Technologies

God of War Ragnarok: Muspelheim Seed Locations

Here’s how to unlock God of War: Ragnarok’s Muspelheim Combat Trials, and what you get for completing them.

Sure, God of War: Ragnarok has recieved plenty of acclaim for its thoughtful story. But really, all God of War games mostly consist of Kratos killing things. Big things, small things, slow things, fast things. Kratos kills ’em all. Just like in its predecessor, Kratos’ killing skills can be put to the test in exchange for valuable resources in Muspelheim’s Combat Trials.

This guide will explain how to unlock the Muspelheim Crucible, as well as go through what rewards you get for completing its many Combat Trials.

Opening the portal to Muspelheim requires Kratos & Co. to find two Muspelheim Seed Halves which, when combined, act as a key, opening passage to the fiery realm. Both Muspelheim Seed Halves can be found in Svartalfhiem, the land of the Dwarves and the first open area that Ragnarok permits you to explore. Unfortunately, you’ll need the Draupnir Spear, a weapon you get well into the story, to get access to the second Muspelheim Seed Half.

How to find the first Muspelheim Seed Half

You can find the first Muspelheim Seed Half by accepting the first side quest (or «favor», as the game calls them) in God of War: Ragnarok. In the course of the game’s story, Kratos and Atreus seek out Durlin, a Dwarf who famously led a resistance movement against Asgard. Before finding him, you encounter another Dwarf, Raeb, who encourages Kratos to undo some of the harm done by Mimir and Odin years ago.

This unlocks a side quest titled In Service of Asgard, which tasks you with breaking down some old mining rigs that pollute Svartalfhiem Bay. Definitely do this side quest. It nets you an armor set, a Light Runic attack and unlocks several other side quests. Most notable of these is the side quest that gets you into Muspelheim.

As part of In Service of Asgard, you’ll find Modvitnir’s Rig, which you’ll need to destroy. Once you disembark, climb up the wall on the right, jump over the bridge and scale another wall. Atop you’ll find a chest containing a Muspelheim Seed Half.

Where to find the second Muspelheim Seed Half

The second part of the key to Muspelheim is basically around the corner, but you’ll need new equipment to access the area it’s in. This is a no-spoiler guide, so I won’t write about how you get the Draupnir Spear — other than it’s a weapon you get a good way through Ragnarok’s story.

Soon after you get the Draupnir Spear, you’ll encounter a character who embarks you on another side quest called Spirit of Rebellion. To complete that quest, you’ll end up travelling to Dragon’s Beach, which features the notable landmark of a giant Dwarf statue.

After you clear out the enemies on the beachfront, you’ll see a wooden structure you can climb up on the left of the beachfront (you can see it pictured below, directly in front of Kratos’ boat). There you’ll see a hole out of which a gust of air is blowing. Throw the Draupnir Spear into it, and Kratos will be able to swing to the platform above.

Follow the path and you’ll clear out enemies and find the item you need to complete the Spirit of Rebellion favor. Instead of going back the way you came, however, go through the path to the left of the big ol’ Dwarf statue. There you’ll find a family of ogres you’ll need to slaughter.

There’ll be a bunch of debris covering a chest. After you kill the ogres, you can toss a fire bomb from a nearby generator into the debris, allowing you access to the chest. In the picture below you can see where to get the fire bomb and where the chest is. Inside you’ll find the second Muspelheim Seed Half.

Muspelheim’s first Combat Trials

Once you get the Muspelheim Crucible, one of the first things you’ll notice is a Nornir Chest. Unlocking this one is unlike any other in God of War: Ragnarok, however. To remove the three letters from the chest, you’ll have to complete the six different trials immediately available to you.

Each area of the Crucible’s three areas features a sword monument at its center. Interacting with the monument gives you the option between two different combat trials. Completing these trials yields the Undying Pyres Armor Set. The Bracers and Girdle increase how quickly your Permaforst, Immolation and Maelstrom gauge fills up, while the Shoulder Guard offers a perk that sees Kratos gain a shield. That shield prevents the first hit you take from resetting those gauges once filled. You also get Divine Ashes, which are used to craft and upgrade various armor sets and weapon accessories.

Here’s all six trials and the rewards for clearing them.

