With the Assassin’s Creed Valhalla release date mere weeks away, developer Ubisoft Montreal has now announced what’s in store for the viking game post-launch. The studio has revealed the RPG game’s in for a Season Pass packed to the gills with a Beowulf-related quest and two major, story-driven expansions – one of which features “”the most ambitious battle in Viking history”.
The two Assassin’s Creed Season Pass expansions, which will be accessible to dive into from early on in the open-world game’s main story campaign, will take players to Viking-era Ireland and Paris. The first, Wrath of the Druids, gets you to “unravel the mysteries of an ancient and mysterious druidic cult, tracking and discovering their members”, Ubisoft announces in a press release. There, you’ll delve deep into Gaelic mythology and folklore, while battling through “haunted forests” and “dazzling landscapes” – all while earning the favour of Gaelic kings. This first expansion is due to drop in “Spring 2021”.
The second, The Siege of Paris, takes you into one of the most famous battles of Viking history, fighting alongside “key historical figures of war-torn Frankia”.
Due to arrive sometime in “Summer 2021”, this expansion will see you infiltrate Paris and the River Seine as part of a “prolonged siege”. There will be enemy secrets to discover, and you’ll need to shore up your clan’s long-term safety by establishing strategic alliances.
Alongside these, The Legend of Beowulf “exclusive quest” will get you to uncover the “monstrous truth” behind this famous and fearsome legend. The good news is, you won’t have to wait to get stuck into this one beyond the game’s launch – it’ll be available when the game arrives.
The above goodies will be available in the Season Pass, which is included in the Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Gold, Ultimate, and Collector editions of the title. However, the studio’s also announced a lineup of free seasonal content that all Valhalla players will receive. The first season, due to drop sometime in December 2020, will include the following (via Ubisoft):
- A new settlement area, allowing players to continue to grow and evolve their settlement.
- A traditional Viking festival: the Yule festival, for players to experience in their settlement.
- A new game mode: the River Raids. Building on Valhalla’s core raiding mechanic the mode will deliver a dynamic, challenging, and highly replayable raid experience.
- The addition of the Ranks for Jomsviking: in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla players can not only create their lieutenant to be part of their raiding crew, but also recruit some from their friends and the community. In Season 1, players will see an update to the Jomsviking feature which will allow their Jomsviking to earn XP and rank up – the higher will be the rank of the lieutenant, the more silver players will earn when recruited by other players.
- Finally, as for each season, Season 1 will also come with new player skills and abilities, weapons and gear, and cosmetic items for the settlement, longship, horse, and raven.
Season 2 will launch in March 2021, and will focus on elements such as a new game mode expanding on the game’s core combat, new gear and cosmetics, additional festival and Jomsviking updates, and more. Lastly, the Assassin’s Creed Discovery Tour educational feature will be returning in Valhalla, which is set to arrive in 2021 – though a more precise window isn’t clear just yet. Phew!