Following a report from Bloomberg’sJason Schreier, Ubisoft revealed thatAssassin’s Creed Infinityis indeed real, and it aims to take the series in a new direction.
Assassin’s Creed Infinityis under development by not one, but two Ubisoft studios, Montreal and Quebec. Ubisoft Montreal most recently worked onAssassin’s Creed Valhalla, whilst Ubisoft Quebec’s last title in the series wasOdysseyin 2019.
In a rather detailedblog post, Ubisoft revealed that the two teams would be working to developAssassin’s Creed Infinityin a more “integrated and collaborative manner”, rather than passing the baton from game to game. Although the post doesn’t ever use the words ‘online’, ‘live’, or ‘service’, Schreier revealed this is the direction the series is going in.
In recent years, theAssassin’s Creedseries has embraced the RPG genre with open arms and ditched the stealthy action-adventure games they once were in the days ofIIorBrotherhood. The change hasn’t been for everyone, with some fans noting that they don’t even consider them the same games anymore. So when Bloomberg’s report revealedAssassin’s Creed Infinitywould take the franchise in yet another direction, fans didn’t take the news too well.
Twitter, Reddit, and the rest of the internet went into hysteria at the thought of yet another franchise turning into a money-grabbing online service. Many fans were quick to compareInfinitytoFortnite, which is filled with so many microtransactions, skins, and other cosmetics it’s enough to make your eyes water.
But, the internet did what it does best and instantly jumped to conclusions based on a single report, before there was even confirmation from Ubisoft themselves. The release ofInfinityis still years away according to Schreier’s report, which means if Ubisoft can do it right, an online serviceAssassin’s Creedcould be a really good step for the series.
Now, you might think I’m being controversial for the sake of it, but I do completely understand why a live serviceAssassin’s Creedthat never ends could be absolutely awful. IfValhallawas already too much to handle,Infinitycould be even worse. And yes, it’s likely to include a bunch of microtransactions to make you spend loads of money. Personally, as long as they’re purely cosmetics, who cares? This is the direction the gaming industry is headed, so buckle in.
BUT, if done correctly, it doesn’t need to feel like a chore. Ubisoft has already proved that they know how to do good live service games such asThe Division,For Honor, The Crewand so many more.Assassin’s Creedis one of the few Ubisoft titles that actually isn’t a live service game, so we all should have seen this coming a long time ago.
This also gives Ubisoft the opportunity to learn from mistakes made in their other live service games such asThe Division. Many players think thatThe Divisionis just too much of a grind and when you couple that with the complaints of the size ofValhalla, Ubisoft is sure to take that feedback into account.
Infinitycould also finally take the series back to its Ezio Auditore days of interesting stories and stealthy combat, without completely ridding of theValhallaRPG elements. This is the perfect opportunity for anAssassin’s Creedtitle to have something for everyone. Remember the intense naval combat inBlack Flag? Players could have that plus the stealth of the originalAssassin’s Creedin one title, no more waiting for the next instalment to play anACtitle where you like the location and gameplay.
The gameplay ofInfinitycould be hand-picked from all of the best parts of the series, the raids and wars fromValhallaandOdyessy, the naval combat fromBlack Flag, and the stealth of the originalAssassin’s Creed.
Nobody knows what a live serviceAssassin’s Creedis going to look like, but the possibilities are endless. Going off of Ubisoft’s history, it’s also clear that it will be supported for a long time.Rainbow Six Siegewas released in 2015 and is still going strong 6 years later, and is one of the biggest titles around.
Plus, remember how funAssassin’s Creed Brotherhood’sMultiplayer mode was? An up-to-date version of something similar could really be something special. Speaking of Multiplayer modes, many fans will turn their noses up if I say the words ‘Battle Royale’ next toAssassin’s Creed, but it’s most definitely going to be considered after the massive success of titles such asWarzone,Fortnite, and more. Whether you like the idea of anAssassin’s CreedBattle Royale, there’s no denying you’d try it out.
But when it comes down to it, the two key elements putting people off the idea ofAssassin’s Creed Infinityis it becoming a cash grab, as well as it possibly being way too big and too much of a grind. As much as I agree, I just think there’s too much potential to completely dismiss the idea.
