First details on 2012's Assassin's Creed

By Martin Robinson Published 3 October, 2011

Desmond's story to conclude next year.

The story kick-started by 2007's Assassin's Creed will be tied up before December 2012, with developer Ubisoft Montreal strongly suggesting that Desmond Miles' tale will conclude next year.

"In Assassin's Creed we set up a timeline with this whole end of the world plot of December 2012," Assassin's Creed: Revelation creative lead Alexandre Amacio told Eurogamer. "That's fast approaching, and the story we have to tell, we obviously need to do it before we arrive at that point."

Ubisoft Montreal has created four main games since the Assassin's Creed series debuted in 2007, and 2009's Assassin's Creed 2 has enjoyed two follow-ups in quick succession with last year's Brotherhood and the forthcoming Revelations.

"We had such a complex and strong narrative that we ourselves did our best to just try to execute these games before that date," Amacio said. "It would be stupid of us to be centring a game on a semi-reality and then have that conclusion happen after that date in real life."

Beyond the conclusion of Desmond's tale, Assassin's Creed will likely return with an all-new lead character.

"Assassin's Creed is all about cycles - we have the Ezio cycle and the Altair cycle, and both of those are set to conclude in Revelations and we have the Desmond cycle, which is set to end on December 2012," said Amacio. "But there's many cycles within the brand - that's the whole point. History is our playground."

However, a shift in approach to development at Ubisoft Montreal means that the quick-fire rate at which new games have been produced is likely to come to an end.

"We're already structuring the way we do Assassin's Creed, so it will no longer ever be like that," said Amacio. "Our development approach is changing so our cycles aren't structured the same way - so it gives us a little bit more development time."

Picture of Martin.

About Martin Robinson

Martin is Eurogamer's features editor with responsibility for commissioning, editing and often writing our feature and preview content. He's also passionate about driving games.

Read more articles from Martin by visiting the Martin Robinson archive page.

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Comments (30) Latest comment 7 months ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Gearskin #1 8 months ago

    I hope the third game still doesn't focus solely on Desmond. I don't think an Assassin's Creed game where you climb around a modern city would be half as interesting.

  • spidermanalf #2 8 months ago

    I do love these games, but to be honest I am not that bothered about the story!

  • DozyKipper #3 8 months ago

    I think the Desmond bits in AC: Brotherhood were the best bits so I'm all for a whole game using just Desmond.

  • rob_of_the_robots #4 8 months ago

    Do we really need all these iterations in quick succession though?

  • doragonpawwa #5 8 months ago

    With every AC game I tend to get it cheaper in a few months... but it looks as if I'd miss out if the Earth suddenly gets invaded by giant Ants and robots.

    Nice work Ubisoft... now I have to buy it day one! D:

  • marmaduke #6 8 months ago

    I just hope they try harder with the overarching plot- the end of Brotherhood reminded me of Lost, in that whoever was writing it didn't really know what was going on and just threw some mystical crap in there to keep things ticking over.

  • jonbwfc #7 8 months ago

    Blimey, how about actually getting Revelations out the door before you start on about the next game, eh lads?

  • myiagros #8 8 months ago

    Most milked series of this generation.

    Sure i enjoyed the first game & the second was ok after the rubbish first 4 hours, but I won't pay to play the same game again each year.

    This series would benefit greatly from a few years break between releases, to keep it fresh.

  • arcam #9 8 months ago

    @myiagros

    Tha sad thing is, the people actually making the game would agree with you: [link url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/no-assassins-creed-in-2011
    ]http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/no-ass...[/link]

    "I don't think there's going to be an Assassin's Creed in 2011. I think we're going to let it breathe a bit and really focus on bringing something new and exciting for the next time around. This [Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood] is the end of Ezio's story. This is it."

    But I get the feeling that as long as it is selling, Ubi won't let them give the series a breather.

  • RevanNL #10 8 months ago

    Loved AC2, loved AC:B, but I'm going to skip Revelations. I was done with Ezio after Brotherhood and Altair just isn't a great character. I'm really waiting for AC3

  • asphaltcowboy #11 8 months ago

    Big fan of AC, but kinda wish they'd take a bit more time over it. After Revelations, I think they could spend 2 years making AC3 rather than getting it out before Dec 2012.

  • Gearskin #12 8 months ago

    Doesn't Ubisoft split their resource though? Won't ACIII have been in development longer? Revelations is running on a bolstered engine, yet Brotherhood was using the same tech as number 2.

    I don't think they could get an enhanced engine up and running, plus build an entire game as big as these inside of just 12 months.

  • el_pollo_diablo #13 8 months ago

    They so blatantly squeezed an extra game out of AC2 engine and setting. I think I even recall them saying it was planned as a trilogy when the first one came out.

    Not that all 'expansion packs' are shite but I think the story has wandered waaaay off, Lost style.
    Edited by el_pollo_diablo at 03/10/11 @ 12:09

  • sadakos_fury #14 8 months ago

    Excuse me, Alexandre. I would imagine that the number of people that will play and complete this after December 2012 would be pretty big. What's the point of rushing to get it out the door by then? I think most people know that it's only a game and can suspend disbelief long enough to enjoy whatever mind-blowing finale you have in mind. We understand that games aren't broadcast live.
    Also, The Rapture destroying the earth December after next would really mess up your Christmas sales figures.

  • malforian #15 8 months ago

    Ah ubisoft stealing Activisions idea of only having 1 game that sells and flog it to death!

  • addugg #16 8 months ago

    "Come to and end."

    Come to AN end.

    I'm not being an ass I love you guys dearly, just thought you might want to correct it.

