October 2018 beget two major video games for the year, both as the latest of their perspective franchises as well as arguable masterpieces:Red Dead Redemption 2andAssassin’s Creed Odyssey. The former was a long-awaited follow-up to the originalRed Dead Redemption, while the latter drove home the point established inAssassin’s Creed Origins: the franchise was back. However,Red Dead Redemption 2may have an unsuspecting influence on the future ofAssassin’s Creed.
As may know,Assassin’s Creedis expected to have a new release in 2020 that takes players back to theViking Era. Most of the information surrounding the game can be chalked up to hearsay and rumor, but if there’s one thing that’s practically guaranteed, it’s that setting. That wasn’t always seemingly the case, though, as this particular trilogy has been teased sinceAssassin’s Creed 3. In that game, images teased a Egypt, Greece, and Japan setting—but clearly something’s amiss. But not just there.
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Assassin’s Creed Time Period and Settings: Viking Era, Japan, Summer of Love, and More
Since it appeared inAssassin’s Creed 3and was seemingly fulfilled by the Egyptian and Greek gamesAssassin’s Creed OriginsandOdyssey, Japan seemed to be a lock for what’s next initially. The Eye of Horus, Greek Omega, and Torri symbols correspond to Egypt, Greece, and Japan, so the Viking Era is a far cry from that. This is especially notable becauseAssassin’s Creedhas openly admitted that Japanwas one of its most asked-for locations.
This begs the question of why the sudden change, and while there could be any number of factors to a decision like this, there’s one major one that’s clearly visible to the naked eye: competition. Recently, there has been an uptick in Japanese-oriented Samurai-style games such asNioh 2andGhost of TsushimathatAssassin’s Creedcould not have predicted when the third numbered title released back in 2012. It’s possible that Egypt-Greece-Japan was a planned series of games that, because of this, changed. AGhost of Tsushimadev was happynot to see the franchise not go to Japan at the time of Origin’s announcement, reportedly, and this is because of the competition that would naturally emerge between the two.
If Japan was the only time thatAssassin’s Creedavoided its own setting and time period teases, it wouldn’t be as noticeable, but this simply isn’t the case.AC4, for example, teased a number of locations that did come to life but others that have not (in exchange for an unteased setting) such as the Summer of Love. Many have spoken up saying that aSummer of LoveAssassin’s Creedgamewould just be a weird take onWatch Dogs, and that’s something notable: in both plausible scenarios,Assassin’s Creedis compared to something else.
That’s not to say thatAssassin’s Creedcouldn’t survive or even outdo its competition—OriginsandOdysseyare a rebirth of the franchise after all—but that wasn’t a guarantee pre-launch. Ubisoft had to take the road less traveled, protect its newfound success with the latest titles, and that meansRed Dead Redemption 2isAssassin’s Creed’s worst enemy.
In the sameAC4Abstergo Email that teased the Summer of Love, theAmerican Midwestwas also teased. It could have been a Red Herring on that email, though most of those are more noticeable like a 12th century Egyptian game (that clearly did not come to fruition—Originsis set in the time of the new millennia). Initially, some were even suspect of what such a game could even look like, as its general setting didn’t really match the more “urban” aspects of the franchise, butBlack Flag,Origins, andOdysseyprove that the need for cities isn’t something set in stone.
Unlike Japan, though, the American Midwest isn’t explored by a bunch of games that would put pressure on the franchise. But it is explored by one franchise thatAssassin’s Creedwouldn’t likely want to be compared to:Red Dead Redemption, the sequel most likely. Now, it’s worth mentioning that theAssassin’s Creedfranchise andRed Dead Redemptionfranchiseare dear to gamers the world over, but for different reasons. A comparison between the two now, even the two that shared a release month (again,OdysseyandRDR2) is apple and oranges.
However, ifAssassin’s Creeddid commit to an American Midwest game, that comparison would have a much better base line and would be unavoidable. It would be a battle in terms of which game depicted it better, which game played better, and so much more that would be more disastrous forAssassin’s Creedthan it would beRed Dead Redemption 2, if only because the latter is already available. And there’d be no statute of limitations on this comparison either:Red Dead Redemption 2’s story, again, is a masterpiece, and any American Midwest game would likely be dwarfed by it. Even from a household series likeAssassin’s Creed.
While many highly anticipated the day anAssassin’s CreedJapan game is revealed, the American Midwest is likely a tease that’ll remain left to the wayside. That’s not a bad thing, either; in fact, it’s quite the opposite.Assassin’s Creedmay avoid this time period and setting because ofRed Dead Redemption 2and other contributing factors, but this just means that fans are treated to many more historical time periods with a plethora of games. Because even still, ifAssassin’s Creed Ragnarokexplores the same themes asGod of War, a real possibility, one is a historical-based game whereas one is more fantasy.
All things considered, those comparisons which seem inevitable will still be apples and oranges, whereasRed Dead Redemption 2and anACMidwest game would not be. This approach may disappoint some, but it’s also the best way to give gamers the full cornucopia.
Red Dead Redemption 2is out now for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
