{"id":85375,"date":"2026-09-16T13:50:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-16T05:50:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=85375"},"modified":"2026-09-16T13:50:00","modified_gmt":"2026-09-16T05:50:00","slug":"god-of-war-laufey-now-has-a-lot-to-prove-after-wolverines-messy-launch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=85375","title":{"rendered":"God of War Laufey Now Has a Lot To Prove After Wolverine\u2019s Messy Launch"},"content":{"rendered":"


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A full five years after its announcement, Marvel\u2019s Wolverine<\/em> is finally out on PlayStation 5. What should be a triumphant moment for Sony, though, has turned out to be an unexpected headache. Uneven reviews, a particularly loud peanut gallery, and close proximity to multiple unpopular business decisions have turned what many assumed would be a surefire bet into a strangely toxic game release.<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s certainly not unusual for a publisher to drop a middling game every now and then, but the timing couldn\u2019t be worse for Sony. Aside from managing an optics crisis tied to its decision to end physical disc production in 2028, Wolverine <\/em>is coming at a time when it’s imperative for Sony to find its groove after years of strategic uncertainty. Expect that tension to put even more pressure on its next big first-party game, God of War Laufey<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Slated to launch on Feb. 16, 2027, God of War Laufey <\/em>isn\u2019t a very risky game on paper. It\u2019s par for the course for the PS5 era, with Santa Monica Studio looking to deliver the kind of cinematic action-adventure game that PlayStation successfully built its brand around over the past few console generations. In any other year, it would be entering 2027 as a strong Game of the Year contender, considering God of War\u2019s past success with critics and audiences alike.<\/p>\n

Instead, God of War Laufey<\/em> will no doubt have a target painted on its back in the lead up to its launch. There are several reasons for that, some of which have already been foreshadowed by Wolverine<\/em>. Insomniac\u2019s game had the misfortune of being the first Sony game to release after its physical game announcement. That made it a lightning rod for online anger; any trailer for it or post about it was met with angry commenters using the game as an outlet for anti-PlayStation protest. Wolverine <\/em>was also another target in gaming\u2019s engagement-driven culture war, and the same fate is all but assured for the first God of War game starring a female character rather than Kratos. (Indeed, this has already begun.) As headache-inducing as those conversations are, though, there\u2019s little data to suggest that either has an impact on sales.<\/p>\n

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\"faf12b84129bcb6b3bf751cdf7ca9d44725d4d08\"\n <\/picture>Image: Santa Monica Studio\/Sony Interactive Entertainment<\/small><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n