Thor: God of Thunder is Hack and Slash video game published by Sega meant to tie-in with the 2011 film, Thor. The game acts as a prequel to the film, but is not considered canonical with the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It marks the first video game to star The Mighty Thor instead of featuring him in a supporting character, and features Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, and Jaimie Alexander reprising their respective roles from the film.
When an army of Frost Giants invade Asgard, Thor rises up to defend his home from the arriving horde. During the battle, Lady Sif is seemingly killed, causing Thor to seek retribution for her death. Conspiring with his stepbrother Loki, the two decide to sneak into Niflheim and bring the Frost Giants to their knees with an old weapon of Odin's hidden deep beneath the surface of their realm. However, unbeknownst to Thor, Loki is the true mastermind behind the invasion and seeks to use the weapon to prove that he is the superior heir to Asgard's throne. But what lies beneath Niflheim might be more powerful than either brother can truly handle.
The game's combat relies on using a mixture of Mjölnir and elemental powers to rack up combos on enemies over the course of battle. Collectibles are scattered across the various realms Thor travels, and can be used to unlock new moves and abilities.
Not to be confused with the comic series written by Jason Aaron as part of the Marvel NOW! initiative.
This game contains examples of:
- Action Bomb: The Burning Scorchers are a race of Fire Demon that blow themselves up in giant fireball in an attempt to take out Thor.
- Action Commands: Button prompts appear constantly throughout the game, typically as a way for Thor to deliver a finishing blow to larger enemies. They'll also appear as a way to alert the player into interacting with the environment, such as opening doors or charging up machinery.
- Air-Dashing: Thor can use Mjölnir to gain an extra boost while jumping, which is useful for leaping over gaps or reaching higher places.
- BFS: Twilight, Surtur's signature sword, is nearly as tall as he is. And considering that he already towers over Thor, that's saying a lot. During his boss fight with Surtur, Thor has to run up Twilight to strike him in the head whenever he stabs it into the ground.
- Big Bad: Loki is the one who planned the invasion on Asgard and manipulates Thor into releasing Mangog, all in the hopes of earning Odin's favour as the rightful heir to the throne. However, Mangog soon proves that he's far too powerful for Loki to stop, and the rest of the game focuses on Thor and Loki's combined efforts to stop him from destroying Asgard.
- Big Bad Wannabe: Loki's plans seem to be going his way at first, managing to trick Thor into releasing Mangog and giving him the chance to save Asgard from his wrath. However, Loki ends up severely underestimating how powerful Mangog truly is and is forced to work with Thor to prevent the Nine Realms from being destroyed.
- Big Red Devil: The Infernir in Muspelheim are all dark red demons bathed in flames and boasting large horns. Surtur, being their ruler, is the largest among their kind and is about four times the size of Thor.
- Bubblegloop Swamp: Vanaheim is covered in vast swamp-lands and rivers, standing in stark contrast with the technologically advanced ruins of the Vanir. The realm is filled with reptilian Skraelings, acid-spitting plants, and large swamp trolls patrolling the area.
- Canon Marches On:
- The Vanir are depicted as having been wiped out by Mangog thousands of years ago, with their ruins being the only remaining traces of their civilization. In Thor: The Dark World, not only are the Vanir and their civilization still alive, but Hogun of the Warriors Three is revealed to be one of their kind.
- Thor battles against Surtur during his visit to Muspelheim and defeats him in battle. However, when Thor meets Surtur in Thor: Ragnarok, it's clear the two have never met before and Thor assumes that Odin killed him long before he was ever born.
- The DS port has Thor run into Hela, who's portrayed as the ruler of Hel. Come Thor: Ragnarok, Hela is revealed as Thor's sister, with her existence kept hidden after Odin renounced his conquering ways and banished her.
- Continuity Snarl:
- The Jötunn are depicted living on Niflheim, with their ruler being Ymir. This seems to contradict the movie, where their home-realm is Jotunheim and Laufey has been their leader since their last war against Asgard.
- The opening to the first Thor movie makes it clear that the Frost Giants invading Asgard during Thor's coronation was the first time they broke the peace treaty since they lost the war. However, the game's plot is kicked off by an army of Frost Giants launching an attack far greater than the scattered soldiers seen in the film.
- Whenever Loki used the Casket of Ancient Winters in the movie, the illusion Odin cast disguising his Jötunn appearance faded, revealing his true heritage. But when Loki uses the Casket against Mangog in the game, his appearance remains the same.
- Elemental Armor: The Frost Giants form ice around their bodies to serve as armour and blades. This taken up a notch with the Frost Goliaths, which are essentially giant mech-suits formed entirely out of ice.
- Engineered Heroics: Loki tricks Thor into unleashing Mangog so he can then stop it by freezing it with the Casket of Ancient Winters before it can destroy Asgard; simultaneously humiliating Thor and making himself look like Asgard's saviour. The plan ultimately doesn't go as Loki expected, as Mangog simply breaks free from the ice and continues his rampage.
