Preview: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is familiar, but it has Vikings
Source: Ubisoft
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is the latest historical outing from Ubisoft, set in 9th century England during the Dark Ages with, you guessed it, Vikings. I had the chance to view three hours of gameplay with a walkthrough by a demoist, and I came out of that session feeling optimistic about what the company has in store for players. It’s a little rough around the edges, but it was a work-in-progress build that signals a lot of potential for the final product.
Viking raids
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Conquer new lands for glory and honor
After endless wars ravage Norway and resources are scarce, you’ll lead your clan to the shores of England in the hopes of finding a new home. Unfortunately, not everyone is keen on having Vikings around, and King Alfred of Wessex will do all he can to keep you from settling.
One of these world events happened as my demoist passed a little girl who cried out for a horse. Upon helping her horse cross the river, you find out you had inadvertently stolen someone else’s horse for the girl. Another time Eivor stumbled upon a nun who had murdered several men in a church, then took up arms against Eivor, claiming her god had said she was a devil. The world events I witnessed were never anything lengthy, but that doesn’t mean longer ones aren’t in the game. I only saw a small fraction of what Valhalla has to offer.
Player choice will play a much bigger role than it ever has before.
A major component of Valhalla is forging alliances through the decisions that you make. This comes into play in East Anglia when Eivor — female in my demo, but you can play as a male — must rescue a man named Oswald, who claims to be the rightful King to the throne in East Anglia. Almost immediately, I witnessed how player choice could affect the world.
After a brief raid on a fort and boss battle, Eivor is given the opportunity to spare the Dane that kidnapped Oswald or kill him. Choosing to spare him leads to another scene when he crashes Oswald’s wedding — where you also have the opportunity to partake in a few mini-games, like a drinking contest — and challenges him to a fight. Should you choose to let Oswald handle it on his own, he beats Rued, the Dane, and banishes him from the land. Thinking about the possibilities that could have led from any number of choices really opens the game up.
Source: Ubisoft
I still have a lot of unanswered questions regarding Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, but I liked what I saw.
Outside of the main campaign, there were plenty of activities to do, one of which gave me a good look at how Layla will appear in the historical simulation. Traditionally, modern day protagonists in Assassin’s Creed stay firmly in the modern day. In Valhalla, Animus Anomalies provide a parkour challenge with floating blocks reminiscent of the modern day sections in Revelations. As Layla ascends to the top of the particular anomaly in the demo, mysterious voices can be heard in the background, though it’s hard to parse what exactly they’re talking about.
The skill trees and power system that they’re emphasizing over levels are welcome changes. Skill trees and gear fall into one of three categories: Bear, Wolf, or Raven. Gear and skills aligned to a particular animal enhance different playstyles for stealth/assassin, melee combat, and ranged attacks. The combined amount from all three groups gives you your total power. Instead of being level-gated out of certain areas, each kingdom now has a recommended power level associated with it.
Source: Ubisoft
Again, it’s an early build of the game and some of these may be fixed before launch, but they’re also problems that pop up in Origins and Odyssey. I’m skeptical that they won’t show up in the final build of Valhalla in some form. Regardless, none of these seemed game-breaking and were more minor annoyances.
Source: Ubisoft
I still have a lot of unanswered questions regarding Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, but I liked what I saw. If you’ve played Origins or Odyssey, Valhalla is very much in the same vein as those. If you haven’t, you’re in for a treat.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is set to launch on Nov. 17, 2020. It will come to Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, PC, and Stadia. It supports Smart Delivery on Microsoft’s consoles, so you’l get a free upgrade to the Xbox Series X version if you purchased it on Xbox One.
Viking raids
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Conquer new lands for glory and honor
After endless wars ravage Norway and resources are scarce, you’ll lead your clan to the shores of England in the hopes of finding a new home. But not everyone is keen on having Vikings around, and King Alfred of Wessex will do all he can to keep you from settling.
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