God of War Laufey's True Big Bad is Hiding in Plain Sight

As exciting as it is going to be to learn more about Faye in God of War Laufey, and make use of her flashy aerial combos, it’s the game’s setting of the Everywhen that might just be the most intriguing thing about it. A chaotic afterlife for the gods where different mythologies come together to forge surprising alliances or battle for territory, God of War fans can expect to see several things that look like nothing else in the franchise. Faye’s initial adversaries fall under the first umbrella, with Sekhmet and Begtse bringing together the Egyptian and Mongolian mythologies into a single army within the afterlife.

These two characters are presented as Faye’s main enemies within God of War Laufey, capturing her early on and making for an intimidating duo. However, based on the first impression they gave, neither feels like an endgame threat. Sure, the giant feline Sekhmet rides off on when she goes to investigate some kind of explosion — perhaps one of the Norse gods Kratos kills entering into the Everywhen — is intimidating, and will likely elevate her inevitable boss fight. Still, the Everywhen presents an opportunity for a much scarier villain than the fiery god Faye bests in the first 20 minutes of the game and his ally, that being Athena from the Greek saga of games.

God of War Laufey Leaks 2nd Playable Character

God of War Laufey features Faye as the main playable character, but leaks claim that she won’t be the only one in the game.

Why God of War’s Athena Makes Perfect Sense For Faye’s True Villain

Some fans have already theorized about how the Norse gods could return in Faye’s adventure through the afterlife; perhaps she interacts with Odin and the fan theories about the All-Father being her, well, father, prove true. Alternatively, maybe she can have a rematch with Thor, letting players see how the battle referenced so heavily in God of War Ragnarok‘s Crater area played out. Yet while these interactions are certainly possible, and even likely, these gods would be coming to terms with where they’ve ended up. They won’t have armies at their command yet, nor will they know enough about the rules of the Everywhen to be the biggest bad Faye could face. Athena, though, is a different story.

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While any of the Greek gods Kratos cut down could be big players within The Everywhen, the likes of Zeus and Ares present a feeling of “been there, done that.” Athena, though? Her story still has some meat on the bone. After Kratos went against her wishes at the end of God of War 3, she’ll likely have been stewing in the afterlife waiting on an opportunity for revenge. Losing her ability to rule the “real” Greek world, she could have amassed an army in the afterlife with the lone goal of one day tormenting Kratos when he arrives in the Everywhen. Assuming Athena’s ghost wasn’t a hallucination in God of War (2018), then it’s clear she still harbors hatred for the man who accidentally killed her and intentionally demolished the Greek pantheon.

Obviously, Kratos has yet to die yet, but Athena may have stumbled on the next best thing since Faye ended up in the Everywhen. Perhaps this is the real reason why Faye was captured by Sekhmet and Begtse; maybe Athena wants to torture her as a way to punish Kratos for his transgressions, hurting his wife and not letting her have peace after death to get back at him. Obviously, Athena’s afterlife villainy would have to result in a boss fight, but said fight would surely feel special since Athena never had a boss fight in the original God of War trilogy. Zeus or Ares being a secret villain would present a feeling of “been there, done that,” but Athena would tie both eras of the franchise together.

There’s also value in having the woman who shaped the best version of Kratos fighting the one who shaped the worst, as it allows the Ghost of Sparta to haunt the narrative in the same way that Faye haunted the story of God of War (2018).

God of War’s Upcoming Remake Trilogy Makes Greek Saga Cameos More Likely

While Kratos confronting his past self in Ragnarok’s excellent Valhalla DLC already did a lot of leg work to further connect the Greek and Norse sagas, a modern version of the first three games takes things to another level. Soon, newer God of War fans will get to experience Kratos’ original story, and regardless of any changes the God of War remake trilogy could make, Athena will undoubtedly be an aspect that remains. The Greek saga being revisited now could certainly just be Sony capitalizing on nostalgia, but it could also be intentional, as parts of the Greek storyline could be relevant to Faye’s adventure.

Obviously, this is just a theory, and perhaps an original character like Sekhmet really is Laufey’s main antagonist of the game. Still, it’s hard not to see the potential in Athena being Faye’s foil in God of War Laufey, as it would allow for some downright incredible storytelling opportunities.