The decision to move God of War out of its original Greek setting and into the Nine Realms of Norse mythology was a big change. Kratos himself was the main thing tying the games together. Fortunately, the 2018 reboot and God of War Ragnarok managed to introduce an assortment of intriguing new characters, mixing pieces of Norse mythology with original content. Players of God of War were immediately drawn to its portrayals of Freya, the Midgard Serpent, Baldur, and the dwarves Brok and Sindri. Ragnarok managed to introduce even more names to the cast. Players came to enjoy its portrayals of Thor, Odin, and some unexpected faces like Ratatoskr and Nidhogg.
Unfortunately, even in an epic like Ragnarok, it can be hard to give all of its characters their due. Obviously, some have to be prioritized more than others. The story of Freya's struggle to forgive Kratos required a lot more attention than Ratatoskr's antics. But there were some interesting characters who probably deserved a lot more focus. Luckily, Ragnarok's ending seemed to leave room for a follow-up exploring the Nine Realms in the aftermath of Ragnarok and Odin's downfall. Such a game would be a great opportunity to move some of the less prominent characters into the spotlight.
4 Byggvir and Beyla
During the events of God of War, Kratos and Atreus find themselves in Alfheim, where they are caught in the middle of a war between "dark" and "light" elves. There was, unfortunately, only so much of the setting that could be explored in the short time they visited from their limited perspective. God of War: Ragnarok was able to spend more time in Alfheim and go into more detail about the war, but there was still only so much that could be done from a limited perspective, and players never really got to know the dark elves as anything other than enemies. That is, with one exception.
Freyr's resistance movement includes an odd combination of characters from across the realms, including a pair of elves from opposing sides- Beyla, a dark elf; and Byggfir, a light elf. This offered a bit more room to humanize the elves and highlight the futility of their needlessly brutal war, but they were a fairly small part of a pretty massive cast making it hard to give them any real moments in the spotlight. A sequel could try to move them into a bigger role, which would not only offer more room to develop their relationship but also to explore elf society from the perspective of elves.
3 Sif
Ragnarok went above and beyond when it came to introducing Norse gods who had not appeared in its predecessor. It was already obvious that Odin and Thor were going to appear, but Santa Monica Studios pleasantly surprised players with a few unexpected choices. One of those extra additions was Sif, Thor's wife and the goddess of fertility. She did not get much screen time, but what was shown portrayed Sif as a well-intentioned, if perhaps overprotective, mother who seems to be trying to do the best for her family even while stuck under Odin's manipulation. By the end, she has started to find the strength to turn on and even manages to forgive Loki for killing her sons, not an easy thing to achieve.
Ragnarok's ending did seem to leave a possible direction to take Sif in a future game. She has started to mend her relationship with Thrud and wants to use her newfound independence to help the dwarves in Vanaheim, a realm that was prominently featured in the story. Aside from the opportunity to explore how Sif accomplishes this goal, her post-Ragnarok story could also be built on parallels to Freya. In a similar vein, Sif was also manipulated by Odin and now has to find her footing after being freed from his grip.
2 Sigrun
Sigrun was first introduced as one of several optional boss fights in 2018's God of War, where she was portrayed as the leader of the corrupted Valkyries. Her battle with Kratos freed her from Odin's control, allowing her to turn on him. By the time of Ragnarok, Sigrun has a whole other storyline involving her quest to restore the Valkyries to their uncorrupted forms and reinstate Freya as their rightful queen. Unfortunately, a lot of this happened off-screen and is only known through Freya's testimony. Sigrun herself does not make an appearance until the very end when she takes part in the final battle.
As great as it was to see Sigrun again, it is unfortunate that players got so little time with her as an ally. Another game focused on the events post-Ragnarok would be a great opportunity to rectify that. Now that Sigrun and her Valkyries have completed their quest to rebuild, a future game could offer them a more prominent role, possibly allowing us to get to know Sigrun on a more personal level and maybe getting to develop some of her Valkyries as individual characters.
1 Tyr
The Norse God of War has had a strange role, being a big part but not actually appearing all that much. In God of War (2018), a lot is revealed about his efforts to help the giants and find some sort of peace in the realms, and a lot of those efforts prove useful to Kratos. In Ragnarok, it is revealed that Tyr is still alive, and one of the first big missions is to rescue him. However, there is a big twist near the end. The "Tyr" Kratos rescued was actually an undercover Odin, meaning players still did not get to meet him properly. The actual Tyr only appears as a bonus mission after the game ends, but being liberated by Kratos leaves some options for a sequel.
Because of the big twist, Ragnarok never really gets an opportunity to draw on Tyr's part in Norse mythology. The biggest story featuring him is connected to a character that was introduced in Ragnarok - the giant wolf Fenrir. The myth sees Tyr forming a close bond with Fenrir, only for it to be destroyed thanks to Odin's paranoia. (some players may recall this story being portrayed in Assassin's Creed: Valhalla) Although Ragnarok is over, and Odin's death seemingly prevents the calamity that led to Tyr losing his hand, the game could still portray his connection to Fenrir.