- Evil Is Not a Toy: Mangog is a destructive creature created by Odin powered by the souls of its fallen enemies, but was locked away after it set its sights on Asgard. Loki tricks Thor into releasing it, believing he can stop Mangog with the Casket of Ancient Winters to frame himself as Asgard's saviour. However, it soon becomes apparent that Mangog's power exceeds that of the Casket, and Loki is forced to work together with Thor to find a way to stop Mangog before it can destroy Asgard.
- Evil Sounds Deep: Surtur has a deep, booming voice.
- Eye Scream: During the boss fight against Surtur, Thor can shove Mjölnir into his eye socket while grappling with him. It doesn't seem to cause serious damage to Surtur's eye, but it does give Thor an opening for a more powerful strike.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: At the beginning of the game, Sif is impaled by a giant icicle created by a Frost Giant that's almost the size of her torso. This nearly kills her and it's only thanks to Odin tapping into the Odinforce that she's able to survive.
- Living Weapon: Mangog was created by Odin to wipe out the Vanir during their war against Asgard. The plan worked a little too well, as Mangog now threatened to turn its wrath against Asgard after taking the souls of the now enraged Vanir.
- Loophole Abuse: Heimdall is given explicit orders by Odin to not allow Thor to use the Bifrost after Sif's death, concerned that Thor may try to seek vengeance against the Frost Giants. Heimdall follows Odin's words to the letter, despite also wanting Sif to be avenged... but there's nothing stopping him from just leaving Thor alone with the Bifrost and hoping he doesn't use it himself.
- Manipulative Bastard: Loki convinces the Frost Giants to invade Asgard in a scheme to manipulate Thor into travelling to Niflheim and release Mangog from his prison, all in the hopes of stopping Mangog's attack as an opportunity to prove himself as the superior heir to Odin's throne. The plan goes smoothly in Loki's favour, right up until he actually has to stop Mangog by himself.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Thor is horrified when he releases Mangog and realizes that he just put all of the Nine Realms in danger in his quest for vengeance.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: In his quest to avenge Sif's supposed death, Thor travels to Niflheim and is told by Loki to unleash the power hidden beneath the realm, believing it can be used to destroy the Frost Giants. Instead, Thor accidentally releases Mangog and puts Asgard into the direct line of attack thanks for his need for vengeance.
- Planet Heck: Muspelheim is the realm of Surtur, filled with flowing rivers of lava, obsidian cliff walls, and hordes of fire demons ready to tear Thor apart.
- The Power of Hate: Mangog is powered by the billions of souls gathered during its rampage across Vanaheim. Now filled with the wrathful souls of the slaughtered Vanir, Mangog became obsessed with destroying Odin and all of Asgard out of revenge. Mangog can also feed off the hatred of others, and summons armies of Frost Giants and Fire Demons to assist in the destruction of Asgard to grow even more powerful.
- Roaring Rampage of Revenge: When Sif is seemingly killed during the Frost Giant's attack on Asgard, Thor decides to travel directly to Niflheim himself and destroy every last Frost Giant he can get his hands across. He soon realizes what a mistake he made when he unleashes Mangog, who seeks revenge against Odin for imprisoning it thousands of years ago.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: Mangog was sealed away by Odin thousands of years ago, hidden beneath the surface of Niflheim and bonded with Scabrite after it sought to destroy Odin himself. Ymir guarded the prison holding Mangog, knowing Mangog could just as easily turn its wrath against the Frost Giants too. It's only until Thor arrives that Mangog is freed and goes on a rampage once more.
- Slave Race: The trolls are mentioned to have been former slaves of the Vanir, having been taken from their home in Nornheim to do menial labour. Ulik eventually led the trolls in a successful slave uprising and managed to avoid meeting the same fate the Vanir's faced at the hands of Mangog.
- Slippy-Slidey Ice World: Niflheim is a realm entirely composed with ice. Large icicles and sheer cliffs made of ice scatter the land, blizzards threaten to blow Thor away, and rivers that periodically freeze over are quite common.
- Stock Scream: Loki lets out the "Wilhelm scream" as Thor drags him off to confront Mangog during the final battle.
- Ultimate Forge: Muspelheim is the only place in the Nine Realms that's capable of forging Scabrite, the only metal capable of harming Mangog. Thor travels directly to the heart of Surtur's throne room in order to infuse Mjölnir with Scabrite.
- Voice of the Legion: Mangog, being empowered by billions of souls, speak with multiple voices at the same time. Appropriately, there are five credited voice actors for Mangog, both men and women.
- The Walls Are Closing In: Thor will occasionally find himself in a trap where the walls in a hallway will attempt to crush him flat. The player will then be given a buttom prompt to get Thor to hold the walls apart using his bare hands.
- Where It All Began: The game begins with Thor in Asgard, fending off an invasion of Frost Giants. After travelling across multiple realms, the finale of the game sees Thor returning back to Asgard to stop Mangog and once again defend the city from invading Frost Giants.
