A sneak peek at what was once rumor and speculation has led many of us to accept the inevitable – Ubisoft are indeed working on another Assassin’s Creed. This new entry comes hot off the heels of the widely successful Black Flag – the franchise’s previous console release – and is looking to immerse players during the events of Paris’ infamous French Revolution.
As of right now, the only glimpse of this project comes from an alpha video running at just less than a minute in length. Granted, it’s only a tease of things to come but the photorealistic lighting through an empty room of (what I assume is) the Palace of Versailles is enough to raise the eyebrow of any next-generation nay-sayers.
Similarly can be said of the scenes that follow – a pan through decrepit Parisian streets, a sweeping shot of the city’s rooftops, and a final pan to Notre Dame cathedral before ending ominously on a the image of a hooded figure and a guillotine lowering its blade.
Shifting the setting from the swashbuckling adventures of pirates shows potential for the series’ most dramatic story yet. With that in mind, great care must be taken.
If the developers at Ubisoft are truly aiming to recreate a tale of political upheaval and victory in the hands of the populous, there’s only so much wiggle room for the “badass” charm that made both Ezio and Edward such fan-favorites.
The protagonist – whomever it may be – will have to be drawn into the conflict in such a way that showcases both factions in a realistic light rather than siding with rebels against a cartoonishly evil, moustache twirling monarchy.
Perhaps Unity will follow the footsteps of Assassin’s Creed II with the player’s character being of noble decent taking on the assassin’s mantle of his parental figure during the course of the Revolution.
Until Ubisoft releases more information regarding this upcoming adventure, we can only rely on a minute’s worth of footage and the extent of our imaginations to fill in the gaps. What I have presented is what I feel would work best given the new time period setting and previous Assassin’s Creed stories.
The good news in here is that this footage (regardless of production stage) has been enough to rekindle my interest in a series that is beginning to wear out its welcome.
