It’s that time of year again folks! The Assassin’s Creed rumours are leaking out of Ubisoft like water out a burst pipe. So let’s indulge in the annual bout of wild speculation while we wait on the official announcement.
Who will join this lineup of Assassins?
Firstly, what are the rumours this time? Well it’s being suggested that Assassin’s Creed: Empire (title is also speculation as far as I am aware at the moment) has been pushed back into Spring of 2017, this means no AC game this year, and it has been suggested that perhaps Watch Dogs 2 will take its place in AC’s usual October slot this year.
It’s at this point that I feel I must disagree with the rumours. It is far too early for a Watch Dogs 2; I think Ubisoft are smart enough to realise that although the concept and ideas are good in that series, the execution needs a bit of work. There is no shame in that, so giving it the time to become brilliant at everything is the right call to make. I could be wrong, maybe they have already made it fantastic in every way and if they do indeed announce it, I hope they have.
If I’m right, and I probably am, then the earlier rumours about an Assassin’s Creed game set in Feudal Japan will bear fruit, a big juicy fruit. Except it won’t be an Assassin’s Creed game. It’ll be a new IP set in Feudal Japan perhaps during the Warring States period which is an exciting era in Japan’s history. There are plenty of historical characters and stories to bring to life, lots of ground to cover and plenty of scope for a franchise of multiple titles, perhaps following different characters and factions during this period etc. etc.
There are 2 main reasons I suggest this idea: 1. There were earlier rumours that Assassin’s Creed was heading to Feudal Japan, and rumours from Ubisoft usually end up being true in some form or capacity.
2. I think Ubisoft have learned from what I’d describe as the mistake they made with AC4: Black Flag. And the mistake was making that an AC game, it could’ve been an exciting new Pirate franchise called Black Flag and if they removed the Assassin’s stuff from it and changed the controls a bit so it didn’t control like an AC game then we could be talking about Black Flag 2 by now. Ubisoft won’t be so silly a second time.
Well thanks for joining me on that little trip down the rabbit hole that is the Ubisoft rumour leaking machine! It will return next year as always, and the blog will be back next week at the usual time.
If you have your own crazy theories or want to debunk mine, send them to me on Twitter @adamthomas1994.
Please check out the PlayStation podcast I am hosting called Out of the Xfire! It’s really good and full of laughs so please join us every week.
Thanks for reading!
