God of War Laufey's Deborah Ann Woll has the right idea about social media

Something that I struggle to understand, and I'm sure will always baffle me, is how a video game – a video game – can stir up such violent anger and unbridled hatred in people. At some point, it seems we started to believe we were owed something specific that caters to our personal preferences, even though we haven't had the chance to pay for it since it only exists in the form of trailers and screenshots. God of War Laufey is one of the latest victims of that philosophy, and it's all because a God of war the game had the audacity to feature a protagonist other than Kratos, who has led every single entry in the franchise for over two decades now. Because of that, the game's lead actress and talent behind its protagonist, Deborah Ann Woll, has personally become one of the targets of the backlash, even though she is not personally responsible for Santa Monica's “controversial” decision.

But despite being such a clear target for netizens, Woll is “completely unfazed” by it all and still deeply in love with what God of War Laufey has managed to achieve on the creative side. She made the statement at the Florida Supercon after a fan asked her how she felt about the seemingly overwhelmingly negative response to the game's direction, confirming that her decision to stay away from social media has indeed helped her ability to ignore the animosity towards her. Now I'm starting to think she has the right idea about social media, especially considering it allows her to appreciate her creative investments when there's no one in her ear telling her she should be ashamed of them instead.

God of War Laufey's Deborah Ann Woll knows how blissful ignorance can be

Social media and I have a very complicated relationship, because while I enjoy the odd doomsday scroll that informs me of what's going on with friends, family and the video game industry, I often reach a point where I just get overwhelmed and exhausted by it all. The thing is, it's not always negativity or toxicity that makes me feel that way either. Many times, scrolling through and seeing the amazing accomplishments of others can even make me feel like I'm not measuring up or that I'm somehow falling short in life. I'm happy for them, but it still tends to highlight the things I've either tried to ignore or just didn't know were there to begin with.

Who is that character?

Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.

Easy (7.5s)Medium (5.0s)Hard (2.5s)Permadeath (2.5s)

Start

Restart
Back

Results

0

Highest score: 0

—

But when I finally notice any of these feelings creeping in, I purposely take a break from social media, and all of a sudden I'm a happier, more confident person. All thoughts of not being enough or being liked by people who really shouldn't have that much of a hold on me in the first place disappear, and I can actually enjoy where I am, what I'm doing and who I'm with. In that sense, God of War LaufeyDeborah Ann Woll has the right idea about social media, as she seems to realize that staying away from it is one of the best ways she can help keep a smile on her face and her confidence in the path she's chosen to walk.

So many of us would love to say we're not bothered by the haters, and maybe at some point in our lives, we really aren't. But there's no denying how powerful words are and how easily they follow us, reminding us how big we are or how small we are, how successful we are or how much we fail. No matter how invincible we think we are, at some point words will prove us wrong, and if there's one thing that's true about social media, it's that it's a place where anyone, anywhere can say things from their armchair and appear wise, relevant, and right, despite often being the opposite of all those things.

At the end of the day, what we need to realize is that we can only say that the words don't bother us for so long before they start to eat away at us – our happiness, our confidence and our overall emotional health. At that point, the best course of action we can take is to remove ourselves from the room entirely and place ourselves in an environment where these words are not even spoken. We can much more easily ignore what is being said behind our back because we are ignorant of it after all. So, like God of War Laufeys star cast, we can focus more on pursuing our hearts desires without the input and nagging of people who should have no say in what we do or why we do it, and we can be proud of our accomplishments because there is no one left to degrade them.

I don't care what anyone says – God of War Laufey looks incredible

When we got our first glimpse at God of War LaufeyYou know what I didn't think of? “How dare they!” Rather, all I could think about was how hyped I was for a new one The God of War game, and I didn't spend a single second missing Kratos. Don't get me wrong, Kratos' arc throughout God of war series – especially the reboot – has been one of the most compelling character stories I've ever seen. As a father himself, God of War Ragnarok had me in tears several times, and to this day I consider the story from God of war (2018) to Ragnarök's Valhalla DLC one of the best stories in video game history. I'm actually still a bit bothered by it Ragnarök lost Game of the Year to Fire Ringbut it is what it is.

Then finished Ragnaröks Valhalla DLC, but I've longed to return to this incredible universe that Santa Monica has created, to the point where I don't care what form it comes in, as long as it does. This means that when you see God of War Laufey was revealed during the PlayStation State of Play event on On June 2, 2026, I was ecstatic. Everything about the game looks incredible, from the animations to the environments, from the combat to the story. Sure, there are some “concerns” I have that it will just be more of the same, but I say that lightly because, as a routine, more of the same never really bothers me — I just want more.

Also, Kratos' story is over as far as I'm concerned. There's always room to milk even more if you squeeze hard enough, though Ragnarök's Valhalla DLC wrapped it all up in a beautiful arc, and I'm happy with where it all ended. If this is how Santa Monica chooses to move the series forward, I'm all for it. Until it arrives, however, I am convinced that I must take the road as God of War LaufeyDeborah Ann Woll has taken and stayed away from social media. For her it feels like a move to preserve the confidence she has in her career choices, but for me it's about keeping that yuck out of my yum.

System

Publisher

Sony Interactive Entertainment

Number of players

Single player

•