Assassin’s Creed is continuing its revamp of the franchise with Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. Last year, Assassin’s Creed Origins went back to a time before the Brotherhood of Assassins was properly formed with a tale of revenge set in Ancient Egypt. And now, at E3 2018, developer/publisher Ubisoft has unveiled the follow-up to Origins, subtitled Odyssey, which moves from Ancient Egypt to Ancient Greece.
The arrival of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey comes rather suddenly. Ubisoft had previously suggested that there wouldn’t be a new Assassin’s Creed in 2018, though they didn’t exactly deny the existence of a new installment. At the time, Ubisoft’s CEO said that their focus was on churning out content for Assassin’s Creed Origins. However, due to a leak involving, of all things, a key chain, Ubisoft was forced to confirm Assassin’s Creed Odyssey last week, just days ahead of E3 2018. Now, the full trailer for Odyssey has been revealed and it promises to continue the new path for the franchise that Origins set.
Related: Assassin’s Creed Origins Exists in the Same World as the Assassins Creed Movie
Although Origins is the earliest set game in the Assassin’s Creed franchise, it plays different than its many predecessors. Origins‘ combat was overhauled, the world was made to be much more open and the playable character didn’t have a total dud of a personality. For the looks of the trailer, which can be viewed above, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey continues the exciting tradition set by Origins. Odyssey will bring Greece to life in the same gorgeous way that Origins did to Egypt, with just a hint of mythology and the franchise’s signature weirdness.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey allows players choose their character from the beginning, either Alexios or Kassandra, and you play that one character the entire game. You share bloodline of a hero and have their mysterious legendary weapon – a spear.
The Spear of Leonidas opens up special combat options, ranged and close-quarters, along with stealth abilities.
In Assassin’s Creed Odyssey you’ll take on a quest to save your loved ones & become the legendary hero Greece needs.
Embark on your journey from an outcast mercenary to a legendary Spartan hero.
Here’s the gameplay walkthrough for Assassin’s Creed Odyssey where the promise of the franchise offering a full blown RPG is made, where choice matters:
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey will launch with several versions. Odyssey will have Deluxe, Gold and Ultimate Editions of the game. There will be a pair of collector’s editions, the Spartan Edition and the Pantheon Edition, too. The Spartan Edition and the Pantheon Edition will come with extra goodies including:
Early access starting on October 2.
By Ubicollectibles : The Spartan Leap statue (height 39.5cm) for the Spartan Edition, two statues forming The Nemesis Diorama (height 39cm, width 65cm) for the Pantheon Edition.
The Assassin’s Creed Odyssey Steelbook™.
A 64-page art book featuring the original designs and concept art from the Ubisoft Quebec artists.
An exclusive lithograph by Hugo Puzzuoli from Ubisoft Quebec.
A printed version of the game’s hand-drawn world map.
The selected game soundtrack.
It is immediately clear Odyssey is using a lot of assets and mechanics from Origins. Yet this very much its own game. In fact, Odyssey sounds and looks like the game that Ubisoft wanted Origins to be, it’s just that impressive. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is a bold new chapter for the franchise, offering dialogue trees, customizable characters and deep dive in Ancient Greece,
The interesting thing is there doesn’t seem to be much direct link between Odyssey and Origins. Although Origins saw the birth of The Assassins Brotherhood, Odyssey will (chronologically) predate it. Odyssey is set in the middle of the Peloponnesian War. The war between Sparta and Athens took place hundreds of years before the events of Origins. Odyssey isn’t a sequel but a prequel to Origins. This adds even more confusion to the franchise’s nearly incomprehensible lore. It even suggests that Kassandra (or Alexios) started the Assassins even more than Bayek, their actual founder.
Although it’s possible that, despite appearances, Odyssey will tell the origins of The Templar Order. A predecessor to that group was already formed by the events of Origins. Perhaps, Kassandra (and/or Alexios) will be more of a mirror image of Bayek, not his predecessor(s). The Assassin’s Creed series has already had a Templar be the main character, with the opening chapters of Assassin’s Creed 3 and the entirety of Assassin’s Creed Rogue.
Wherever Odyssey fits on the timeline of Assassin’s Creed games, it almost doesn’t matter. The game looks incredibly impressive. In fact, it’s almost fitting that Assassin’s Creed is going so far back in history because all the changes are bound to bring in newcomers to the series. Games who could care less about the generations’ long battle of Templars and Assassins or whatever original hero Desmond Miles was supposed to do. It’s very hard to blame them.
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Assassin’s Creed Odyssey releases on PS4, Xbox One and PC on October 4, 2018.
