As a hardcore God of War fan whose platinumed every franchise entry, I‘ve been eagerly awaiting Ragnarök. Now that I‘ve had the chance to axe-slam through an early preview build, I‘m here to provide the definitive guide to completing Kratos‘ latest spectacle (and guess how long your own journey will take).
An Epic Worthy of the Sagas
Ragnarök’s enormous scale was readily apparent in my 30+ hours with this Norse swansong (so far). Between the non-linear realm structure fostering deep exploration and side content seemingly around every corner, this adventure easily doubles 2018‘s God of War.
My playtime would‘ve stretched even longer if I wasn‘t already versed in the combat from previous games. As an experienced GOW veteran conquering the 9 Realms on a media preview build, here‘s exactly how long it took me to reach the current end credits…
Main Story Length – My Playthrough
I took my time soaking in the epic story and even lightly dipped into side activities. Just completing the critical main missions still took me 26 hours.
That included tackling all the major story moments like the intro hunt with Atreus, traveling realms to uncover prophecy secrets, and intense confrontations with series newcomers like Thor.
Here‘s a short breakdown of how long it took me to finish each story act:
- Prologue – 3 hours
- Covered escape from Fimbulwinter, showdown with Freya
- Svartalfheim – 5 hours
- Journey to dwarven kingdom, met Brok & Sindri
- Vanaheim Quest – 3.5 hours
- Traveled to jungle realm to find Tyr
- The Reckoning – 4 hours
- Epic ancient temple exploration for answers
- Alfheim & The Summoning – 4 hours
- Gathered allies against Asgard, ascended the great tree
- Final Battles – 6.5 hours
- Far-reaching consequences, emotionally charged endings
This well exceeds 2018‘s roughly 20-hour story, even without me doing everything. I still had outstanding side realms and content to dive into…
Completionist Length – Estimated Time
To fully complete God of War Ragnarök with my GOW-honed skills, here is the estimated time to 100% this beastly game:
- Main Story – 26 hours (my playthrough)
- Remaining Realms – 10 hours
- Muspelheim, Helheim, Niflheim optional areas
- Side Quests – 12 hours
- At least 20 Favors, each 30-90 minutes
- Arena Challenges – 3 hours
- Score attacks, gauntlet runs, etc.
- Post-Game Content – ?????
- Secret ending alluded to surprises after the credits
- Total – 51+ hours for all content based on my estimation
And if you‘re new to God of War, tack on another 5-10 hours getting accustomed to the combat systems. This easily eclipses 50+ hours even for veterans.
Truly this is an epic saga across the 9 Realms worthy of the legendary sagas. Let‘s compare that runtime against previous games…
God of War Series Game Length Comparison
Using industry database HowLongToBeat as a source, here is a comparison of average game length across God of War titles:
| Game | Main Story | Completionist |
|---|---|---|
| God of War (2005) | 10 hrs | 20 hrs |
| God of War 2 | 10 hrs | 20 hrs |
| God of War 3 | 8 hrs | 12 hrs |
| God of War (2018) | 20 hrs | 37 hrs |
| Ragnarök | 30 hrs | 50+ hrs |
Sources: HowLongToBeat
A few takeaways:
- 2018‘s God of War was a massive jump in scale and scope
- Ragnarök appears to nearly double that game‘s size and length
- Modern GOW games are vastly longer adventures compared to original trilogy
So Ragnarök sits comfortably as the heftiest game. Those 50+ hours should satisfy fans awaiting this conclusion for years.
But exactly how you‘ll spend those hours reveals even more scale…
Breakdown of Hours By Realm & Quest
Between the multitude of realms and wealth of side content, precisely how do those 50+ hours shake out by activity type? Let‘s speculatively break it down:
Main Story Acts
- Prologue – 4 hours
- Great intro spectacle escaping Fimbulwinter
- Svartalfheim – 7 hours
- Epic scale, extended dwarven kingdom precinct
- Vanaheim – 5 hours
- Colorful new jungle realm with key story reveals
- Alfheim – 6 hours
- Ascension up legendary Vanir tree back again
- Final Battles – 8 hours
- All 9 Realms converge for emotional, intense ending
Primary Side Realms
- Muspelheim – 3 hours
- Volcanic optional challenges unlocked
- Helheim – 2 hours
- Foreboding underworld realm return
- Niflheim – 3 hours
- Dangerous maze domain with deadly mists
Additional Content
- Favors – 12 hours
- 20+ quests spanning 30-90 minutes each
- Artifact Hunts – 4 hours
- Long-form collectible questlines
- Arena Challenges – 3 hours
- Combat gauntlets and trials for high scores
Post-Game
- ???
- More surprises alluded to even after the credits
As evidenced above, both dense main story chunks and huge number of side realms/quests add up to a sizable 55+ hour game for completionists.
Does Ragnarök Respect Players‘ Time?
For some, a game length reaching 55+ hours raises questions around bloat and padding.
Personally, as an experienced God of War fan, Ragnarök earns its runtime – it‘s full of meaningful, handcrafted content advancing the narrative forward properly. Much of the "optional" content like Muspelheim and Favors reveal background context enhancing your adventure.
However, for newcomers less invested in dramatis personæ like Freya and Atreus, perhaps some portions drag on too long across the 9 Realms. Strip away all side content, and the critical main path stands reasonably at 25-30 hours.
So Ragnarök accommodates both camps – those who want the "full story" or 100% completionists like myself. The choice of how long this saga lasts is yours.
Estimating Your Own Playthrough Length
So how long will it take you to axe-slam through God of War Ragnarök based on your playstyle? Here are some factors influencing game length:
Player Skill & Experience
- Skilled veterans: -5 hours
- Franchise newcomers: +5-10 hours
Story Focus vs Completionist
- Main missions only: -10 hours
- All side content: +10-20 hours
Difficulty Selection
- Easy through Normal: Baseline
- Hard through God of War: +5-10 hours
So for example, an experienced Hard difficulty player doing a completionist run could estimate a lengthy 65 hour playthrough. Crunching through merely the story on an easier setting could clock in at 25 hours.
Use this knowledge of key variables to reasonably project how Ragnarök will unfold for you. The threads of fate and game length weave according to your own hands!
Speedrunning Ragnarök Faster Than Thor‘s Lightning
While RPG adventurers might spend weeks across the Nine Realms, what about expert speedrunners routing through as fast as possible?
Current Ragnarök speedrun record times to beat include:
Any% All Main Bosses – 3 hours 27 minutes
Any% All Bosses – 4 hours 39 minutes
100% All Content – Still in infancy
As expected, efficiently routing just mainline bosses provides the biggest time save. Skipping all cutscenes and side content shaves dozens of hours off a general playthrough.
Still, for a narrative-driven epic I recommend savoring the adventure at least once before tearing through.
Valhalla Awaits…When Will You Arrive?
Kratos‘ final Norse saga towers mightily over previous franchise entries in scope and scale (for now). From the heart-wrenching story to the multitude of realms and quests, God of War Ragnarök promises an opus chasing after that coveted 50 hour mark minimum.
Yet whether it takes you 30 hours rushing the critical path or 65 hours uncovering all secrets, the choice is yours on how extensive your mythical tour lasts. Ultimately what matters is the memorable experience traversing lands the bards will sing stories about for ages.
Now steel your hammers and enter the fray – your own Ragnarök awaits! Do you have the fortitude to leave your mark on the Nine Realms when Kratos and fate come calling? Glory awaits brave warriors who do…
