Sony revealed the upcoming God of War Laufey at PlayStation State of Play June 2026 with a stunning 20 minutes of gameplay footage centering on Kratos's second wife and Atreus's mother, Faye, aka Laufey. Although it's been rumored that the next God of War game would be a prequel, Santa Monica Studio creative director Cory Barlog has confirmed that's not the case.

In a video published shortly after today's reveal, in which Barlog interviews God of War Laufey game director Ariel Lawrence, it's revealed that the new game takes place directly following the scene from the beginning of the 2018 God of War reboot where Faye's body is cremated on the funeral pyre.

"This is not a prequel. This is a continuation of the timeline right at the beginning of God of War 2018," Barlog says. "What happened to Faye after that funeral?"

Although reactions to these big publisher showcases are always going to vary, I was thoroughly impressed by Sony's lineup for this one. I'm psyched for Kemuri, the new co-op yokai hunting game from iconic Bayonetta artist Ikumi Nakamura. The new story trailer for survival horror game ILL looks frightening as all hell, Silent Hill: Townfall finally has a release date, and Control Resonant both got great new trailers (as well as September release dates), and Until Dawn 2 is coming in 2027!

All that said, even with so much horror for me to digest, God of War Laufey stole the show. It's gorgeous, looks like a genuine evolution of God of War and God of War Ragnarok, and I'm sorry, that little cube guy is adorable whether the internet grumps want to admit it or not. Prequel or not, I'm sat.

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