A helix is a part of Assassin’s Creed, and it has always been that way. Ubisoft’s developers have been weaving history and science fiction together for the better part of 15 years now, and the results are as diverse as they are varied. From the moment Mirage was announced, it had to do the impossible: reform the brand while keeping all that people loved about recent years’ behemoth RPGs Creed.
Mirage not only meets those expectations, it exceeds them. It manages to find the balance not only between past and present, but also between RPG and action, of narrative urgency and freedom, of expression and intent. Mirage is my favourite Assassin’s Creed game of the past few years, by a far margin. Using focus, you can achieve in 20 hours what Valhalla struggled to achieve in 200.
Mirage’s unexpected victory is in its role-playing, which almost seems accidental. You succeed in imbibing protagonist Basim, not because of any of the scant skill-trees or vague progression systems, but because you’re railroaded into acting like the character would act, approaching situations like the character would.
It’s Assassin’s Creed refined, where skulking in the shadows and peeking around corners on the dusty streets of Baghdad is a necessity. Gone are the viking power fantasies, the channeling of Greek gods, and the gunslinging pirate gravemakers.