ variants than can be further levelled up, and the Gilded Coins gained from doing so can be used to buy all-new Enchantments. Alternatively, you can pick up ‘Burdens’ which give Kratos debuffs to make the game even harder. We really wouldn’t recommend doing this against the Valkyrie Queen Gna, but… who are we to judge?
Other additions include even more skill tree upgrades, Platinum Tier Labors, more stat upgrades via Nornir Chests holding Yggdrasil Dews, and an expanded Niflheim. The last one is very interesting: the Sparring Arena in Niflheim will now allow you to either play as Kratos or Atreus with any combination of the game’s many companions - from Freya and Ingrid to Thor and Thrud. This means that yes, you will be able to play as Kratos with Thor as a companion. I shudder for your enemies.
Berserkers and the Valkyrie Queen Gna now have different movesets to throw players off their game in NG+, along with optional minibosses like the Hateful and the Ormstunga. Lastly, the game can now be played in a black-and-white render mode, and cinematics can be skipped. God of War Ragnarok’s NG+ mode is available to play now. Good luck with Gna!