Warning for any Lindisfarne Monks: the following
video may contain scenes of a sensitive nature.
We’ll try and show a bit of respect, but
frankly, the recent details for Assassin’s
Creed: Valhalla have merely confirmed what
we all knew in our hearts – Vikings are
pretty damn awesome.
Long before any official announcement, it
was one of the worst kept secrets that Ubisoft’s
next stop on their bloody historical tour,
would be the Age of the Norsemen – OR Norsewomen!
– and now we’ve seen more than three seconds
of gameplay, there’s actually quite a lot
to get excited about.
No, seriously!
Yes, we know that a franchise now into it’s
13th year can easily leave you feeling, well,
disenfranchised, but the series has enjoyed
a recent resurgence with Origins and Odyssey,
so have hope, ye of little faith, for the
promised land of Valhalla awaits!
The recent Ubisoft Forward event, along with
hands-on media previews, have shed plenty
of light on this dark age epic, from the androgynous
Head Viking, Eivor, to the settlement system,
and the fittingly brutal combat.
And yes, the hidden blade is back, too, although
it’s not exactly well hidden anymore.
Let’s jump headfirst into this haybale of
information, shall we?
I’m Ben from TripleJump, and here are 10
Things You Didn’t Know About Assassin’s
Creed: Valhalla So Far…
10.
The Combat
Let’s get straight into one of the biggest
aspects of Viking-ness – how well you can
chop someone’s head off!
Firstly, combat in Valhalla is a refined version
of the recent titles – no reinventing the
wheel here, but it does look and feel much
more brutal, possessing a heftier weight than
the dance-like duels of Odyssey.
You can still pull off some quick dodges when
needed, mind, not to mention a couple of surprising
acrobatics – look at the vertical leap on
this fella!
You can dual-wield any combination of weapons,
including Viking Harpoons, throwing axes,
flails, polearms, and yes, you can even rock
two shields, for those ultimate ‘pro strats’.
Each weapon type has different move-sets,
depending on whether you equip them in your
main or off-hand, and there looks to be a
quick switch between hands too.
Your attack patterns change again if you equip
two of the same type of weapon, parries are
available with any weapon too, and you can
cancel attacks with a dodge, mid-combo, to
avoid being exposed after a long attack animation.
Dodging uses stamina, as does heavy attacks,
but this isn’t Dark Souls: you’ll have
to be aware of your Stamina bar, but you won’t
be punished too severely, as light attacks
will restore stamina with every hit that lands.
Enemies now have their own ‘defence’ bar,
which can knock them down, making them ready
for a big Norse boot of Justice, and this
stun system seems integral to managing larger
brawls.
Other active abilities can also help even
the odds, including a flurry of throwing axes,
multi-shot arrows that would put Legolas to
shame, and a powerful Rush and Bash that’s
pure ‘Ramming Speed’ personified.
9.
Loot is more Streamlined
Now, before you start worrying that ‘streamlined’
means ‘less of’, there’s more to the
story.
One of the bigger changes from the Odyssey
and Origins formula is the removal of the
loot boxes and random gear seen throughout
the prior games.
No longer will you be sifting through fallen
foes, picking up 17 types of the same spear,
with slightly different bonus numbers.
In Valhalla, weapons and gear are unique,
named items, found in specific parts of the
map, designed to be valued pieces that stay
with you throughout the game, with extensive
upgrade options.
This is fantastic news for anyone who felt
bogged down by the inventory management of
the previous two titles, and better yet, it
could also mean we’ll see less unsavoury
microtransactions promising god-tier gear
that fast-tracks you through the game.
Less loot-boxes and stat-balancing means more
time to smash skulls, and after all, isn’t
that what Viking life is all about?
8.
Settlement Building
Look, Viking life is more than just smashing
skulls, alright, whoever just told you that
is clearly a big idiot!
Yes, they can get a bit…disembowel-y, but
it’s all for the greater cause – finding
a nice place to call home for their family.
Settlement building is clearly set to play
a big role in Valhalla, expanding on previous
games attempts at hometown renovation.
Finding your new home in the verdant lands
of England will be the driving motivation
for Eivor’s clan, with major story arcs
beginning and ending at your homestead, encouraging
frequent visits back to your growing community.
Upgrades like barracks, blacksmiths and even
tattoo parlours will provide gameplay benefits,
but your towns will also grow and change depending
on story decisions too.
