There have been many ups and down in theAssassin’s Creedfranchise, and oftentimes, this depends on who is asked. Many would agree thatAC3began a slight downward trend as the modern-day story came to a book end,AC4was a bit of an outlier, and those that followed suffered from franchise fatigue. When it comes to the most recent RPG approach to the franchise, many debate whether it’s a good thing or a bad thing. And where this is all a matter of opinion, there’s no denying thatAssassin’s Creed Valhallatakes a major leap of faith in terms of story direction. PLEASE NOTE:MASSIVE SPOILERSare ahead.
The overarching narrative ofAssassin’s Creed Valhallafinds itself in an interesting relationship with the games before it and those that are still to come. It’s a unique approach and much of this hingers on thenewACcharacter, Basim.
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AC Valhalla: Basim Works From the Dark to Serve Himself
Basim enters the narrative early on inAssassin’s Creed Valhalla, operating as a representative of theHidden Ones in the otherwise Viking-centricAssassin’s Creedgame. It’s clear that Basim has grown close to Sigurd and this relationship becomes more important as the story moves ever forward. Interestingly, Basim is initially warm to Eivor whereas his apprentice Hytham is not. This quickly becomes inverted as Basim seemingly keeps Eivor close in only the coldest of ways, whereas Hytham and Eivor come to an understanding: Eivor will not join the Hidden Ones because there’s no glory, but Hytham knows he can trust her.
As it turns out, players quickly learn that Sigurd is a reincarnation of Tyr,Eivor is a reincarnation of Odin, and Basim is a reincarnation of Loki. Obviously, this manifests at the end of the game, where players learn that Basim has been operating in the dark to serve himself, not the light per the creed. Indeed, Basim’s entire plan has been to take revenge of Eivor for the damage done in a past life, and it’s a twist because the Assassins/Assassin stand-ins are typically seen as a force of good. Here, Basim is clearly not.
It’s not just limited to that or toEivor’s story inAssassin’s Creed Valhallaeither. Due to the mechanizations left in place by Aletheia inAC Odyssey’sDLC run, the Heir of Memories does her job, joins the Reader, and inadvertently uses the staff to resurrect the dead, namely Basim. This sets up the future of the modern-day story, where the staff revolved around Basim and how he is now back in the modern day, aiming to bring Aletheia to him as well.
This’ll likely be explored inAssassin’s Creed Valhalla’s DLC, as well as the next game. But for now, fans may just want to throw all expectations out the window, as Loki is alive and well and bound to change everything.
Assassin’s Creed Valhallais out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
