Assassin's Creed Valhalla - Review

The third part of the new Assassin's Creed trilogy is not just trying to capture the trendy setting of cold Scandinavia along with harsh mythology and beautiful Vikings, but also draw a line under the history of the entire game series.

Nov 13, 2020 - 18:00
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Assassin's Creed Valhalla - Review
Assassin's Creed Valhalla - review: the most brutal and spectacular game.

In the present time, the world is on the verge of a global catastrophe caused by disturbances in the planet's magnetic field, and only the story of the Viking Avor can lead modern assassins to a powerful artifact and save the fragile abode of humanity.

While satellites fall to Earth in modern times, there is a bloodthirsty struggle for fertile territories between several clans in the 9th-century Norwegian universe. Avor, depending on your preferences, must or must avenge the death and betrayal of his father, so that, guided by fate, go to build a new settlement in the vast expanses of England.

The choice of character gender, and sexual uncertainty (this is when the game switches between male and female versions of the protagonist) explains the very strong DNA of a hero and the creation of several gender branches in the program of Animus. However, in any case, you will have to join brother Sigurd and his new friends-assassins to find allies in England, conquer the land and fight with the order of the ancients.

Although Avor is not a member of the secret brotherhood, the game subtly weaves the assassin Saga and the acquisition of the hidden blade into a Nordic ballad of honor and betrayal. Several tasks reveal the history of the emergence of the order of assassins on the shores of Norway and demonstrate fanservice moments for veterans of the series, like a leap of faith. At the same time, the authors try to show new features of assassins, such as envy and rivalry.

Developing a new setting, the developers do not abandon the achievements of the previous parts, while maintaining the hunt for ordinary and legendary animals, collecting resources and minerals, observation points and improving weapons. True, now there are not so many types of armor and weapons as in the Odyssey, but it can be constantly improved, both on the way and by increasing its status with the blacksmith. The outcome of the match is not affected by the level of the hero, but by his power. The experience points you receive allow you to pump them into branches of directions-from hidden kills to melee and ranged combat - that open up special features and strengthen the character, increasing his health or the power of blows. At any time, you can reset all your efforts and go on a completely different branch, changing the balance of the hero in the direction of the Archer or melee warrior.

The developers also provided a deadly hidden blade mode, when Avor can kill with a single blow from the shadow of even the most powerful enemy, but the authors do not recommend turning it on, so as not to spoil the basic game mechanics. The advertised X-Ray effect with the penetration of weapons into different parts of the victim's body is demonstrated on local bosses. When I was cleaning up ordinary people, I never met him.

Separately, as you explore castles and villages, you can discover manuscripts that reveal special melee and ranged combat techniques. With the help of the same scrolls, these skills are also improved. For example, if you get two scrolls with a top hit, you will get a second-level top hit. However, collecting resources is necessary not only to improve weapons and armor, but also to develop your settlement. By capturing and looting coastal monasteries, you get the necessary resources to build an assassin's hut, bakery, shopping Mall, or fishing and hunting shacks in your village. The bigger and stronger your village, the more people and side tasks you get.

The task system has also changed. In addition to the main story, the developers offer side missions with well-developed stories and random events that are not even tracked in the quest menu. For example, you can save farmers ' fields from hordes of rats with the help of cats, play a RAID with children, or rekindle the extinct passion of two Vikings by setting fire to their home. For this, as a rule, the hero is rewarded with money, weapons, experience points, or useful components. Sets of mini-games were supplemented with fluting-poetic battles, where the most subtle and rhyming joking opponent wins. QTE with booze allows you to find out who will stand on their feet after drinking three horns of strong Scandinavian Mead.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla follows the path of its predecessors, but its main plot looks much more developed even compared to the Odyssey. The characters are better spelled out, and the level of production is impressive with cinematic camera turns, action and battles. At the same time, the game does not have the same vanilla: blood splashes on the battlefield and heads are seen flying from the shoulders. At the same time, your companions during raids often help you out, distracting a strong enemy.

The battles themselves make a curtsey towards Dark Souls. The hero now has a fatigue ruler, you can make perfect parries, and boss fights are as much like FromSoftware creations as Possible, especially with changing enemy patterns after dealing critical damage to them.

In turn, the health recovery system switched to collecting. Now you will have to replenish your life supply with cloudberries and raspberries or a pot of forgotten soup, and raise the level of adrenaline with fly agarics. Naturally, to increase the stock of wearable first-aid kits, you will have to pump the shoulder bag. So consider that nothing has changed in the basic mechanics of collecting medicines. The feathered friend who marks important points and important events on the map, such as Animus anomalies, and side tasks, also returned to the game.

The ship is no longer the main place for pumping, as all resources are taken by the village, but the Drakkar will allow you to quickly get to the monastery or the story task. You can put it on autopilot and go for tea or listen to the song of your brave squad. From time to time, the songs are replaced with traditional Norwegian legends, sometimes forcing you to remain motionless even when you arrive at your destination. The Codex also returned to the game, which now tells in detail about the characters, setting, and historical context of the events described.

The mercenaries who became one of the foundations of the Odyssey gameplay were reforged into Zealots here. Their number is limited, they are directly related to the order of the ancients and really very serious and dangerous opponents. Their movements can be observed on the global map and plan a surprise attack or ambush. For each of the killed Zealots or members of the Order, you will be given a reward from local assassins. But the most important point of the game is your village, which must grow, develop and attract new allies. After reaching a certain level of development of the settlement, you will be able to move in an altered state to the majestic Asgard and Jotunheim, which look incredibly beautiful and unusual.

Graphically, Assassin's Creed Valhalla has made a big leap forward, squeezing out of the consoles of the last generation of maximum features. Incredibly detailed landscapes of England, dozens of opponents on the screen during bloody raids and battles, as well as the magnificent water and sky leave a fabulous impression. This is one of the most beautiful games of recent years. And the difference with the versions for new systems is almost minimal, which can be attributed to the developers.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla is still the same Assassin's Creed, which got rid of a number of unsuccessful decisions of the previous parts and offers a new level of production, a more compact map, an interesting plot and a really impressive setting. And even the restrictions on the level of power present here are not perceived as part of the mandatory grind-there are enough places around you to explore, complete missions, and easily improve your hero or heroine.

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