Granblue Fantasy: Relink's second wind

Granblue Fantasy: Relink was never short of spectacle. It had party attacks that filled the screen, bosses with the temperament of an overturned wardrobe, and a combat system clever enough to make button-mashing feel briefly respectable before it politely showed you the door. What it needed, particularly after the campaign credits had rolled, was more reason to keep learning its systems.

Endless Ragnarok, released on 9 July 2026 for Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and PC via Steam, addressed that exact problem. It was not a small post-game mission pack with a new hat and a shrug. It was an expansion built around longer engagement: new co-op quest tiers, additional bosses, new ways to develop the roster, a solo mode called The Conflux, and systems designed to make every hard-earned build decision matter more.

The important qualification is right there in the title. "Endless" does not mean effortless. This is content that assumes you either want to return to Relink's Quest Counter or are happy to spend time getting there. If you left after the story because the subsequent grind felt rather like being asked to alphabetise a thunderstorm, Endless Ragnarok improved that journey, but it did not remove the fundamental loop of fighting, collecting, improving and fighting again.

The expansion's new challenge structure put the focus firmly back on party composition, boss knowledge and the small decisions that separate a close clear from a cart back to the Quest Counter.

What Endless Ragnarok actually added

There is a pleasingly practical quality to this expansion. Rather than treating endgame as one enormous brick wall with increasingly alarming numbers written on it, Endless Ragnarok layered in more routes through Relink's existing strengths. The new co-op quest tiers and bosses provided the obvious headline material, but the wider appeal came from how the new systems fed into them.

Mater Traits were the big character-progression addition. They evolved characters in ways that made the roster feel less like a set of fixed combat archetypes and more like a cupboard full of very expensive tools. Summons widened the tactical palette further. Neither system replaced the core pleasure of timing attacks, dodges and Link opportunities; instead, they gave those familiar encounters more preparation and more personality.

The expansion also added Beatrix, Eustace, Gallanza, Maglielle, Fediel and Fraux to the playable cast. That matters more than it first appears. Relink's action is not simply "the same sword with a different haircut". Every character brings a distinct rhythm, resource mechanic or positioning demand. Six more options therefore meant six more ways to rediscover a boss you thought you knew inside out.

The new quests are a better reason to log in

For lapsed players, the new quest structure is the clearest argument for coming back. Relink's best moments had always happened when a group understood its jobs: one player creates an opening, another saves a cooldown, somebody spots the incoming disaster, and somebody else is clearly standing in the wrong place but is trying their best. Endless Ragnarok leaned harder into that shared problem-solving.

Its tougher quests did not just ask for a larger number beside your weapon. They made builds, character roles and clean execution feel connected. That was the crucial improvement. Grind becomes far easier to tolerate when each improvement has a visible job to do in the next encounter, and the expansion's mechanics created that sense of purpose more consistently than the base endgame had managed.

There is still repetition. There has to be, really: this is a hunt-and-improve action RPG, not a three-course mystery dinner. But there is a difference between repetition that feels like running on a treadmill and repetition that feels like rehearsing with a band before a difficult gig. Endless Ragnarok moved Relink much closer to the second version. You return because the next run might be cleaner, stranger or wonderfully chaotic.

The harder quest tiers rewarded communication and familiarity with party roles, turning repeat runs into a genuine co-op project rather than a queue for bigger damage figures.

Crossplay is the co-op upgrade Relink needed

Crossplay across all platforms was perhaps the least glamorous feature on the bullet list and one of the most valuable in ordinary use. A co-op action RPG lives or dies by whether you can actually find people to play with. It is difficult to build a satisfying team composition if your friend owns the game on PC, you are on PlayStation 5 and the answer from the game is essentially, "how unfortunate for everyone involved".

Endless Ragnarok removed that needless partition. Whether your usual crew was spread across PlayStation, PC or Nintendo Switch 2, crossplay made Relink's harder co-op content feel like a shared game rather than several parallel hobbies. That increased the practical lifespan of the quest tiers enormously, particularly for players who had already seen the campaign and wanted a reason to form a regular group again.

Nintendo Switch 2 also had local co-op, exclusively on that platform. It is a charming extra for households that like passing controllers around, arguing over snacks and pretending the person who missed the dodge was "learning the fight". For most committed players, however, crossplay was the larger win because it expanded the potential pool of party members across every supported version.

New players should not underestimate this point. Relink can be enjoyed alone, and The Conflux gave solo-minded captains something more focused to pursue, but the game's party combat becomes richer when abilities and roles overlap. Endless Ragnarok gave that social side a proper foundation rather than leaving players to recruit only from their own hardware family.

The Conflux gave solo players their own lane

It would have been very easy for an endgame expansion to speak only to organised four-player groups. The Conflux prevented that. Its inclusion acknowledged a simple fact: adult schedules are a boss fight all of their own, and not every player can arrange three friends, four headsets and a quiet evening at the same time.

