Assassin’s Creed is by far one of the best games for gameplay and the story behind them – especially the first few games. Unlike many modern-day games, Assassin’s Creed has stuck to its campaign roots – its main attraction. There’s no playing online aimlessly; there are emotional and captivating stories to follow with quests and challenges along the way that enhance the game. Still, are Ubisoft and Gameloft — the publishers and producers of Assassin’s Creed — pushing the game too far by bringing out a 12th in the series? Find out below.
The Storyline
Depending on what you’re a fan of, the storyline is potentially one of the best yet. Any fans of Vikings — a popular TV series — or anything to do with Norse history for that matter – will know what Valhalla means. If you don’t, it’s the majestic hall in Asgard in which Nobel Vikings that died honorably in battle get to feast amongst the gods. Back to the storyline, it follows the Viking expansion into Ireland and England.
Games that feature England and Ireland aren’t anything new – you’ve got Irish Eyes slot game, Tomb Raider 3, Uncharted 3, and many more. In Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, unlike the previous Origins and Odyssey, modern-day glimpses are no more – instead, the game focuses on the 9th Century. Evior is the main character, and the game begins with you, the player, taking over Evior at a feast.
A fight breaks out, Eviors village is destroyed, and on you go through Eviors life and conquest through England and Ireland – getting revenge for Kjovte, Evior’s father who died at the feast.
The Gameplay
The gameplay is incredible because it takes us back to the Assassin’s roots of a game that’s steeped in history rather than modern-day madness. It features an iconic era, the Viking era, and the gameplay reflects the brutality and fearless nature of the Vikings. Evian can travel by longboat, which makes roaming around really fun, and he has a raven as his bird. Evian can send his raven into the sky to search for objectives – they would be highlighted as blue.
Other classic features differ from previous games, such as healing, which Evior does by eating rations. However, there are some similarities. Evior wields a lethal hidden blade that can kill with one strike, he can blend in amongst the crowd, and he actually makes the game feel like you’re an Assassin, something the previous two games have somewhat lacked. These staples of the Assassin Creed series are an essential part of the experience. Over the series, they’ve played with new mechanics, features, and stylings – adapting to both the historical context of the iteration as well as the game developer’s ideas and capabilities. It keeps the series grounded, yet fresh.
How Does It Compare?
If you compare it to the previous two Assassins, we’d say it’s so much better. It’s more realistic in terms of the Assassin era. It follows an incredible age drowned in violence and controversy, and some great new features make gameplay smooth yet exciting. Gamers who want to feel like they’re an Assassin need to have this in their games library. It’s been out for a while now, so the price shouldn’t be too high.
Certain games shouldn’t have as many as 12 in the series – but Assassin’s Creed isn’t one of them. If anything, the games only seem to get better as more is released, with developers capturing history, violence, and stories that tell an emotional tale. It’s impossible to play Assassin’s Creed without wishing you were an assassin yourself.
The expansion of the franchise continues, with a rumoured live service game which separate itself from the usual campaign-focused formula. Valhalla, then, marks a moment of change from Ubisoft and Assassin’s Creed.
