God of War Ragnarok guide to help you conquer the Nine Realms

God of War Ragnarok armor cloak new game plus
(Image credit: Sony)

This God of War Ragnarok guide will do a lot to help players of all skill levels get to grips with Kratos latest adventure. There's a ton of puzzles, combat, collectibles, loot and more to get to grips with and while you could work it out all yourself, this is a massive game and a little help never hurt anyone. 

We've got a ton of guides collected here to you help you understand what's going on through and to make the most of your journey through Norse mythology. Whether that's fighting tips, where to find all those Ravens, Treasure Maps, Nornir chests, armor or more - here's everything you need to know about the Nine Realms in our God of War Ragnarok guide.

Review

God of War Ragnarok tips

(Image credit: Sony)

If you're still on the fence about getting the game, check out our God of War Ragnarok review to see what we thought. It's a totally spoiler free breakdown where we say, "for the most part this is exceptional", so it's probably good. Although read the rest of what we had to say for the finer points. 

How long is it?

God of War Ragnarok armor cloak new game plus

(Image credit: Sony)

If you were wondering how long is God of War Ragnarok? Then we have all the info here. Depending on if you're going to drill through the story, play an average amount of side stuff, or 100% everything, there are different answers. So here we break down playstyle options and how that affects that Ragnarok playtime.

Graphics modes

Kratos makes a sly expression in God of War Ragnarok

(Image credit: PlayStation/Zealousideal_Many215 on Reddit)

There are quite a few God of War Ragnarok graphics modes to choose from, depending on your available hardware. Whether you prefer smooth performance with high frame rates or crisp 4K resolution, we've got all the details in our guide on what each graphics mode is.

Tips

God of War Ragnarok photo mode

(Image credit: PlayStation)

These God of War Ragnarok tips are the best way to get started on your adventures. It's a broad overview of useful things to know, from crucial beginners pointers and things you might miss, through to core combat stuff, gear pointers to max your stats and plenty more. These tips will help you master a lot of Ragnarok, fast. 

Nornir Chests

God of War Ragnarok Vanaheim Crater plains nornir chest

(Image credit: Sony)

God of War Ragnarok rune chests, or Nornir chests are a vital part of upgrading your health and rage meters by getting the Idunn Apples and Horns of Blood Mead inside. But you'll have to find them, and open them to do that. To help you with that we've got every single Nornir chest location and the solution to open them here.  

Ravens

God of War Ragnarok raven perched on rock

(Image credit: Sony)

There are some changes to the God of War Ragnarok ravens this time around. You still have to find and kill all of them, but there's more point this time with a range of chests to open in Niflheim that earn you armor and gear. We've got every raven location here to help you find them all more or less painlessly.

The water puzzles

God of War Ragnarok water wheel puzzle gate geyser

(Image credit: Sony)

The God of War Ragnarok geyser water wheel puzzle isn't hard but it is one of the first things you encounter in the game where you're left to work things out for yourself. There's a few new mechanics to understand all at once in a couple of early Svartalfheim locations, and if you're having trouble, we can help you out. 

Svartalfheim mines puzzles

God of War Ragnarok mine puzzles in Svartalfheim

(Image credit: Sony)

Svartalfheim is the first realm outside of Midgard that you'll visit in the first couple of hours of the game. It's got a mix of linear and open regions, with plenty of opportunities to explore, but the God of War Ragnarok mine puzzles in the Jarnsmida Pitmines and The Applecore can really slow your progress through the realm. However, we've got the help you might right here in this guide.

How to get to Muspelheim

God of War Ragnarok Muspelheim seeds

(Image credit: Sony)

Muspelheim is the only realm in the game that you have to travel to on your own as the rest all appear in key story moments. Getting to the realm of fire requires you to collect two God of War Ragnarok Muspelheim Seed halves, both found in Svartalfheim. For their exact locations, use our guide.

Get inside the Lost Treasury

God of War Ragnarok Sigrun's Curse Favor Lost Treasury in Midgard

(Image credit: Sony)

You'll find the God of War Ragnarok Lost Treasury location in Midgard's Lake of Nine, but you won't be able to get inside unless you begin a Favor side quest, collect the halves of a vault key, and solve a rather involved puzzle. Begin the Sigrun's Curse Favor and then use this guide to get inside the Lost Treasury and bag some loot.

