New God Of War Port Appears In Surprise Leak

After a few years when ports were increasingly starting to look like the norm, both PlayStation and Xbox have started to revert to an exclusive-focused approach. In PlayStation’s case, that mostly means backing off from its PC presence, making it unlikely that newer releases like Marvel’s Wolverine to follow games like God of War in coming to the platform.

Even so, it’s possible that some first-party PlayStation exclusives won’t be permanently trapped on their release console. According to a new leak, God of War Sons of Sparta might no longer be a PS5-only game, although the rumored port still won’t bring the title to any rival systems.

Dataminer PlayStation Game Size revealed the alleged existence of a God of War Sons of Sparta PS4 port in a tweet that simply reads “God of War Sons of Sparta – PS4,” accompanied by splash art for the game. In response to a later query about the source, they shared the content ID “UP9000-CUSA57767_00-SONSOFSPARTAPS40.”

PlayStation Game Size has a solid reputation for pulling accurate information from the store, recently announcing the download size of Grand Theft Auto 6 on PS5 shortly ahead of Rockstar’s official confirmation. The existence of a content ID is still a step short of an actual reveal, naturally, but it does suggest the likelihood of a planned PS4 release.

13 years after the PS4’s launch, it’s surprising to see an exclusive be ported to the system after launching on the PS5, but it also makes a lot of sense in this case. As a 2D sidescroller with pixel art, Sons of Sparta doesn’t reach for the technical prowess ofGod of War Ragnarök, a much more graphically involved game that nonetheless managed to release in fine form on the PS4. There’s no reason Sons of Sparta should have any trouble running on the system, so the port was unlikely to take any particularly intensive resources.

As Sons of Sparta is lower-profile than the mainline God of War games, a PS4 port is unlikely to be a massive source of income for PlayStation. Considering the power of the franchise, however, enough sales to justify the endeavor seem inevitable. With PS5 prices rising rather than falling over time, support for the PS4 is increasingly easy to appreciate, as the newer console may simply not be worth the investment for many.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that PlayStation will support it forever. The recently delayed God of War Laufey is currently set to launch exclusively on PS5, and I wouldn’t bet on it following Sons of Sparta‘s apparent path of being ported back to PS4 after launch. Depending on the ultimate timing of its release, the PS4 port of Sons of Sparta could essentially act as a consolation prize for fans missing out on Laufey.

Hopefully, we’ll get an official announcement about God of War Sons of Sparta coming to the PS4 soon. As the industry gears up for the massive impact of Grand Theft Auto 6, it’s nice to hear some good news about smaller releases on occasion.