Forging alliances through means such as political
weddings will only strengthen your position
in this land of opportunity.
It’s unclear yet, whether there will be
a settlement defence system, like in Revelations,
but you’ll definitely be going on the attack
to find new settlements, and there’s only
one truly Viking way to do that…
7.
Raiding and Pillaging
Alright, we’re back on the skull-smashing
again, old habits, don’t judge us…
Settlement management isn’t all passive
budget balancing and planning applications
– raiding is vital for establishing new
homes, and keeping your existing ones well
supplied.
There are actually two types of these attacks
– Raids and Assaults.
Raids are smaller-scale, guerrilla-warfare
strikes on poorly defended communities.
You can approach these stealthily – it is
still Assassin’s Creed, after all – or
you can go loud and proud, sounding the horn
and summoning your party boat of rowdy troublemakers…
Who will then help you kill the guards, set
fire to everything in sight, kick down doors
in search of loot, and presumably keep the
battle chants going.
EN-GER-LAAAND- oh no wait, wrong team…
The ‘Assaults’ will be grander, almost
siege-like experiences on heavily fortified
castles.
These will likely be the big story moments,
and from preview footage, it’ll be an impressive
spectacle of guts, gore and glory.
The hail of arrows, the flaming longboat,
the battering ram breaching the gate, culminating
in a final showdown with a big, angry bloke
and his not so friendly dog…
It’s…beautiful!
In a savage kind of way…
6.
Welcome to the British Isles
We get it –open-world fatigue is a very
real issue in recent years, and Ubisoft are
prime culprits for oversaturating this market.
But there’s still plenty to be said for
getting lost in the wonder of discovery, exploring
a vast, beautifully crafted landscape, and
Valhalla’s stunning depiction of 9th Century
Britain is happy to indulge your curiosity.
This side of the North Sea has already been
partially revealed, featuring four major English
Kingdoms: Wessex, Northumbria, East Anglia,
and Mercia.
With that, comes some familiar locations:places
like Jorvik, aka York; Northwic, AKA Norwich;
and Lincoln, AKA Stoke On Trent! … sorry,
no, obviously that’s just Lincoln.
Some of these might not be raidable – the
story could lead to unexpected alliances with
Anglo-Saxon rulers, and even rivalries with
fellow Norse clans, such as the feud seen
earlier with a rogue Dane called Reud – a
Reud Feud, if you will…
You can explore on horseback, or via longboat,
on the many waterways across the land, and
we haven’t even seen any of Norway yet!
And if you’re worried the world will get
all ‘Ubisoft-ed’ up with map markers,
well, you might be surprised…
5.
There are NO SIDEQUESTS!
That’s what Narrative Director Darby McDevitt
claims, and it’s a bold statement.
Now, before we get carried away, OBVIOUSLY
there will be additional content aside from
the main story –surely the definition of
a ‘side quest’ – but what McDevitt meant,
is that there won’t be traditional local
quest givers.
This is because it made no sense for a Viking
invader to be freely wandering the lands they’ve
invaded, asking random citizens if they need
help harvesting crops, five minutes after
burning down their grain stores.
As such, the extra-curricular activities will
either be focused around your own settlements,
or you’ll have to go out and discover them
on your own, encouraging a more natural form
of exploration and avoiding the checklist
approach that so frequently clutters your
UI.
These activities are pretty varied –there
are caches of ‘wealth’ gained from raiding,
or unique boss fights in the wild, along with
more chilled Viking pastimes, like stacking
Cairne rock formations, solving rune puzzles
at pagan landmarks, or simply getting piss-drunk
with your buddies and trying not to fall over.
Well, when in Britain…
Most importantly, you can engage in the ancient
art of ‘flyting’ – a verbal exchange
of insults, in poetic form.
Which, as literally everyone on the internet
has pointed out, are basically Viking Rap
Battles.
4.
You can customise your Eivor
Assassin’s Creed usually prefers a clearly
defined protagonist, so it’s surprising
to see proper appearance customisation for
your lead character Eivor, a first for the
series.
You’ll be able to pick Eivor’s hair, tattoos,
and warpaint, some tied to settlement upgrades
like the tattoo parlour.
A female character option is again available,
but this time, male and female Eivor are interchangeable,
with both characters being considered canon
in the storyline.
In fact, you can swap between genders at will
throughout the game!
