Analysis5 min read
Who Is Laufey in God of War? Faye's Giant Story Explained
Laufey is the Jötunn warrior players know as Faye, Kratos's late wife and Atreus's mother from God of War (2018) and Ragnarök. Here's her mythology, her death, and what her standalone 2027 game delivers.
Contents
- Who Is Laufey in God of War? Meet Faye
- What Mythology Is God of War's Laufey Based On?
- Is Faye a Giant? Her Jötunn Heritage and Powers
- How Did Laufey Die in God of War? The Funeral and the Ashes
- Her New Game: God of War Laufey and the Everywhen
- Full Game or Spin-off? Where Laufey Fits, and What to Play First
- What to Watch Next Before Laufey Launches
- Sources
If you want to know who is Laufey in God of War, the short answer is: she's Faye. Laufey is Kratos's late wife and Atreus's mother in God of War (2018) and God of War Ragnarök — and starting February 16, 2027, she finally gets to tell her own story. This piece walks through who she is, what she is (a Jötunn, one of Norse mythology's giants), how her death opens the 2018 game, what real Norse myth says about a figure named Laufey, and what her upcoming standalone game, God of War Laufey, is actually about.
Who Is Laufey in God of War? Meet Faye
Laufey, commonly referred to as Faye, is Kratos's second wife and "a powerful Jötunn warrior" who died just before the events of God of War (2018) (God of War Laufey — Wikipedia).
What Mythology Is God of War's Laufey Based On?
On the god of war laufey mythology question: in real Norse myth, Laufey is recorded as the mother of Loki, the trickster god. That lines up neatly with the twist running through God of War (2018) and Ragnarök — Atreus's true giant name is Loki, which makes Faye's mythological identity as Loki's mother a direct match for her role as Atreus's mother in the games (God of War (2018) — Wikipedia).
Within the games' own lore she carries an even bigger title than "mother": she was "previously the guardian of the Jötnar and a rebel leader against the Æsir" who became known among her people as "Laufey the Just" (God of War Laufey — Wikipedia). That backstory makes her a major Norse-mythology figure in her own right, not just a background spouse.
Is Faye a Giant? Her Jötunn Heritage and Powers
Answering directly: is Faye a giant? Yes. She is a Jötunn, one of the giants of Norse mythology (God of War Laufey — Wikipedia).
Her giant heritage comes with distinct magic. In her own game she is known as the "Golden Hand of the Jötnar," able to use her glowing palm to pull an enemy's soul out of its body, then strike that detached soul directly or knock it into other foes as part of her combo chains (God of War Laufey — Wikipedia).
How Did Laufey Die in God of War? The Funeral and the Ashes
As for how Laufey died: the 2018 game opens after she has already died, and her funeral frames the entire story. Kratos and Atreus set out to carry out her final wish and scatter her ashes from the highest peak of the nine realms, a journey that becomes the spine of that whole adventure (God of War (2018) — Wikipedia).
The sources cited here do not say how she died.
Her New Game: God of War Laufey and the Everywhen
Faye's own story finally gets told in God of War Laufey, set for February 16, 2027, exclusively on PlayStation 5, developed by Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. No PS4, Xbox, or PC release has been confirmed (Everything confirmed for God of War Laufey — GamingBible).
The premise: right after her funeral, Faye unexpectedly wakes in the Everywhen, described as the birthplace and endpoint of all magic and an afterlife where gods from many mythologies vie for power. There she discovers that her plans to protect Kratos and Atreus are at risk, and sets out to find a way home (Everything confirmed for God of War Laufey — GamingBible). Beyond Norse myth, confirmed antagonists include Sekhmet and Begtse, the gods of war of Egyptian and Mongolian mythology respectively (God of War Laufey — Wikipedia).
In combat, Faye wields a sword guarded by the enchanted ribbon Rue, and she's joined by a curious cosmic-cube companion named Phranque, voiced by Jack Quaid (God of War Laufey: Everything we know — GamesRadar, God of War Laufey — Wikipedia). Its story runs simultaneously with God of War (2018) and Ragnarök rather than acting as a prequel or direct sequel to either (God of War Laufey — Wikipedia, Everything confirmed for God of War Laufey — GamingBible).
Full Game or Spin-off? Where Laufey Fits, and What to Play First
Wikipedia lists Laufey as the 11th installment in the series and the first mainline entry where Kratos isn't the main character (God of War Laufey — Wikipedia).
For players asking what to play before Laufey: much like the 2018 reboot, Laufey is designed as a standalone entry — you don't need to have played the earlier games to follow Faye's story (Everything confirmed for God of War Laufey — GamingBible). That said, since its plot runs alongside God of War (2018) and Ragnarök rather than replacing them, playing those two Norse-era games first fills in who Kratos, Atreus, and Faye are before you see events from her side.
What to Watch Next Before Laufey Launches
Between now and February 16, 2027, two threads are worth following: how much more of the Everywhen's mixed pantheon gets revealed beyond Sekhmet and Begtse, and how the next Kratos-led game, which GamingBible reports will connect directly to Laufey's events, carries the story forward (Everything confirmed for God of War Laufey — GamingBible).
One last housekeeping note: this Laufey has nothing to do with the Icelandic-Chinese singer-songwriter who shares the same name — it's a coincidence of naming, nothing more.