The solo mode did not turn Endless Ragnarok into a completely separate single-player sequel, nor did it pretend the co-op quests were irrelevant. Instead, it supplied an alternative avenue through the expansion's wider progression. That made the new mechanics more approachable for anyone who wanted to get comfortable with character development and tactical decisions without immediately becoming the least experienced person in a high-pressure team.

For me, that is a sensible bit of design. Relink's combat is satisfying enough to carry independent play, especially when you are learning a new character. The Conflux gave solo sessions a clearer identity, whilst the more elaborate co-op challenges remained waiting when you fancied testing those lessons with other people. It is a better arrangement than forcing players into one style and calling it choice.

The Conflux added a dedicated solo route, useful for players who wanted meaningful progress without arranging a full four-person session.

Mater Traits, summons and the joy of fiddling with builds

The expansion's deepest improvements came from its progression systems. Mater Traits and the expanded summon options gave Relink more room for players to make a character their own. This was not build-crafting for the sake of drowning you in menus, thankfully. The attraction was that the new options sat beneath action combat which still demanded timing, awareness and a working relationship with the dodge button.

That balance matters. A more elaborate build can make a character stronger or better suited to a role, but it cannot stop a player walking into the obvious glowing catastrophe. Endless Ragnarok therefore retained Relink's immediate, readable action whilst making the preparation between battles more rewarding. You could think about how a character developed, then feel the consequences in the next quest.

With 28 playable characters available, the potential rabbit hole is enormous. Beatrix, Eustace, Gallanza, Maglielle, Fediel and Fraux were not simply roster padding. Their arrival encouraged another look at team chemistry and individual play styles. Anyone who had settled on one favourite early in the base game now had plenty of excuse to step outside that comfort zone.

Story and presentation: an epilogue, not a grand new voyage

There is a small but important caveat for players returning purely for narrative. Endless Ragnarok functioned as an epilogue to Granblue Fantasy: Relink, but it offered relatively little story exposition. That does not make it a failure; it simply tells you what sort of expansion it is. The emphasis is on activity, combat and progression rather than a long new chapter full of dramatic introductions and lengthy answers.

For some players, that will be absolutely fine. The world, party and high-fantasy style remain good company, and the appeal of facing new bosses with a freshly developed character is substantial. But if your favourite part of Relink was its story-led adventure and you had little interest in Quest Counter ranks, the expansion will not suddenly transform into a wholly different kind of RPG.

Its design was therefore refreshingly honest. Endless Ragnarok served the players who wanted to stay in the skies a little longer and sharpen their skills. It did not bolt on an enormous narrative campaign simply to make the box feel busier. There is something to be said for knowing what your game is for.

The expansion's extra characters created fresh party combinations, but its central appeal remained the satisfying loop of refining a build and tackling a tougher challenge.

Performance, everyday play and quality-of-life changes

"Daily use" is a slightly odd phrase for a fantasy action RPG, unless you have somehow made grinding boss materials part of your morning skincare routine. Still, it matters here. Endless Ragnarok was designed around repeat sessions, and the quality-of-life touches helped that rhythm feel more manageable. HUD customisation, in particular, was a small change with a sensible purpose: Relink can be visually busy, and allowing players to shape the information in front of them is never a bad idea.

The expansion's real everyday strength was its flexibility. A shorter session could be spent in The Conflux, revisiting a character or sorting a build. A longer evening could become a co-op push through harder quest tiers with players on other platforms. That variety made it easier to keep Relink in rotation rather than treating it as a game that only works when the stars align and everyone remembers the plan.

On the technical side, its broad platform reach was valuable. PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC and Nintendo Switch 2 players all received access, whilst crossplay united those versions for online play. The Switch 2 local co-op option was a particularly friendly touch for shared-screen households. There is no need to make a grander claim than that: the fundamental achievement was making more ways to play together available.

Who Granblue Fantasy: Relink — Endless Ragnarok suits

This is not an all-purpose recommendation for every action-RPG fan. It is a very good expansion with a clear audience. The more you enjoyed Relink's combat loop and party coordination, the more valuable it became. Conversely, the more you wanted a self-contained story sequel with minimal repetition, the less likely it was to be your personal Ragnarok.

Crossplay was the practical star of Endless Ragnarok: more potential teammates meant less time waiting and more time actually taking on the expansion's demanding co-op hunts.

Our Granblue Fantasy: Relink — Endless Ragnarok rating

Endless Ragnarok earned its score by improving the part of Relink that had the most room to grow. The action was already superb; this expansion gave it a more confident long-tail structure. There is plenty here for new players eventually to reach, but the richest rewards went to those already willing to climb through Relink's progression and learn its increasingly stern challenges.

Frequently asked questions

Endless Ragnarok did not reinvent Relink's story, but it made the journey beyond the credits considerably richer for players happy to keep fighting, refining and flying back into another quest.