Be A Viking With Assassin's Creed Valhalla

After more than a year of waiting, Ubisoft has finally announced the latest episode in its ever-popular Assassin’s Creed video game saga: “Valhalla”, scheduled for release at the end of 2020 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Google Stadia and PC.

After spells in industrial-era London, ancient Greece and ancient Egypt, the series is now taking the story to a much-requested period, the highpoint of Vikings in England at the end of the 9th century.

The game’s storytellers are aiming to tell things from a perspective that’s sympathetic to this group of Norse warriors, desperate to find a new home in Britain.

“They’ve been a bit vilified,” Ubisoft’s Ashraf Ismail, game director for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, told gaming news website IGN, referring to the traditional image of Vikings as an invading force of brutal pillagers.

After spells in industrial-era London and ancient Egypt, the Assassin’s Creed games series is now headed for 9th-century England. (Photos: Ubisoft/dpa)

Eivor, the lead character who can be played as a man or woman, “leads a clan of Norse people across the icy North Sea to flee Norway’s endless war and dwindling resources,” the makers say.

“If they hope to survive, they’ll have to build a new home in the hostile lands of England.”

If attention to detail is anywhere close to the depiction of ancient Greece in “Assassin’s Creed Odyssey”, praised by scholars for balancing entertainment and historical accuracy, then English history buffs should be in for a fun adventure.

Eivor, the lead character who can be played as a man or woman, leads a clan of Norse people into England in search of a new home.

Ubisoft will likely also be hoping that the millions who tuned in to six seasons of the “Vikings” TV series will also be keen to play.

Playing the hero, you’ll control the destiny of a Viking clan that is searching for a new home after fleeing from Norway. As to be expected for a game about Vikings, longship attacks, pillagings and raids on Saxon strongholds will play a big role.

Versions for the new consoles PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X are also planned.