It is becoming more popular for video games to feature celebrity cameos. With games likeCyberpunk 2077featuring Keanu Reeves and wrestler/actorBatista being added toGears 5, it is no surprise thatAssassin’s Creed Valhallais the latest game to announce a celebrity cameo.
The 2019 Most Valuable Player and 2020 MLB World Champion Cody Bellinger will join the cast ofAssassin’s Creed Valhallaas Otta Sluggasson. Bellinger’s in-game character is described as “a Dane with a knack for hitting rocks very very far.” The name is fitting for the Dodgers' first baseman, as he hit 47 home runs in 2019 and ranked top five in slugging percentage.
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Sluggasson will be a non-playable character that will join themain character, Eivor, in the quest to settle on British land. Bellinger underwent a face scan, performed all the voice lines, and used a mo-cap suit to swing various weapons including a bat, an axe, and a hammer. Bellinger describes the experience of creating his character, “On the wall, there were a bunch of different kinds of weapons I could of used or did use. It felt natural to me, because it was me swinging a bat in a video game and I do that all the time in real life.”
In the reveal trailer, Otta Sluggasson meets Eivor for the first time and shows off his rock hitting skills, which fans may see on the battlefield when the game releases. Sluggasson wields a bat with spikes at the end, but based on Bellinger’s mo-cap experience, Sluggasson may even pick up an axe or hammer during theevents ofAssassin’s Creed: Valhalla.
Recently in an ESPN interview after winning the World Series, Bellinger shared his excitement for becoming a Viking and being involved in a popular video game franchise. When asked about his newAssassin’s Creedcharacter, Bellinger said, “I’m kind of a video game nerd. My brother and I playedAssassin’s Creedback in the day and used to love it. The graphics are so realistic. It’s a game that will take up a lot of your time.“Assassin’s Creedis making a few changes with the franchise blueprint with gameplay and combat, and as a long-time fan of the franchise, it seems Bellinger is able to pick up thenewValhallacombat systemwith ease.
After creating Otta Sluggasson, Bellinger was able to sit down and playAssassin’s Creed Valhalla. Bellinger takes advantage of the combat system by wielding many different weapons during his gameplay. Bellinger uses a spear, dual-wields axes and hammers, and even performs a shield finisher to take down waves of enemies.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’scombat system will allow players to wield various combinations of weapons and unleash devastating attacks with every weapon. Along with the new weapon system,Assassin’s Creed Valhallawill also feature aViking settlement with many customization optionsthat functions much like a hub RPG feature. However,Valhallawill also have classicAssassin’s Creedfeatures like assassination targets that can be accepted in the Settlement.
Assassin’s Creed Valhallawill release for PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X on November 10, followed by a PS5 release on November 12.
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