TheAssassin’s Creedfranchise has had a bit of a shake-up over the last five years. For nine mainline entries, theAssassin’s Creedfranchise remained largely the same, going all the way from 2007’sAssassin’s Creedto2015’sAssassin’s Creed Syndicate. While some new mechanics were introduced along the way, and the story and characters changed between each entry, for the most part, the formula was pretty much the same, and fans began to grow tired of it. After taking a two-year break, the franchise returned withAssassin’s Creed Origins, a complete rework of the series, bringing in RPG elements, and new combat mechanics.
Since then, theAssassin’s Creedfranchise has built upon this new foundation, releasing two new entries in the same style. But the future of the franchise is a little unclear right now, with no word on what’s officially next for the long-running stealth-action series. However, just a month ago, during theAssassin’s Creed15th Anniversary livestream, Ubisoft stated that the future of theAssassin’s Creedfranchise would be revealed in September, during another anniversary event. Right now, fan-speculation is running rampant as to what could be revealed come September.
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What To Expect From Assassin’s Creed’s September Event
Ubisoft’sAssassin’s CreedSeptember event could bring a number of reveals to the table, all of which mean pretty different things for the franchise as a whole. The most likely announcement is a new title calledAssassin’s CreedRift. Right now, the only details available onAssassin’s Creed Riftare those that come from leaks or industry insider reports, so fans should take all of this information with a pinch of salt.
According to leaks and reports,Assassin’s Creed Rift, as it’s currently codenamed, will be the next mainline entry in theAssassin’s Creedfranchise. Apparently,Riftwas originally developed as an expansion toAssassin’s Creed Valhalla, but the project had so much potential that it was bumped up to full-game status. However, due to this,Assassin’s Creed Riftwill also apparently be a much smaller experience than the last fewACtitles, with more an emphasis put on stealth gameplay than open-world exploration.Riftis supposedly going to follow Basim Ibn Ishaq, one ofValhalla’s central characters, as he makes his way across the Middle East. Though none of this has been officially confirmed just yet, this game has been leaked heavily over the last year or so, with a range of sources corroborating each other’s reports.
WhileAssassin’s Creed Riftwill be Ubisoft’s next mainline entryin the franchise, and will therefore be the most likely reveal at the September event, it’s also possible that a few other titles are announced. A game that’s been leaked and reported on almost as much asRift,Assassin’s Creed Infinitycould be revealed fully at the September event. According to leaks,Assassin’s Creed Infinitywill be a multi-year, live-service project that will tie together new releases.
Right now, it’s pretty unclear exactly whatAssassin’s Creed Infinitywill be. According to Bloomberg’s report, it won’t be a full mainline entry. Instead,Assassin’s Creed Infinitywill act as a platform that ties together other entries, with constantly evolving gameplay and narratives, achieved with a consistent stream of updates, much like otherlive-service titles likeFortniteorApex Legends.
The potential forAssassin’s Creed Infinityis immense. New historical eras, new characters, and new stories could be added to the franchise with ease via this platform, and sheer amount of content that could be added could be enough to bring in a whole range of new fans. On top of this,AC Infinitycould be used as a testing ground for new gameplay mechanics, giving the fans a direct say in what mechanics work or don’t work for the series.Assassin’s Creed Infinityhas the potential to be one of the most unique live-service titles out there, just as long as Ubisoft realizes that potential, and delivers on it.
One final announcement that could be on the cards forAssassin’s Creed’s September event is a remake of the first game. Just last month, some eagle-eyed fans thought that the footage of the originalACgame used during the 15th anniversary livestream looked significantly better than it should have. This lead some to believe that Ubisoft would soon be announcinga remaster or remake of the original 2007Assassin’s Creed, as a way to round out the 15th anniversary celebrations. While this is based on pure speculation and rumors, a remaster or remake of the original game wouldn’t be totally out of left field, as Ubisoft has remastered other games in the series before.
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Why Assassin’s Creed’s September Event Is So Important
This September event is pretty important for theAssassin’s Creedbrand as a whole. WhileAssassin’s Creed Valhallahas been an immense success for Ubisoft, theACfan-base is still a little divided on the franchise’s current state. Though the series certainly needed a switch-up afterSyndicate, someACfans now long for a return to thatclassicAssassin’s Creedformula, and haven’t really meshed with the new RPG-style titles.
This September event is the perfect platform for Ubisoft to please both new andlong-timeAssassin’s Creedfans, making the brand stronger than ever. While certainly difficult, this goal isn’t unachievable. By announcingAssassin’s Creed Rift, old fans of the series might come back on board, with the title apparently being a smaller-scale, stealth-based title, much like the first fewACgames. What’s more, if a remake or remaster of the firstAssassin’s Creedgame is announced, then this will almost definitely bring back old fans.
On the other side,Assassin’s Creed Infinityhas the potential to bring in a plethora of new fans, taking the franchise in a bold new direction, and giving fans something they haven’t seen from the franchise yet. Similarly, ifAssassin’s Creed Infinityis in fact a live-service title, and has a constant stream of new content, then there’s more of a chance that if fans don’t enjoy one type ofACgameplay, then the game will soon be updated with something they do like. ThisAssassin’s CreedSeptember eventcould bring more fans to the franchise than ever before, if Ubisoft plays its cards right.
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