Just when we thought the commercial and critical success of Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced would push Ubisoft into churning out remakes of its flagship franchise, the French publisher has other priorities.
That much is clear from an official statement in which the company looks back on the technical challenge that Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced represented. “As the franchise's first remake, Resynced taught us a great deal,” it notes. “Working on a game that means so much to players brought its share of emotions and challenges. Rebuilding old systems from scratch, adding new elements consistent with the experience and striking the right balance between heritage and innovation was a colossal undertaking. We're proud of what the Resynced team delivered, and of the reception the game has had.”
No other Assassin's Creed remake... for now
It then adds: “Today, we want to be transparent about the fact that no Assassin's Creed game remake is currently in development. Our teams are already focused on the next chapter of Assassin's Creed games, including projects you haven't heard about yet, set in new environments with brand-new stories. But don't think we're closing the door. Like many of you, we love the idea of revisiting classics and we'll keep exploring the possibility of bringing older titles back to life. The door remains open.”
As a reminder, Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced (released on 9 July on PC, Xbox Series and PS5) shifted more than 2 million copies in under 24 hours. The 3 million mark was passed by the end of its first week on sale.
Assassin's Creed Invictus on the right track?
Among Ubisoft's current priorities is Assassin's Creed Invictus, which will put the emphasis on multiplayer. Back in May, leaker j0nathan suggested the game was in a catastrophic state. Tom Henderson's sources, for their part, preferred to highlight the project's potential, even if the results so far aren't convincing for a title that has now been in development for several years.
“A few months ago, hundreds of players joined our first private Insiders Session, tested a prototype and shared their feedback directly with the development team,” Ubisoft explains in its statement. “The return of multiplayer PvP was received extremely positively. Testers particularly enjoyed the parkour and verticality of our maps, the dynamic teamwork and the chance to play as several Assassin's Creed characters, each with unique skills and playstyles.”
It goes on: “One thing did stand out in your feedback, though: players saw potential in the fundamentals, but wanted to see more of the pillars that define Assassin's Creed. The team has spent the past few months putting that feedback into practice, and Invictus is now heading in an exciting direction that reflects those pillars while staying true to its multiplayer ambitions. […] As Invictus is still in development, the information you'll find online may be incomplete, out of date or simply wrong.”
See you in 2027 for Assassin's Creed Blair Witch
Still on the Assassin's Creed front, the other priority is Assassin's Creed Hexe, an instalment shaping up to be a particularly dark one, since it's set in the Middle Ages with witch hunts in full swing. Ubisoft is saying little on the subject and merely points to 2027. Fair enough.
Beyond the updates rolling out for Assassin's Creed Valhalla (New Game+ arrives on 5 November) and Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced (content is available right now), the French publisher has been working on the live action series due to air on Netflix before long. Filming recently wrapped in Rome, and we'll have to wait a little longer for a release date.
Lastly, we're reminded that Assassin's Creed turns 20 next year. You don't have to take Ubisoft at its word, but a remake of the very first Assassin's Creed with Altaïr, released back in 2007, would have made a lot of sense.
