Top 10 Assassin’s Creed games

The Assassin’s Creed franchise has spread around the world since its debut in 2007, and entries have taken players from Renaissance Italy to Ancient Greece and the American Revolution. Along the way, the series has changed dramatically, from sequels that delivered on the promise of past entries to entirely new takes on the character’s progression.

So which games are the best in Ubisoft’s long-running series? IGN’s biggest Assassin’s Creed fans came together to agree, discuss, and finally select our favorites. It’s worth noting that this list is drawn from the main series of Assassin’s Creed console versions, so mobile or handheld inputs were not considered as they vary greatly in scope and design.

Without further ado, here are IGN’s top 10 Assassin’s Creed games.

10. Assassin’s Creed Unity

After the drunken influence of Black Flag’s pirate protagonist Edward Kenway, Assassin’s Creed Unity was a return to the tone of the original Assassin’s Creed. As the first AC game to be released exclusively on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 (along with PC, of ​​course), Assassin’s Creed Unity was a graphics powerhouse for its time and featured a huge crowd of NPCs, but its release was a bit hilly.

Have you played Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag?

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The cavalcade of bugs, glitches, and an intensely overloaded map led some to flee the game, but those who stuck with it found a great setting in revolutionary France, recently improved movement options that made climbing the side of a building out of the question. much easier, and fun and multifaceted assassination missions. And frankly, seeing Notre Dame in all its glory makes AC Unity well worth the price of admission.

9. Assassin’s Creed Rogue

Meanwhile, that same year on Xbox 360 and PS3, Assassin’s Creed Rogue introduced us to Assassin-turned-Templar Shay Cormac for this pseudo-prequel to Assassin’s Creed 3 and Unity. Rogue trades Havannah for New York and the warm waters of the Caribbean for the ice flows of the North Atlantic and the river lands of the Hudson Valley, but maintains, and even extends, Black’s excellent naval combat and Arkham-style swordplay. Flag.

The story may not take much of a chance to alter the franchise formula for Assassins: Well, Templars: Bad, but it’s an interesting journey through the looking glass to see how things work on the other side of the Hidden Sword, and a game essential. if you loved Black Flag but don’t want to play it for the fifth time.

8. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations concluded the stories of Altair Ibn-La-Ahad and Ezio Auditore and despite a few minor additions like Den Defense mode, it was a memorable and exciting send-off. From flying ziplines in Constantinople to hanging out with Leonardo Da Vinci, Revelations was packed with fascinating adventures.

The final chapter of Ezio and Altair was, in a way, both a sign of things to come and a celebration of what came before. Not only did we have one last adventure with these two after watching them grow up and learning from adventurous lives, we had a chance to say goodbye to the first era of Assassin’s Creed.

7. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood continues the story of Ezio Auditore da Firenze, cementing him as the series’ fan-favorite protagonist. It swaps out the various locations in Assassin’s Creed 2 for an enlarged version of Rome and its surrounding countryside and builds on the new mechanics introduced in Assassin’s Creed 2: swimming, property management, firearms, and recruitable allies. This chapter in Ezio’s story is full of charm, wit and drama, and thanks to his updated combat, we became the aggressive combat assassin we all wanted to be.

It was also the first game in the series to introduce multiplayer, allowing players to step into the shoes of the Templars to see who among their friends really was the best assassin or hunter. It may not have advanced the formula as much as its predecessor, but it is still appreciated by many as one of the best.

6. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla

Valhalla didn’t reinvent the wheel like Origins did, but it did make some pretty substantial changes. The combat is heavier and more shocking than ever; Traditional side quests have been replaced by world events, making exploration and discovery much more organic; and the absurd amount of loot you’d have to organize and examine was substantially reduced, making the rewards feel much more valuable overall.

Eivor may not be our favorite of the Assassin’s Creed protagonists, but its story is compelling and one of the best mixes of historical fantasy and mythology the series has ever seen.

5. Assassin’s Creed Syndicate

Assassin’s Creed games are often defined by both their location and their protagonists, and Syndicate’s industrializing 19th-century Victorian London may be the most memorable of the bunch. Sneak through factories, race horse-drawn carriages down the street, and even fight Jack the Ripper across the Syndicate on land in an environment that, while still fantastic, feels real.

