Assassin’s Creed returns to its stealth origins with a more focused story.
Assassin’s Creed Mirage looks to its origins and takes two steps backs to move… backwards. It intentionally strips away the filler and expanded gameplay to return to a more streamlined and cohesive story with clear structure. After several supersized instalments – and in a year dominated by prolonged adventures – Ubisoft has picked the perfect time to take Assassin’s Creed back to its simpler beginnings.
Assassin’s Creed set the foundations in 2007, but it was the 2009 sequel that instantly propelled the fresh franchise to become Ubi’s marquee series. It was followed by a seemingly endless production line of sequels, and as an annual franchise, it suddenly wasn’t so fresh, despite retaining a captivating quality.
Assassin’s was a series in danger of burning itself out and needed to rejuvenate what had become an all too familiar formula. It was a resounding success. The Black Flag through Valhalla era is a case study into how to keep your best-seller alive. While Valhalla was a great way to launch the current-generation of consoles, by the end of it I was exhausted. I couldn’t contemplate going back into such a meaty action-RPG. What I really wanted was a break, before leisurely returning to the Animus in a more manageable saga.
That’s exactly what Ubisoft has delivered with Mirage. It slims down Assassin’s Creed and takes it back to basics. After the longest gap in franchise history, almost 3 years, I’ve never been more ready to re-equip my hidden blades and dive back into a convenient haystack.
Mirage puts you in the shoes of new protagonist, but returning character from Valhalla, Basim Ibn Ishaq in 9th Century Baghdad. A street thief turned assassin, Mirage delves into the history of the Assassins when they were still known as the Hidden Ones. We live his development from pickpocket to hitman, in an Assassin’s Creed story that’s packed with memorable moments and paced far better than the larger scale adventures. With most objectives connecting to the main quest, I’ve found it much easier to follow the who, why and when of assassinations.
Putting the story aside for a moment, the opening hour exclaims the strong intent to recapture Assassin’s Creed’s past, foremost as a stealth game. Its structure, characterisation, world-building and core mechanics are more reminiscent of the Altair and Ezio saga than anything we’ve played since.
Mirage feels like a remaster of an Assassin’s Creed game from 15 years ago.
It’s clear in its intent; like a good assassin, it’s able to focus on the task at hand. Objectives are prominent, clues must be uncovered, and targets identified for assassination – not head-on assault. Basim is a crafty street thief and – for the first time in a long time – an actual assassin as a member of the Hidden Ones. He still tallies a hefty body count, but without the relentless murdering of open combat. With stealth favoured, you’re heavily encouraged to use tools, shadows and cheeky whistles to take out guards and sneak into compounds relatively unseen.
It’s far more formulaic in that sense, and that can make Mirage feel dated. It certainly doesn’t feel like a cutting edge modern game, from a series that’s always touted each entry to be bigger and better than the last.
And that’s why I’ve enjoyed Mirage so much.
It’s rekindled why Assassin’s Creed was a sudden sensation. Much like Mario returning to his 2D roots in the mid-2000s, it reminds us that the old way still has its charms. While there’s a place for the sprawling action-RPGs, pure Assassin’s Creed is a fantastic 15-to-20-hour experience – so long as you’re happy to follow the more obvious blueprint.
In returning to basics, Mirage is a stealth game first and an action-adventure game second, but a role-playing game it is not; and that’s how it used to be. There are occasional dialogue choices, but these have no baring on the story. They serve to allow a trickle of optional chatter and make sure you’re paying attention in key cutscenes. Basmin’s skill tree and equipment upgrades are also on the light side, as we’d expect with the shorter timeframe.
Mirage embodies a remaster in looks as well as gameplay, appearing more like a touched up old game. Honestly, that mostly suits it – there’s even a filter to coat the warm tones of Baghdad in Assassin’s Creed 1’s cool blue. But it could use some polish, as it struggles with some visual oddities and awkward animations in an otherwise lively world. It also has more lip sync issues than an ageing popstar that detract from the stellar voice acting; anchored by the wisdom of Shohreh Aghdashloo as Basim’s mentor Roshan.
Assassin’s Creed Mirage is also unusually aware of its value proposition. With a reduced scope and a decidedly last-gen aesthetic, it’s priced AUD $30 cheaper than most PS5 and Xbox Series X/S games at $80 AUD ($50 USD). As most games are blindly increasing their prices, Mirage has accepted that it’s a more tailored experience. In that context, it retains its value despite reducing its content.
Less content doesn’t mean a lesser experience. And while careful not to outstay its welcome, with a structured playbook on repeat, we wouldn’t want it to surpass 20 hours. Mirage gets the balance right.
It still features an active open world, but it’s smaller in scope, which helps it feel more alive and keeps Basim’s story flowing. Better yet, it’s the first Ubisoft open world to avoid its trademark map bloat in years. I wouldn’t say it’s completely fixed the convoluted map dilemma, but it’s a drastic improvement. There’s clear direction at a glance and zooming in helps you locate traders and optional points of interest.
Combat has reverted to the borderline (wait your) turn-based approach of the original series. The focus is always on stealth and avoiding direct conflict. It rewards making use of guards’ pre-planned routes to quietly assassinate or distract them with noise-machines. Or you could eliminate them from a distance with throwing knives and blowdarts. Should you raise the alarm and be surrounded, Basim is best advised to drop a smoke bomb and make for the bushes; then promptly tear down wanted posters to reduce his notoriety.
When Basim swaps hidden blades for a sword and dagger, he can still burst through a small crowd of opponents. You don’t have to try and get away, but you best be ready to master parrying, which brings one-hit kills back into play. It’s less elegant, but should you engage in direct swordplay, most goons politely wait their turn like a well choreographed action movie – and the early AC games.
It really is stealthy Assassin’s Creed as we once knew it. Not just inspired by it – a direct return to the series’ original mechanics, as faithfully as possible against modern expectations.
I’ve enjoyed the walk down memory lane, but for some players, it’ll feel too dated. If you joined the series post-Black Flag, it may feel like a large step back. For some who played the original games, it might feel too similar and like you’ve done this before and moved on. It’s for those who miss the original Assassin’s Creed games.
If you’re old enough to know who Desmond Miles is, and have a desire to return to the series’ origins, Assassin’s Creed Mirage hits the spot. It reins in the endless expansion and has very clear direction. It’s a much simpler game with a stealth focus, and many of its mechanics would feel at home in 2010 – if Ubisoft told us this was a remaster of an unreleased game from that era, we’d easily believe it. Assassin’s Creed Mirage is a rare example of taking two steps back and staying there intentionally; to return to an older style of gameplay that equates to smaller and cheaper but certainly not lesser.
Assassin’s Creed Mirage was reviewed using a promotional code on Xbox Series X, as provided by the publisher. Click here to learn more about Stevivor’s scoring scale.
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Assassin's Creed Mirage5 October 2023PC PS4 PS5 Xbox One Xbox Series S & X
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