New God of War Ragnarok gameplay reveals the dwarven realm Svartalfheim

We’ve known for a while now that God of War Ragnarok will see Kratos and Atreus exploring all of the Nine Realms, but there’s been a question of what they’ll look like. Svartalfheim, Vanaheim, and Asgard are mentioned but largely unseen in the previous game. Now, we’ve gotten our first look at Svartalfheim, the land of the dwarves.

The gameplay reveal comes from GameInformer, and the minute-and-a-half-long clip gives us a good idea of what to expect in the dwarven home world. Blacksmith brothers Brok and Sindri always talked about dwarven ingenuity in the 2018 game, and that’s on full display in the video. Large mining equipment and water-powered machinery are going to be common sights in this realm. We can also see a massive dwarf face carved into the side of a mountain in one of the closing shots.

Moment-to-moment gameplay will also involve manipulating some of those water-powered devices. We see geysers blocking Kratos’ path in the video, but he can freeze the water to cut them off using his new elemental attacks. Similarly, he can free geysers from inside pressure pots to power water wheels. As expected, the new combat mechanics also have utility in exploration and puzzle-solving.

God of War hype is at a fever pitch right now — all you need to do is look at the eBay scalpers selling the various editions at absurd marked-up prices. Thankfully, those anticipating the game don’t have to wait too much longer to get their hands on it. God of War Ragnarok’s release date is November 9, and it’ll be available on both PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 that Wednesday.

Those who want to get ready for the new game can refresh themselves with Ragnarok’s official recap video. We also have a handy guide on how to play the God of War games in order — the whole saga has been running for 17 years, after all. Some fans want to see Kratos battle Egyptian gods next.