God of War: Ragnarok - Vanaheim, Svartalfheim and Asgard Explained
The 2018 God of War game brought life to Norse mythology in the same way the previous games had for Greek mythology. Central to Norse mythology, and to the game, are the nine realms, although players could only explore six of these in the game. Surviving information about these realms isn't necessarily explicit about their nature and specifics, but from information that does exist, and the lore that God of War developed, it becomes more apparent what role these realms might play in the next game. Santa Monica has confirmed that the final three realms will feature in God of War: Ragnarok, and so they offer some insight into what Kratos and Atreus will be up against in the upcoming game.
As players of God of War will be familiar with, Norse mythology describes how the nine realms connected to Yggdrasil, the world tree. The names of these realms do differ depending on the source material, but the God of War universe has already established which version of the realms exists, with some of its own changes made to them as well. Kratos journey in the last game takes him to four realms, and two others can be explored though are not central to the story. Midgard, the realm of humans, is where Kratos and Atreus live at the beginning of the game, and they must travel to Alfheim, the realm of the Elves, and Helheim, the realm of the dead, and Joutheim, the realm of the giants. Both Musphelheim and Niflheim, the realms of fire and mist respectively, feature optional trials. That leaves Svartalfheim, Vanaheim, and Asgard left to explore in God of War: Ragnarok.
What to Expect From God of War: Ragnarok in 2022
Early sources of Norse mythology refer to Nidavellir as the realm of the Dwarves and Svartalfheim as the realm of Dark Elves.
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