Assassin's Creed: Valhalla - Die Zeichen Ragnaröks (Add-on) (PS4)

Die Zeichen Ragnaröks ist eine solide Erweiterung zu Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Eine riesige Region mit zahlreichen Aufgaben warten erneut darauf, von euch entdeckt zu werden. Leider gab es davon im Hauptspiel bereits mehr als genug, weswegen ein wenig Abwechslung schön gewesen wäre. Auch die Handlung liefert kaum nennenswerte Erkenntnisse, sei es zum Thema Isu oder der Gegenwart.

Die erste große Erweiterung „Zorn der Druiden“ macht die Spielwelt von Assassin’s Creed Valhalla um ein Land reicher und das kann sich durchaus sehen lassen. Irland überzeugt mit einigen Neuerungen, darunter dem Handel mit fernen Ländern oder neuen Weltereignissen und bietet dank seiner umfangreichen Handlung zahlreiche Stunden Inhalt.

Stattdessen tauchen Spieler ein in eine realistische, brutale Welt und durchleben eine Handlung, die sich selbst zu jedem Zeitpunkt ernst nimmt. Obwohl man sich stilistisch von einigen Vorlagen inspirieren lässt, bestechen Protagonist Eivor, sowie die gesamte Spielwelt mit viel Tiefe und Liebe zum Detail. Ein beeindruckendes Ergebnis das sich mehr als sehen lassen kann!

However, after an intriguing opening, Dawn of Ragnarök falls back on old habits, and that feeling--coupled with how the expansion's narrative themes feel too similar to the base game--creates an experience that too often resembles something you've already had once before.

If Valhalla is a love letter to the Assassin's Creed series, connecting each of the previous 11 mainline games and unifying their frayed plotlines into one cohesive thread, Wrath of the Druids is an unneeded and, frankly, unwanted postscript.

Wrath of the Druids is simply more Assassin's Creed Valhalla, with a few added twists and some of the same baggage. The benefit of not swinging for the fences is that you're getting more AC comfort food, even if it falls far short of a home run. For 25 bucks, you might need something a little more than that.

This Viking epic flexes its gore-soaked, tattooed muscles when it comes to world-building, and medieval England wows with its enchanting untamed vistas. It’s also portioned out at a steady pace and, if not for the repetitive, limited combat, Valhalla could have ranked even higher among our favourite games in the series.

For the time being, then, Valhalla is a superb but familiar open-world experience. It’s sure to excite fans of the series with another impressively content-rich and beautiful sandbox to explore, and it might just interest newcomers and lapsed Assassin’s Creed players with the intrigue of its setting and more streamlined overall design.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla is a massive, beautiful open-world fueled by brutal living and the dirty work of conquerors. It's a lot buggier than it should be but also impressive on multiple levels.

Eivor is a good hero with an identity that drives the mystery behind the main narrative, and she shines in the self-contained arc structure of Valhalla's story. The supporting cast may not shine as brightly, but it's easy to forgive that when exploring England and discovering new nuggets of worldbuilding is so rewarding.

With an engaging combination of combat, exploration, and crafted story content, this Viking legend is an epic with a little something for everyone.

It sacrifices story for scale. It's designed to discourage stealth in favor of epic battles. It's true to the Viking experience, but it isn't true to the Assassin's Creed experience. That's why it comes off feeling like the least essential game in the whole series. Impressive in some of its accomplishments, but inessential all the same.