In the fifteen years since the release of the firstAssassin’s Creedgame, Ubisoft has maintained an impressive development pace for its widely popular action-adventure franchise. Known for its bi-annual, and sometimes even annual releases,Assassin’s Creedis clearly the jewel in Ubisoft’s diverse catalog. But while the games explore different historical periods, ranging from ancient Egypt to Victorian London, it is clear that certain eras pique the developers’ interests more than others.
The exploration of ancient Greece inAssassin’s Creed: Odysseywas followed byImmortals: Fenyx Risingin the span of only two years. In March of this year, the studio will take players back to the golden age of piracy first visited in 2013’sAssassin’s Creed 4: Black Flagwith the upcomingSkull & Bones.But with the wide range of existing content and fascinating historical periods at Ubisoft’s disposal, the number of standalone games inspired byAssassin’s Creedis surprisingly slim.
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Ubisoft Can Focus On Cultural Mythology To Explore New Civilizations
Indigenous peoples of North America make several appearances in the series. Most notably,Assassin’s Creed 3’sprotagonist Connoris a Haudenosaunee Native American. Although the game’s narrative drive comes from Connor’s commitment to protecting his village and the wider native population, the real focus of the game is the American War of Independence. More recently,Assassin’s Creed: Valhallaincludes side missions in pre-colonial coastal North America with a heavy native NPC population.
Very few games focus on Indigenous peoples, especially those of North America. Similar to howImmortals: Fenyx Risingleaned heavily into the mythology of ancient Greece, an exploration of an Indigenous population’s legends and myths would be a welcome subject in an industry severely lacking in native representation. Moreover,Assassin’s Creed 3expanded the franchise’s trademark parkourto be compatible with navigating quickly through colonial America’s forests. Reimagining the gameplay that would best complement indigenous mythologies opens up plenty of opportunities for Ubisoft to develop a game inspired by previousAssassin’s Creedentries while simultaneously creating a unique, standalone game.
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Assassin’s Creed Has A Lot of Unique Gameplay Mechanics to Expand On
Similar to howSkull & Bonesis focusing on the naval combat made popular byAssassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag, and evenAssassin’s Creed: Odysseyto a lesser degree, future Ubisoft titles not part of the series could choose to focus on some of the more unique gameplay aspects of previousAssassin’s Creedgames.Assassin’s Creed: Unityarguably has the smoothestand more fun parkour in the entire franchise. As fans have long been calling for Ubisoft to return to the urban environments of earlier games after the recent RPG titles have expanded their open worlds and largely de-emphasized urban navigation, a game that focuses heavily on parkour could satiate fans of the series and attract new players who value unique gameplay.
One of the most distinctive tools in the series isAssassin’s Creed: Syndicates’grappling hook. Making it much easier to traverse the tall buildings and wide streets of Victorian London, the grappling hook invoked a style of gameplay similar to that ofBatman: Arkham Cityand its sequels. A standalone Ubisoft game could lean into the detective genre made popular by the Victorian Sherlock Holmes serializations, expanding upon the stealthy gameplay and quick escapes made possible by the grappling hook. The idiosyncratic play styles ofAssassin’s Creed: UnityandAssassin’s Creed: Syndicatehave largely been abandoned by Ubisoft, but the effects of their unique gameplay should inspire attention on the part of the developers and offers a lot of room for standalone Ubisoft games to refine and improve upon previous titles.
Whichever pathUbisoft chooses to go down, the sheer amount of content in theAssassin’s Creedfranchise gives developers a lot of room to create interesting titles reminiscent, but independent of, the popular series. Whether it be exploring overlooked cultures and their mythologies, choosing a gameplay aspect and really leaning into it, or something else entirely, creating new standalone titles akin toImmortals: Fenyx RisingorSkull & Boneshelps keep things fresh and gives players a reason to keep coming back for more.
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