More than any other franchise, Assassin's Creed signifies the modern generation of gaming. It was created at the beginning of the PS360 era, specifically meant to show off what the HD systems were capable of. And it's stood the test of time, moving 200 million copies across its multiple games over the last 15 years.
Though some fans might consider the franchise a shell, critics would disagree. Despite being an almost annual series in the last 15 years, Assassin's Creed has crafted some of the biggest and best open-world games, with some of the most memorable characters of the last decade.
10 Assassin's Creed Syndicate Brings The Series Into The Industrial Revolution — 78
Assassin's Creed Syndicate was meant to be the make-good after the poorly received Unity. The game took players to the smokestacks of Industrial Revolution-era London. There, twin Assassins Evie and Jacob Frye battled against the Templars.
Though the story was entertaining, Syndicate's biggest weakness was its comparatively poor combat and a hollow world with too many similar side missions. 78 isn't a bad score, but Ubisoft felt like Assassin's Creed Syndicate did poorly enough critically and commercially for them to put the franchise on pause for a year afterward.
9 Assassin's Creed: Revelations Finishes The Ezio Auditore Trilogy — 80
The last game in the Ezio trilogy, Assassin's Creed: Revelations, took an older, more experienced Ezio to Constantinople. Because he refused to give up, he's forced to deal with the Templars and their attempt to unlock a vault created by Altair.
Much of this game's improvements come down to combat; Ezio gains a new Hookblade to replace his usual Hidden Blade, but he also gains special bombs he can use to either distract or attack the opponents. Revelations was far from a perfect game, but it was a fitting ending to the story of Assassin's Creed's most well-known protagonist.
8 Assassin's Creed Is The Game That Started It All — 81
The original Assassin's Creed was one of the first new titles for HD consoles. The success they saw here would affect Ubisoft not just for the remainder of the generation, but continues to affect them today. The Assassin's Creed franchise became the crown jewel of their major releases.
That's not to say this was a perfect game, as the original Assassin's Creed is packed with repetitive side missions and has some terrible AI. But the sheer scale involved in recreating the massive cities in the game and capturing the feel of being an assassin led to the game becoming a fan favorite.
7 Assassin's Creed Valhalla Takes A Viking Tribe Into The Kingdoms Of England — 84
Assassin's Creed Valhalla is the most recent mainline Assassin's Creed and the third in the trilogy from the new era. Valhalla takes players into the divided kingdoms of England as Eivor, a member of a Viking tribe seeking a new home. Valhalla continued expanding on the RPG systems introduced in Assassin's Creed Origins, allowing for complete customization of how Eivor fought.
The most considerable criticism levied at Valhalla was the sheer size of the map with far too much filler content. But the game as a whole presented another epic journey that was a worthwhile experience for the first next-gen Assassin's Creed game. Plus, not many other games offer legendary weapons like Mjolnir to wield.
6 Assassin's Creed III Challenges Connor To Stop The Templars From Taking Over The Colonies — 85
The first game to introduce a new protagonist since 2009's Assassin's Creed II, Assassin's Creed III did well for itself. This time, the game's setting shifted to the 18th century, where players took on the role of Connor. As an Assassin, Connor's goal is to keep the Templars from taking over the colonies.
With Assassin's Creed III, Ubisoft improved the game's parkour and added a wider variety of weapons for players to take out their opponents. This is also the first game to add ship combat, though Ubisoft wouldn't perfect this until the release of Black Flag.
5 Assassin's Creed Origins Shows The Beginning Of The Assassin Order — 85
The first Assassin's Creed of the new generation, Origins, was very clearly inspired by CDProjekt's The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. The series went heavy on the RPG elements, adding side quests and expanding the world from a city into part of an entire country.
Players took on the role of Bayek, a Medjay in Egypt seeking vengeance for his son's murder. They also got to play Aya, Bayek's wife, a woman with so much drive that she's almost as bad as the villains they're chasing. The massive changes to Assassin's Creed brought in an entirely new audience and resulted in one of the best-rated installments of the franchise in years.
4 Assassin's Creed Odyssey Shows The Beginning Of The Templars — 87
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Assassin's Creed Odyssey represents the apex of Ubisoft's new RPG version of the franchise thus far. For the first time, players were allowed to choose whether they wanted a male or female assassin, which was the focus of Odyssey going forward.
Everything is about player choice, from different customizable builds and awesome armor designs to dialogue choices and romance options. Odyssey's downside, once again, is its scale — the game is packed with countless side missions and feels almost too daunting. Nearly all of Greece is available to explore.
3 Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Combines Assassins With Piracy — 88
After years of annual Assassin's Creed titles, Ubisoft had their first bump in the road with Assassin's Creed III, which wasn't quite as well-received by fans as their previous titles. But Black Flag brought the franchise back to prominence, as Connor took to the seas to become a pirate during the West Indies.
On the hunt for a place known as the Observatory, Connor continues his battles with the Templars, only now he's the captain of the Jackdaw. Black Flag gave the franchise a much-needed refresh, refining the naval combat and adding more varied side content. Fans see Black Flag as the last great "classic" Assassin's Creed game.
2 Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood Sees Ezio Recreate The Assassin Brotherhood — 90
Ubisoft expanded on the popular Assassin's Creed II with their next installment, Brotherhood. In Brotherhood, Ezio is tasked with rebuilding the Assassin Brotherhood in Italy, all while fighting to shut down the Templars. To this end, Ezio can expand the number of Assassins he works with by attacking the Borgia Family's towers around the city.
Brotherhood introduced several gameplay elements that would become staples over the next few games, all while offering everything players loved about the first two games. The game even offered multiple competent multiplayer modes for fans who wanted more after they finished the main game.
1 Assassin's Creed II Introduced Fans To The Iconic Ezio Auditore — 91
If Assassin's Creed showed potential, Ubisoft fulfilled that potential with the launch of Assassin's Creed II. This game introduced a new protagonist in Ezio Auditore, who carried the franchise for three games, something no other Assassin's Creed protagonist has achieved. This game took players to the Renaissance, where they helped Ezio to get revenge on the people who killed his father and brothers.
Ubisoft improved its franchise, creating a massive open world with multiple cities for the player to explore. With Assassin's Creed II also boasting greater variety for side quests and assassinations, the ability to role-play as a dangerous assassin was never better than here. It's no wonder people look at this title so fondly.