Whether you’re a fan of semi-open world action RPGs or not, it’s hard to deny the fact that the God of War Ragnarok soundtrack is truly excellent. Composer Bear McCreary, who also worked on God of War (2018), Call of Duty Vanguard, and Assassin’s Creed Syndicate’s Jack the Ripper DLC, has created an epic soundscape of dramatic drums and triumphant orchestral rises that elevates the experience to the next level and expertly carries the emotional weight of the performances we’re witness too. One interesting thing about the God of War Ragnarok soundtrack is that it’s sung entirely in Old Norse, a dead language. If you’re someone who has been wondering what sentiments the powerful vocal performances on the God of War Ragnarok soundtrack are trying to deliver, McCreary has finally shared the complete English-language translation – and it’s so interesting.
Discussing the lyrics of the God of War Ragnarok soundtrack with game director Eric Williams, narrative director Matt Sophos, score producer Keith Leary, music affairs manager Justin Fields, and translator Björn Thorarensen, McCreary has explained that he “[loves] the idea of adding ‘meaning’ to the music” he composes, believing that it helps add legitimacy to the composition and it’s weight.
Williams also adds that it’s an important part of world-building, with Old Norse lyrics adding important realism to the experience – of which they “know it’s not real, but [they] want it to feel real when you’re there with [them].”
Sophos adds to this with the statement that “people can always sense when something is just there for aesthetic reasons” and explains that “the depth becomes evident, even if you can’t understand it” – something that undoubtedly contributes to the quality of the soundtrack we’re presented with.
Fields echoes the sentiments of his colleagues by explaining the mindset of the developers when it came to creating lyrics for the soundtrack.
“If there’s an opportunity to lend authenticity to a game, you do it. Even if it’s something the vast majority of people are not going to comprehend, or ever translate. For us, it’s still a part of the pride in doing what we do.”
If you’re looking for an insight into the process and how the aforementioned impromptu lyricists feel about the God of War Ragnarok soundtrack, we recommend reading McCreary’s blog post right here. It’s quite a long read, but one that’s beyond interesting.
However, if you’re looking for an example of how these Old Norse lyrics reflect Kratos’ growth between God of War (2018) and God of War Ragnarok, let’s talk about that below.
As shared by McCreary, the lyrics of Kratos’ theme in God of War (2018) read in English as follows:
Exiled God
Father’s shame
Mother’s hope
Child in pain
Exiled God
Father’s shame
Mother’s hope
Child in pain
Son of war
Truth denied
Wounds remain
Heal his rage
Exiled God
Storm of hate
Growing fear
Wounds remain
Confront the past
Divine plague
My sins laid bare
Trust the boy
Heal his rage
Curse of blood
Beyond repair
Trust the boy
Heal his rage
He will leave
I’ve no redemption
Exiled God
Father’s shame
Mother’s hope
Child in Pain
Exiled God
Storm of hate
Trust the boy
Heal his rage
Growing fear
Wounds remain
He’s in pain
He needs a father not a god
Curse of blood
I’ve no redemption
Wounds remain
Confront the past
Trying to reflect Kratos’ cadence and speech patterns, Sophos explains that the lyricists were “very, pardon the pun, Spartan with his lyrics” – adding that “as soon as he talks for more than a few sentences at a gime, it’s too much”. So, this is why the lyrics of his theme are short, simple, and direct.
McCreary then goes onto explain how Kratos’ theme in God of War Ragnarok has evolved, adding “melodic quotations of the Faye Theme and Atreus Theme to the middle of the Kratos Theme” to reflect how he has been forever changed by his family – how they’re a part of him now.
If you want to read this theme’s lyrics, you can below:
Exiled God
Father’s shame
Mother’s hope
Child in pain
Exiled God
Father’s shame
Mother’s hope
Child in pain
Son of War
Letting go
Takes great strength
Heal his rage
Exiled God
Storm of hate
Growing fear
Wounds remain
Exiled God
Storm of hate
Confront the past
A Giant
Dwells in the youth
A god’s son
Grows stronger
A Giant
Still young
A god’s son
Grows stronger
He will leave
I’ve no redemption
Exiled God
Father’s shame
Mother’s hope
Child in pain
(Eivør Pálsdóttir solo)
Follow my voice
Light the way through the dark
Exiled God
Father’s shame
Mother’s hope
Child in pain
Exiled God
Storm of hate
Trust the boy
Heal his rage
Ragnarok
Approaches
Prophecy
Upon the wall
Who then shall fall?
Ragnarok
As you can see, and as McCreary goes on to discuss, the snippet of Faye’s Theme and the melody it carries “is arguably the second most significant of the franchise”. It reflects Faye’s presence in the narrative, even if she isn’t on-screen a lot, while the elongated verses reflect Kratos’ change in priorities when it comes to his relationship with his son and his journey through the Nine Realms.
Now, if you look at McCreary’s blog post yourself, you’ll know that there’s a lot to unpack here. The composer and his team of lyricists have discussed their creative decisions and the importance of lyrics for “The Hand of Odin”, “Giantess of Ironwood”, “Huldra Brothers”, and how the team worked to actually translate these lyrics into Old Norse – and then bringing them to life with an Icelandic choir.
There’s so much to learn here, and it’s all evidence that this really does deserve to be considered one of the best PS5 games ever. The passion from McCreary, Williams, Sophos, Leary, Fields, and Thorarensen is inspiring. McCreary ends his blog with the statement that he’s “excited to try to top it next time”, and we can’t wait to see what he does next.
We do want to just say this, though: listen up folks, Kratos doesn’t really care if you prefer PS5 or Xbox. Oh, and that we think Amazon Prime’s God of War series needs to respect Kratos’ Greek tragedy. If you want to know more about the God of War Ragnarok New Game Plus mode, you can here.