Yeah, I usually pair it up with a more focused game and will switch between the two.
If you only have a bit of time to spend you can explore a bit and obliterate some random camps. If you have more time you can progress through the story.
I think the farthest I’ve gone back is Brotherhood and I think I can draw the line there. In hindsight I just grinded through the story because there was no pacing or anything to tell me otherwise and to go explore – so it’s partially my fault. Also, the last area was a buggy jump puzzle - screw that.
Yeah, I came into this series late and enjoy the open world and leveling aspects. But had been avoiding Valhalla because I hadn’t really heard great things about it.