    EDIT: You're welcome.
    Edited by addugg at 03/10/11 @ 12:46

  • vizzini #17 8 months ago

    Looking at the AC logo, I always thought it looked similar to something in the hitman film.

    Would a December 2012 Hitman game tie in with the AC story? I could see it merging with the film, but not sure about the games, as I haven't played more than a demo of one or two.

  • Iain815 #18 8 months ago

    Well, I for one enjoy the story to Assassins Creed very much so. The researchers/writers put out in a lot of effort and clearly know their stuff, and they certainly know how to pull off mind fucks.

    AC2 got a bit tedious towards the end, but it was the plot that kept me going. Then I loved AC:B as it tweaked everything wrong from AC2.

  • tomjoadsghost #19 8 months ago

    I dont mind the idea of a modern day game to finish off this um, ... cycle.

    modern cities are populous but can be so isolating that the idea of a character starting a brotherhood style revolution which decides an ages old global struggle within the confines of a single city is kind of appealing, it would have to be somewhere exotic but ultra modern though.

    I'd want them somehow to have echoes of altair/ ezio in it too, to somehow flip it so they seem as present in desmonds present as he was in our version of theirs.

  • benfresh76 #20 8 months ago

    I'm a big fan of the assassins creed franchise, but, especially given that each AC demands quite a significant investment of time, I do think they may be on the brink of devaluing the brand with these yearly iterations. Like a lot of commentors, I don't have much interest in the schlocky , convoluted story (it's not just you AC, that's a broader video game issue), but, as an exercise in virtual tourism, I think the AC games are in a class of their own; the depth of research that goes into recreating these historical locations is breathtaking with the artistic value of the world only reinforced with a passion for the history and architecture of the place that makes the play experience a lot more meaningful and rewarding for the player.

    I can't wait to clamber over Constantinople, but after that, I'd like to see the series gestate for a while and come back fresh and relevant...I'd hate to see the series die from over exposure.

  • kangarootoo #21 8 months ago

    I just skim read. Are they saying the story has to be concluded before next year because the world is coming to an end?

    HOLY SHIT!!

  • jimdove76 #22 8 months ago

    desmond is crap tho, every other character in the games are interesting and fleshedout, desmond may be holding it all together with the way he is accessing the memories but his character is a bland, drab 00's man.

  • Kikizosan #23 8 months ago

    My first thought was, "No, give him a break!". But they're right, the world IS going to end in December 2012. Hopefully this willl be released with a few days grace so we all have time to complete it before the end is nigh.

    Still, I'd prolly skip it for another game that isn't so overexposed, even though the series continues to be of high quality in spite of the yearly iteration.

  • TheApologist #24 8 months ago

    If the world's coming to an end, I'm not wasting my time playing more AC

  • Hindle #25 8 months ago

    Post deleted at 23:04:43 04-04-2012

  • shortyluke2010 #26 8 months ago

    Hmm.. Is AC going to turn in to FIFA and CoD?

  • Zero_g #27 8 months ago

    I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the AC games, the series has improved with each successive iteration! Bring on revelations and assassin's creed 3! Desmond needs a bit
    More of a backstory but after the climax of
    The AC:B I'm looking forward to the events of revelations.

  • Ashcroft #28 8 months ago

    I've bought every other AC game at launch, but they're going back to the well one too many times here.

    This one can wait until the new year.

  • ShovelyJoe #29 8 months ago

    Few things:

    @ Vizzini - I think that is a super cool tie-in mate. That's some lateral thinking there. But I really like the idea.

    @BenFresh76 - totally agree with the virtual historical tourism aspect. Always wanted to visit Constantinople/ Istanbul and if I dont manage before playing this came I think my attraction to the place will be even greater.

    @ everyone - if you read the Mayan predictions - they do not predict the end of the world but the end of time. Pretty sure they make a clear distinction between the two so I guess we should as well.

    My favourite aspect of the last game, which I really think can be fleshed out and developed into a really interesting aspect of the game, was building my own team of assassins. There are some simple things they could do to make the missions more rewarding - like rescuing artifacts (art, texts, armour, weapons, etc) from the various locations they visit to add a bit of variety to the gameplay.

    I think there is a massive story continuity problem with setting an AC in the future. Throughout the games, your dispatching of guards as you scurry around the roofs of different cities is justified as they are acting on behalf of unscrupulous barons, lords, etc and enforcing despotic controls over the locals.

    If it is set in the present, choosing a place where the despotic nature of a mayor would justify the merciless butchery of policeman constantly is not only going to be difficult but also limit the game to only a few areas globally where the distinction in terms of architecture would not be so great from the older games.

    Remember, unlike something like GTA where running around murdering cops is a choice (apart from the odd mission) constantly dispatching guards in AC is unavoidable. I dont think Ubi would be too popular if they were to release a game where brutally murdering policemen in close combat made up a significant portion of the gameplay.

    I am quite happy for them to delve into the history of another great city and there are many more to choose from. My bias would be to London which has some easily recognisable landmarks that would be fantastic to scale. Some tie in to Guy Fawkes (unfortunately time-wise before the last outing) would have been pretty special. I would love to scale Big Ben and do the eagle vision over central London. Other cities on my short list would be: Athens, Paris or Prague.

    I have enjoyed the story; I have enjoyed the history lesson; I have enjoyed the sensation of the scale of the cities and having the ability to scale them as well; I have enjoyed the combat that has evolved nicely and doesn't get overly tiresome; I hope to enjoy a finale that serves the series justice and concludes all the arches with a satisfying climax.

    Good luck!!!

  • CamberGreber #30 7 months ago

    Come on Feudal Japan. (fingers crossed)