Assassin's Creed Valhalla test: a brilliant synthesis of ten years of open-world

Having, it seems, learned from its mistakes, Ubisoft now allows itself longer times to supply its Assassin's Creed license. It's been two years since we left Kassandra or Alexios at the gates of Sparta. Today, the publisher's Montreal teams invite us to Norway and 9th century England to take part in the Eivor saga.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla test: a brilliant synthesis of ten years of open-world See PriceRead ConclusionAssassin's Creed Valhalla

artistically splendid
Gargantuan content...
Significant progress in terms of staging
Eivor, one of the most endearing Assassins we've played

A little too easy game, even in higher difficulty levels
… at the risk of getting bored
An unrewarding loot system
… at the expense of infiltration

A canonical twelfth opus, which is part of this great trend of exploration of Norse mythology. And as much to say that after the bewitching Hellblade and the unexpected God of War, Assassin's Creed Valhalla has an interest in bulging the chest to impose its artistic vision.

However, we are attacking this new episode with confidence. Ubisoft has rarely disappointed us in terms of world building on its flagship license. It is therefore with more haste than concern that we have begun this warlike epic, signing, in passing, a farewell to current generation consoles.

The config point : Assassin's Creed Valhalla was tested on PC, in 1440p with all graphics settings pushed to the maximum, on a 2018 configuration. Namely a Ryzen 7 2700, 16 GB of RAM and an RTX 2070. The framerate oscillated depending on the situation between 30 and 60 frames per second, with an average set at 45.

A colony to prosper

After her parents are murdered on the sidelines of a peace celebration, young Eivor finds a new home under the wing of the Raven Clan. With his adoptive brother Sigurd, heir to the Clan, Eivor grew up with the sole objective of making his House shine, and gradually closing his greenhouses around a Norway plagued by internal wars. But that was before Sigurd's estate passed under his nose following a surprise alliance forged by his father. Annoyed Sigurd and Eivor load a drakkar with what they can of food and food to go and write their own saga: that of the conquest of England.

The problem is that it's been several years since their peers had the same idea. It will therefore be a question of finding its place in a country torn apart by the Danes, the Norwegians and the Saxons.

The first thing to do will be to establish a colony. Initially a simple makeshift camp, it will be up to you to make it prosper with a lot of raids and looting. The inspiration of Red Dead Redemption 2 is inscribed in watermark on all this part of the gameplay; even if Assassin's Creed Valhalla offers a more "management" side that was not present in Rockstar's blockbuster.

The progression of your colony is spread over six levels. Each one unlocking new buildings to construct thanks to the raw materials amassed during your ransacking of enemy villages. These newcomers to your hamlet add to an already substantial list of activities: fishing, hunting and specific related quests. You will also find something to customize your avatar thanks to the tattoo and hairdressing salon, and so on. In short, a real budding society that it is up to you to make flourish.

JVFR

Acheter Assassin's Creed Valhalla

Conquer England, region by region

Each chapter of Assassin's Creed Valhalla breaks down the same way. First there is this meeting with Randvi, Sigurd's companion, at the operations table. This briefs you quickly on the situation in the different counties of England. It is then up to you to choose where to move your pawns. In other words: where to go to build alliances and strengthen your presence on the island.

JVFR

Once there, a meeting with a leading figure in the region will teach you more about the forces involved. It is at this moment that the boss of the zone will be presented to you; which will have to pass the weapon to the left to guarantee you the expected support of the inhabitants of the village.

There follows a series of more or less long and thrilling quests depending on the region chosen. Some clearly stand out, such as the one involving the young and inexperienced Oswald, who is destined to marry a Danish warrior in the hope of easing tensions between the peoples of East Anglia. It is particularly during this quest that we see the great progress made by Ubisoft Montreal in terms of writing and staging. For the first time in ages, I fell in love with a supporting character from an Assassin's Creed. I was not asking so much of you !

