Every God of War Ragnarok Difficulty Level Explained

For many people, God of War (2018) is one of the best first-party titles on the PlayStation 4, not just because of the game’s excellent story and combat, but also because of how accessible it is. The game features a wide array of accessibility options, including four distinct difficulty settings, allowing players to tailor the experience to their exact requirements.

God of War Ragnarok somehow manages to be even more customizable, with far more accessibility options than its predecessor and one extra difficulty setting. While having more choice is definitely a good thing for players though, it can make choosing the best difficulty setting in God of War Ragnarok a little tricky, particularly for those who are new to the franchise.

Updated December 13, 2023, by Tom Bowen: Despite more than a year having now passed since the game’s initial release, the team over at Santa Monica Studio isn’t done with God of War Ragnarok just yet. In December of 2023, they released the free Valhalla DLC, which, much like the base version of the game, features five distinct difficulty settings. Choosing the best difficulty setting in God of War Ragnarok’s Valhalla DLC can be a little tricky, particularly for those who don’t know what to expect. Thankfully, the difficulty setting can be changed at any time between runs, and the following guide has been updated to give a better idea of what each of the new settings entails.

Which is the Best Difficulty Setting in God of War Ragnarok?

Give Me Story

Give Me Story is designed for people who want to focus primarily on the story, with combat becoming a lot simpler and easier when this option is selected. Players should think of it as a very easy mode, making it a great option for those unfamiliar with the hack-and-slash genre or those who already know that they are bad at it.

Give Me Grace

Give Me Grace is effectively God of War Ragnarok‘s easy mode. Enemies are a little tougher than they are in Give Me Story mode but should still go down without too much trouble. Like Give Me Story mode, Give Me Grace allows players to focus on the story while also giving them a small taste of the game’s combat.

Give Me Balance

Give Me Balance is the default difficulty setting in God of War games and is effectively the equivalent of a normal mode. Combat is challenging but still fairly forgiving, with certain boss fights having checkpoints to account for difficulty spikes. In all likelihood, Give Me Balance will end up being the best difficulty setting for most players.

Give Me No Mercy

Give Me No Mercy is the game’s hard mode and is recommended for those with strong combat skills. Timing parries and blocks become a lot more important than in easier modes, while boss battles will no longer feature checkpoints, meaning that players will need to restart from the very beginning if they run out of health.

Give Me God of War

Give Me God of War is not for the faint of heart. Players should think of it as an ultra-hard mode, in which lightning-fast reflexes are required. Unlike the game’s other difficulty settings, players will only be able to select Give Me God of War mode from the start of the game and will not be able to re-select it if they lower the difficulty setting midway through their playthrough. It’s very much a mode for experts and one that most players will find a little too challenging.

Which is the Best Difficulty Setting in God of War Ragnarok’s Valhalla DLC?

Show Me Will

Show Me Will is incredibly easy and is aimed at those who just want to focus on the expansion’s main story. Players will get no bonus rewards while playing on this difficulty setting though, which can make upgrading Kratos’ stats a bit more time-consuming.

Show Me Resolve

Show Me Resolve is the recommended starting difficulty for the Valhalla DLC and provides players with 10% more rewards. It’s effectively the expansion’s easy mode, although as players will start out with none of Kratos’ permanent upgrades unlocked, most players will probably want to start on this setting and then switch to a more challenging one after upgrading Kratos’ Health and Strength stats once or twice.

Show Me Courage

Those looking for increased combat difficulty should opt for Show Me Courage mode. Enemies are all a little tougher while playing on this setting, though players will get 20% more rewards for their troubles. It’s effectively a normal mode, but may prove difficult to some players early on while Kratos’ stats are at their default values.

Show Me Prowess

Show Me Prowess serves as the expansion’s Hard Mode and is only recommended for those looking to really challenge themselves. While playing on this mode, the amount of rewards received by players will be increased by 30%, though the increased difficulty will likely lead to a lot of attempts ending much earlier than they otherwise might.

Show Me Mastery

For those looking to put their skills to the ultimate test, Show Me Mastery is the best difficulty setting to choose. It can be insanely difficult, yet is by far the most rewarding, as players will receive 40% more Mastery Seals, Fleeting Echoes, and Spirit Seals. It’s no joke though, with even the devs having a difficult time with this Give Me God of War mode equivalent.