Narrative Director Darby McDevitt has revealed that Assassin’s Creed Valhalla will not be receiving the usual plethora of side quests of its predecessors. Ubisoft has essentially amended how side missions fit into a game with changes that may last longer than Valhalla.

Speaking exclusively to GameSpot before Ubisoft Forward, McDevitt spoke on how the Nordic edition of AC will be a game-changer that differs from Origins and Odyssey. Introducing “world events” as a feature that renders side quests as “almost nonexistent” will be the new distraction from the main story, but not to the overwhelming lengths that Odyssey bore. Described as additional activities, Valhalla will offer missions to the player that appear spontaneously, as opposed to traditional side quests where these small tasks and favors would have to be actively searched for. These activities will accompany other story arcs that will take more time but will contribute to the main quest.

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McDevitt explained that this unfamiliar approach to side quests was included to support the narrative in remaining authentic and plausible. As Eivor, the main protagonist in Valhalla, is an intruder when he arrives in England, it would not have made sense for the gameplay to produce quests from the natives before Eivor has had the chance to make allies. The aforementioned “activities” may not include NPCs at all during the primary stages of the story, but may focus more on solo endeavors like hunting or scouting.

Assassins Creed Valhalla Ship Green Sail Vikings
Assassins Creed Valhalla Ship Green Sail Vikings

As McDevitt also confirmed Eivor’s identity switch in the same interview, there may be different “activities” and “world events” depending on which Eivor has been selected. As players are able to freely jump between the male and female protagonist, it could essentially offer double the tasks to complete that may make up for the side quest shortfall.

With virtually no traditional side quests to pick away at throughout the Dark Ages of England, it’s concerning to think that players may get a little lethargic with the main quests if all roads seem to point to its progression. However, it may also be a refreshing successor to Odyssey, that required a painstaking amount of time and dedication to work through. A lot of the Odyssey side missions required completion before characters could advance within the main campaign, and players often exhaled over its time consumption. Perhaps Ubisoft has managed to find the sweet spot in balancing the main narrative with helping to cook up a love potion for a husband who’s lost his mojo.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla will release on November 17 on Xbox One, PS4 and PC.

Source: GameSpot

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