Learning how to parry in God of War Ragnarok will give you a huge buff when taking down enemies. From the game's biggest bosses to its tiniest creatures, the shield is a versatile weapon that can give you the upper hand at a moment's notice. Here's how it works.
In this God of War Ragnarok guide, we go over how to parry, how often you should be using your shield, and what we think the best shield is early on. There's quite a lot to learn if you want to get the most out of the game, especially if you want to take on its toughest difficulty.
If you want more information on the game, here's how to change difficulty in God of War Ragnarok. If you want even more, here is our glowing God of War Ragnarok review, whether or not we think it is coming to PC, and the full God of War Ragnarok voice cast. If you want something a little different, our Genshin Impact tier list should keep you busy.
How to parry in God of War Ragnarok
Parrying is pretty easy in God of War Ragnarok due to colour-coded attacks. Generally, enemy attacks will be red, yellow, or blue. If it is red, you should aim to dodge out of the way. If it is yellow, you can parry it. To parry, you simply press L1, the block button, just before the hit connects. Make sure you don't press it as the yellow appears, instead choosing to press it just after. This will stagger the enemy, increasing their stun, and giving you a chance to hit.
If the attack is blue, this also gives you a chance to stun your enemy. Instead of tapping L1, you have to double-tap it, doing a hit with your shield. This will stagger the enemy, giving you space for a few hits.
How often should you use your shield in God of War Ragnarok?
Using your shield can be a fine art. You should learn all the attack types and plan your defence on that. You should be using your shield like a weapon, deploying it when it can give you the upper hand in battle. If you are cornered and worried about being hit, don't hold your shield up. Instead, work on rolling away from danger or activating your rage.
Your shield should be used to complement combos and apply pressure to multiple enemies, while also landing extra hits once you've parried.
What is the best shield in God of War Ragnarok?
In God of War Ragnarok, your starting shield is the Guardian Shield" This is not very powerful, and becomes entirely unusable pretty quickly. Because of this, you should aim to replace this as soon as you can. Once you meet Brok and Sindri, choose the Stone Wall Shield. This is a heavy shield, which means you will be punished far less for overstepping, though it is slower to wield.
From here, your progression won't be linear, so make sure to commit to shield types that make sense for your play style. Shields at the same level don't tend to be better than others, just different. If you save your resources, you can outright buy high-level gear without having to pump all of your special items in them. As you get further through the game, you will have tonnes of great shields to choose from.
If you'd like some help with your playthrough, here is how the God of War Ragnarok fast travel system works.