The God of War Sons of Sparta PS4 version is officially happening. Santa Monica Studio updated its PlayStation Blog post for the game today, November 13, to announce that the 2D God of War prequel is coming to PlayStation 4 on Monday, November 16 — and it is bringing a free content update with two new modes to both PS4 and PS5 at the same time.
Sons of Sparta shadow-dropped onto PS5 back on February 12, 2026, during February’s State of Play, as a retro-inspired 2D action platformer developed by Mega Cat Studios. Nine months later, last-gen players finally get their turn.
God of War Sons of Sparta PS4 Release: When and What We Don’t Know Yet
The PS4 version launches November 16 at midnight local time. That is the whole announcement on timing — a straight digital PlayStation Store release, no early access window and no separate rollout by region beyond your local midnight.
Two things Sony did not say are worth flagging. The announcement gives no PS4 price, and it does not mention cross-buy, so there is no confirmation yet that PS5 owners get the PS4 version (or the other way around) for free. For reference, the PS5 version sells for $29.99 for the Standard Edition and $39.99 for the Digital Deluxe Edition — whether PS4 pricing matches is still an open question.
Hermes Mode Is Built for Speedrunners
The patch’s first new mode, Hermes Mode, is a race against the clock with a dedicated speedrunning toolkit: a split-based timer, a persistent scoreboard, and more. Speed is literally this game’s home turf — Kratos and Deimos’ story is about Spartan cadets racing through their training — and now the game tracks it properly.
You can access Hermes Mode after you beat the game for the first time — or skip the wait with an old-school code. Enter this in the start menu: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, L1, R1, Touchpad.
Erebus Mode: One Hit and You’re Done
The second mode, Erebus Mode, is described as the ultimate challenge: both you and your enemies fall in a single hit. Every fight becomes a glass-cannon duel where one clean strike ends it — in either direction.
Whichever mode you pick, choose carefully. Your game mode is selected when you start a new game and pick a save slot, and once selected, the mode for that save file cannot be changed. Sony’s post gives no separate unlock condition for Erebus Mode.
New to Sparta? What Sons of Sparta Is
If you skipped the PS5 release: Sons of Sparta is canon, written by the team behind God of War (2018), God of War Ragnarök, and Valhalla. Set during the brutal Agoge training of Kratos’ youth, it sends a young Kratos and his brother Deimos across Laconia on a search for a missing fellow cadet, in a story about duty, honor, and brotherhood.
It translates God of War combat into 2D: customizable spear and shield attachments with their own upgrade paths, three skill trees covering offense, defense, and movement, and divine artifacts called the Gifts of Olympus that deliver special and super attacks. The world is high-definition pixel art, full of returning Greek saga creatures — minotaurs, satyrs, undead legionnaires — plus new monsters the originals never used.
The performances lean hard into series history. TC Carson, the original Greek saga Kratos, returns as the adult Kratos narrating the story, while Antony Del Rio voices young Kratos, a role he first played in 2010’s Ghost of Sparta. Scott Menville voices young Deimos, Bear McCreary returns to score it, and the whole thing supports single-player or 2-player couch co-op.
The God of War Sons of Sparta PS4 launch and the Hermes/Erebus patch both land at midnight local time on Monday, November 16. Whether you’re a PS4 player meeting young Kratos for the first time or a PS5 owner coming back for a one-hit run — we’ll see you at the Agoge, Spartans.
Source: PlayStation Blog — God of War Sons of Sparta: new content and PS4 version arrive November 16
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