In the wake of the latest Ubisoft controversy this might seem like a weird thing to do, but I've recently started a massive AC binge. The personal reason is simple, this, at some point was one of my favorite franchises ever so I decided to revisit all of them with the principal scope to do a whole bunch of detailed game design content on my design YouTube Channel, starting with AC1.
So I am not going to talk about core loops, mechanics, mission design, or any of the like on this thread. If you are interested in hearing my thoughts about that you can, if you want, check out my 1h long examination of this game here:
What I will talk about in this thread relates to feelings. What were my feelings at the time of release and how I feel getting back to it.
Now, I will be quite blunt, please refrain from mentioning how things with the series would have been better if the original creative director would have stayed. While not engaging in physical abuse, I have heard enough stories from different people while working at Ubisoft to know that, at the time of working at Ubi don't know what he would be like now, he was more than very toxic. Hope he has changed, but in the context of old AC, let's not idolize.
So I played AC1 in 2008 when it was first released on PC, I was 17, and it became one of my favorites of all time. It was incredibly impactful for 3 reasons:
1) It helped me put in words my political feelings that I already found true at the time.
2) Thanks to the Creed, Nothing is true everyhing is permitted, I managed to find peace in being an atheist in a very orthodox environment - my classmates would constantly try to prove me wrong, I would try to do the same, but it was the first step of understanding that it is all about personal choices and their consequences and that has helped to make both me and my classmates accept each others beliefs.
3) I decided that I want to work at Ubisoft, it became my dream.
I successfuly achieved it, btw. I have left this year to work on smaller scale mobile games, but I worked at Ubi for 6 years, been a designer for two Trials games, the Lead Game Designer for Trials Rising and one of Lead GDs for Watch Dogs Legion. Great times.
So in the context of all that, getting back to AC1 has felt bittersweet. Because I have the knowledge that so many people have made it what it is and yet what everybody talks about is a single name that might not even deserve it. And also the fact that some people, like AC1's game director, would engage in physical abuse in the future (said game director is the same person who would choke a woman in front of everyone).
And it's sad to know that these people are related to what is still one of the most interesting, unique, as well as deepest games out there.
AC1 was very brave for its time. Arab protagonist, calling Jesus a fraud, people - gullible. It was all under the veil of a thousand year conspiracy theory which has allowed it to avoid being a target as people could just say "hurr durr magic sci fi ball", but thematically there is so much going on there.
This was also a game that was supposed to be designed around fully HUDless play. I have discovered this fact through analysis while having my 3rd play through of it, but in the future would get official confirmation.
So many things change if you play without a HUD. You learn the environment, what rafiqs tell you is not useless info but necessary as there are no icons, you find missions through visual and audio clues... it is not perfect, so I wouldn't suggest a 1st playthrough to be HUDless, but it is still great. (Mind you, AC1 for PCs adds some new missions that aren't playable with no HUD since those principles weren't followed anymore)
This is also a game that tried to define a trend rather than follow it. Ever since AC2 the series would gradually go into "follow trends" territory, but damn AC1, especially hudless, feels like how modern open world Hitman would. And there was just so much new technology - the crowds, the fully parkourable cities.
And all this coming from an AAA company. The experiment, the messages, the philosophy.
Assassin's Creed now misses a lot of those things. I think the new games are still worthy titles on plenty of levels, but they don't try to change the gaming world as much.
Going back to Assassin's Creed 1 has reminded me of WHY I want to make games more so than any of the later parts of the franchise would.
And I realized that if an AC1 remaster/remake is ever going to appear, it is not going to conserve all the things that made this game unique. The wonderful relative simplicity of focusing mostly on the job of being an Assassin, few weapons, few quests but all focused on a particular thematic. It would receive a home base that you have to upgrade, tons of missions, things that don't... matter.
And maybe even retcons in Modern Day, who knows. As while MD in AC1 is boring from the angle of gameplay, it is really interesting. It does set up an end of the world - but metaphorical, when Templars would take control by using a satellite with the Apple December 21st 2012 - ultimate win for order and control. Ever since this plotline really didn't matter, AC has become about cosmic dangers and it's just not the same.
Going back to Assassin's Creed 1 has made me realize that it's a game that the current Ubisoft management would never agree to make in its current form. Also would probably be forced to get NFTs or something.
