Sony Santa Monica Developer is excited for players to recall the feeling of throwing the Leviathan Axe for the first time, but in a different way this time around.

In 2020, Santa Monica Studio revealed a teaser for God of War Ragnarok and fans have been excitedly anticipating the sequel. Sony and PlayStation have been very careful about giving away any information about the game. Though it may be time for Santa Monica Studio to start showing off God of War Ragnarok’s potential, fans will most likely still have to wait most of the year before it is released.

During this wait, fans, both old and new, are either discovering or reliving the wonders of God of War 2018. One such fan, Trophy Dad, tweeted a video from his livestream that shows him playing the opening section of the game and learning to throw the Leviathan Axe for the first time. He writes: “I can only imagine everyone felt similarly after they teach you the axe throw in #GodOfWar. You can tell they put a lot of effort into making this feel GOOOOOOD.”

And it is true, the development team did put in a lot of effort to creating the look, sound and feel of the Leviathan Axe for the game. The axe feels like it has a real weight to it and makes a satisfying “thump” sound when it returns to Kratos’s hand. PlayStation 5 players can also enjoy haptic feedback in the DualSense Wireless Controller.

In a response to Trophy Dad’s tweet, Santa Monica Developer Beau Anthony Jimenez expresses his excitement for fans to be similarly surprised with the sequel.

There was never any doubt that God of War Ragnarok would have new gameplay features. However, this tweet from a bonafide developer does bring up the question of whether Kratos will have something new to add to his arsenal. Santa Monica Studio has already shown fans that it has no problem with dredging up Kratos’s past by introducing the Blades of Chaos in the 2018 game. So, if the studio is planning on bringing a new weapon to the forefront in the sequel, there are two distinct ways they can go about doing it.

The first way is to reap the rewards of a tried and true process: bring back another memorable weapon from a previous installment in the series. The Bow of Apollo, the Spear of Destiny, the Nemesis Whip – all of these were fan favorites and would hit the same nostalgia vein as the Blades of Chaos did. Whether they were tools, temporary weapons or even staples like the Blade of Olympus or the Arms of Sparta, previous weapons from the series would be a welcome sight in the upcoming sequel.

The second way, then, would be for the studio to create an entirely new weapon for Kratos to use, as they did with the Leviathan Axe itself. Or, in a less traditional way, as they did with Atreus. He counts as part of Kratos’s armaments, to be sure.

Whichever path they choose, fans will be excited to sink their teeth into God of War Ragnarok later this year.