The latest Assassin’s Creed Valhalla DLC came into our hands on PC and after putting ourselves in the shoes of Odin in Dawn Of Ragnarök, we tell you what we thought.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla It was different from the rest of the installments of the saga, although if one starts reading reviews, it is difficult to find why. Perhaps it is because of its robust imprint, because of its focus on action and strategy. If we think about it, these are things that each Assassin’s Creed has, but still Valhalla it felt different. Could it be because of its theme? Those of us who came very excited to have played and enjoyed the last God of Warwe feel like the title of Ubisoft was a distant cousin of the title of Santa Monica Studioalthough with this DLC called Dawn Of Ragnarokthe whole relationship becomes even stronger, considering how little we know about the sequel to the latest installment of Kratos.
Who is Havi? A little context please.
Dawn Of Ragnarök is the last DLC for Valhalla (or at least that’s what they said) and it puts us in the shoes of Odin. Yes, the character we control is called Havibut this is how the inhabitants of Svartalfheim. The proposal of this DLC puts us in a context where Baldr has been kidnapped by Surtr and his fire giants, and we have to face everything that comes our way in order to rescue him.
The dwarves, hiding in underground caves hoping to survive the constant attacks of Surtr and his allies, They see us as a kind of savior and they are going to give us a magic bracelet with which we will be able to use five different powers of entry, although we will be able to load only two at the same time. The bracelet has the virtue of absorbing the powers of the enemies that we eliminate. Little by little, thanks to this particular object, we are going to feel that evolution that leaves that Havi so humanized and gives rise to the imaginary preconception that one can have about a young odin.
A DLC full of history and spoilers.
And we have to be very careful when reviewing Dawn Of Ragnarök, since everything we live in it is a spoiler from the original game and certain things from the other DLCs. In fact, if we start playing the DLC without having played the original game, a message makes it very clear and asks us if we are sure to continue. Although it falls short, we recommend playing all the installments in the order they came out, without skipping anything, because the complete experience is immensely rewarding. the people of Ubisoft always has very rich stories in terms of content, but to be honest, what they did around Assassin’s Creed Valhallain general, shows that they had a very well-sharpened pencil.
In this installment, something that stands out is the time bar of the magic spells that we can use with our bracelet, in addition to a mana bar, which in this case is known as a “hugr bar”. By killing enemies, the hugr bar stays in shape, and if at any time we need an extra charge, we will find some giant flowers that look like something out of a Lovecraft tale from which we will also be able to absorb their energy. While each difficulty level is different, the truth is that keeping the hugr bar alive is made simpler than it seemswhich gives a complex gameplay, but light in terms of concerns.
We are even going to come across certain special points, which act as temples or sanctuaries, where we can exchange health points for magic points, although in our experience we never really use them. Although the fighting system feels somewhat rough if we are very used to the hack ‘n slash genre and its very agile and stylized movementsonce we find the way to defend ourselves, wait, attack, use the bow and arrow, defend ourselves again, run, attack… everything becomes more evident and we are going to achieve that only the bosses or some very powerful enemies.
The strategy as a faithful companion.
In addition, there are several spells that, used strategically, will greatly simplify the game. For example, and although it seems ironic, the lava was one of the enemies that cost us the most to evade. Yes, he washes it. Immobile, without a life of its own, it is not even an NPC, but it was what caused us the most problems if we make a general balance. Many times, in the middle of a fight, trying to do what we mentioned before to attack, defend, dodge, avoid, the default movement of the character made us step on the lava, and not to mention if the strong attack of an enemy made us go back several meters, leaving us filled within this mass of fire. Obviously, the spell that we always had in tow was the one that allowed you to walk on lava. Pure magic.
Another thing to highlight about the game is the design and construction of Svartalfheim. Since we made the comparison before (and we think it’s a valid comparison from a design point of view) this huge inspiring world in Norse mythology has little to do with what we could see in God of War. That is to say: the concept is the same, the type of constructions, the immense statues, the cult of the gods. But here everything feels more real and less fanciful, so to speak. And we do not use the word as something derogatory, but as something belonging to the fantastic genre. Meanwhile in God of War everything was neat, magnanimous, bright and colorful, in Dawn Of Ragnarök it feels old, worn, much more arid and less alive, so to speak. A city that’s on fire, teeming with death.
The open world and the feeling of freedom.
It is good that, as a game that proposes an “open world”, it does not feel as pigeonholed as others in that concept of “I let you go anywhere, but if you don’t follow the right path you won’t move forward”. Here there are occasional missions at times, the kind where when you enter you won’t be able to escape until you solve the problem (usually kill a boss), but for the most part, we are going to have to go to the missions or specific points on the map. find us. There are indicators on the screen that will guide us, trying not to be so obvious with the objective, which many times we will have to discover by force. It’s not that he completely lets go of your hand in that aspect, but he does leave us with a very long rope so that we can feel that beautiful sensation of absolute freedom. In that regard, and we hope the analogy is understood, the gaming experience is closer to Death Stranding or Horizon Zero Dawn than Red Dead Redemption 2 or Metal Gear Solid V, to give a few clear examples. At least that is how we feel the freedom that is given to us.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla: Dawn Of Ragnarok it is a very interesting DLC in its history, that knows how to find its own course and that, calmly, could be a standalone game, but it knows how to behave as DLC due to the connection with the previous installments, the continuity of the story with respect to the original installment, and all the aesthetics and the Nordic theme, which, in our humble opinion, is one of its best aspects. On the other hand, we believe that this DLC will not offer much of a challenge to your skills as an almighty Norse warrior. The enemies do not attack in a pack, but each one takes their time and space, unlike the original installment where each battle was absolute chaos. Except for the occasional boss, all the enemies have a well-defined attack pattern that is quickly learned and, as we said, they do not pose a great challenge.
In summary…
The best thing about this DLC is that it leaves you wanting to continue exploring the original game. Dawn Of Ragnarök expands the experience, and doesn’t just copy the structure that brought it to life and fill it with new colors. It introduces enemies that we had not seen, new weapons, new powers, and with all this, it generates a new gameplay, a similar experience, but not the same. It feels different, and that’s what’s important. Obviously, it is clear that it is an extension of the Valhalla, but with that air of its own that makes it, at least for us, the best of the DLCs they released. If you’re still thinking about it, yes, dive right into the original game. And if after that you don’t know what DLC to buy (because the economy weighs on us all), Dawn Of Ragnarök is the one you should choosebecause it feels excellent, you enjoy it a lot, and the experience is worth recommending.
RELEASE DATE | March 10, 2022 |
DEVELOPER | ubisoft sophia |
DISTRIBUTOR | Ubisoft |
PLATAFORMS | Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5 |