God of War Ragnarok spoilers flood online as one retailer starts selling the game early
Producer Cory Barlog said it's "completely f****** stupid"
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: Ragnarok arrives early
😕 Major God of War Ragnarok spoilers have started to appear online
🛒 The leaks stem from an unnamed retailer who has been selling copies of the game early
😤 Producer Cory Barlog, other developers, and players have all expressed their frustration across social media
👀 Steer clear of Reddit and Twitter if want to play the game with fresh eyes
God of War Ragnarok is reportedly already being sold by an unnamed retailer more than a week before its official release on November 9.
Spoilers of the game’s ending and major story beats have appeared across social media, prompting producer Cory Barlog to express his frustration and apologize to fans.
“A retailer selling the game nearly two weeks before release,” he tweeted. “Just so disappointing.
“Sorry to everyone that you have to dodge the spoilers if you want to play the game fresh.” he added. “Completely f****** stupid you have to do this. This is not at all how any of us at [Santa Monica Studios] wanted things to go.”
Ragnarok’s narrative director, Matt Sophos, also shared his disappointment, tweeting: “Just stay away from social media, Reddit, YouTube, etc. unless you’re really confident in your ability to mute hashtags and block people.
“I’m really sorry if anyone’s had our game spoiled in any way. We’ve really tried to keep things fresh and surprising for you.”
Leaks aren’t uncommon across the gaming industry. Occasionally, playtesters will break NDAs to leak details about in-development games, but rarely do spoilers stem from retailers. Players have expressed their disappointment at accidentally stumbling across the spoilers just days before the game releases.
Naughty Dog vice president Arne Meyer also shared his frustration after Santa Monica Studios put out a Twitter statement advising fans to avoid certain keywords and hashtags. “Gutted for all [of Santa Monica Studios],” Meyer said. “These words, the feelings they must have, are too familiar to many of us in the games industry.”
Barlog also weighed in on how to prevent incidents like this from happening again. “You know, right now, I can really understand the benefit of having just an installer on the physical disc,” he tweeted, in an apparent reference to the news that Modern Warfare 2’s disc is little more than a glorified coaster. If physical copies of Ragnarok required online activation and download, fans wouldn’t have been able to access and spoil the story so early.
Excitement around God of War Ragnarok is at fever pitch. Its 2018 predecessor is one of the most celebrated games on PS4, and we fully expect this sequel to earn a place on our list of the best PS5 games. Of course, if you want to see it in all its glory, you’ll need to secure a PS5 restock. While you’re at it, you may as well embrace the Norse mood with the limited edition God of War Ragnarok controller.