Contributing to this sense of place is Journey composer Austin Wintory’s string score that doesn’t sound like anything else in the series before or after – dueling leads Jacob and Evie Fry even have their own soundtracks. It’s a little touch, but it’s one of a series of little touches that make the Syndicate world cohesive. Also, it’s hard to remember any game on this side of Bloodborne that allows you to fight this effectively with a staff.

4. Assassin’s Creed II

In many ways, we have Assassin’s Creed II to thank for not only proving that the formula works, but also for providing us with the defining analogy of a video game sequel that delivers on the promise of its disappointing original. Although later entries would add even more depth, ACII made assassination missions more dynamic, with more flexibility in how it approached targets, more options for hiding or causing distractions, better combat, and better mobility with the ability to really swim. New catacomb missions allow players to put their parkour skills to the test, the upgradeable base village gave players a reason to keep investing in collecting collectibles and coins, and new weapons and gear from their favorite video game character. of all, Leonardo da Vinci, kept the game fresh. .

All of these changes were also related to a beautifully realized Italian Renaissance era that featured an all-time protagonist, Ezio Auditore da Firenze, and significant additions to the current story that brought the two time periods together in the most savage way possible. I mean, you fist fights with the Pope only to have an otherworldly deity speak through Ezio to Desmond today. It was an unforgettable ending to an entry that showed just how amazing Assassin’s Creed could be. Oh, and it has one of the weirdest video game references of all time. (If we have the footage, aim for the “It’s me Mario” scene, otherwise you can cut this entire last line.)

3. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

Assassins ‘Creed Odyssey takes Origins’ style of combat and its newly discovered approach to RPGs, adds a few additional ingredients to the mix, and then puts it all in the context of ancient Greece, ablaze with the war between Athens and Sparta. It’s a huge and vibrant game, with some of the most impressive views we’ve seen in the series; both on land and at sea (naval warfare returns here, and it’s wonderful).

The new twist on Assassin’s Creed’s notoriety system sees you chased through these environments, in a series of cat and mouse chases that are the most tense in Assassin’s Creed to date, while the national fighting system sees you rampaging. large-scale battles in the name of Athens or Sparta. It also has a relatively compelling story for a game that can take 60-odd hours, with some wacky side quests, led by a genuinely charismatic protagonist, whether you play as a male or female. Even after finishing Odyssey, there’s still so much to loot and discover, and it’s a pleasure to just exist in your world.

2. Assassin’s Creed: Origins

The origins marked a turning point in the series. It was the game that turned Assassin’s Creed from a stealth-focused action-adventure into a straightforward open-world RPG with a size and scope rivaled only by very few games. But even leaving aside the historical significance of Assassin’s Creed Origins, it is important to note that it is also a very good Assassin’s Creed game.

Its central story involving Bayek and Aya, who initially set out to find justice for their murdered son and ultimately ended up founding the order that would eventually become the Brotherhood of Assassins, is extremely compelling; the world of ancient Egypt is a wonder to explore; And while many facets of its mechanics were improved in later games, the shift to loot-based progression and a more action-packed RPG combat style was the kind of arm shot the series needed to revitalize it in the eyes of fans. .

1. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag

After a long series of murderous protagonists, Black Flag tried something different, introducing us to a main character who was a pirate first and a murderer second, and the subsequent adventure flourished thanks to that. It introduced a hugely entertaining sand playground to the Caribbean, with a host of islands packed with treasure and activities to embark on, and an upgrade system that made the idea of ​​hunting wild animals and harpooning more than just a task. Rather than relegate the idea of ​​sailing as a means to an end, he drew on the naval combat framework of Assassin’s Creed 3 to make nautical adventures the bright spot for Black Flag.

Whether hunting hapless merchant ships or preparing against some of the toughest buccaneers to ever sail the seas, attacking other ships was established as too good to pass up every time one floated on screen. With the help of its impressive seamless transition from land to sea, it allowed players the freedom of choice to circle around enemy ships while smashing them to pieces, or charging headfirst to jump on the enemy ship, before unloading. a pair of pistols like a whirling dervish. Assassin’s Creed Black Flag not only established itself as one of the best in the series, it has also easily become one of the best pirate games to dive into.

And there you have it! Those are our best Assassin’s Creed games. Do you not agree with the ranking? Do you think there should be another entry in the list? Let us know your favorite Assassin’s Creed in the comments.