Assassin's Creed Valhalla finally gets New Game+ six years later with patch 1.8.0

Ubisoft has released version 1.8.0 of Assassin's Creed Valhalla, a free update that lands six years after the open-world Viking adventure first launched. As reported by Vandal, the company itself bills it as the "most requested update" by its community, and the name is no accident: it finally adds New Game+, visual improvements for PS5 Pro, achievements and a round of quality-of-life tweaks.

The patch has been available on all platforms since November 5 at 15:00 CET. That a game released in 2020 is getting a feature as basic as New Game+ in 2026 says a lot about the sustained pressure from players, but also about Ubisoft's interest in keeping one of the series' biggest titles alive while the community keeps asking for this kind of content.

What you need to know

• Version 1.8.0 and free: there is nothing to pay; it arrives as a standard update for anyone who already owns the game.
• Repeatable New Game+: lets you start the adventure again at a higher difficulty and can be chained over and over.
• No true ending required: according to the source, you will not need to reach the true ending to start a New Game+.
• PS5 Pro improvements: the game receives specific visual upgrades for Sony's most powerful console.
• Achievements and quality of life: new achievements and general improvements that polish the experience.

A New Game+ designed for everyone to use

The star of the patch is, without question, New Game+ mode. Vandal points out that it has been one of the most requested features from players for more than five years, which is understandable given the sheer size of Eivor's adventure: a massive campaign, dozens of regions and a progression system that invites you to come back with a fully built character. Until now, finishing Valhalla meant shelving it or wiping your save; from this version onward, it means being able to start another, tougher run.

The smartest detail is the access requirement. You do not need to reach the true ending to unlock the mode, and that is key in a game where a huge number of people drop off before completing every last mission. If Ubisoft had locked New Game+ behind the story's final conclusion, only a handful of completionists would ever have used it. Opening it up earlier turns it into a genuine tool for replaying, for cranking up the difficulty just for fun, and for giving a second life to saves that have been sitting there for years.

Patch size on each platform

The update is not the same size on every system. Vandal breaks down the download size per platform, and the differences are striking: on Steam and PS5 the patch is relatively light, while on Xbox Series it is almost double the size of the PC version on Steam.

If you play on a last-generation console or on Xbox Series, set aside some space and some patience: we are talking about double-digit downloads. PS5 users come out best, with the smallest patch of all.

Our take

At Underworld Lordz we welcome the news, but with a raised eyebrow. That a feature as basic as New Game+ takes six years to reach a game of this size is no small detail: it is proof that it launched incomplete in an area the community had been asking about since day one. Ubisoft sells it as the "most requested update", and that is true, but we should not applaud as a gift what would have been standard back in 2020. Making it free is, quite simply, the bare minimum.

That said, for those who play seriously and for those who create content, the move has real value. A repeatable New Game+ with higher difficulty opens the door to challenge runs, to build comparisons with a maxed-out character, and to replay series that previously made no sense in Valhalla. For the creators in our community it is an excellent excuse to return to a world many viewers know but few have pushed to the limit on a higher difficulty. And the new achievements will give trophy hunters a concrete reason to reinstall.

The PS5 Pro improvements are welcome, although they arrive when the game is no longer the technical showcase it once was. What we would really like to see is this lesson applied to the next Assassin's Creed games from launch, not on their sixth anniversary. In the meantime, Valhalla is once again a very solid option to replay this winter.

What do you think?

Six years of waiting for a New Game+ that should have been there from the start, but which finally arrives for free and with the difficulty turned up. Are you going to reinstall Valhalla and return to England with Eivor, or is this patch too late for you? Tell us in the team chat or on our Discord.