Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is a Story About Loyalty
By: Alex Anyfantis
Tags: Narrative, Videogames, Design, Gaming, Features

But the main appeal for me was the story. It’s not quite as personal as Odyssey (this time around it’s far more political), but there’s a sense of camaraderie that shines through all the bloodshed. A few members of a Norwegian tribe come to a disagreement with their leader’s decision to bow before the king of the region and sign a peace treaty with him (apparently brushing their interests aside in the process). So, they decide to sail out in search of a new place to call home. This band of Norsemen is headed up by the son of the tribe’s leader, Sigurd, and his best friend and second-in-command, Eivor (who also happens to be the main character). Eventually, after weeks of sailing, they land on England’s shores and find a place to create a settlement for themselves.

In order to do this, they need to find out who their neighbours are and how to make nice with them. Both Sigurd and Eivor head out into different locations of this new land in order to find the local leaders, come to terms with them, and make allies of them. That’s basically the game in a nutshell. You run around from one place to the next, doing quests in order to create alliances for you and your clan. Of course, as the game goes on, there are plenty of other things to do. One of the most important tasks involves taking out the members of the Order of the Ancients, a group of people who have taken control over much of England — they are a church-affiliated group who operate in the shadows.

From here on out, I’ll be in spoiler territory.

As the game progresses, Eivor and Sigurd find more and more allies. But the pair also begin to drift apart. While Eivor’s goals are solely focused on helping his clan solidify themselves within this harsh new environment in order to create a new home, Sigurd has come under the influence of a mysterious new figure called Basim. Because of this character — who ends up being much closer to Eivor — Sigurd begins to experience delusions of grandeur about himself and cast aside his responsibilities as the leader of the clan. He sets off on a wild goose chase under the misguided belief that he’s some kind of godly being.

It isn’t until the midpoint of the game that Eivor begins to notice this change in Sigurd’s behaviour. But what follows is up to the player. Whether the pair — who were close as brothers — will begin to drift apart with no ope of reconciliation, or whether they will remain faithful to their friendship despite the odds, depends on your actions. Another key factor in how these events play out is Eivor’s hidden relationship with Randvi, Sigurd’s wife, which is also optional.

Valhalla can be a heartwarming in terms of the idea that you can still believe in someone no matter how crazy they might appear to you; it’s a reminder of how important it is not to give up on the most relationships we’ve forged during the course of our lives, and how rewarding it can be to have those people we care about close to us.

Alternatively, it can be a tragic tale of the heartbreak that results when those you held closest betray your trust, become distant, and offer only a sad reminder of the person you once believed in. Your path through Valhalla can be an examination of how difficult it can be to have to cut those ties in order to move forward to bigger and better things in your life.

How you choose to move through the story — whether you lose your brother or return home with him — is entirely up to you.