Social stealth and the iconic hidden blade are making a huge return in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla

I’m a good couple of hours into Assassin’s Creed Odyssey right now (Or as I call and play it, Assassin’s Creed YOLOdyssey), and there’s a lot about the game that I’m digging. It’s prettier than a comic book hot off the printing press in mint condition, the combat works a treat and I finally know that my Greek neighbour holds me in contempt after learning how “malaka” is used within that world.

The one thing I am missing though? More stealth options and the trademark hidden blade weapon of Assassin’s Creed. It’s a good thing that the combat in Odyssey is good, because cocking up during some missions and then having to deal with mercenaries is something you have to get used to in Odyssey. In the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, those nimble murder options are making a comeback as you set sail for not so merry ol’ England.

Speaking to Kotaku, Assassin’s Creed Van Halen creative director  Ashraf Isail detailed how players would be able to once again blend into crowds and pull off one-shot sneaky assassinations with the trademark hidden blade, restoring some of the shine from the Ezio trilogy to the current generation of Assassin’s Creed. “We wanted to look at the old games and see the greatness that those games had and acknowledge what’s great about the updated formula,” Ismail said.

There was an identity and a uniqueness that we wanted to bring back for Valhalla. Eivor receives the hidden blade quite early on. We continue with the idea that Eivor is not a trained assassin. Eivor is a Viking who receives this badass weapon and has to learn very quickly. Early in the experience, Eivor will learn a technique that, with the right timing … can one-shot-kill virtually anybody.

On top of that, social stealth makes a comeback as well, a feature absent in recent games and instead replaced with an urge to cheese it whenever you got into trouble. “We have a cool new spin on it,” Ismail explained.

The idea that a Norse person or a Viking is in a place that they’re not wanted, for them to sort of go incognito and kind of hide in the crowd, if you will, made a lot of sense.

The last piece of the puzzle to make Valhalla feel like a true Assassin’s Creed game? Plenty of lore, delivered in a subtle manner that longtime fans will appreciate. “We tried to anchor this game deep into the franchise and into what we’ve done, let’s say, across many of the games. So there are tendrils of the lore, of course,” Ismail said.

Sounds like a recipe for success, as the current Assassin’s Creed template mixing with some of the more well-received elements from previous games such as the hidden blade, should result in the latest chapter…finding its edge.

Last Updated: May 13, 2020