Now that the next-gen consoles are out — the PS5 and Xbox Series X — gamers have their sights on next-gen titles. There aren’t too many offerings just yet, which gives Assassin’s Creed Valhalla the perfect time to shine as gamers get accustomed to their new hardware.
It’s not surprising to see how well Assassin’s Creed Valhalla has done in the couple of days that it has been out. According to a recent press release, Valhalla has nearly doubled the day-one player count of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. That’s pretty impressive considering the fanfare that Odyssey received when it first debuted back in 2018.
Ubisoft’s plans of making Vikings the focus in this latest installment is turning out to be a good idea. It sets the installment apart from others, both from a story and environmental standpoint. The Assassin’s Creed games have always had an open-ended design, but Valhalla doubles it up in meaningful ways.
The concept of invading foreign lands and conquering one village at a time is as old as time, but it comes across beautifully in Valhalla. As Eivor, players get to lead their Viking kingdom to prominence by invading English lands. It has looked like a promising concept since the first couple of trailers came out and according to fan reactions, Ubisoft has nailed what they were going for.
What’s particularly unique about Valhalla is its refreshing enemy archetypes. Even as players get hours into the story, there are new enemy varieties that present distinct challenges. They force players to constantly think about how they approach battle, which hasn’t always been the case in this action-adventure series.
Before, you could pretty much get a feel for how every battle was going to play out after spending a couple of hours with the game. Now, combat is much more dynamic and that’s just another reason to celebrate everything that Valhalla offers.
Ubisoft has definitely upped their game. They knew they had to come out of the next-gen gate with something special and thus far, they’ve done just that. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is now available on every major system excluding the Switch.
If you haven’t been current with the Assassin’s Creed series, this latest installment is a novel entry that gives the franchise the fresh direction it needed heading into 2021. Whether you enjoy Viking culture or a gripping story that can shape out a number of ways, Valhalla seems to be delivering on most fronts.
