What should be to the surprise of absolutely no one, Ubisoft has added paid XP boosters to Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla. Normally this wouldn’t even be considered news, yet when Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey launched many felt the game was intentionally grindy to promote the purchase of the XP boosters found within that game’s shop. So, has Ubisoft made Valhalla a slog to progress through with this update?
Ubisoft has added paid XP boosters to Valhalla, but you don’t need them.
Unlike Odyssey, Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla is a much snappier, finely tuned experience, and it was absurdly easy to stay ahead of the story’s leveling requirements. So much so, that when myself and other reviewers noticed the lack of XP boosters in the store we assumed they wouldn’t make a return. They weren’t needed, and the game felt fine to play without them.
I should have known better, because Ubisoft has officially added them to Valhalla’s in-game store. There’s only two, and they are permanent increases to your experience earned from all sources. The basic booster is $10 and boosts XP earned by 50%, and the second comes in a $15 bundle that includes a 50% increase to money (silver) found.
Game Informer’s Joe Juba reached out to Ubisoft for clarification as to why these XP boosters were being added now, a full month after Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla launched, and the reply was the usual “they’re convenience items” speech we’ve heard time and time again when “utilities” items are sold for cash. The statement reads:
“As more and more post-launch content becomes available, we want to give the option to players to advance their progression. Utilities allow players who lack the time to fully explore the world of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla to be able to acquire the game’s best gear, as well as other items, by accelerating their progress. For instance, these players can purchase maps that uncover some interesting locations in the world, but would still have to visit and play them to get their rewards.”
Like the other “Utility” items in Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla’s store, I really don’t see the point in these boosters. The lack of time argument has never sat well with me when applied to single-player games, because players can engage with them at their own pace. Unless a game is intentionally tuned in such a way as to render the experience tedious without them, XP boosters are just kinda pointless. Thankfully, the experience and leveling curve in Valhalla has not been altered to make purchasing these XP boosters more compelling.
If you disagree and want to use a booster to plow through Valhalla faster then by all means you do you. As for everyone else, you don’t need them to enjoy Valhalla. These XP boosters are now there if you want them, but at the end of the day I’d say you’re better off spending the $10 on something else.
