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What leaks are saying about the next Assassin’s Creed

Details regarding the upcoming addition to Ubisoft’s flagship franchise are proving rather elusive. Here’s what online leaks are saying.

If there were a plaque for most predictable gaming publisher, it would indubitably be held by Ubisoft. Ghost Recon has seen 15 iterations, Far Cry has had eight (including standalone expansions), Rainbow Six a whopping 17, and their big seller Assassins Creed has been squeezed for ten in little over a decade. If you’ll pardon the image, Ubisoft’s creative teats are virtually bone dry at this stage.

However, after a sequel streak of four years Ubisoft surprised the gaming world with the revelation (no pun intended) that they were taking Assassin’s Creed off the menu for 2019. The intention being that, after a mixed reception to both Origins (2017) and Odyssey (2018), they’d come back with a colossal bang in 2020 – in conjunction with next gen consoles.

Now, with 2020 just upon us, it already appears their decision was a fruitful one. There’s been a notable shift in the gaming consensus surrounding all things AC on social media, and people are genuinely looking forward to a sequel for the first time in a long time despite next to no official word on the next game.


Social media leaks

If you gave The Division 2 a miss, firstly well done… you shouldn’t lose any sleep. You may have missed a vital crumb as to the particular flavour of the next Assassins Creed title though. Soon after The Division 2’s release, players quickly started bringing attention to a detail within its open world believing it to be an Easter egg related to a mysterious AC project.

Inside one of the game’s many buildings is a poster depicting a Nordic soldier holding an object reminiscent of the Apple of Eden relics from the lore of Assassin’s Creed.

Eagle eyed players (again, npi) will recall frequent links to Norse mythology in Assassin’s Creed 2; where the Creed declared that all golden apples portrayed in Nordic art are in-fact the all-powerful Apples of Eden.

Fast forward to January 2020, and fresh leaks have added some yummy credence to the rumours. Industry insider Jason Schreier (of Kotaku) claims to have received confirmation of the next entry’s Nordic setting from two ‘independent sources’, while an anonymous whistle-blower on popular forum site 4chan has posted a detailed breakdown covering all facets of what they call Assassin’s Creed Ragnarök.

Spoiler free details

We’re steering well clear of potential story/plot spoilers, so don’t expect a comprehensive synopsis from us now. We can comment on the reported gameplay elements, but please take them with a big ol’ fistful of salt. As we sit here, nought has been confirmed. According to our mysterious 4chan friend, the game will be releasing a year after the projected 2020 target in September 2021. The report states that the game will support 4-player drop-in co-op and will offer up the choice between a male or female protagonist at the start of each playthrough – similar to Odyssey.

As for the map? Pretty dang monstrous they reckon. The leak claims it encompasses almost the entirety of Northern Europe, including major cities like London, York, and Paris. Within these bustling regions massive wars are said to break out organically, drastically altering the impact on the economical state of each city. I mean we don’t know if it’s entirely true or not, but here’s to hoping.


What we know for sure

Steady your horses though, until we get some official confirmation it isn’t worth running away with thoughts of what that game could look like. In truth, the leak isn’t looking too credible right now. If we were to cherry pick inside sources, few are more reliable than Twitter/Niko Partners analyst ZhugeEx, and he’s flat out discounted a good 90% of details from the list.

Reporting directly on the leak, he stated: ‘For what it’s worth, all of the AC leaks so far have been incorrect. It’s not even called Ragnarok. Sure, some of the details are right. Like improved combat of whatever. But in general, they’re not that accurate.’

In truth, all we know for sure at this moment and time is that Ubisoft are developing a new Assassin’s Creed game for next gen consoles. We can glean there likely is something in the Nordic links too. Too much is racking up in the way of sneaky ‘screenshots’, leaks, and Easter-eggs for it to be just pure coincidence or wishful thinking. We know after Black Flag (2013) that Ubisoft like to usher in new gen consoles with shiny new games to push the tech… and what better than a new entry to their star money making series.

Personally, I haven’t really enjoyed an Assassin’s Creed game since Syndicate in 2015. But with this extra year in development, it’s safe to say I’m pretty intrigued to see what Ubisoft has up their sleeve (aside from a hidden blade) this time around. Absence really does make the heart grow fonder.

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