written by Derrick Smith
With the official announcement of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla it seems Ubisoft has smartly chosen their most capable Assassin’s Creed team to head up this latest project. Sure, there were some fantastic gameplay moments to take away from Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, yet the exploits and adventures of Bayek of Assassin’s Creed Origin from Ubisoft Montreal was clearly the best the series has seen in years…and thankfully the talented Ashraf Ismail will once again be adding his game director expertise to Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, coming to PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Stadia, PC this holiday….and running at only 30 frames on next-gen hardware, that might be a problem. Lets talk about it!
From entertainment apps such as Amazon which features a fantastic show known as Vikings, to Netflix with a great show titled The Kingdom, if you are looking to freshen up on your Viking history, these are both series offering a compelling narrative depicting the times of the Viking and their progressive conquest of England.
Now with Assassin’s Creed Valhalla it appears fans of this brave and profound era of history will finally live out this fantastical tale as a Viking male or female, the choice is yours.
England in the age of the Vikings is a fractured nation of petty lords and warring kingdoms. Beneath the chaos lies a rich and untamed land waiting for a new conqueror…and of course that is where you the player comes in.
The year is 1873 AD as players fill the shoes of Eivor, a mighty Viking raider who leads his or her clan from the harsh shores of Norway to a new home amid the lush farmlands of ninth-century England. Along your journey Eivor will explore a beautiful and mysterious open-world where you’ll face brutal enemies, while leading your people in massive raids and attacks against the so-called holy Saxon armies and fortresses. In this way, you will expand your influence far beyond your settlement’s borders.
Unlike previous Assassin’s Creed games, for Valhalla the fighting style of the Viking offers profound brutality to the mix as you can wield dual axes, swords, throw spears and axes. Perform impalement maneuvers with long swords, dismember body parts with hatchets, as well as shields against fierce and ruthless foes. Players will choose their tactics on the fly, dismember enemies in close-quarter combat, riddle them with arrows, or assassinate them with your hidden blade. Yes the hidden blade is back, but this time it is not so hidden.
Ubisoft explains that players will be immersed in activities like hunting, fishing, dice, and drinking games, or engage in traditional Norse competitions like flyting – or, as it’s better known, verbally devastating rivals through the art of the Viking rap battle. I thought this was a joke as well, but Ubisoft insists this is a real thing.
Rest assured, you will also command a crew of raiders and launch lightning surprise attacks from your longship claiming great riches.
In Assassin’s Creed Valhalla players will grow and customize their own settlement by recruiting new clan members and building upgradable structures. If you want better troops construct a barracks, improve your weapons at the blacksmith, discover new customization options with a tattoo parlor, and much more.
Impressively, players will be able to create and customize their own mercenary Vikings to share online, and reap the spoils when they fight alongside friends in their own sagas. Recruit mercenaries created by other players, and add their strength to your forces, which sounds amazing.
One thing I thought was quite interesting was Ubisoft narrative approach of the Viking. Instead of showcasing the Vikings as mindless and brutal conquering pagans, which is often the case in many instances, Ubisoft Montreal has decided to reveal a more balanced understanding of the Vikings. A depiction that includes them establishing relationships with some of the English and alliance for a more complete picture. A truer picture.
Offering a slight glimpse into the games narrative, Eivor is said to meet up other assassin’s during the course of the game, though he or she does not necessarily know what it means to be an assassin. In addition, we are told that early on players will see Eivor receive the hidden blade. However, as a proud Viking, Eivor decides not to hide the legendary hidden blade like previous assassin’s before him/her, instead and as revealed in the cinematic trailer Eivor proudly wears it for all to see.
Lastly, while Assassin’s Creed Valhalla already sounds like it is checking off all of the significant boxes, we are still left scratching our heads upon learning that the game will run at 30 frames-per-second on Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.
However, while the PlayStation 5 performance of the game is not mentioned it is certainly implied. According to the official update from Ubisoft, by way of Eurogamer, Ubisoft could be playing it safe by avoiding any performance promises, by leveraging 4K resolution with 30 frames. For many, I am sure this may be disappointing, especially if you planned on finally experiencing Assassin’s Creed running at 60 frames on console, which could still be the case.
This lackluster framerate may depend on many factors, and for Ubisoft’s sake we hope the game’s experience can overshadow them. As far as we can tell, it seems Ubisoft is making native 4K the priority instead of lowering the resolution to lets say 1440p at a steady 60 frames. Which, I would personally prefer, but that’s just me.
Nevertheless, we are still excited about this new themed direction for the series.