God of War Ragnarok is getting a free DLC on December 12, as revealed by a trailer at The Game Awards. Called “Valhalla,” the DLC adds a roguelike mode where Kratos and Mimir must tackle progressively bigger challenges. It’s available for all Ragnarok owners on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4.
According to Sony Santa Monica, Valhalla takes place after the events of Ragnarok and “follows Kratos on a deeply personal and reflective journey” in which he will confront parts of his past. Given that the trailer shows a Cyclops as being one of the enemies he must face, it’s likely the DLC will allude to Kratos’ past as the Ghost of Sparta.
The DLC features updated combat that combines Ragnarok’s base mechanics with roguelite elements — namely, that when Kratos dies in combat, he retains his resources and can upgrade himself or Valhalla around him. While he will retain his weapons and skill trees (armor is purely cosmetic), he will have to “commit to a shield and path of Spartan Rage for each attempt.” Players will have various options to choose Glyphs, Runic Attacks and Perks.
Valhalla features five difficulty modes, with the highest being Show Me Mastery. The higher the difficulty, the greater the rewards, and the rewards for one difficulty level will carry over to all.