In the latest Assassin’s Creed take on the role of a Viking as a player. The game feels rougher and more violent, but offers more of the same at the same time.
The French Ubisoft has a big show every two years Assassin’s Creedseries. Each sequel takes place in a different place in history, to which the protagonist travels via a kind of virtual reality machine.
In Assassin’s Creed Valhalla players take on the role of the Viking Eivor, when the Danes tried to conquer the United Kingdom. You are trying to help the British against your aggressive countrymen and forge relatively peaceful alliances.
Eivor can be either male or female: players choose a gender at the start of the game. Both Eivors are almost identical in personality. From different characters, as in Assassin’s Creed Odysseyis no longer the case. It is therefore also possible to change your gender in the middle of a game session.
Interesting, but superficial
We played a three-hour demo of the game that explored a corner in the east of the UK. A short war story took center stage: the British prince Oswald had been kidnapped by a violent Viking and had to be rescued as soon as possible.
The short story emphasizes the differences between the Danes and the British, especially the religions of both countries. The Vikings believe in a bloodthirsty lifestyle during their looting, while Oswald spares his opponents in the name of his god. It paints an interesting history, although the details remained somewhat superficial during our short session.
––
–
–
In Valhalla you try to resolve conflicts relatively peacefully. (Image: Ubisoft)
Gameplay is more of the same
Broadly, the game plays similarly to previous ones Assassin’s Creedtitles. Once again there is a grand, open game world that you can freely explore. If you hold down the A button, you can easily climb large buildings.
The combat system has been changed on a few minor fronts. For example, it is possible to carry weapons in both hands, with each hand operated with a different shoulder button. In our demo Eivor had a shield on his left as standard to absorb blows, but it was also possible to grab a second ax and play more aggressively.
Since Eivor is a Viking, battles look a lot more bloody. At the touch of a button, an enemy was already beheaded or limb-free.
––
–
–
The main character can use weapons in both hands. (Image: Ubisoft)
With a battering ram through castle doors
The explorable parts of the world are very reminiscent of the predecessors in the series: there are again towers to climb, to find treasure chests and to climb obstacle courses, to unlock additional skills and to find armor.
New is the possibility to go on a looting trip. With a group of Vikings you can invade villages and settlements on the rivers. The first raids felt a bit simple and were mainly about defeating many soldiers, together with computer-controlled teammates.
In the story we were given a slightly more complex variant, in which we had to strike through castle doors with battering rams to move forward. It was essential to take out archers on the castle walls, for example, so that the battering ram could do its job properly.
Not exactly an assassin
The Viking character of the game sometimes seems to rub some with the old vision of Assassin’s Creed. For a long time, the games focused on subtle assassins, a mold that Eivor doesn’t really seem to fit into.
Although sneaking is still possible, the game almost never urged us to do something subtle. Eivor’s travel companions also prefer that he go on a warpath.
––
–
–
The subtle assassin mold doesn’t seem to fit Eivor. (Image: Ubisoft)
Preliminary conclusion
Valhalla feels like more of the same on many fronts. The emphasis on stealth has been reduced and the combat system deepened, but for the most part you are doing exactly what you did in the earlier parts Odyssey in Origin wanted to get done.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing: the game focuses on a completely different setting and time period, making it feel fresh enough. What we saw was solidly constructed. But expected from Valhalla not a game that takes the game to a new level.
–
Related posts:
1 thought on “First impression: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is more violent and the same NOW”
Leave a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
It is amazing, I don’t regret that I bought it