Santa Monica Studio

Santa Monica Studio is an American video game developer based in Playa Vista, California, established in 1999 as a first-party Sony Interactive Entertainment studio. The studio is responsible for the God of War franchise, one of the best-selling and most critically acclaimed action game series ever made. Cory Barlog served as creative director on God of War (2018) and producer on Ragnarok, with Eric Williams directing Ragnarok. The studio’s next project is God of War Laufey, announced at PlayStation’s State of Play in June 2026, which shifts the protagonist from Kratos to his wife Faye.

God of War (2018) is one of the best games I have ever played. The shift from Greek to Norse mythology felt genuinely fresh, and the relationship between Kratos and Atreus carried the whole thing in a way I did not expect from a God of War game.

The Greek Era God of War Series

Santa Monica Studio’s first significant release was Kinetica in 2001, a futuristic racing game, before God of War launched in March 2005 and defined the studio’s identity. The original game followed Kratos, a Spartan warrior who made a deal with the god Ares and ultimately sought revenge against the Olympian gods. Its over-the-shoulder camera, visceral combat, and Greek mythological setting established a template the series refined across two PlayStation 2 sequels: God of War II in 2007 and the PSP entries Chains of Olympus (2008) and Ghost of Sparta (2010). God of War III released in March 2010 as a PlayStation 3 exclusive and concluded Kratos’s war against Olympus. The Greek era sold tens of millions of copies across its run and established Santa Monica as one of Sony’s most important first-party studios.

God of War (2018) and the Norse Era

After years of development, a new God of War released in April 2018 for PlayStation 4, directed by Cory Barlog. The game reinvented the franchise by shifting to Norse mythology, replacing the fixed camera with an over-the-shoulder perspective, and centering the narrative on Kratos raising his son Atreus following the death of his second wife. The relationship between the two characters became the emotional core of the game and distinguished it from every entry that preceded it. It received a Metacritic score of 94, won multiple Game of the Year awards, and sold over 23 million copies. God of War Ragnarok followed in November 2022, directed by Eric Williams, concluding the Norse story across both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 to similarly strong reviews and sales.

Support Work and Third-Party Publishing

Alongside its own development, Santa Monica Studio has historically supported third-party projects as a publisher within the PlayStation ecosystem. Journey, developed by Thatgamecompany and released in 2012, was published by Santa Monica Studio and became one of the most acclaimed indie games of its generation. The studio also published The Unfinished Swan by Giant Sparrow in 2012. This publishing support gave smaller studios access to PlayStation platforms during a period when the indie ecosystem was establishing itself.

God of War Laufey

God of War Laufey was announced at PlayStation’s State of Play in June 2026 with a twenty-minute gameplay trailer. The game is the first in the franchise not to star Kratos as the protagonist, instead following Faye, Kratos’s warrior wife whose death begins the 2018 game. Set in the Everywhen, the afterlife of the gods, Laufey is described as a psychological thriller with combat DNA from both the modern Norse games and the original Greek era. Deborah Ann Woll plays Faye. No release date has been announced.