Amid recent news of delays and cancellations, Ubisoft’s celebration of theAssassin’s Creedfranchise carries on. It is officially 15 years old this year, and the Ubisoft community has been celebrating the various games. It hasn’t all been good news, though, with the companyremoving online services for olderAssassin’s Creedgames in Septemberand the Mentors Guild shutting down. However, the latest spotlight belongs toAssassin’s Creed Unitynonetheless.
The 2014 game put players into the shoes of Arno Dorian during the French Revolution and told a classic tale of love between rival factions—the Assassin Arno loved a Templar named Elise. There’s more to it than that, and while the story was solid, it did face plenty of criticism at launch. However,Assassin’s Creed Unityhas become known as a much better game in the years since.
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With the spotlight on this title, Ubisoft has taken the chance to reveal a cool feature that didn’t make it into the game. Players know that this title introduced thePhantom Blade, a variant ofAssassin’s Creed’s Hidden Blade, which is essentially a wrist-mounted crossbow allowing for ranged assassinations. Ubisoft revealed the team wanted to have Arno look at his father’s watch when aiming the Phantom Blade, so as to make it seem he wasn’t looking at his target.
This was to lean into thesocial stealth elements of theAssassin’s Creedfranchise, removing any potential notoriety associated with the action, as it would not seem like Arno was the one firing the shot. It is a cool little feature that ties into the whole idea of the Assassin brotherhood being a blade in the crowd, especially the dense crowds of the French Revolution.
However, Ubisoft chose to go with a more iconic-looking and style pose in order to highlightAssassin’s Creed’s new Phantom Blade all the more. There’s nothing wrong with it, of course, but a more stylish and stealth-focused approach for Arno would have been welcomed all the more. Not too much new like this has come out about the games featured in the celebration so far, but hopefully, Ubisoft keeps it up.
After all, it comes to an end in September when the focus shifts from the past to the future. Ubisoft is going to hold a future ofAssassin’s Creedshowcase during that month, withAssassin’s Creed RiftorInfinitylikely to pop up there—if not more.
Assassin’s Creed Unityis available now on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
