You can fish and pet dogs and cats in a HUGE, free-roaming beautiful world.
What can you possibly want more ?

Playing this felt like playing a wannabe AC Odyssey made by a sh*tty off-brand copycat company. It's not ALL bad, but it is just worse than the last game in pretty much every way you can think of.

Overall I'd give it a 5.5/10 - playable but frankly there's better uses for a gamer's money.

Wow..... 87 hours later, I think I finally beat the game. At least I think it's over. I've finished pacifying England, and I have finished the story of Sigurd and Basim.

This is probably one of the best Assassin's Creed games ever made, if not the best.

As a big Skyrim fan, I really loved all the Dane and Norse themes in this game. Unfortunately, the game fails to stay in Norway, where it best belongs, and instead takes you to the land of old pre-united England.

While not exactly a good thing, the story is very long, hence my 87 hours. In perspective, I reached the end of Assassin's Creed Origins in about 44 hours. In this game you will go through each territory of England and complete an arc there to gain the loyalty and support of the King or Jarl of that territory. It's so long that you might forget what you're even trying to do. Unfortunately, while the story has some great moments, it all amounts to nothing, and even worse, by the time you do reach the end, there's absolute zero satisfaction. You are left feeling incomplete. There's not even a credits roll. You're just left to roam the open world and go for 100% completion.

Also, unfortunately, I do not see any option for New Game+, so I will never again replay the story. I was really hoping to do it once more to make different decisions, but I cannot be bothered to do it again from scratch.

Aside from these major disappointments, I do appreciate the length of the game and the content it includes. Some games end too soon, and there's nothing to keep you playing.

This game leaves a lot to be desired but was overall an amazing game. If Assassin's Creed Shadows follows in the footsteps of Valhalla while improving on these things and many more, Shadows will probably be one of the best games of all time. OF ALL TIME.

Skål!

At one point, I said that AC Odyssey wasn’t really an Assassin’s Creed game… well, this one is even less so. Stealth is even more irrelevant, the raven is almost useless, special vision has been nerfed, but hey—now we have raids! Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy them, but for over a decade now, the series has been drifting further and further from its roots. First, we had large-scale battles in the previous game, and now we’re raiding monasteries. What started as a grounded sci-fi story has now fully embraced mysticism and mythological fantasy.

The game itself is massive—even without the DLC, which doesn’t add anything particularly groundbreaking. The maps are enormous, packed with activities, and better designed than in previous entries. I really liked the mini-quests that breathe life into the world. Sometimes, it’s as simple as reading a discarded note or listening to someone’s song, and other times, it’s more involved. One of the most memorable ones involved a little girl living alone because her father had left months ago, promising to return before the last leaf fell from a tree. We tell her that he’s probably dead, pull off the last leaf, and leave her crying. Wow…

Other activities, like the cairns where you stack stones, are frustrating thanks to the physics. The world is divided into various regions, each with its own local ruler who needs help, and while the stories themselves are often quite good, that’s all the main plot really is. No spoilers, since it’s the basic premise—after being exiled from Norway, we have to establish alliances across England. That’s 95% of the story, and the arcs aren’t particularly interconnected, making it feel more like a TV series.

The remaining 5% is a lackluster settlement story that leads nowhere interesting—aside from some ridiculous links to Isu genetic memory and reincarnation programs, all loosely stitched together. The whole modern-day subplot, with the "Keeper of Truth" (or whatever his title was) and Hermes' staff, also goes nowhere.

On top of that, there’s Odin’s storyline, which is told… when the main character is high on hallucinogens. So let’s get this straight: Layla Hassan is inside an Animus simulation, reading the genetic memory of a protagonist, who inside that memory drinks a witch’s potion and sees a simulation of Asgard (and other mythological realms) because the Isu somehow… also created simulations of their own? Absolute nonsense—just the writers desperately forcing mythology into a setting that wasn’t originally built for it. That said, the Norse mythological worlds themselves are surprisingly well done and provide a nice change of pace.

What I did enjoy was the combat system, the weapons and armor, and the RPG mechanics—not in terms of roleplaying (since dialogue choices barely matter) but in terms of progression. Frequent level-ups (all the way to level 537) feel rewarding, even if they don’t significantly improve your character.

Parkour, however, is dead. It’s not really needed, but when you do use it, it’s often clunky. You get stuck in mid-air, and if your character jumps onto something vaguely resembling a ledge or crate during combat, good luck getting off—leaving you completely exposed to enemies.

That said, the game actually runs better than the last two entries. Somehow, Ubisoft managed to optimize it while also improving the visuals, and it genuinely looks great.

Overall? Yeah, it’s a really good game… just not Assassin’s Creed. :)

the most crashes i have playing a video game

The cinematics are so horrible and you cant skip. Took me a year to actually make it to the game becasue I just alt f4 and play something else/.

8===)

I am quite late to the party in giving an opinion on this game, but having purchased the complete edition and playing through after various bug fixes and patches etc. I am thoroughly enjoying my time with Valhalla. I have heard many say it's too big and drawn out but I have been doing various story quests both in England and Ireland and then in parts of the nine realms so never feel tired of a particular area as i am keeping it fresh every time I play. It is a true gem that may overstay it's welcome at some stage but I am not going for every collectible and secret, just enjoying the missions,story and lore of this great game. If you love Vikings and Norse mythology then like myself you will love this game.

Game crashes WAY too much. Once this has been patched I will try again.

nah. play Odyssey again instead. Objectively better in every way.