This impressive shapeshifting power will likely
be explained in-game by some Animus mumbo-jumbo,
but we’re just happy the option is there.
AND, while there won’t be a standard multiplayer
mode, you will be able to customise your own
separate Viking mercenary, for your friends
to recruit as an AI helper in their own world.
Because every little helps!
Strength in numbers!
Err…
Those who raid together, stay together!
Or… ok let’s move on…
3.
Historical Accuracy
Sure, while the previous game had you running
around fighting Medusas, Minotaurs and Cyclopses,
Assassin’s Creed has always tried to maintain
its own level of historical accuracy, amongst
the more outlandish events.
Valhalla promises a more grounded setting
than the mythological medley of Odyssey, and
naturally, the developers have an Editorial
Research Unit to help maintain some authenticity
in their world-building.
One historian on the team, Thierry Noël,
talked on Ubisoft’s blog site about the
challenges faced to get an accurate depiction
of these Dark Ages – there were plenty of
reports on the Anglo-Saxon side, painting
an obviously negative portrayal of their Scandinavian
invaders.
The Norse settlers left behind very few texts,
however, so research was guided by a mix of
archaeological evidence, pointing to early
settlements, and Viking sagas and myths that
were told through oral traditions.
Noël also spoke about how Norse society and
culture were pretty fair in the treatment
of women, and that fireside tales often spoke
of tough female characters, which more than
justifies the female Eivor’s equal billing
in the story.
Let’s just hope, given recent events,that
some of the Ubisoft Execs are taking note
of a society from literally a thousand years
ago, and we see some actual positive change…
but that’s a topic for a much more serious
video – for now, we’ll stick to simply
talking about silly Viking Assassins…
2.
Stealth gameplay
While the focus has undoubtedly been on the
brash, in-your-face combat, Valhalla hasn’t
forgotten its sneakier roots.
Stealth seems like it’s been refined into
a purer experience, reminiscent of the earlier
games.
The crowd blending technique makes a return,
at least in certain areas – Eivor isn’t
too popular with the locals, what with all
the raiding, so he can pop that hood up and
shuffle into otherwise restricted areas, if
he finds the right group to mingle with.
You can also use various activities to stay
undetected, like making bread, if you’re
going for that lockdown 2020 vibe.
Your cloak also reduces the distance enemies
will spot you, and another minor detail is
that their cone of vision is tied to their
head, meaning if they look over their shoulder,
they WILL see you.
Scouting is slightly different too – you
still have your magic bird, a raven this time,
naturally – but this only helps get an overview
of the area.
To properly mark targets, you’ll need to
use the shorter range ‘Odin’s Sight’,
an Eagle Vision style pulse that tracks nearby
hostiles and points of interest.
You still have series staples, like skulking
through long grass like a demented Norse Pokemon,with
some foliage even found on rooftops – though
shooting your bow from these stalking zones
will still get you spotted.
So many details have gone into stealth to
keep it relevant, and it’s great to see
the game bring back popular elements from
older games.
Best of all, though…….
1.
One-hit assassinations are back!
Like, properly back.
No more bouncing off an unaware enemy like
his armour’s made of Bouncy Castle Plating!
This has been one of the biggest points of
contention for fans, since the new-age titles
introduced levelled enemies, many of whom
couldn’t be outright killed by a stealthy
assassination – you know, that iconic aspect
the series is literally built around?
Well, the hidden blade’s back, after being
a bit too hidden in Odyssey – ie not there
at all – and while you will still find stronger
enemies, certain skill upgrades will grant
you the ability to insta-kill almost anyone,
requiring you to nail a short quick-time event
to bring down tougher victims.
The tougher the enemy, the narrower that bar
will be, though your power level and skills
can make that process easier.
There might be a few major bosses or giant
beasties that are immune to your pointy charms,
but we know Mr Rued-Dude from earlier is able
to be stealth-killed if approached in the
right way.
Another pleasing return is the hay-bale assassination,
which had quietly vanished in recent years,
and that is very joyous news indeed.
I mean, if you can’t jump 300 feet into
a tiny hay cart, and then instantly pull a
guard in with you, for some hanky-panky fun
times, then is it really even Assassin’s
Creed anymore?
…and that’s all the key details we’ve
learned about Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
so far, though it’s far from everything!Let
us know in the comments what you’re most
excited to see in this bloody Viking tour
of England.
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I’m Ben from TripleJump, and thanks for
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