The Assassin's Creed Valhalla blade is bringing back an old-school mechanic: players will once again be able to score one-hit kills with this iconic secret weapon of the Brotherhood.
Kotaku recently spoke with the game's Creative Director Ashraf Ismail to get some more details about what's coming in this latest entry to the Assassin's Creed franchise. Among some of the new reveals is how the Viking Warrior Eivor will make use of the hidden blade and how that will affect the game.
"Eivor receives the hidden blade quite early on," Ismail explained. "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.:
Mind, that doesn't necessarily mean that you'll be able to press X to win and get some easy kills. In fact, Ashraf Ismail emphasized that executing this technique is going to require a measure of skill on the player's part. You'll certainly get plenty of practice, though, as it seems you'll be able to carry the blade with you throughout the majority of the game.
Does the Assassin's Creed Valhalla Blade Instakills Mean a Return to Stealth?
The early appeal of the Assassin's Creed games is that it was akin to Hitman — kill fast, kill quietly, and then make a quiet (but hasty) escape. The newer games have tended to lean towards action, but this may be an indication of a return to stealthy gameplay.
Another hint towards more stealthy gameplay is the return of "social stealth." If you don't recall, that was the mechanic where you could stab a dude in the face and then quickly blend into a crowd, disappearing amongst dozens of Italian citizens. This mechanic, too, has been gone from recent games, but it's making a comeback for Valhalla.
It would, however, be a bit difficult to reconcile the new Assassin's Creed Valhalla blade with the boisterous, bloody action of Viking warriors. After swinging the pendulum from stealth to action in recent years, Ubisoft may be making a move for somewhere in the middle.
Are you happy to see the return of the hidden blade in Assassin's Creed Valhalla? Do you prefer that the games lean more towards stealth or action? Let us know in the comments below!
