Sony's Santa Monica Studio has released an official statement addressing leaks surrounding its upcoming game God of War Ragnarok. God of War Ragnarok is on schedule to launch on November 9, less than two weeks from now. Retailers are already receiving their supplies of the game, and some of those retailers, unfortunately, appear to have broken street date and there are copies of God of War Ragnarok being sold. The result is God of War Ragnarok spoilers being shared online.God of War Ragnarok is a story-heavy game. Much like its predecessor, it revolves around the relationship between protagonist Kratos and his son, Atreus. Events from the first God of War have directly led to the prophesied Ragnarok, with both Kratos and Atreus at the apocalypse's center. The events of the game will see Kratos encountering Norse gods including Thor and the once-ally Freya. Suffice to say, there's a lot to be spoiled in the game that could ruin the experience for players.Santa Monica Studio is understandably unhappy with the situation. A statement on Twitter explains that its priority is helping to "preserve the experience of God of War Ragnarok" for those wanting to experience the game for the first time without spoilers. It assures God of War fans that the game will be worth the wait when God of War Ragnarok arrives on November 9, and shares a message of appreciation to those who have shown support in this challenging time.
That doesn't mean that Santa Monica Studio isn't acting on the problem, however. It says that it's aggressively working to minimize the exposure of "unsanctioned" footage and screenshots of God of War Ragnarok, assumedly using DMCAs to get content taken offline. Further, it encourages players to mute and filter keywords and hashtags tied to God of War Ragnarok on social media for the next two weeks.
The last request Santa Monica Studio has is that for those who end up spoiled, by intention or through accident, to not spread the leak wider than it's already gone. There are going to be bad actors involved spreading spoilers with the intent to ruin people's experience with God of War Ragnarok. But those who do get a glimpse at something can do others a favor in helping prevent it from spreading.
How God of War Ragnarok copies got into the wild so early is a question that Sony and retailers will have to figure out in time. Clearly, this is an unacceptable situation and steps need to be taken to ensure it doesn't happen again. God of War Ragnarok producer Cory Barlog went so far as to question whether it's time disks simply include installers rather than the full game going forward, though he admittedly is quite disappointed in the situation. Hopefully, spoilers will be contained and everyone can enjoy God of War Ragnarok as it was intended.
God of War Ragnarok releases November 9 on PS4 and PS5.
