God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla review

By: Vladyslav Nuzhnov | 16.12.2023, 09:00

Valhalla is the first (and free) expansion pack for God of War Ragnarok. It continues the story of Kratos, who travels to Valhalla to deal with his past demons. And it is those players who remember God of War before the relaunch in 2018 who should pay attention to the DLC in the first place. The peculiarity of the add-on is that it is created in the roguelite genre, so your path will constantly change, which adds variety to the gameplay that does not get boring even after several evenings of intense battles. There will be no major releases in 2023, so what else can you do? That's right, to return to a long-familiar story that has been continued. The gg editorial team has explored Valhalla and will share their impressions to help you decide whether God of War Ragnarok is worth playing: Valhalla.

5 Reasons to Play God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla:

You miss the adventures of Kratos
You remember the old God of War games
Roguelite is your favourite genre
The ability to choose the level of difficulty will allow even those who are afraid to play roguelite to complete the DLC
You don't have to pay for the add-on if you have Ragnarok

1 Reason Not to Play God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla:

You didn't like God of War Ragnarok

Quick Menu:

Story: time to remember where it all began
Gameplay: the art of the Spartan attack
The technical side of Valhalla
Low expectations and powerful impressions
What would your mom think?
5 Things to Know about God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla

Story: Time to Remember Where It All Began

Warning, this review contains spoilers for the main storyline of Ragnarok

After Kratos and his team have defeated Odin and the son of the God of War Atreus has left to find himself, the hero needs to keep doing something, especially since he has so much free time. However, new challenges find Kratos on their own. He receives a note that leads him to a mysterious place where he has never been before. So Kratos and Mimir embark on a new journey and find themselves in Valhalla, which dictates its own rules.

I want everyone to play the add-on with the effect of surprise. However, I will hint that if you have played the previous parts of the series and liked them, it is better to go play right now. Most of the plot twists and turns made me smile like a child, and it's hard to say whether Santa Monica Studio could have made a better gift for the fans of the series.

The story component of Valhalla turned out to be good due to several aspects. The developers skilfully play on the nostalgia of players, and thanks to the deep character of Kratos, which has been built up over the years, it is always interesting to follow the character.

Even after everything we've been through with him, you still don't fully understand what's in his heart, what he feels, and how much he's worried about the mistakes of the past. And the expansion brings the player even closer to the God of War, because for the last two parts he was almost always with his son, who also needs to be given screen time. And now there is only Mimir, who plays the role of a second fiddle, and other interesting characters that only help to better reveal Kratos.

A few words about Valhalla itself. Here we will find locations from the main game and new regions. Between the arenas with enemies, you can look for chests, various secrets and secret passages that need to be opened. This is enough time to catch your breath. And thanks to the really beautiful places we've never seen before, the first hours of the game, if you don't have a crowd of enemies running at you, you just stop and start looking at everything.

The fabulous and at the same time dangerous Valhalla

Gameplay: the Art of the Spartan Attack

Briefly for those who are not familiar with the roguelite genre. When a player dies, he loses part of his progress (skills, resources, weapons), and you have to start a certain part of the game from the beginning. However, a certain percentage of achievements always remains with you. Also, to make the game more interesting, the order of locations, bonuses, and enemies change after each death.

And if you are afraid that you will die a lot and will not be able to go far in the story, Santa Monica has made 5 levels of difficulty. At the first level, the chance of losing is almost zero, so the add-on is suitable for absolutely everyone.

Difficulty levels that can always be changed

Everything always starts at the hub, where we can choose armour (which only affects appearance), a shield, a type of Spartan rage, improve Kratos' performance for local currency, and go into battle.

The place where everything starts every time

We find ourselves in different arenas where we have to defeat enemies. After the victory, a chest awaits us, which gives bonuses during the passage. It can be a rune attack, an improvement in stats, or just resources that will come in handy.

An example of one of the chests and the bonus you can choose

Between the arenas, we are greeted by locations where we talk to Mimir, look for chests and various secrets. There are also special pillars in such places. Thanks to them, you can buy things or upgrades that will stay with us until Kratos' death.

