There are certain aspects that we can continue to expect from certain developers, and these tendencies hold true throughout the various eras. Bethesda is known for creating massive open worlds that benefit greatly from a dedicated modding community that introduces everything you can ever want, and a vast number of things that no one is twisted enough to outright ask for. Nintendo is known for developing a very specific vision to perfection, regardless of what fans request. Electronic Arts are known for, among other things, taking beloved IPs, milking them dry, and then ditching the lifeless franchise into the dirt.
Ubisoft also has its own tendencies, for better or worse; scaling tall buildings to reveal segments of the map, what some may consider as repetitive gameplay, and ramming microtransactions everywhere they could possibly fit. Oh, and ‘gameplay trailers’ that aren’t showing gameplay at all. Whether they have a poor sod standing on a stage pretending to play the upcoming title through a rehearsed segment, as was alleged over the Assassin’s Creed: Unity reveal, or apparently the upcoming Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla.
Thousands of users logged in today to watch the grand reveal of Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla gameplay trailer that was to be shown in the Microsoft 20/20 stream this morning. On Ubisoft’s official YouTube channel, it’s listed as a gameplay trailer. Many, if not most, users were expecting to see part of the title; gameplay. Before we get too involved, however, it bears worth watching what Ubisoft released.
This is titled on Ubisoft’s YouTube channel as: ‘Assassin’s Creed Valhalla: First Look Gameplay Trailer | Ubisoft [NA]’.
If you didn’t sit through the minute and a half of footage, I’m going to spoil something: there is absolutely no gameplay. Instead, it’s a random smattering of what appears to be cutscenes mashed together with a cat in heat moaning in the background. Lot’s of shots including a tree, and we see Stonehenge two or three times. You know, Viking stuff.
And hey, the cut-scenes look fantastic truth be told, and I’m not the biggest Ubisoft fan. With Ubisoft stating that Valhalla will be a far shorter and more condensed experience than the odyssey that was Odyssey (ha), there is a real chance that the majority will complete this one.
Yet questions remain in droves, as the trailer left everyone scratching their heads. Are we climbing more buildings for 30% of the game? Will there be microtransactions again? How much freedom is Ubisoft taking with history? Thankfully, there’s always a way that we can assume the answer before a developer is ready to reveal their hand, but it isn’t necessarily pretty; just need to look at their tendencies.
