Rob Fazio

Let me start by saying that this is the first game I ever bought close to its original release date. I usually never pre order or buy games on release date because they are a buggy mess and usually require several patches before they become playable. However, I am such a big fan of avatar so I decided , what the heck, and got it a week later with a nice discount from Epic. I don't regret that decision Pros: - The game looks absolutely breath taking. The environment and graphic fidelity are probably one of the most polished I have ever seen. - Exploration is so much part of the game and its experience and it is done very very well. - The hunting and gathering/foraging game loop is implemented very well and I enjoy it a lot. - flying and flight mechanic are implemented amazingly well. I can't get off my Ikran. - I really enjoy the progression system which is more based on your gear quality and skills than actually grinding XP and leveling a toon. - not overly bloated with loot like other Ubisoft games (i.e Assassin Creed) - EXTREMELY well optimized. I did not expect this one to be honest. I was really surprised how optimized and stable the game is - The enemy AI, both RDA and predators, are challenging enough and can put up a fight. You really feel like you have to plan your attack. - mostly bug free. I did not experience a single game breaking bug - there is so much to do and you can easily spend hours in this game. Take your time, Don't rush and enjoy the beautiful scenery all around you. Cons: - no manual save. This one is a bad decision in my opinion. The game auto saves for you and although it works well, I would rather be able to create my own saves - The direhorse feels like an under developed, under utilized afterthought. The animations are awkward and most likely copy pasted from Assassin Creed. It is about time that Ubisoft learn how to animate animals, and especially horses. Take a lesson from RDR2. - I wish the explorable area / map was much bigger. For a Ubisoft game it feels a lot smaller then other games like AC Odyssey or Valhalla. HIGHLY recommended! MASSIVE did an amazing job!

I've completed AC Odyssey and am about 80+ hours in Valhalla. Pros: - no more loot bloat like Odyssey was. Thanks g-d for that. - combat system is tad better than odyssey - love norse mythology. - map zones feel different and unique as oppose to copy paste Cons: - massive stability issues and lots of crashes .Even after 3 years the game still crashes A LOT. - Ubisoft customer service is non-existent. They never reply to support tickets. So keep in mind that buying their games is at your own risk because you basically buying a cat in a sack. I never buy Ubi games unless they are 50%-70% off. I have no problem supporting devs and paying full price but given how terrible Ubisoft customer service has been, I have zero incentive to support them so yea, I'll be the guy who buys your games at a super mark down. :) - terrible and bloated story line that often times feels disconnected. - graphics, even on ULTRA settings feel like something from a 2015 video game. It's good but not nearly as good as games from 2020, heck , doesn't even get close to RDR2 quality. - horse model is bad. Either devs are lazy and kept recycling old models or they have no idea how horse anatomy works - The cash shop gear and mounts have nothing to do with norse mythology and take away form the viking fantasy. It feels ridiculous and out of place. Seems like the only reason it is there is to milk the cash cow. - Cut scenes are too long. Who wants to sit and watch hours of boring cut scenes. - mobs are not that difficult. Some bosses are but regular mobs are a joke even at highest difficulties. Two heavy attacks and they are dead. I know there are many more cons than pros but overall I enjoy the game and I intend to complete it.

I want to give this game 5 stars but I really can't. First, the game feels a lot like Zelda. It is beautiful and I really enjoy the story and the funny voice acting. However, that's where the positives end for me. The control are absolutely terrible. I play on keyboard and mouse and the key bindings are a clone of pretty much any assassin's creed game. However, the movement is terrible and given this game is 95% puzzles and jumping, the control's and characters movement not being precise takes away from the fun. now let's talk about the puzzles which are pretty much what this game is all about - solving puzzles and challenges. I have absolutely no problem with puzzles and rifts being hard , but this game is taking hard to a whole new level. I started with normal and later switched to easy and still find the puzzles ridiculously hard to solve. I know I am not the only one because I read the comments on YT where people spent hours trying to solve these annoying puzzles. at some point, it is no longer fun and doesn't really feel like a game you want to play to relax. I felt like this is a game for masochists or anyone who enjoys being tortured. Too bad because it could have had a massive potential but , this is just not for me. I want to play a game without getting a high blood pressure.