An example of a location where you can take a break, open chests, use the shop, look for items, and move on

One day, you will see a door with a skull in front of you - this is a signal that you are close to moving the story forward. Behind this door, a boss is waiting for you, and if you win, an important story arena opens.

Epic Battles are Off the Charts

And now for the most interesting part - the battles. The battle system in God of War has always been epic, and in Valhalla, the level of epicness increases several times. Subconsciously, you realise that a mistake can be costly, especially if you've already gone far.

Therefore, you have to use all combinations, items, runes, constantly analyse the situation and make quick decisions. And thanks to the fact that the opponents are constantly changing and new ones are added, you don't get bored at all.

If you catch your rhythm, then roguelite becomes like an adrenaline rush that you fall for every time. Have you reached the boss and died? Now you can't stop until you get back and take revenge. Finally got access to an item you've wanted for a long time? And how do you turn off the game after that, you have to try it.

I spent two evenings playing it and got a lot of pleasant emotions. My hands were even sweating, although this happens extremely rarely when playing games. So, in order to get an adrenaline rush and challenge yourself, the Valhalla DLC is almost perfect for this.

Yes, there is no super-deep system of improvement or generation of arenas and enemies, but there is still enough content. You can easily disappear for a few evenings in this DLC and not even notice it, especially if you haven't played roguelikes or haven't played enough, because you'll discover a new genre.

And as with the story, the skilfully used gameplay formula of Ragnarok has created a dynamic and sometimes tense roguelite that is definitely worth a try.

The Technical Side of Valhalla

I played the game on PlayStation 5, and it was stable at 60 fps all the time. At the same time, I did not encounter any bugs or crashes, and the game worked correctly all the time.

The Same Great Visuals

There are no visual innovations in the add-on. Perhaps there would be if the DLC was only on PlayStation 5, but it is also available on PS4. But Ragnarok is still one of the most beautiful games out there, so there's no problem with that. There are a lot of small details around, everything is detailed, the overall landscapes are beautiful. But those who have played Ragnarok already know that.

I am Always All Ears to Hear This Sound

The situation with audio is the same as with optimisation and visuals. Characters, weapons, voices, and the world around them sounded great before and still do. And Bear McCreary's compositions are a special treat, adding even more epicness to the events. I'd also like to note that the supplement contains one old new song that could already be heard in the trailer, and it was begging to be included, so I'm glad it was added.

Low Expectations and Powerful Experiences

Santa Monica simply deceived the audience. The trailers gave the impression that it was going to be a good journey of Kratos and Mimir, telling us more about the characters, but it turned out to be much more interesting.

We were shown a deep and emotional story about Kratos, which makes him look into his past and rethink certain things.

And Valhalla itself sucks you in so that the only option is to fight to the last and look for all the content that the authors have prepared. After all, while you visit each arena, kill some of the bosses and find surprises, you will already miss the moment when you were supposed to go to bed.

This expansion could have been sold for $10-20, and no one would have minded. But we were given it for free and told to have fun. And that's why I think Valhalla DLC is the best gift for fans of the series.

What ould Your Mom Think?

Kratos, like a good wine, only gets better over the years. His power hasn't gone anywhere, because the Scandinavian conditions have only hardened the God of War. Almost every fight is brutal, especially during boss battles. And the hero's finishing touches turn into cruel mockery. Kratos does not hesitate to chop off enemies' limbs with his axe or take the boss's weapon to finish off his opponent, so there is plenty of blood on the screen. There is nothing new in this aspect, but they decided not to reinvent the wheel. So it's better not to show your mum how you're going through the next arena, because she's unlikely to appreciate Kratos' brutality.

5 Things to Know about God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla

Valhalla is a roguelike expansion to God of War Ragnarok
The story focuses on Kratos and his past
Thanks to several levels of difficulty, anyone can complete the expansion
The free add-on lasts longer than the $70 Modern Warfare III story campaign
All God of War Ragnarok owners can download the DLC for free on PlayStation 4/5

God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla
Genre	Action roguelite
Platforms	PlayStation 4/5
Number of players	Single-player
Developer	Santa Monica Studio
Publisher	Sony
Time to complete	5-20 hours
Release date	December 12, 2023

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