Best armor

God of War Ragnarok best armor berserker set

(Image credit: Sony)

The best God of War Ragnarok armor is a simpler question to answer this time as a lot of the systems have been simplified. In this sequel, armor sets have very clear abilities that suit certain playstyles, making it easier to pick an early game set, or one for defence, or a 'best' overall and so on. Here we run through our top picks for God of War Ragnarok armor sets to help you find and wear the best gear. 

Lunda's armor

God of War Ragnarok best armor

(Image credit: Sony)

Some of the best mid-game armor you can get is the God of War Ragnarok Lunda armor set, but you'll need to find the armor scraps first. You'll find all the details on where to find the three armor scraps and how to eventually craft the Lunda armor set with this guide.

The Crucible combat trials

God of War Ragnarok Muspelheim Crucible challenges

(Image credit: Sony)

For some of the toughest challenges in the game, head to the Crucible to take on the God of War Ragnarok Muspelheim challenges. These combat trials are a test of your skills and will help you truly master combat, but you'll also need to complete many of the trials if you want to fully upgrade all your gear.

Berserker Gravestones and armor

God of War Ragnarok Berserker Gravestones Berserker boss fight

(Image credit: Sony)

We reckon the best armor in the game is the God of War Ragnarok Berserker armor, but you can only get it by defeating some of the ghostly warriors at their Berserker Gravestones. Only three of the 10 Berserker Gravestones need to be completed to get the full armor set, but you'll definitely want to defeat all 10 to get the incredible Hilt of Skofnung Relic too.

The Mystical Heirloom Relic

God of War Ragnarok Mystical Heirloom Troll locations statues

(Image credit: Sony)

When you find the God of War Ragnarok Mystical Heirloom the description tells you it doesn't seem to do anything. Which, obviously, means it's really important in some strange and obscure way. The secret is to find statues hidden around the realms that you can wake up by using it. Here we cover where they are, how it all works and, most importantly, what you get for doing it all.

Draugr Holes

God of War Ragnarok The Hateful Draugr Holes

(Image credit: Sony)

Battle the God of War Ragnarok The Hateful boss at the six Draugr Holes found across the realms. Emerge victorious against The Hateful at all six Draugr Holes and you'll get some exclusive rewards, including a Chaos Flame.

Shattered Runes

God of War Ragnarok shattered runes

(Image credit: Sony)

You might have found a fair few God of War Ragnarok Shattered Runes on your travels. They're not massively common but you can find them out in the world and might be wondering what they're for exactly. They only have one purpose and that's to be converted into money for Kratos to use.

Treasure maps

God of War Treasure maps buried locations

(Image credit: Sony)

Also returning for the sequel are the God of War Ragnarok treasure maps. These mini loot rewards see you find a map that illustrates a location - find it and the treasure is yours. That's easier said than done of course, when the drawings you have to track can be a little vague. One will even have you travelling the realms to track down a prize. 

Special equipment

God of War Special Equipment gear

(Image credit: Sony)

There's a lot of God of War special equipment you'll find out about as you explore. Every time you encounter a route you can't take, or something you can't use yet someone will mention you probably need some 'special equipment'. To help explain what that is and where you'll eventually get it, we've got it all covered here. 

Cast and voice actors

god of war ragnarok

(Image credit: Sony)

The God of War Ragnarok cast features a stellar line up of talent with some incredible actors playing famous gods like Thor, Odin and more. And, of course, there's the returning cast still giving out some impressive performances. If you want to know who's who, or check if that voice is who you think it is, we have that all here. Spoilers, the one you think might be Josh Brolin, isn't. 

Ending explained

God of War Ragnarok

(Image credit: Sony)

Obviously HUGE SPOILERS here so don't look at our God of War Ragnarok ending unless you want to know what happens and how the story concludes. We're saying nothing here about any of that, but if you want the full picture and to know if you missed anything, here's where to go when you're done.  

Leon Hurley
Managing editor for guides

I'm GamesRadar's Managing Editor for guides, which means I run GamesRadar's guides and tips content. I also write reviews, previews and features, largely about horror, action adventure, FPS and open world games. I previously worked on Kotaku, and the Official PlayStation Magazine and website. 

With contributions from