Update 11/21: A previous version of this article incorrectly identified Mao as God of War Ragnarok's music producer.
A music production intern of God of War Ragnarok states that despite the game's production value and her contributions to it, she was not credited for her work. The game has recently launched to positive reception, with fans and critics stating this to be one of the best games of 2022. This release has been one of the most widely anticipated games of 2022, alongside juggernauts such as Elden Ring, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, and other similar big-name titles. Despite this, it appears not every single member of the team ended up being credited for their work.
This was stated by God of War Ragnarok music production intern Jessica Mao in a thread that was posted on her Twitter page. She started off positively, noting how she was in charge of the music in certain aspects. This includes the Freya chase scene along with the boss fight with Thor in the game. Mao notes that Thor's boss theme was one of her favorites in terms of arrangement, especially considering the bombastic nature of the theme and the fight associated with it. However, she notes that she wasn't acknowledged for this once the credits rolled.
Mao states that she was disappointed to hear this news, noting that when she asked why she wasn't included, it was revealed that her contribution didn't meet the "minimum criteria" to be credited. She notes that she is still unsure of what that minimum requirement could be and notes that her credits can't be retroactively added with a patch update to God of War Ragnarok.
Mao ends her thread off with her disappointment in this and hates for other aspiring game developers joining the industry to also potentially go uncredited. Her last tweet calls upon other game development studios to credit everyone who had been a part of the project, as "it only makes sense." This got the support of other fans and developers, including Sean LaValle, a senior audio designer at Sony Santa Monica, to see if she could be added to the game's credits.
This issue with game development members going uncredited for not meeting a certain criterion is a widespread problem in the industry. Many fans also called foul on Mao's exclusion and thought that the credits could be updated in a patch to credit all the developers. Many expressed their sympathies for Mao, calling for Sony Santa Monica to do the right thing and credit the team members that helped make the game special.
God of War Ragnarok is available now for PS4 and PS5.
