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Ubisoft not worried over similarities of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, God of War

Aaron Mamiit
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Assassin’s Creed Valhalla immediately drew comparisons with 2018’s God of War, but Ubisoft is not concerned over the perceived similarities between the two games.

The world premiere trailer for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla confirmed rumors that the popular series was moving into the Viking era. The first look at the game features a bearded man fighting with fellow Vikings against English forces. The hidden blade, a mainstay in the franchise, also made an appearance.

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The Vikings of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla call to mind God of War, which placed an older Kratos in the unfamiliar territory of Norse mythology. However, Ubisoft is apparently not worried that the two games will end up being too similar to each other.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla narrative director Darby McDevitt said that “God of War is great” and “fantastic” in an interview with GameSpot, but downplayed any possible issues from both games sharing a theme.

“I wouldn’t say we’re too worried because most games, when they touch this topic, they actually skew very heavily towards the mythology. So that’s the front-facing feature–you play God of War so you can go punch Baldur in the face, meet all these characters, and travel to fantastical environments,” said McDevitt.

McDevitt added that Assassin’s Creed Valhalla will be unlike most games set in the Viking era. “I think the urge is to always immediately lead with the mythology stuff, but we really want you to feel like you’re living in the Dark Ages of England, that you’re exploring the Roman ruins left behind 400 to 500 years earlier by the Romans and the remnants of the Britannic tribes before that and even the Saxon Pagans before they all converted to Christianity.”

Cory Barlog, the director of God of War, also chimed in, agreeing with McDevitt.

No one should be worried. The myths have been around a long time and will persevere through the ages providing countless creatives a deep well to pull from – provided they are willing to sacrifice an eye for the knowledge.????

VERY excited to play AC:Valhalla when it comes out.❤️ https://t.co/qwZIN4UmPv

— Cory Barlog???? (@corybarlog) April 30, 2020

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla launch in 2020 holidays

Ubisoft has already opened pre-orders for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, which is set to launch for the PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PC, and Google Stadia in the 2020 holiday season.

The game’s main character is Eivor, who will lead the Vikings into excursions in England. Players may choose between a male and female version of Eivor, and will be able to build settlements as their home base.

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Aaron Mamiit
Aaron Mamiit
Contributor
Aaron received a NES and a copy of Super Mario Bros. for Christmas when he was 4 years old, and he has been fascinated with…
God of War Ragnarok: all Ratatasks and rewards
Kratos and Atreus sail on water in God of War Ragnarok.

As pressing a matter that the end of the world (aka Ragnarok) is in God of War Ragnarok, there's always time to diverge from the main path and do some side activities. The game is a realm-hopping adventure, and essentially every place you visit has something optional you can do. There are main side quests, called Favours, but also smaller objectives you can do throughout your playthrough called Labours.

Many Labours are tied to your skills or various collectibles, but there is one special set called Ratatasks. Named after the caretaker of the world tree Yggdrasil Ratatoskr, this mystic squirrel will present you with four categories of tasks, each with multiple tasks, tiers, and rewards for completion. There are a ton of these, so knowing which ones to go for if you want the best rewards will save you quite a bit of effort. Frost up your ax and get ready to unleash your Spartan rage as we go over every Ratatask and their rewards in God of War Ragnarok.
How Ratatasks work

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God of War Ragnarok has much healthier things to say about parenting

As young creatives in entertainment industries get older and have children, more stories about reluctant but caring fathers are popping up in mainstream media. On the film and television side, movies like Logan and shows like The Mandalorian and Obi-Wan fit this mold. Sony has championed this kind of story on the video game front with 2013's The Last of Us and 2018's God of War, both stories about complicated dads forced to take care of a child (whether their real kid or a surrogate one). God of War Ragnarok, on the other hand, is more than just a "dad game," as it has a solid message that anyone can learn from to improve their personal relationships.
Instead of glorifying a parent-child relationship with some abusive and manipulative tendencies, God of War Ragnarok stresses how important it is to respect, listen to others, and give people space when they need it. Even if you aren't a dad, God of War Ragnarok still has a poignant message about communicating that anyone can take to heart.
This article contains light spoilers for God of War Ragnarok.
Communicating the problem
The typical dad narrative follows a set premise: A fierce warrior with a troubled past must learn to love something on his own. By the end of their journey, they've shared some tender moments with their child, whether they be blood-related or found, and decide they'll do whatever it takes to protect them. While these stories can be emotional and entertaining, they often have some unsavory undertones. These stories tend to herald characters who are overprotective of those they are close to, but justify it by showing that it comes from a place of love.
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https://twitter.com/Naughty_Dog/status/1587837418748657665
Sony games have been getting more thoughtful about this. Joel suffers serious consequences for his terrible actions in The Last of Us Part II. On the flip side, God of War Ragnarok allows Kratos to improve as a person, critiquing his more ignorant actions and thematically offering lessons that anyone can learn from.
Although Kratos seemed to have a better relationship with his son by the end of God of War, we see that he's regressed back to being overprotective and restrictive to Atreus in Ragnarok. That behavior comes even as Atreus is getting older and trying to come to terms with his own identity. Throughout the game's opening, Atreus and Mimir constantly call out when he's not communicating, with Atreus going further and encouraging him to end Fimbulwinter.
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Kratos consistently pushes Atreus away at multiple points in the game, and so he goes on his own journeys. Kratos' failure is no longer because of inexperience; it's a communication issue. Throughout God of War Ragnarok, Kratos must learn that he can still be a guiding hand for Atreus but must also listen to his son and give him space when he needs it. Whether you're a parent or not, that's a good mindset to apply to any personal relationship.
In-game comms 
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Kratos and Atreus do hit a rough patch before things get better. Atreus ultimately defies Kratos on one of his adventures, meeting a character that he quickly begins to see as a more ideal father figure. He's kinder and more communicative -- though it becomes clear that his comments may have insidious ulterior motives. God of War Ragnarok demonstrates that relationships can't be constructive unless everyone is honest and open with each other.

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Every action game should take notes from God of War Ragnarok’s skill tree
Kratos looks at the Leviathan Axe.

Not every piece of God of War Ragnarok is a step up from its 2018 predecessor, but there's one area where it's an undeniable improvement: action. Like his last adventure, Kratos uses his heavy Leviathan Axe to chop up enemies and his Blades of Chaos to rain hellfire down. Both tools feel the same in the sequel but have been altered with the addition of elemental abilities that bring an extra set of moves and decisions to combat.

What stands out to me most about the game's evolved combat though is something a little less flashy. God of War Ragnarok features a handful of skill trees that let players unlock more combos. That's a bit run of the mill, as it's become a staple of Sony's first-party exclusives in recent years. However, Ragnarok's skill tree goes one step further than most games with a new customization system that encourages players to actually use those skills once they've been unlocked. The feature is so effective that I hope every character-based action game takes notes from it from here on out.
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