Ever since the God of War series was rebooted in 2018, the question “How old is Kratos” is being asked a lot. And that’s no surprise given how the fiercely popular demigod is shown to be much older in the new games.
The makers of the series have never taken it upon themselves to solve this mystery. However, eagle-eyed fans have managed to piece together evidence that does give us a rather good idea of Kratos’ age.
As you know, the GOW universe takes its inspiration from Greek mythology and Norse mythology. Kratos first appeared in God of War (2005) and has since been the protagonist of every game in the series.
Amidst all the Greek gods, he was shown to be a Spartan warrior who was tricked by the God of War, Ares, to kill his own family. This filled Kratos with spite and allowed him to avenge their deaths by killing Ares and becoming the new God of War.
It’s later revealed that Kratos was a demi-god as he was a son of Zeus. While games based on Greek mythology portrayed him as bloodthirsty, arrogant, guilt-ridden, and even suicidal, in the newer ones featuring Norse gods, Kratos is a much more mature figure who is deeply concerned about his son.
How Old Is Kratos In God Of War Ragnarök?
Based on keen observations of the events portrayed in the God of War Ragnarok, Kratos’ age is believed to be between 1,047 and 1,051 years.
That’s not too shocking considering he is a god. But we’re sure you’ll be dying to know how fans have arrived at this number.
So we’re naturally going to chronicle Kratos’ journey through all the games from the GOW series, telling you what his age was during each one. More importantly, we’ll be specifying the exact incidents that reveal Kratos’ age in some of the games.
In case you’re not aware, the God of War timeline can be looked at in the form of two eras. The first era covers a young Kratos when the stories are inspired by the Greek god realm, and the second is of a relatively old Kratos when he has moved to the realm of Norse gods.
That said, let’s talk about how you can calculate Kratos’s age to be between 1,047 and 1,053 human years during the time of God of War Ragnarök.
Timeline Of Kratos’ Age
God Of War (2005) – GOW 1
The first God of War game came out in 2005. It recites the story of how Kratos, a Spartan warrior avenges the deaths of his family and becomes the new ‘God of War’ after killing Ares.
Now, as Reddit user ‘interfederational‘ has pointed out, at the height of Sparta’s real-life existence, men were encouraged to marry once they turned 20. However, despite this, they couldn’t live with their families until they left active military service at age 30.
When Kratos pledges himself to Ares, he is obviously part of the active military and has a young daughter back home. Therefore, Kratos’ age at that time can be assumed to be around 27 years.
Since his daughter isn’t shown to age by the time he kills her, we can assume that the incident happened when Kratos’ age was 28. God of War (2005) takes place ten years after Ares’ deception. So we can deduce that Kratos’ age during the game was 38.
God Of War II (2007) – GOW 2
In the second main game from the God of War franchise, Kratos can be seen embarking on a journey to meet the Sisters of Fate and take his revenge on Olympus. Fans widely assume Kratos to be 50 years of age during this time. You’ll find proof of this when we talk about God of War III.
Betrayal (2007)
This game was launched as a prequel to God of War II and was a 2D platformer meant for mobile devices. Nevertheless, it did have a strong story that beautifully ties it to the rest of the series. It is believed that in this game, Kratos is in his early 40s.
Chains Of Olympus (2008)
2008 saw the series’ debut on the PlayStation Portable. GOW Chains of Olympus was also a prequel. But it was set even before the events of the first game from the series.
Therefore we can assume Kratos to be anywhere around 35 to 38 years of age.
God Of War III (2010) – GOW 3
With 2010’s God of War 3, we came back to the main story of the series. In this game, it was revealed through Daedalus’ notes that about twelve years had passed between Zeus asking him to build the Labyrinth to he himself getting imprisoned in it.
Now, Zeus only discovered Pandora after Kratos killed Ares, and Daedalus was still alive when Kratos arrived. This implies that Kratos was the God of War for twelve years, taking his age during the game to about 50 years.
Ghost Of Sparta (2010)
This PlayStation Portable game is set between the events of God of War (2005) and Betrayal (2007). It can hence be inferred that Kratos was around 38 to 40 years old when its events transpired.
God Of War: Ascension (2013)
We go right back to the start with this 2013 offering, as it takes place even before Chains of Olympus. It is widely assumed that Kratos was 28 years old during the events of God of War: Ascension.
God Of War (2018)
The 2018 game marked a major jump for the story and the same goes for Kratos’ appearance. The cursed character is now visibly old and mature, and is seen caring for his son Atreus.
Kratos has moved to a new realm of Midgard in ancient Scandinavia after leaving the Greek lands behind.
It is assumed that the end of God of War III alludes to the real-life historic destruction of Sparta caused by a massive earthquake in the year 464 BC.
That said, the end of God of War (2018) shows the start of the Fimbulwinter event. The real-life historical incidents that form the basis of this mythological event took place in 535 AD.
This is how fans have come to the conclusion that Kratos is around 1,050 years old during the events of the game.
God Of War Ragnarok (2022)
The mythological Fimbulwinter event is followed three years later by Ragnarok.
That means Kratos is around 1,053 years old during God of War Ragnarok, the game in which players can visit the nine realms and Yggdrasil.
FAQs
How Old Is Kratos’ Son?
Atreus was 11 years old in 2018’s God of War and since its sequel takes place three years later, he is now 14.
How Old Is Kratos’ Wife?
Kratos’ wife, Faye or Laufey, lived as a mortal but was actually a giant. She is believed to have been around 150 years of age when she died.
Can Kratos Die Of Old Age?
No, on account of being a demigod, Kratos cannot die of old age and can live forever.
Is Kratos Immortal?
Yes, Kratos can be described as immortal since he is a demigod. According to Greek mythology, demigods can age physically, but they never die of ageing. In fact, they grow more powerful with age.
Wrapping up
Answering the question “How old is Kratos” is pretty easy. We can just say he is around 1,053 years old. But the fun lies in knowing how fans have arrived at that number. We hope you enjoyed reading this article as much as we enjoyed writing it.
