Since first unveiling it last year, Ubisoft has stressed time and again that Assassin’s Creed Mirage is going to be a return to the series’ roots, with the massive open world action RPG format of recent games being dropped for a shorter and denser experience that focuses on stealth and parkour. The company has now released the first in a series of three behind-the-scenes development videos, talking about that very aspect, and they key elements in Assassin’s Creed Mirage that’ll appeal to those looking for a more classic Assassin’s Creed experience.
The first of these is parkour, which, of course, has been heavily de-emphasized in the likes of Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla. But with Mirage returning to an urban environment with the setting of ninth-century Baghdad, the game will be bringing back a parkour loop that focuses on fluidity and momentum.
According to the developers, the game takes an approach similar to the Ezio games, and features design that is “centered around verticality”. Meanwhile, when you’re not clambering over rooftops, the streets will be narrow and densely packed with obstacles, while the game will also feature a reworked animation system to further highlight the focus on parkour.
A number of parkour abilities from older games will also be returning, like swinging around corner, taking elevators to quickly get to rooftops, and vaulting over objects, while protagonist Basim, who’s described as faster and more agile than Valhalla protagonist Eivor, will also have access to new abilities, like using a pole vault to get across larger gaps between rooftops.
Just as much focus is being focused on stealth, with a number of elements and mechanics returning from previous entries- like social stealth. Basim will be able to blend with crowds or even bribe factions with “specific” tokens to control AI groups and move through guarded areas undetected, while classic moves like bench assassinations and rooftop garden kills will also be returning.
Enemy AI has also been reworked, and foes will now have improved detection and vanishing loops. Players will also have to contend with a variety of different enemy archetypes, like the marksman, who can shoot your eagle and prevent you from using it; the spearman, who can poke through haystacks; or the horn bearer, who can call for reinforcements.
Meanwhile, Mirage will also be pulling back from the increasing focus on combat, with the developers saying that combat will usually be a last resort for Basim, with his primary approach being to hunt, plan, and strike from the shadows. Players will have more ways to assassinate enemies and new animations for both combat and stealth kills, while black box missions – which will let players choose between a variety of ways to approach specific objectives – are also returning.
That goes hand-in-hand with an increased focus on assassinations, as you might expect. Tracking down and murdering members of the Order of the Ancients to rid the city of Baghdad from their influence will be Basim and the Hidden Ones’ main objective, which means there will be plenty of targets to track down and assassinate.
That, interestingly enough, will be quite an elaborate process, and Basim will have to investigate his targets’ identities, track their movements, learn more about them, share info with his allies, and then carry out the actual assassination when the time is right. Bureaus from older games will also be returning, and will serve as hub locations where players can take on side contracts that will have various objects, like rescue missions and assassinations. The game will also feature a new investigations board, which will replace the quest log.
Interestingly enough, the video also reveals that Assassin’s Creed Mirage will come with a “nostalgic” visual filter that will apply a desaturated blue-gray look to the game, bringing its visual style much more in line with the original Assassin’s Creed. Read more on that through here.
Check out the full video below for more details and new gameplay footage. Two more behind-the-scenes videos are also set to arrive in the coming days, while more updates on the game are also expected at Ubisoft Forward on June 12.
Assassin’s Creed Mirage is due out on October 12 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