Population Control: Kill the Bergsra without the the enemy count going above 4. If there are more than 4 enemies, a timer will begin to count you out. This is among the harder Combat Trials, in that it’s particularly difficult to use skill to make up for a lower level or underpowered weapons. If you’re having trouble, come back when you’re strong enough to more quickly take out the grunts. Rewards: Girdle of Undying Pyres, 250 Divine Ashes, 1,000 Hacksilver
King of the Hill: Three highlighted circles will appear throughout the area. You’ll be barraged by three waves of enemies, who will eat away at the trial’s timer if they stand in any of the circles. Like Population Control, this is a difficult one if you’re underpowered. Since you’ll have the option to swing between areas, make use of Kratos’ Death from Above attacks. (Press R1 or R2 while you’re in midair.) Rewards: 250 Divine Ashes, 1,000 Hacksilver.
Weapon Mastery: Kill 16 enemies in 3 minutes. The first wave has frost shields, the second has flame shields. After that, you’ll be met with a couple of waves of enemies with mixed shields, including ones you’ll need to use the Draupnir Spear to break. The hardest wave consists of a Draugr Lord, a Draugr Scout and a flame-shielded Nokken that will heal them both. Rewards: Shoulder Guard of Undying Pyres, 250 Divine Ashes, Hacksilver.
Flawless: Kill 15 enemies without taking damage. This one is most simple, and not as hard as it sounds — until the Dodher Gradungr beast comes out. This bull-like monster can lunge at you from far distances, and is accompanied by enemies launching ranged attacks. Keep that shield up, and make good use of the Draupnir Spear’s ranged detonation ability. Rewards: 250 Divine Ashes, 1,000 Hacksilver.
Ring Out: Kill 21 enemies with recharging health. This is actually one of the easier trials once you figure it out. To kill enemies, you’ll have to knock them into the nearby lava pits. That can be done fairly easily with moves like the Leviathan Axe’s Serpent’s Snare, and its running R2 attack. Rewards: Bracers of Undying Pyres, 250 Divine Ashes, 1,000 Hacksilver.
Feed the Rift: Kill enemies to generate orbs, then throw the orbs into the realm rifts that appear in the arena. This will be familiar if you’ve fought many Ancient Soul Eaters, and is similarly quite easy. Rewards: 250 Divine Ashes, 1,000 Hacksilver.

Once you complete all six of the Combat Trials, you unlock a Nornir chest in the central Muspelheim area which contains a Chaos Flame, which upgrades Kratos’ Blades of Chaos, as well as 10,000 XP for Kratos and 2,500 XP for his companion.

Muspelheim’s Final Challenges trials

As you may have guessed, the first six combat trials are just a warmup. After you complete them, a giant flaming sword monument appears in the central Crucible area, unlocking nine new trials.

If you go back to the three sword monuments, you’ll see that there’s a new trial offered at each. When you complete two of these new trials, lava flows to the sword in the center of Muspelheim, where you can do a «final» trial. Here’s where it gets a touch confusing

What «final» trial you get depends on which combination of two trials you complete. For instance, completing Rampage and Health Steal unlocks the Endurance final trial, but completing Health Steal and then Rampage unlocks Ring of Fire final trial. There are six combinations to complete the below three trials, resulting in six total final trials.

Rampage: Kill 20 enemies in 150 seconds. This one is straightforward, and mostly easy. It gets dicey when an Ogre hits the area about halfway through. Use attacks to stagger him as quickly as possible, which will allow you to ride its shoulders and pummel nearby enemies. Reward: Smouldering Embers, 8 Asgardian Ingots, 250 Divine Ashes and 2,500 Hacksilver.
Health Steal: Your health will be drained, but is replenished by killing enemies. This is also easy if you’re sufficiently leveled. Be aware of the enemies who pop up on ledges and fire ranged attacks at you. You’ll have to deal with a Wight at the outset, but the trickier part is at the end when a Nokken appears and heals a set of Elf Warrior enemies. Reward: Blazing Embers, 3 Luminous Alloy, 250 Divine Ashes, 2,500 Hacksilver.
Kill Fuse: Kratos has 30 seconds to kill 22 enemies, but killing enemies grants extra time. This is also easier than it sounds, as many of the enemies you’re presented with are ranged attackers who can be killed with one or two well-placed Leviathan Axe throws. You might have a slight bit of trouble from the Wulver that apears, but even he’s not too much of an issue. Reward: 4 Petrified Bone, Glowing Embers, 250 Divine Ashes, 2,500 Hacksilver.

