As someone who has been stuck in some form of isolation for the past 16 months now, AC Valhalla has been like a nice dream that I can fall into at the end of these challenging days. Not anymore, I have now attempted the Odin Mine Hindeout more times than I can count, finally managed to kill the target and guess what - still not even a Bronze medal.

What is the point of choosing to play the game on easy mode, then? Who do you make these decisions for, exactly? Most of your players are casual gamers who do it for the story and to unwind.
Let us know when you decide to fix this slap in the face.

@cosmin-bv I play also on easy for a specific reason: it's not realistic to strike four times in the head, fire three arrows in the stomach and having you target still alive. It's a common problem of that kind of games, and I find that playing on easy makes the combat more realistic, thus bring me more immersion.

But on topic: my humble opinion of the mastery challenge... well, I managed to finish the first quest with three bronze medals, it was fun, but I dont plan to continue. I dont like that kind of "challenge", it's too ... arcade and somehow unrelated to the game and the theme of the game.
I respect those who like it, but it'äs not my cup of tea.

Recently, I attempted the archery challenge in Odin Mine Hideout simply because I wanted to see what everyone was complaining about, and I have to say that I could only get so far, as there are only so many goons you can take out clean with a headshot.

@cosmin-bv I agree with your sentiment, and that of @TORFINR, that these mastery challenges are too far removed from the general atmosphere of the game. That said, I have started to wonder if these mastery challenges aren’t really about getting you to master absurd scenarios with rigged gear and abilities, but rather about validating a player’s particular play style. For instance, I personally found the stealth challenges to be quite achievable, but that happens to be because my regular play style operates primarily on sneaking around. The archery and melee challenges have been difficult for me, but others have found it easier than the stealth challenge. Still, it is kind of worrisome that some dev-team decided to implement this stuff. I sincerely hope it is not featured in the next iteration of the game series.

Bear challenges I golded first, but not at the first attempt. Eventually after many, many attempts I had all 15 gold medals, I guess that's why it's called "Mastery" and not "Easy" challenges ‍️.
It taught me patience (in Raven challenges you need to start moving at the right time not to be spotted, you need to know how enemies move, and sometimes I rushed blindly and got detected right away) and got some sick shooting skills on my dualshock pad.

@bielik01 I still think it says more about a game if the player has the freedom to approach a scenario with different methods and play styles. Remember those sandbox missions in AC Unity and Syndicate? The protagonist would evaluate the environment and basically give the player important information or strategize all the opportunities to help the player get to the target for assassination. It would have been nice if Eivor ‘observed’ all of the aspects of a mastery challenge so the player could strategize a path to success.

@thenorfolkian it's announced to come with second DLC
Assassin's Creed Valhalla The Siege Of Paris DLC Brings Back Unity's Black Box Missions

@bielik01 Dope. I had not watched that recap video yet... thanks for the share!

@bielik01

Oh wow!! That's great about the Black Box missions!! Thank you for sharing that.

In regards to the mastery challenges, I despise them!! I so hope Ubisoft doesn't bring anymore of those back.

@cosmin-bv I also play the game to relax and not to increase my stress level. For the most part I play on default mode but sometimes stitch to easy mode if I become frustrated (as has happened in some boss fights). But I don't see the mastery challenges as a [removed]; they have nothing to do with the main game or with the expansion. Rather, I see them as a sop thrown to all those who have been complaining about the lack of challenges. I've tried the mastery challenge, but they just increase my stress level, so to heck with it. I just hope the devs don't screw up Siege of Paris and make it more like Odyssey, which I hate.

@cosmin-bv I also play the game to relax and not to increase my stress level. For the most part I play on default mode but sometimes stitch to easy mode if I become frustrated (as has happened in some boss fights). But I don't see the mastery challenges at a FU; they have nothing to do with the main game or with the expansion. Rather, I see them as a sop thrown to all those who have been complaining about the lack of challenges. I've tried the mastery challenge, but they just increase my stress level, so to heck with it.

Agree.

I just hope the devs don't screw up Siege of Paris and make it more like Odyssey, which I hate.

Disagree
Making it like Odyssey would be for me the best thing they can do. The pinnacle of replayability in the AC franchise, how can it be a bad idea to not copy it