Recent job listings suggest that Santa Monica Studios, the developers behind the famed God of War series, may currently be working on a new co-op multiplayer game. The Santa Monica studio has been at the heart of the God of War franchise since its inception, so this could be an indication that the next game in the franchise will feature co-op elements.
Since the first God of War came out in 2005, the series has essentially been synonymous with the Santa Monica studio. The developer has released six God of War games in nearly two decades, and already appears to be hiring for a God of War sequel, so it’s safe to say that the next Kratos-starring game is already in the works.
Sony recently began searching for a new senior game designer in Santa Monica, according to a new job listing on LinkedIn. Specifically, the role requires knowledge of Unreal Engine 5 and experience designing local and online co-op games. While the Santa Monica studio doesn’t appear directly in the job listings, Sony has advertised for its studio positions before, and it’s not a good idea to start with Santa Monica until it’s properly revealed that the famous studio may be working on a new one. It makes sense for Monica to advertise a co-op game.
According to job requirements, applicants need to design game functions, maintain existing game systems, have more than ten years of experience as a game designer, and have participated in at least one AAA game before shipping and have game design capabilities. This hints at a major, full-fledged AAA title rather than a smaller side project. However, none of this indicates whether this is another brand new game in the series, a rumored sequel to Kratos and Atreus, or even a God of War prequel, as there has been no official announcement so far.
While it’s too early to speculate on whether this actually means the Santa Monica studio is planning a co-op God of War game, it’s safe to say it needs to hit at least 90 or more on Metacritic to keep Sony happy. Recently, A former employee of the studio revealed that all high-end titles produced by Sony-owned studios need to have at least 90 on Metacritic, and studios like Santa Monica and Naughty Dog usually have 90 on Metacritic. There is this expectation.