JVFR

Unfortunately for the player, he will be asked to repeat this same pattern a dozen times. Admittedly, each region has its specificities (both topographical and political), but it comes down to a loop of gameplay sewn with white thread. Seams which, after some 25 hours of play (out of a good forty or so), begin to crack. Especially since Assassin's Creed Valhalla is probably the most naughty episode of the license. To the detriment, alas, of a whole section of the DNA of the saga.

JVFR

An opus more warlike than ever

By nature, Assassin's Creed Valhalla is brutal. After all, it is a question of embodying a Viking troop party to the conquest of England; we're not here to string pearls.

The game's clashes are therefore much more visceral than before. In a kind of conjugation of the game systems of Assassin's Creed Origins and Odyssey, Valhalla mixes tactical duels with unreadable scrums for a half-hearted result. Most of the time, you'll be asked to blow your horn and rush towards your enemies at the head of an army of bloodthirsty Vikings. We are clearly closer to For Honor than Altaïr or Ezio, melting the crowd discreetly to slay a target without error.

JVFR

As in the two previous opuses, Eivor has unique melee and ranged abilities to thwart his opponents as quickly as possible. On the side of the arsenal, we can obviously play the axe, the hammer, the spear and the sword. All with or without a shield which is very useful against the most devious mobs. In combat, it is indeed a question of parrying the opponent's blows at the appropriate moment in order to create the opening which will allow you to fine your opponent. Not always easy during a raid, or dozens of enemies around you.

JVFR

However, the difficulty is rarely there. With the exception of a few encounters with elite soldiers, most of the time we ride on the swarms of opponents. Also, do not be afraid to raise the level of difficulty of the game compared to your habits. We also salute Ubisoft, which breaks down the difficulty of its game into several layers. There is the level of difficulty of the fights, that of the infiltration and that of the exploration – each varying the criteria of its own. Well thought out, especially for infiltration experts who need a boost in combat… or vice versa.

JVFR

Those we don't see

But Assassin's Creed, at root, is above all the story of a centuries-old confrontation between two factions that everything opposes. No, not Republicans and Democrats! The Assassins and the Templars, let's see.

Here renamed “Those Unseen” and “The Order of the Ancients” respectively for timeline reasons, the two enemy groups obviously have an important role to play in the Valhalla scenario. You will also quickly put your foot in the stirrup by receiving the famous secret blade in the first hour of the adventure.

JVFR

But like the stealth aspect of gameplay, this storyline backdrop takes a long time to emerge from the board. If Valhalla is, in a very paradoxical way, one of the "new" Assassin's Creed closest to the original opus (it is again possible to blend into the crowd and camouflage yourself on public benches), it is also the one who makes the least effort to move the schmilblick forward. As if we shouldn't lose the new players... or as a polite confidence that in truth, we don't give a damn about this story.

JVFR

We must also see the reaction of the player when at the turn of certain chapters, the game sends us back to the current era at the controls of Layla. "Ah, that's right," I had to blurt out spontaneously. As proof that this screenplay arc is totally marginal… and forgettable.

Which brings us to the main grievance against Assassin's Creed Valhalla (and its predecessors): it does way, way too much.

Full as a bottle

The multiplication of script arcs is only the tip of the iceberg. Realize: Assassin's Creed Valhalla brings together the story of Eivor and his brother in the conquest of England, the struggle of the Assassins and the Templars in the background, passages involving the deities of Asgard for the fantasy side, and the intrigues of Layla and Abstergo as a meta-story. We advise you to take notes to find your way around.

JVFR

But the player must also deal with a myriad of activities and side quests that further thicken the universe in which he evolves. In addition to the traditional synchronization points, there are mystical places to visit and purge of their evil, random encounters with passers-by, but also drinking contests and even verbal contests (which we are absolutely fans of).

JVFR

If the map appears to us less sparse than that of Odyssey, it is filled to the brim. Like what some lessons from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of The Wild came out the other ear. It is impossible to go more than 500 meters without a small glow on the map indicating the presence of a chest or some activity. Our reptilian brain constantly excited by the promise of these treasures, progress in Assassin's Creed Valhalla is done in fits and starts.