A recurring theme in explaining the above trials is that they’re all relatively easy. That’s good, because you’ll be doing them a bunch of times. Below are the final trials, and the combinations that unlock them. By finishing all six final trials, you’ll assemble Surtr’s Scorched Armor Set and collect a trio of Muspelheim amulet enchantments.

Surtr’s Scorched Armor reduces the damage Kratos takes and increases his stagger resistance, while the amulet enchantments offer the perk of increasing Kratos’ melee damage when Permafrost, Immolation or Maelstrom are fully charged. Below is a full breakdown of the six «final» trials and their rewards.

Endurance: Kill 99 enemies without dying. Unlock Endurance Challenge by completing Rampage and then Health Steal. Rewards: Blazing Embers, 3 Smouldering Embers, 1,000 Divine Ashes, 20,000 Hacksilver and Surtr’s Scorched Curass.
Ring of Fire: Kill all enemies while staying within the safety of the fire ring. Unlock Ring of Fire by completing Health Steal and then Rampage. Rewards: Blazing Embers, 2 Smouldering Embers, Glowing Embers, 1,000 Divine Ashes, 20,000 Hacksilver, Surtr’s Scorched Arm.
Boss Rush: Kill five powerful enemies back to back (to back to back to back). You’ll face a Traveller, a Fierce Stalker, a Dark Elf Lord, a Light Elf Warrior and an Einherjar Brute. Unlock Boss Rush by completing Kill Fuse and then Health Steal. Rewards: Smouldering Embers, 2 Glowing Embers, 3 Blazing Embers, 1,000 Divine Ashes, 20,000 Hacksilver, Surtr’s Scorched Girdle.
Phantom: Kill a Flame Phantom. Unlock the Phantom challenge by completing Kill Fuse and then Rampage. Rewards: Glowing Embers, 2 Smouldering Embers, Blazing Embers, 1,000 Divine Ashes, 20,000 Hacksilver Muspelheim’s Essence amulet enchantment.
Shield Breaker: Defeat grunts to break the boss’ shield. The first boss is an Einherjar Champion, followed by a Stalker. Unlock Shield Breaker by completing Rampage and then Kill Fuse. Rewards: Glowing Embers, 2 Blazing Embers, 3 Smouldering Embers, 1,000 Divine Ashes, 20,000 Hacksilver, Muspelheim’s Force amulet enchantment.
Onslaught: Stay alive for 5 minutes. Unlock Onslaught by completing Health Steal and then Kill Fuse. Rewards: Smouldering Embers, 2 Blazing Embers, 3 Glowing Embers, 1,000 Divine Ashes, 20,000 Hacksilver, Muspelheim’s Endurance amulet enchantment.

Whichever trial you complete last will give you 100,000 Hacksilver instead of 20,000. There’s no additional treasure chest that presents itself after you finish all trials, but you will get 3,500 XP for Kratos and 1,500 XP for his companion. And, just as importantly, a sweet Trophy.

Technologies

Dreaming of a Touchscreen MacBook? You’d Better Be a Fan of Apple’s Dynamic Island

Apple’s first touchscreen MacBook Pros will reportedly include the iPhone’s Dynamic Island feature on their OLED screens.

Apple’s long-awaited first entries into the touchscreen laptop market could be here as early as the fall, according to a new report from Bloomberg. And they could arrive with a feature familiar to iPhone owners: Dynamic Island.

The pill-shaped cutout and alert interface sits at the top of the screen and would presumably offer to people using new touchscreen MacBook Pro models the same kind of conveniences Dynamic Island brings to iPhones — system alerts, app controls, and tracking live activities, among other features — at the top of the screen, using a small amount of real estate.

The Dynamic Island is an evolution of Apple’s much-maligned «notch» from 2017. In 2021, Apple brought the notch over to laptop models around the hardware’s camera.

Dynamic Island aside, the new laptops will not involve a massive redesign, according to Bloomberg’s report. The first touchscreen versions will reportedly be iterations of its 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros with OLED screens. They’ll retain the keyboard and large trackpad, but will add a context-sensitive touch menu when someone puts their finger the the screen. Scrolling or pinching to zoom would be part of the touch interface.

Given that it’s Apple, you can expect other enhancements that make the most of to the touchscreen. Bloomberg suggests there may be touch-optimized features for choosing emojis, for instance. But since they’ll also have a physical keyboard, owners likely won’t use the screen to type as they would on an iPhone.

