Sony Interactive Entertainment originally announced God of War: Ragnarok to release in 2021 for PlayStation 5. However, as of last night, the much-anticipated sequel has not only been delayed to 2022 but has also been confirmed to be releasing for PlayStation 4 as well.
God of War: Ragnarok being a cross-generation game has not been met kindly. Fans of the franchise have since then been relaying their disappointment due to concerns surrounding parity between both the PS4 and PS5 versions. That developer Santa Monica Studio might be forced to hold back the PS5 version in order to ensure a similar gameplay experience on the older PS4 console.
However, according to a report by VGC earlier today, God of War: Ragnarok was a cross-generation game from the very start. Sony just refrained from mentioning the previous-generation version when the sequel was first announced as well as in the months to follow.
To make matters worse, at least in the eyes of cross-generation-hating players, Gran Turismo 7 was reportedly penned down for PS4 only recently. The new installment was originally announced exclusively for PS5 just like the upcoming God of War sequel.
“Gran Turismo 7, after all, was outright advertised as a PS5 exclusive in December, although to be fair to Sony, I understand the decision to release a PS4 version was made only fairly recently. For Horizon Forbidden West and God of War, however, these games were always intended to release as cross-gen titles, I was told, but Sony did not mention the last-gen console during the announcement of either title.”
The writing has always been on the walls. Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan for example never confirmed God of War: Ragnarok for PS4 but did note that there was nothing wrong in releasing PS5 games on both consoles. Furthermore, David Jaffe, game director of the 2005 God of War, stated earlier in the year that fans should expect a cross-generation release.
