In September, Ubisoft will be hosting some sort of event to showcase the future of Assassin’s Creed. What that means exactly is still anyone’s guess, but for many, there are four major possibilities. Fans could either get a look at an AC1 Remake, which fans think Ubisoft has teased; AC Infinity, the live-service title confirmed by Ubisoft some time ago; AC Rift, the reported, more classic-style action-adventure title said to be in development; and AC Nexus, a VR entry in the franchise.
Of these rumored titles, perhaps the Assassin's Creed 1 Remake and AC Rift are the most popular. The first is a bit of a tightrope walk though, in honoring its legacy and pleasing longtime fans, but AC Rift has the potential to be something new and old at the same time. According to the initial report by Bloomberg, AC Rift began as an expansion for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla before breaking off into its own title, ultimately boding well for its future.
Assassin’s Creed Rift Doesn’t Need Valhalla
As it stands, Ubisoft has said nothing in an official capacity about Assassin’s Creed Rift, nor has it seemingly teased anything about it. The report says that it will be a small-scale game, featuring Basim from Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Follow-up reports also suggested that Assassin’s Creed Rift would be set in Baghdad. Put it all together, and many have imagined that Assassin’s Creed Rift will explore Basim’s pre-Loki past, in a smaller game more akin to the classic Assassin’s Creed action-adventure titles.
This, if indeed it is Ubisoft’s plans, sounds incredibly promising. It could be a big turning point for the franchise as fatigue sets in around Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. And if Ubisoft is going to pull this off, making sure Basim’s story is its own game is a much better move than making it a Valhalla DLC.
If it were, it would likely share the same problems as other Assassin’s Creed Valhalla DLCs, which comes down to them being interesting but ultimately inconsequential. Basim’s story should not be inconsequential. It would make Baghdad and perhaps some of the surrounding area a map, toss Basim there, and the parkour would suffer.
Ubisoft is hopefully taking the classic approach here, meaning Baghdad may be the main focus of the game. This setting would allow for a tighter city design and allow Ubisoft to really push parkour in Assassin’s Creed Rift. Truly, by breaking away from Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Rift has to prove that it can walk on its own. From the sounds of it though, it could be that AC Rift is able to freely wall run, parkour, and make leaps of faith without being tethered to Valhalla’s design.
Assassin’s Creed Rift is reportedly in development.