The report also suggests that Apple plans to redesign its Dynamic Island feature to make it smaller on its iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max models.

Technologies

Resident Evil Requiem Review: Classic Survival Horror With Modern Action

Capcom finally found the right formula to give fans the scares they’ve wanted with the fan service they’ve been demanding.

The Resident Evil series is on a triumphant comeback. While Resident Evil 6 was critically panned, the series roared back with the horror-focused Resident Evil 7 in 2017. Since then, the series has seen another mainline entry (Resident Evil Village) and three remakes (Resident Evil 2, 3 and 4), with a majority of the games being highly praised by both fans and critics, which is a far cry from when the series was just a stumbling corpse of itself.

Resident Evil Requiem is the ninth game in the mainline series, and Capcom mixes some of the old with the new in this one. Experimentation with the formula was sorely needed as newer entries reminded fans of the delight of being scared, while the remakes had the fanbase pining for their favorite heroes, who had been hardly mentioned since Resident Evil 6. The result is a game that hits the right notes for fans while remaining approachable to nondiehard players who haven’t consumed every scrap of RE content ever made.

Requiem, like some previous Resident Evil games, has two protagonists: newcomer Grace Ashford and series mainstay Leon Kennedy. Grace is an FBI analyst sent to investigate mysterious murders at a hotel where her mother was killed a decade ago. Leon, meanwhile, goes where the bioweapons are, arriving just in time to meet Grace when all hell breaks loose.

Throughout the game, players switch between controlling Grace and Leon — you’ll spend roughly the same amount of time as each character by the end of the game. Grace is the primary character for the first chunk of the game, with Leon initially playable only briefly. But that changes in the second half, when Leon becomes the primary character.

Requiem in two parts

Playing as two different characters isn’t new in RE games, but in Requiem, Grace and Leon don’t play remotely the same, whereas in previous games, the two characters are relatively similar, aside from access to a couple of weapons and affinity for certain guns. Grace has access to a few weapons, while Leon has a full arsenal at his disposal. In Grace’s sections, the focus is more on stealth, and to preserve the horror tone of Resident Evil 7 and Village, Capcom sets the default camera to first-person. This ramps up the tension and adds plenty of jump scares while controlling Grace, though it can be switched to third-person if it’s too much.

Leon’s default view is third-person, and his sections largely serve as stress relief. You’re not constantly dealing with that same intense horror pressure. Instead, Leon is a full-on badass. He gets access to multiple handguns, a shotgun, a machine gun, grenades and his own special hand cannon, the Requiem. If that wasn’t enough, he also carries a hatchet to pull off melee combos and chop off heads, ensuring that even without ammo, he’s far from helpless.

That dichotomy between Grace and Leon is what the series needed. The previous two mainline games featured a protagonist with seemingly no combat experience who just happened to be resilient, while earlier entries starred highly trained professionals, members of the S.T.A.R.S. team. Feeling helpless as Grace, then exacting revenge in brutal fashion during Leon’s sections, creates an experience that delivers both the horror and the power fantasy the series is known for.

It makes sense, because you can’t bring back some of the series’ mainstays — like Leon — and have them be completely out of their depth. On the other hand, introducing new characters with minimal combat training risks sidelining the fan-favorite cast established across games, films and shows. Having both Grace and Leon keeps some segments scary while others deliver the Resident Evil joy fans crave, which helps explain the remakes’ popularity.

Take me back to Raccoon City

One of the big selling points for Requiem is its return to where the series started, Raccoon City. While time in the now-destroyed city is limited, Requiem is the first time we’re seeing what the city is like since it was destroyed in an attempt to contain the G-virus outbreak.

As a longtime RE fan, this new lore is exactly what many of us have been wanting. It provides more backstory on the events that led to the original outbreak in Resident Evil and more details about the destruction of Raccoon City in Resident Evil 2. While it doesn’t answer everything and may raise additional questions, it’s refreshing to play a new RE game that acknowledges the events of the first three games rather than ignoring them. It’s also hard to express the nostalgia I felt upon entering the remnants of the Raccoon City Police Department. There’s a strange fondness that contrasts with the obvious trauma Leon experiences as he returns to the place where his career as a monster fighter began.

