Today, Ubisoft gave us our first look at Assassinās Creed Valhalla. Based in Englandās Dark Ages, players take on the role of Viking raider Eivor. Whilst establishing a new home, Eivorās clan of Norsemen sail through the North Sea to Englandās broken kingdoms.
Since 2017ās Assassinās Creed: Origins, Ubisoft has opted to create bigger worlds with expanded gameplay mechanics. Assassinās Creed Odyssey continued to build on the fundamentals laid out by its predecessor. With Assassinās Creed Valhalla being the third entry in this new ārebootedā series, weāre hoping Ubisoft Montreal – and the 14 other collaborating studios – take a leap of faith into a few features and aspects.
Bigger battles
Assassinās Creedy Odyssey introduced āConquest Battlesā. These large-scale battles placed two opposing factions on the battlefield and left you in the middle to decide which side to fight with for victory.
Assassinās Creed Valhalla doesnāt appear to be shying away from bloody sword and axe battles. The Saxons have been revealed to be one of the primary antagonists youāll come across during your Viking journey. Denouncing Eivorās clan as heathen, I fully expect there to be a lot of bloodshed. However, I hope these battles hold more weight to the gameplay and go bigger on the spectacle.
Conquest Battles would lower the power level of the occupying forces. My hope is that Ubisoft doubles down on this, by incorporating lasting consequences based on efficiency on the battlefield. This would give players more of a sense of urgency. In-turn it would be great to see the game incorporate more soldiers fighting together in truly epic battles.
Memorable performances
For many, Assassinās Creed Odyssey was propelled by Melissanthi Mahutās performance as Kassandra. Although players had the option to play the story from the perspective of Alexios, fans consider Kassandraās story to be one of the best in the franchise.
Assassinās Creed Valhalla has an opportunity to one-up itself this time around. Seeing as though the game will once again let players choose to play Eivor as male or female, this is a perfect chance to once again tell an engrossing story from both perspectives. While the choice in playing as male or female never dramatically changed the narrative, it was the interactions along the journey the defined Kassandraās story. Assassinās Creed Valhalla has been said to once again feature dialogue options.
While the voice actors behind Eivor haven’t been revealed, Ubisoft has a pedigree for creating rich dialogue. I’m hoping to experience equally captivating performances by both voice actors. I’m equally eager to see how the choices will reflect on Eivor’s story throughout.
Using Norse mythology in creative ways
Norse mythology is ripe with folklore revolving around the gods of that era. The cinematic trailer has also given us a glimpse at what looks to be Odin. Assassinās Creed has often used the ancient Isu precursors as a means to illustrate how the āgodsā we all know landed in history books.
It will be very interesting to see how Assassinās Creed Valhalla handles Norse gods such as Thor, Loki, Heimdall, and Frigg. Will their inclusion be another Animus malfunction as seen in Assassinās Creed: Originās, or caused by the Isu? Perhaps a new creative explanation is in order. The Norse gods of the Ćsir and Vanir clans are mighty beings. Without looking at the āhistorically accurateā touch, Assassinās Creed Valhalla will need to spin a creative tale to build this lore.
Freedom with the hidden blade
Itās been far too long since the franchiseās iconic hidden blade has been a gameplay feature. Seeing it in all its glory in the trailer left me hopeful weāll be able to once again use the deadly weapon in combat.
Assassinās Creed Valhalla is said to feature a ārevamped combat systemā, which includes dual wielding. While the mind might wander to the possibilities of charging into a fight with two barbaric axes in hand, my mind races through the possible ways the hidden blade can be incorporated.
Vikings arenāt exactly known for their stealthy combat. Assassinās Creed itself has steered away from stealth-based combat the series was built on as of late. Eivor could perhaps use the hidden blade in a much more versatile way on the battlefield. As we saw in the trailer, Eivor used the hidden blade as a last-ditch effort to survive; he is also shown wearing the blade on the outside of his arm. This may signal the blade will no longer be as hidden as in prior games.
The return of Discovery Tours
We touched on the historical accuracy Assassinās Creed games tend to hold. They like to drift off into stories of ancient beings and incorporate the Animus, a genetic memory machine. However, the franchise is baked in a very real, very engaging historical facts.
The setting of Assassinās Creed Valhalla isnāt as well known as say Rome, Greece, and Egypt’s histories. Though, Englandās Dark Ages offer a unique backdrop for storytelling. Ubisoft would be wise to bring back the Discovery Tours, allowing players to dive into the rich history without other gameplay distractions.
The Dark Ages encompasses 500 to 1066 AD, following the fall of the Roman Empire to the Battle of Hastings in Britain. It was during this period the Vikings, Britons, and Anglo Saxons left their mark. Assassinās Creedās Discovery Mode is usually so in-depth, that schools such as Kennedy High School have used it as an educational tool for its students. It would be great to see Discovery Tours return, so students and enthusiasts can brush up on the Dark Ages in a really engaging way.
Weāll have to see how Assassinās Creed Valhalla stacks up later this year. Ubisoft has given the game a tentative release of Holiday 2020.
Assassinās Creed Valhalla will be available onĀ PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.