In 2007, Ubisoft introduced players to the wondrous world of Assassin's Creed. The original story concept, the ability to blend into crowds, the fluid parkour climbing, and the introduction of those exhilarating viewpoint jumps all changed the landscape of open-world stealth games. Where the initial game falters in repetitiveness, the subsequent sequels do not. Assassin's Creed II still stands as one of the best in the series, and Assassin's Creed III would likely be as beloved if it weren't so bogged down with glitches and bugs.

The game that changed the series' trajectory for the worst is one of the more popular entries in the series: Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag. Sure, people love the open world of the high seas, battling warships, creating fleets to do battles, using guns in combat, and fishing for whales and sharks, but what about the secrecy of the Order? Where previous titles sought to keep the player in the shadows, Black Flag has a more bold approach. Though the game is entertaining, it does away with all the mystery and intrigue that made earlier titles great.

Buy Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag on Ubisoft

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An assassin about to kill a British redcoat on the box art from Assassin's Creed III.

The first game's protagonist, Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, is easily the most intriguing of all the assassins -- from his hard fall from grace and quest for redemption to his eventual rise to become the Mentor of Masyaf. When he reveals Al Mualim (the previous Mentor of Masyaf) to be a traitor and kills him, Altaïr decides to take the assassin Order in a new direction. His choice to spread the assassins worldwide under different guilds to quell Templar factions meant the assassins should remain secret and live among the people as espionage agents.

Since Black Flag's successful release, a few other Assassin's Creed games have taken on a similarly bold approach, which seems to go against all that Altaïr worked toward. Assassin's Creed Valhalla is just the latest of the series to deviate from the core concept, and though it's undoubtedly the most popular of the series now, it should have just been called Valhalla. By attaching the name Assassin's Creed to it, Ubisoft relies on brand recognition.

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assassin's creed ezio collection cover art

It would be great if Ubisoft let the Assassin's Creed franchise go by the wayside for a while. Then the Montreal company could focus on original concepts and new franchises. Creating an entirely new Viking franchise would undoubtedly pay off, as Assassin's Creed Valhalla capitalizes on the public's current love for Norse mythology. However, Ubisoft should stop creating these games that have nothing to do with the core concept of Assassin's Creed.

After some time out of the limelight, Ubisoft could reboot the Assassin's Creed series. It would be great for the company to undo the death of Desmond and bring back the secrecy and mystique of the assassins. Further exploration of Altaïr would undoubtedly be fruitful, and having a voice actor speaking Arabic would be even better. Assassin's Creed should be remade to bring the series back to what made it successful in the first place. Pirates and Vikings are great, but Ubisoft should create new franchises for them, in order to clean up the mess that has become the Assassin's Creed franchise.

Buy Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag on Ubisoft