God of War Ragnarök Hit a Dead End Trying to Beat Marvel With Accurate Odin Story That Backfired

God of War Ragnarök might be the biggest game of the franchise. Released in 2022, this title is available for PlayStation 4 and 5 and on PC. Loosely based on Norse mythology, the game is set in its typical storyline of ancient Scandinavia, featuring Kratos and his teenage son Atreus.

The Norse mythology in the game has always been a point of interest for the fans, which features popular characters like Thor and Odin. We already have an idea of these Scandinavian medieval characters in other popular franchises like Marvel. So, an accurate interpretation of these characters would have backlashed the God of War franchise itself.

Norse Mythology Was Fiddled in God of War Ragnarök

In an interview with Sports Illustrated, God of War Ragnarök‘s director, Eric Williams, talked about the game’s Norse characters and how they were inspired by biker gangs.

In this interview, Williams stated that the company had to tinker with the story of Norse mythology so that it could stand out among other interpretations in the market. This is what he said about compiling the Norse mythology in the God of War universe:

It’s tough because a lot of people either know the Prose Edda – they are super academic about it – or they know Marvel. We wanted to make Norse characters inside the God of War universe. We read everything about the characters and tried to get as much background as possible, but then we were like, ‘Well, that’s not going to work with the story we want to tell.’ So then we started fiddling with them.

Prose Edda is a book by Snorri Sturlson that serves as a guide to writing Old Norse poetry and a collection of Norse mythology. Nowadays, people have a good hold on this book and Norse mythology. Also, after Marvel burst into the scene with the likes of Thor, Odin, Loki, Asgard, and all the Norse stuff, people know a lot about them. 

So, a minute mistake in portraying their story in the game would have backfired at them. That is why the director of the game added these characters in the game, but not exactly with the Norwegian background.

Marvel vs God of War Ragnarök – Which Thor is Better?

The answer to this question has to be pretty diplomatic and subjective. God of War‘s Thor, as mentioned earlier, has been brought up with the franchise’s setting. On the other hand, Thor’s development in the MCU has been portrayed from the very beginning.

Another comparison can be made that God of War‘s Thor was a much more serious character. Despite being based on a fiddled mythology, the character perfectly portrayed the real God of Thunder’s dark and violent tendencies. He had more of a humane character but rose to supernatural powers when needed.

Now, coming to MCU’s Thor, this character was portrayed in a much lighter and not-so-serious plot. In 2011’s Thor, we see the young God of Thunder being reckless and overconfident, who later on went on to win Odin’s trust.

After several movies, losing all of his close ones, he went on to become an utterly sillier and baseless character as time went on. So, as compared to the MCU, the God of War version of Thor is way darker.

What’s your opinion on the version of the Norse adaptation in God of War Ragnarök? Let us know your views in the comment section.