Anyway, Assassin's Creed 1 is really unique, and if you think it was repetitive, yeah I get you BUT I suggest you to try and play it without HUD. Will change your view, guarantee it.
What are your feelings about this first game of a massive franchise?
So I am not going to talk about core loops, mechanics, mission design, or any of the like on this thread. If you are interested in hearing my thoughts about that you can, if you want, check out my 1h long examination of this game here:
What I will talk about in this thread relates to feelings. What were my feelings at the time of release and how I feel getting back to it.
Now, I will be quite blunt, please refrain from mentioning how things with the series would have been better if the original creative director would have stayed. While not engaging in physical abuse, I have heard enough stories from different people while working at Ubisoft to know that, at the time of working at Ubi don't know what he would be like now, he was more than very toxic. Hope he has changed, but in the context of old AC, let's not idolize.
So I played AC1 in 2008 when it was first released on PC, I was 17, and it became one of my favorites of all time. It was incredibly impactful for 3 reasons:
1) It helped me put in words my political feelings that I already found true at the time.
2) Thanks to the Creed, Nothing is true everyhing is permitted, I managed to find peace in being an atheist in a very orthodox environment - my classmates would constantly try to prove me wrong, I would try to do the same, but it was the first step of understanding that it is all about personal choices and their consequences and that has helped to make both me and my classmates accept each others beliefs.
3) I decided that I want to work at Ubisoft, it became my dream.
I successfuly achieved it, btw. I have left this year to work on smaller scale mobile games, but I worked at Ubi for 6 years, been a designer for two Trials games, the Lead Game Designer for Trials Rising and one of Lead GDs for Watch Dogs Legion. Great times.
So in the context of all that, getting back to AC1 has felt bittersweet. Because I have the knowledge that so many people have made it what it is and yet what everybody talks about is a single name that might not even deserve it. And also the fact that some people, like AC1's game director, would engage in physical abuse in the future (said game director is the same person who would choke a woman in front of everyone).
And it's sad to know that these people are related to what is still one of the most interesting, unique, as well as deepest games out there.
AC1 was very brave for its time. Arab protagonist, calling Jesus a fraud, people - gullible. It was all under the veil of a thousand year conspiracy theory which has allowed it to avoid being a target as people could just say "hurr durr magic sci fi ball", but thematically there is so much going on there.
This was also a game that was supposed to be designed around fully HUDless play. I have discovered this fact through analysis while having my 3rd play through of it, but in the future would get official confirmation.
So many things change if you play without a HUD. You learn the environment, what rafiqs tell you is not useless info but necessary as there are no icons, you find missions through visual and audio clues... it is not perfect, so I wouldn't suggest a 1st playthrough to be HUDless, but it is still great. (Mind you, AC1 for PCs adds some new missions that aren't playable with no HUD since those principles weren't followed anymore)
This is also a game that tried to define a trend rather than follow it. Ever since AC2 the series would gradually go into "follow trends" territory, but damn AC1, especially hudless, feels like how modern open world Hitman would. And there was just so much new technology - the crowds, the fully parkourable cities.
And all this coming from an AAA company. The experiment, the messages, the philosophy.
Assassin's Creed now misses a lot of those things. I think the new games are still worthy titles on plenty of levels, but they don't try to change the gaming world as much.
Going back to Assassin's Creed 1 has reminded me of WHY I want to make games more so than any of the later parts of the franchise would.
And I realized that if an AC1 remaster/remake is ever going to appear, it is not going to conserve all the things that made this game unique. The wonderful relative simplicity of focusing mostly on the job of being an Assassin, few weapons, few quests but all focused on a particular thematic. It would receive a home base that you have to upgrade, tons of missions, things that don't... matter.
And maybe even retcons in Modern Day, who knows. As while MD in AC1 is boring from the angle of gameplay, it is really interesting. It does set up an end of the world - but metaphorical, when Templars would take control by using a satellite with the Apple December 21st 2012 - ultimate win for order and control. Ever since this plotline really didn't matter, AC has become about cosmic dangers and it's just not the same.
Going back to Assassin's Creed 1 has made me realize that it's a game that the current Ubisoft management would never agree to make in its current form. Also would probably be forced to get NFTs or something.
Anyway, Assassin's Creed 1 is really unique, and if you think it was repetitive, yeah I get you BUT I suggest you to try and play it without HUD. Will change your view, guarantee it.
What are your feelings about this first game of a massive franchise?