JVFR

Especially since if he continually agitates us with loot under the nose, the game does it badly enough to reward the curious player. Where Odyssey literally drowned us under a mountain of equipment, Valhalla relies on parsimony. Very few weapons are available to the player, and it is up to him to improve them by collecting materials to change their look and characteristics. A God of War approach, one might say, which agrees fairly moderately with a title like Assassin's Creed.

JVFR

Same reservation about character progression. With each level gained, the player gains two skill points to spend as he wishes on an absolutely titanic talent tree. Most branches only grant passive improvements (in defense, attack, discreet eliminations), but there are also more interesting combat skills such as the possibility of reflecting projectiles or chaining assassinations in the event of no -detection. It works, but rare are the skills to really change the situation; the gameplay does not change drastically between a level 10 Eivor and a level 150 Eivor. Tired of it, I sometimes forgot to spend my skill points, knowing full well that it wouldn't change much to my adventure.

JVFR

Beating drum immersion

We have already discussed it above: the writing of Assassin's Creed Valhalla seems much neater to us than on the previous opuses. Eivor is also one of the best witnesses of these efforts, as the character shines with his wisdom and his striking projections. Let us specify as an aside that it is possible to change the sex of the character on the fly, without any difficulty or change of rhythm, by a simple passage in the menus of the game. If you wish to do one out of two missions with one or an Eivor, free to you!

JVFR

Surprisingly a poet, Eivor is a loyal character whose compassion sometimes clashes with his strong sense of honor. Devoted to the greatness of his brother Sigurd, Eivor has to step back at times, even though his subjects see him/her as a born leader. What to prepare the kindling which, soon, will welcome the embers of a confrontation that the Oracles predict from the outset.

If the scenario seems telephoned in several respects, it remains pleasant to follow. Especially since the player is invited to invest in it: thanks to the dialogue choices, we have the possibility of influencing certain decisions. Because yes, Assassin's Creed Valhalla has many storyline branches that can vary the end of the adventure.

Artistically stunning

We still have to deal with the case of the main character of any self-respecting Assassin's Creed: his playground. Let's be frank, we go less towards the Ubisoft license for what it tells us than for the trips it promise.

In Valhalla, most of the game takes place in XNUMXth century England. A magnificent territory, which bathes its fall colors in a warm light causing amazement at all times.

JVFR

Assassin's Creed Valhalla is photogenic, and it knows it. Also it is a real pleasure to find a Photo mode as permissive as that of Ubisoft which allows you to freeze the image at any time to immortalize a scene.

JVFR

You probably guessed it, but the Anglo-Saxon context of the title means that, for the second time in the history of the license, we will trample on a certain Lunden: the ancestor of London that we already made ours in Assassin's Creed Syndicate. A nice wink, especially after the release, just two weeks ago, of Watch Dogs Legion. What can we say except that things have changed a lot in some 1160 years of history?

JVFR

Assassin's Creed Valhalla : l'avis de Clubic

Discovering a new Assassin's Creed is like receiving a box of your favorite chocolates at Christmas. We know exactly what we will find inside, and we will stuff ourselves with it until we have a stomach ache.

Valhalla does not renew a well-established formula. Ubisoft seeks less to create than to synthesize all that has been done best in terms of open worlds over the past ten years.

Admittedly, the alchemist has a certain talent. By incorporating extracts from Breath of the Wild and Red Dead Redemption 3 into a large pot of The Witcher 2, Assassin's Creed Valhalla tastes like a potion that we already know well. She will not offend anyone, and especially invites those who have missed the previous tastings to join the party.

As much to conclude by spinning the metaphor: Assassin's Creed Valhalla is a very good vintage.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla

The two-year hiatus that Ubisoft granted itself after Odyssey allowed the publisher to refine its recipe. Valhalla invents nothing, or almost nothing, but recites its lesson with the ease of a studious and diligent student. We have a great time strolling through the autumn meadows of an England plagued by the Vikings.