Assassin's Creed Mirage is smaller in scale because the fans wanted it
Mirage promises to bring the series back to its stealthy roots.
.jpg?width=70&height=70&fit=crop&quality=60&format=png&auto=webp)
Assassin's Creed Mirage, set to release some time this year, promises to be smaller than the last few games, and fans of the series are the ones to thank for it.
Revealed in September last year (after a series of leaks), Assassin's Creed Mirage was a welcome announcement among fans of the series. The last few iterations like Valhalla and Odyssey moved the games more towards the RPG genre rather than the stealth-focused gameplay the first game brought to the table. But Mirage is going to the series roots, and according to a recent interview from GamesRadar with Ubisoft creative director Stéphane Boudon, part of the reasoning behind scaling down is thanks to the fans.
"Mirage’s creation has been the convergence of several inputs," Boudon said. "Of course, the first one comes from our community: Origins, Odyssey, Valhalla they are all great games with the promise to live an epic journey in a strong fantasy. Their scopes have been calibrated to fulfil those ambitions as they all embrace the RPG mechanics.
"But amongst our fans, we started hearing the desire for a character driven story, focused on the core pillars of the first ACs in a more intimate scale. It resonates with us as well as developers and this was the starting point of the project."
Though unsurprisingly, it's not just because of the fans that this project is being undertaken. Boudon explained that Ubisoft Bordeaux found Mirage to be the "perfect project" following the release of Valhalla's first DLC Wrath of the Druids, as it has a more focused scope, and more time to polish up important features, all a part of the team wanting to match the want for a smaller game.
While Mirage might be exciting for Assassin's Creeds fans, it doesn't mean Ubisoft is in the best position currently. The developer and publisher recently cancelled three unannounced titles, and, if you can believe it, has delayed Skull and Bones again. On top of that, Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope didn't perform as well as Ubisoft hoped, so overall things are a little shaky for the company at the moment.