God of War Difficulty Modes

God of War Ragnarok has five difficulty settings, Give Me Story, Give Me Grace, Give Me Balance, Give Me No Mercy and Give Me God of War; the hardest can only be chosen at the start of a new game, and Valhalla has five settings of its own, up to Show Me Mastery.

God of War Ragnarok has five difficulty settings: Give Me Story, Give Me Grace, Give Me Balance, Give Me No Mercy and Give Me God of War, and Give Me Balance is the one the game describes as equally about story and combat. Give Me God of War, the hardest, can only be picked when a new game starts: it can be lowered later, but not chosen again on that save. The Valhalla epilogue has five settings of its own, up to Show Me Mastery. For God of War Laufey, out May 20, 2027, no difficulty settings have been announced as of Nov 4, 2026.

Quick facts

God of War Ragnarok	5 settings, Give Me Story to Give Me God of War
Change mid-game	Yes, except Give Me God of War cannot be chosen again once lowered
Trophies	Every trophy can be earned on the easiest setting
Hardest two settings, New Game Plus	All bosses and mini-bosses have Runic Armor; Elite enemies appear
Valhalla	5 settings, up to Show Me Mastery, switchable between attempts
God of War (2018)	Has a difficulty choice; its official names are not settled here
God of War Laufey	Not announced as of Nov 4, 2026

Sources: IGN, Nov 9, 2022; IGN trophy guide, updated Feb 13, 2025; PlayStation Blog, Apr 5, 2023; PlayStation Blog, Dec 7, 2023.

The five settings in God of War Ragnarok

The descriptions are the game's own, as IGN quotes them.

Setting	What the game says it is for
Give Me Story	Experiencing the story with the least focus on combat
Give Me Grace	Story-focused play with some focus on combat
Give Me Balance	An adventure equally focused on story and combat
Give Me No Mercy	A more demanding combat experience
Give Me God of War	The game "as difficult as possible"

Source: IGN, Nov 9, 2022.

Give Me No Mercy is meant for players who do not mind restarting major fights and will learn to parry, and some assists, such as mini-boss checkpoints, are switched off on it. Give Me God of War asks for what the game calls god-like reflexes and strategy.

What difficulty should you play God of War Ragnarok on?

Give Me Balance for a first run, if combat is half the reason to play: it is the middle setting and the game frames it as the even mix. Give Me Grace suits players who mostly want the story but still want fights to ask something of them, and Give Me Story is for the story alone.

Give Me No Mercy is the step for players who already parry well. Choose Give Me God of War only if that is the plan from the start, since it cannot be chosen again after dropping down. Nothing is lost by playing easy: every trophy can be earned on the easiest setting, with any accessibility options on. Those options, from aim assist to evade assist, are on God of War Ragnarok Accessibility.

Difficulty in New Game Plus

New Game Plus, added on Apr 5, 2023, lets players pick a setting again and makes the top two harder still. On Give Me No Mercy and Give Me God of War, all bosses and mini-bosses have Runic Armor, and Elite enemies, which gain a Power Level, now appear on Give Me No Mercy as well as Give Me God of War. The same update added Burdens, negative perks that make any setting harder, and a "Show Difficulty HUD" option that shows the current setting and how many Burdens are on. The rest is on God of War Ragnarok New Game Plus.

Difficulty in Valhalla

5:15 Valhalla, the free roguelite epilogue of Dec 12, 2023, has five difficulty settings tuned for it, each raising the rewards, which can be switched between attempts; the highest is Show Me Mastery. The base game's accessibility settings still apply. More is on Valhalla.

Difficulty in God of War (2018)

God of War (2018) also lets players choose a difficulty, and PlayStation's page lists adjustable difficulty among its accessibility features. The names of its settings are widely repeated, but no source we could check printed them, so this page leaves them out rather than guess. Its New Game Plus, added on Aug 20, 2018, lets players pick a difficulty again when starting over.

Difficulty in God of War Laufey

Not announced. As of Nov 4, 2026 Santa Monica Studio has said nothing about difficulty settings or accessibility for God of War Laufey, and no one outside the studio has played it: what has been shown is the studio's own footage of a pre-release build at the Jun 2, 2026 State of Play. Its combat as shown is on Laufey Gameplay and Combat.

Frequently asked questions

What are the difficulty settings in God of War Ragnarok? Five: Give Me Story, Give Me Grace, Give Me Balance, Give Me No Mercy and Give Me God of War, from easiest to hardest.

What is Give Me God of War? The hardest setting in God of War Ragnarok, for players who want the game "as difficult as possible". It can be chosen only when a new game starts, and once lowered it cannot be picked again on that save.

What difficulty should I play God of War Ragnarok on? Give Me Balance is the middle setting and the game describes it as equally focused on story and combat, which makes it the usual first choice. Give Me No Mercy suits players who are comfortable parrying.

Can you change difficulty in God of War Ragnarok? Yes, at any time, with one limit: Give Me God of War can be lowered mid-game but not selected again afterward.

Does difficulty affect trophies in God of War Ragnarok? No. Every God of War Ragnarok trophy can be earned on the easiest setting, with accessibility options on.

What is the hardest difficulty in Valhalla? Show Me Mastery, the highest of Valhalla's five settings in God of War Ragnarok. Settings can be changed between attempts, and higher ones give more rewards.