Cory Barlog first told us “Ragnarok is Coming” to the God of War PS5 sequel over a year ago

Sony might have officially unveiled its God of War sequel last night, but it turns out that Cory Barlog has been hinting at his new game for more than a year. After the reveal of God of War: Ragnarok (opens in new tab) last night, fans noticed that Barlog’s tease has been hiding in plain sight for nearly 18 months.

Last April, Barlog created a 16-entry thread on Twitter documenting some of the behind-the-scenes aspects of the 2018 game’s development, showing off storyboarding, mocap, and various trips around the world to research and market the game. That thread has been up for more than a year, but since last night, fans have realised that the first letter of each Tweet spells out ‘Ragnarok is Coming’.

That echoes the slogan that appeared at the end of last night’s teaser trailer. And just in case you thought that might be a coincidence, a similar message has popped up before. A few days before Barlog’s thread, Sony released a free God of War theme for the PS4. Eagle-eyed fans noticed a collection of runes on the side of the boat (opens in new tab), which also spells out the phrase ‘Ragnarok is Coming’.

It’s little more than some sneaky guerilla marketing from Sony and Barlog, but it suggests that Sony Santa Monica has been planning out the sequel’s story well in advance - no surprise given the fan theories suggesting that Kratos and Atreus were already on their way to bringing about Ragnarok by the end of the first game.

Last night’s trailer was only the very briefest of teasers, so I don’t imagine we’ll be finding out much more about God of War: Ragnarok until next summer, particularly given the currently-scheduled 2021 release date on PS5. But maybe it’ll be worth keeping an eye on Barlog’s Twitter account, just in case.

Here's everything we know about God of War: Ragnarok (opens in new tab) so far.