Developer Ubisoft confirms that its upcoming title, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, will be different from the previous iterations of the franchise.
Ubisoft said that the upcoming game will no longer subject its players to arduous grinds, something that is common in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. In return, players will be given more freedom to explore the game’s huge open-world.
Grinding no more
Although Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is widely successful. Players are not happy about its grinding mechanics. Players are tasked to do daunting missions and grinds in order to level up and find powerful items. Grinding is also a fundamental part of the game’s story in order to further progress.
Ubisoft says that it is taking a different approach with regards to Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. It appears that the developer is taking notes from players and critics alike.
Upon its confirmation, Ubisoft says that the game will follow an RPG-style gameplay. Fans are quick to express their concerns about this, but Ubisoft was quick to fan the flame after it confirms that it will not follow the same strategy as with Odyssey.
In a statement, Ubisoft creative director Ashraf Ismail said:
“Our goal is to just let players play the content they want. Again, we built a really intriguing world that takes place in Dark Ages England and Norway.”
Ubisoft added that the game will feature multiple side quests and mini games. By removing the grinding mechanism, players can instead focus on other features such as flyting, a Viking version of rap battles.
Console exclusive at first
Ubisoft confirms that Assassin’s Creed Valhalla will be exclusively released to consoles, at least during its launch. At its launch, gamers can pick a copy of the game from the Epic Games Store and Uplay.
Are you ready for Assassin's Creed Valhalla? We're just 2 hours away from the world premiere! Share your live reactions with us using #AssassinsCreed.
— Assassin's Creed (@assassinscreed) April 30, 2020
Apart from its official online store, Ubisoft says that the game will be available on a single third-party platform: Epic Games Store. This is a bit frustrating, especially for PC gamers who rely on Steam for their games library.
This is a big blow for Steam, a Valve owned online video game store. Many in the video game industry consider Assassin’s Creed Valhalla as one of the biggest games to hit the stores this year. In general, the Assassin’s Creed franchise is always a big seller.
It is important to note that while some developers skip Steam during the launch of their titles, they ultimately find their way into the digital platform. Borderlands 3 did not launch on Steam, but was later released on the platform.
Ubisoft has yet to comment whether Assassin’s Creed Valhalla will find its way into Steam. Nevertheless, the game is sure to break sales record.
Image courtesy of Ubisoft/Wikimedia Commons