God Of War: 8 Weirdest Enemies (And What They Represent)

Forget the pointy ears and the sexy cheekbones, the Alfheim dwelling iterations of light and dark magic embody an entirely different take on the usually majestic elves of fantasy world-building, opposing the light elves of the ringed temple in their ghost-like grace with wings, horns, and a penchant for claustrophobic and gloomy spaces. In essence, they're insects - flitting around incessantly and swarming in group combat.

Dökkálfar (dark elves) and Ljósálfar (light elves) are again found in Old Norse mythology, with the Dökkálfar residing underground in an opposing force to their light counterparts. Focussing on their earthly inhabitance in God of War then, their bug-like appearance and attacks are reflective of their original home where no light shines, kind of like giant humanoid moths intent on making the world a more habitable place for their spooky kind.

Considering how visually similar the light elves are to angels, it's a fair extension to look at the dark elves as those cast out of the spiritual elven home of Alfheim, related in Christian terms to demons and evil spirits. Svartaljqfurr himself as King of the Dark Elves is an extension of Satan in that case - and with his emaciated, skeletal look and giant horns rising from his crown, he does a good job of looking the part too.