Requiem’s gameplay is essentially the same as other modern RE games. There’s a lot of shooting and slashing at enemies, and it will feel familiar to anyone who has played any of the previous games. The new twist comes with Grace’s sections, where stealth is vital. She will have to routinely sneak around zombies and other monsters to avoid being attacked, as she can’t take as many hits as Leon. Grace does have a few tools at her disposal to go with her gun, including a glass to distract enemies when thrown and chemical concoctions that can cause zombies to explode.

The game’s visual presentation continues the high quality seen in recent games, including the remakes, which all use the RE Engine to power the graphics. The characters are detailed; the monsters are grotesque. Some vast landscapes are visible, but there’s only so much to explore, maintaining the tighter, more enclosed spaces typical of a survival horror game.

Not enough evil

If there is one glaring flaw with Requiem, it’s the lack of replay value. I finished the game in about 12 hours on my first playthrough, which could stretch to 15 if you explore every nook and cranny. That’s on par with other RE games, but that’s about it.

There are two endings available: one good and one bad. The good ending seemingly teases new modes or scenarios to play through, but once the credits roll, the only content unlocked is some new costumes and the highest possible difficulty, Insanity Mode. The game autosaves right before the big decision on determining which ending you’ll see, so seeing the other takes just a few minutes of play after loading the previous save before you have to make the important choice. Capcom confirmed that no new modes unlock after beating Insanity Mode, leaving only the self-satisfaction of completing the game at its toughest level, where just two or three zombie attacks can kill you, and every monster reacts to the slightest sound.

It’s a shame, as the game has so much potential for extra content, like the Mercenaries mode found in previous REs, which is like an arcade game where you try to achieve a high score by killing the most enemies possible. Capcom is rumored to be working on DLC for Requiem, but it won’t be released until later in the year. The good ending teases many possibilities to add to the RE lore via the extra content, which will make the DLC a must-play for diehard fans whenever it comes out.

Resident Evil Requiem is the perfect blend of the two sides of survival horror that Resident Evil established. There’s the genuinely scary survival horror, where you have to manage your items, and then the badass action side, where you can vent your aggression built up from being scared. Requiem nails everything except for providing a bit more content to justify the $70 price tag. Still, it’s one of the best Resident Evil games that both hard-core and casual fans will enjoy.

Resident Evil Requiem will be released on Feb. 27 for $70 on the PS5, PC, Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox Series X and S.

Technologies

TextNow Adds eSIM Option for Immediate Unlimited Phone Data Access

The company’s new eSIM option should allow for a faster sign-up experience.

TextNow has built a business on free calling and texting, as long as you’re fine with using its app over Wi-Fi, viewing ads and letting TextNow determine which data is free and which you’ll need to pay for.

If you want to communicate away from Wi-Fi, you can sign up for a free or paid data plan, but that requires purchasing a physical SIM card and waiting for it to be delivered.

Now, customers can circumvent the wait and the cost (just $4 for the card, but still) with TextNow’s new eSIM option, which is set up from within the TextNow app. eSIM is currently available on iOS and will be coming soon for Android, according to the company.

Once people decide to sign up for cellular data, they want it right away, said TextNow CEO and founder Derek Ting, noting that eSIM reduces the friction of a physical SIM. «They can download a fully functioning phone plan on their phone without spending a nickel,» he said.

Upon activation, the eSIM defaults to the Free Essential Data plan, which offers unlimited talk, texting and data «for apps like email, maps, rideshare and finance,» according to TextNow. Or, customers can sign up for one of the following unlimited data plans that open up wireless data to any app: Day Pass ($3 a month), Week Pass ($9 a month) or Month Pass ($36 a month).

During setup, FaceTime and Messages can be enabled. However, phone calls still need to be made using the TextNow app. Ting also said that support for using a phone as a mobile hotspot is not yet available, but the company is working on it.

While this eSIM option should provide a fast way to activate service on most modern phones, TextNow will still offer a physical SIM option.

TextNow also said its 5G network infrastructure has been improved, but didn’t point to specific improvements. Ting declined to disclose which network provider TextNow relies on, whether that’s T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T or a mix, such as the way US Mobile straddles all three.

«It’s not just eSIM. There’s a lot of stuff we did underneath the hood,» he said, noting that customers will see improvements in coverage and connectivity.

While TextNow’s free service could get customers in the door, ramping up to its $36 monthly pass to use it for all purposes puts it squarely into the same price range as other prepaid carriers like Verizon’s Visible and US Mobile.