Ubisoft’sAssassin’s Creedseries is probably one of the most popular and instantly recognizable franchises in modern gaming. Despite the varying degrees of success and community divide regarding each entry in the series, fans are always excited to see what the developer aims to do next.
Live service games have been growing in popularity lately, which can largely be attributed to the popularity of titles likeDestiny 2andRainbow Six Seige. While it’s not best to turn every franchise into a live service model,Assassin’s Creedseems ripe for this kind of treatment.
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The Perfect Narrative Setup
Assassin’s Creedhas the perfect narrative setup for a live service game. This is part of the reason why the series has endured the flow of time, without feeling excessively panned out to pump out more games in the series.The Templar-Assassin power struggle is a neat concept, and the existence of both cults all the way from The Crusades to the modern day has given each entry a distinctive setting, with a somewhat similar purpose.
AnAssassin’s Creedlive service title, if it ever happens, has a huge advantage in this regard. The modern day Animus would allow players to project themselves into different time periods (which can be rolled out as different expansions), wherein each world is a typicalAssassin’s Creedopen world with huge swaths of side-activities and quests that players can engage with.
The series also hasa history of Templarprotagonists, such asAssassin’s Creed Rogue’s Shay Patric Cormac andAssassin’s Creed 3’s Haytham Kenway, as well as Templar-turned-Assassin such as Assassin’s Creed 4’s Edward Kenway. This could also allow the game to simultaneously show the other part of the power struggle, where players could engage in Templar quests, without affecting the game’s identity in any way whatsoever.
Assassin’s Creed Already Has A Great Starting Point
In addition to the already impressive narrative setup,Assassin’s Creedalso has an enticing gameplay loop that could do great for a live service title. While there’s been plenty of debate surroundingthe series' newfound affection for RPG-esque progression, it could definitely do great for a live service title.Assassin’s Creed OdysseyandValhallahave a large collection of weapons and armor sets that players can acquire from a multitude of sources, and there’s an expansive skill tree and leveling system that players can work towards.
Assassin’s Creedoffers a wide variety of playstyles for players to choose from, which can range anywhere from a stealthy archer to a deadly brute. This freedom of choice greatly builds towards another metagame wherein players create unique builds for a given quest, just like what players do in games likeDark Souls.
Live Service and Assassin’s Creed Could Work
If anAssassin’s Creedlive service game would be announced, fans would understandably be worried about the future of the traditionalAssassin’s Creedgames. However, it doesn’t have to be this way, as other annualized franchises such asCall of Dutyhave already proven. Activision puts out a newCall of Dutytitle every year, but its live serviceWarzone constantly gets updatedwith new content for players to keep coming back.
Whilethis has already taken a toll on Activision’s subsidiarieswith promising studios being reduced to support roles forCall of Duty, Ubisoft has a decent shot at making this work. However, given the current circumstances, it seems that such a game would be quite some ways off.
