There’s time for one more exploratory journey into the Animus before the rest of the world has the chance to play Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Screen Rant recently played through an extensive portion of Ubisoft’s latest entry in its epic alt-history series, parkouring through Anglo-Saxon England and, specifically, getting a rounded perspective on one of its activity-rich territories. While our impressions so far have not changed drastically from time spent in Valhalla earlier this year, a wider range of characters to meet and the chance to see a questline from beginning to end were notable highlights this time around.
To get caught up to speed: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is the latest entry in Ubisoft’s landmark franchise, detailing the ongoing conflict between the freedom-fighter Assassins and the control-obsessed Templars. Past entries were based everywhere from Ptolemaic Egypt to Victorian Era London to Colonial America, with Valhalla focusing on the Viking Invasion of Britain. In certain respects, the Viking Age must be one of the more unusual Assassin’s Creed settings, if only because of the less stealthy standard expected from these axe-swinging hard-drinking explorers, and the general lack of sky-high structures to climb throughout Anglo-Saxon lands circa 873 CE.
The question is how to adapt that setting to acts of flight-footed assassin derring-do, and earlier impressions of Valhalla’s full-frontal philosophy have not wavered. Maritime warfare has been heavily toned down from that of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey and full-on gate-storming skirmishes have been turned all the way up, with Eivor leading bloody raids throughout the Anglian kingdoms. Our demo’s main questline saw the Vikings contending with King Burgred, a Mercian ruler carrying considerable civilian support in the area, compromising the transition of power to Viking-aligned King Ceolwulf after a decisive battle favors the latter. It’s not going to be as simple as chasing Burgred out of his city or even simply killing him – Ceolwulf insists that the crown has to formally pass over by hand to ensure the countrymen recognize the new ruler.
Ledecestrescire – and yes, expect a rich assortment of hard-to-pronounce locales – is but one territory among the 14 or so we spotted on Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s Alliance Map, with each requiring a direct pledge to initiate questlines. Eivor negotiates this process in the Viking settlement’s war room, and it’s the first time we’ve been able to see this game mechanic in action, though it’s unclear if there will be direct control over which territories can be explored in sequence.
The settlement of Ravensthorpe is a shoreline village which can be explored and upgraded, filled with NPC vendors and structures providing unique gameplay opportunities. A complete hunting/fishing system means that players can seek out creature collectathons throughout Valhalla’s world, unlocking vanity items like tattoos and armor designs. Horses can be trained, Jomsvikings recruited, and a spectrum of cosmetic skins and gear can be amassed, upgraded, and traded. Past Assassin’s Creed games have certainly had their own share of hubs, but Valhalla’s settlements are more complicated and interesting, with tattooists, blacksmiths, and other NPCs whose stock can be increased by finding secrets and completing quests throughout the game. There’s also a unique dice game called Orlog which was great fun and more involved than the drinking minigame.
Another detail worth mentioning is the gender designation for Eivor themselves, as it was previously revealed that Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s narrative would not be tied to a distinct male or female character in any way (unlike, say, the siblings at the center of Odyssey). Players can even swap Eivor’s gender on the fly, and a setting in the finished game will automatically alternate between male and female Eivors randomly throughout the story. This appears to be the first time something like this has ever been included in an open world adventure game, and it does align with the general “game-ness” of the Animus conceit itself. Any modifications like tattoos or gear will simply adapt to whichever version of Eivor is in play, so players who just can’t decide between the two will want this feature turned on.
We got to meet more of Valhalla’s other story characters as well, and one particular Viking stole the show: Ivarr. This bloodthirsty yet big-hearted menace (also a historical figure who’s appeared in other Viking media) was a fantastic foil to the delicate formality of the Saxon elites, and his characterization encapsulates what’s so engaging about Ubisoft’s chosen setting this time around. A mix between unpredictable berserker and reliable ally, Eivor’s affection for Ivarr feels genuine, prompting a gentle chuckle when he shocks a captive by casually tossing a few severed heads on the floor to feed the hogs. Like several other characters, Ivarr’s opinion of the player appeared to shift after routine decisions made throughout the quest as well, and we were even able to apparently kill a quest-relevant NPC.
Aside from signaling for a longship to travel and initiate raids, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla players can call upon their squad while exploring inland. At first, we thought this would work similarly to backup mechanics in some Grand Theft Auto games, though it didn’t work this way consistently during the preview build. A small encampment of Zealots – mysterious and agile enemies who dart around dropping smoke bombs – seemed like the perfect opportunity for team support, yet blowing our horn multiple times proved fruitless. Later, an impromptu assault on a small village saw Eivor stealth-killing a few guards, then blowing the horn once a horde of enemies appeared, which did end up working (and was a terrific sight to behold). For now, it’s a little unclear whether the horn is an all-purpose rallying cry or a tool which only works in specific circumstances, but we really hope it’s the former rather than the latter, especially with Valhalla’s ability to recruit and design Viking squads.
Despite the all-out combat focus, stealth remains a viable option, helped along by a hooded cloak and “blending” hotspots where Eivor can act like a commoner or mix into the crowd to throw off guard attention. While the return of “social stealth” is nice to see, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla works best when she’s caught in the fray, and different techniques can be unlocked with skill points to gain the upper hand. Melee combat still feels especially brutal, with beheadings aplenty and enemy shields often rendered to splinters, but the bow mechanics are equally satisfying; Odin Sight will even call out environmental targets that can be shot from afar to trigger quicker kills, like huge chandeliers and explosives.
Nevertheless, it was the preview’s narrative which absorbed most of our attention this time, and we’re happy to report that it’s summarily excellent so far. The steps required to ensure a concession of Mercian leadership saw multiple player decisions affecting most junctures, and some great performances and plot twists added rewarding depth to Valhalla’s world. The narrative feels a little broader than the personal vendettas centered in the most recent Assassin’s Creed games, as Eivor’s clan’s survival and the future of the continent seem of greatest importance. While we also have not been able to check out this entry’s Animus framing device just yet, an inventive glitch scenario randomly appeared during our demo, presenting a fun platforming puzzle that looked awesome framed against the distant countryside.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is getting close to launch and we remain strongly optimistic for the finished game. The setting this time informs so much of the gameplay, which is a good thing, since the series needed more of a shakeup to its formula than what’s seen from Origins to Odyssey. A wider economy of currency and resources combines with the upgradable settlement systems, bringing a bucolic sensibility to the gameplay that should work well to differentiate this one from the other Assassin’s Creed entries. And, if the rest of Valhalla’s narrative is as good as the King Ceolwulf quest, there should be a great new genre epic to match the best Viking TV shows and films in recent years, so fans should definitely bone up on their Norse pronunciation skills.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla releases on November 10 on PC/Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Google Stadia, with a November 12 launch on PlayStation 5.
