It’s that time again - A new Assassin’s Creed game is on the horizon. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla takes place in England’s Dark Ages where you play as a Viking named Eivor. Some of the biggest new additions will be raiding villages and building your own home settlement.
There are high hopes for this entry after the major success of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, which added several welcome additions to the series. At the same time, some long time fans miss the older mechanics that Assassin’s Creed is known for. Hopefully, Valhalla can marry the two and put the old vs new dispute to rest.
10 Keep: Cultist System
One of the best aspects of Odyssey was the cultist system. The player had to find clues to different cultist locations then hunt them down. It was thrilling to track the cultists and watch their organization fall apart one by one.
This was the closest the game got to making players feel like an assassin and one mechanic we’d like to see moving forward in the series.
9 Bring Back: Blending
It will be odd for a Viking to hide in a crowd and sit on a bench to hide. In fact, the whole idea of blending does not make sense. It is, though, a classic mechanic that makes Assassin’s Creed unique.
Blending requires suspicion of disbelief but it makes you feel like a skilled assassin. The mechanic, if done right, can make new Assassin’s Creed feel more like its roots while keeping its major upgrades.
8 Keep: Eagle Surveillance
Odyssey and Origins upgraded eagle vision in a significant way by taking it literally. Looking at the humongous map through an eagle’s eyes is a great way to survey the land. It also helps you easily spot objectives and plan a course of action.
It’s far superior to the old eagle vision, which highlighted objectives and marked enemies. The upgraded eagle vision is bound to return with the appearance of a raven in the Valhalla trailer.
7 Bring Back: Central Assassin’s Plotline
The new Assassin’s Creed has the assassin and templar conflict on the back burner. It was fun to see the inner workings of the Assassin’s order and see our protagonist grow within the organization.
The best storyline features Ezio Auditore rising through the ranks to become a master Assassin. It’s about time for Assassin’s Creed to give us a story about Assassins once again.
6 Keep: Branching Storyline/ Dialogue Options
The dialogue options were far from a tacked-on feature in Odyssey- it changed the whole game significantly. It’s what pushed Assassin’s Creed over the edge into a full-on RPG. The Dialogue choices were interesting and, at times, funny.
They also changed the outcome of quests significantly. Who cares if it doesn’t fit with Assassin’s Creed’s world-building.
5 Bring Back: Stronger Emphasis On Ship Combat
If you’re going to continue a mechanic, you have to improve it. Assassin’s Creed Black Flag had excellent ship combat with in-depth customization and a variety of weaponry. In Odyssey, ship gameplay seemed like an afterthought.
It was, simply, a way to get from point A to point B, and combat was more of an annoyance than anything else. Vikings have a strong identity with sailing so hopefully ship gameplay will get a big upgrade.
4 Keep: Mercenary System
In Odyssey, players can fight to become the best mercenary in Greece. There is a constant battle where players are being hunted or you’re doing the hunting. Mercenaries will never stop their hunt, even if it means interrupting the main questline.
They are a fun element that encourages stealth, to keep them away, or they will drastically disrupt your plans. Moving up the mercenary ladder by fighting increasingly difficult enemies would fit into Valhalla nicely.
3 Bring Back: Stronger Focus On Climbing
Climbing used to be much more stylish in the older entries. Climbing up a building used to be a miniature puzzle where you had to find the best path up.
The newer Assassin’s Creed games ditched this idea in favor of a faster gameplay loop. The more detailed approach to climbing makes it an interactive experience instead of a passive chore.
2 Keep: Playstyle Skills
Odyssey allowed players to choose upgrades for their desired playstyle. There were unique skills for stealth, combat, and archer characters. This allowed the player to focus on one branch of gameplay instead of being forced into a specific one.
The choice is so much better than automatic desynchronization when failing a stealth mission. The optional playstyles need to move forward if Ubisoft wants to keep the RPG approach.
1 Bring Back: Optional Side Content
One of the biggest criticisms of Odyssey was the grind to advance. At a certain point, you can’t continue the main quest because the enemies are too difficult. To move forward, you have to get stronger by completing side content.
The problem is that the side content can get repetitive and boring. In an entry with more player choice, we should not be forced to do side content.
NEXT: Assassin’s Creed: 5 Things We Miss About the Desmond Miles Games (& 5 We Don’t)
