In a recent developer commentary trailer uploaded to YouTube, creative director Ashraf Ismail and narrative director Darby McDevitt broke down what players could expect from Assassin’s Creed Valhalla raids. While combat will be visceral when it occurs - to the extent that you can dual-wield almost anything, including shields - there will also be quieter moments embedded in the settling process, as well as a real sense of actively seeking a home. You can check out the full developer commentary trailer in the video embedded below. “A lot of what we know about the Vikings comes from the people who they raided,” McDevitt explains in the dev commentary. “The Viking age started at the end of the eighth century with an attack on Lindisfarne in England, and the English liked to write about it.” McDevitt goes on to explain that a lot of this writing exists as a result of the Saxonic church’s records, but Ubi actively sought other archaeological sources in order to corroborate evidence about how well the Vikings actually integrated into Saxonic culture. “What we’re showing here is that they’re building a community,” explains creative director Ashraf Ismail. “Not just raiding, but integrating into the local society.”
“One thing that history doesn’t really say until you dig [in] is a lot of these people were farmers, traders, settlers, and they actually worked hard to integrate themselves,” he continues. “This is something that’s very important to the motivation of the game: building your settlement, growing it, [and] making the choices as a leader within this community.” That’s not to say this is a strictly pastoral game either. “Certainly a lot of the accounts are very brutal,” Ismail says. “What we’re trying to do is show the complete story of an entire culture. And when you actually jump forward to when our game is set, there’s a lot of settling going on.”
“There’s not just raiding, there’s Norse coming over from Norway, from Denmark and settling in England,” he continues. “So what we’re going to portray in this game is that it’s not just about brutality and violence and wanton masochism. There’s a lot of thought that goes into these raids and battles, where the Norse settle, and the friends and alliances they make.” If you’re hungry for more details about Valhalla, you should make sure to check out the official Assassin’s Creed Valhalla trailer. Besides that, we’ve collected a whole bunch of details about what you can expect from Valhalla. Apparently it features the four kingdoms of England as well as Norway, and will offer players the “ultimate Viking fantasy.” Ubi has also officially confirmed that both the male and female protagonists will be considered canon, and that Valhalla officially has Viking rap battles. Also, the hidden blade is no longer hidden, and Valhalla will feature longships and epic battles.
