Are We In A Golden Age of Norse-Themed Games?

The God of War gaming series is one of the most successful games of all time in terms of sales across the globe. Since 2005, it has been a hit across PlayStation and PC platforms, producing high-quality mythological action for players. It's a testament to its success that it has longevity and continued success at the top of the park.

In 2018, a new iteration of the game was released, simply known as God of War, across both PlayStation and PC, and took the world by storm selling over 23 million units worldwide. Instead of focusing on Greek mythology like its predecessors, God of War branched on into the Norse world and the realm of Midgard.

 

The game has since spawned a sequel, God of War: Ragnarök, further focusing on the Norse theme with main characters Kratos and Atreus. Since being released in late 2022, God of War: Ragnarok has sold over 11 million copies worldwide on PlayStation alone. It has yet to be released on PC, which could take it well beyond the previous iteration for sales, highlighting the popularity of the series and interest in Norse culture.

Norse-themed games are nothing new to PC and PlayStation. God of War has followed in the footsteps of Assassins Creed: Valhalla in dedicating a game to the theme. Further back in time, Age of Mythology also devoted numerous levels of its game to Norse gods and culture.

The theme has spread towards casino games too where users can play online on titles such as Vikings and Vikings’ Victory. These slots bring their own unique turn on the Vikings, allowing customers to win significant prizes.

What has made us so interested in Norse themes for our gameplay? In the past popular culture has been more focused on Greek, Roman and Egyptian culture. Think of the many hundreds of movies and televisions that have been dedicated to the history and culture of Greek and Egyptian gods or Roman culture.

 

However, that has changed over the last decade or so with the arrival of Thor and Chris Hemsworth playing a significant role in its increase in popularity with the Thor and the Avengers movies. There have also been several TV shows such as Vikings, Vikings: Valhalla, and Norsemen that have indulged in the themes of Norse culture. In popular culture, we just cannot get enough of it.

God of War: Ragnarok’s success will only encourage its developers, Santa Monica Studio, and publishers Sony Interactive to dedicate further titles to the series. It is a very interesting time for game developers to ensure they get the most out of the interest in a particular genre.

Fortunately for them, there is rich culture and history that has been overlooked in the past. God of War may choose to turn its attention elsewhere, but it did get four titles out of its focus on Greek mythology between 2005 and 2013, so the Norse theme will be here to stay and the entire industry and continue to benefit from its popularity.