When it began in 2007, the Assassin’s Creed franchise had titles that lasted the standard length of a AAA game at the time, taking around 15 hours to complete.
Aside from the expansion packs, all the main games in the series stayed not too far from that mark until 2015; the shortest was Assassin’s Creed Rogue at 10.5 hours, and the longest for years was Assassin’s Creed IV. Black Flag. 22.5 hours, most of which hover around the 16 hour mark.
The franchise then switched to a bi-annual issue format and moved the time period to more ancient settings, the gameplay changed with them and played more of a traditional RPG angle. Then, the game’s completion time increased, with the most recent Assassin’s Creed Valhalla clocking in at 47 hours.
Set in 13th century Baghdad, the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Mirage, due out this year, is a response to those overblown games. The game’s creative director Stephane Boudon told GamesRadar that they are responding to the game’s community and fans are asking to change things again;
“Among our fans, we began to hear a desire for a character-driven story that focused on the core pillars of the first ACs on a more intimate scale. It also resonates with us as developers, and that was the starting point of the project.”
The result, according to IGN, is a title that’s expected to last somewhere between 15 and 20 hours and is much “closer to our original games,” executive producer Marc-Alexis Cote told IGN. He says the plug.
“It’s a smaller Assassin’s Creed project. This was conceived [and] built to celebrate the 15th anniversary. That’s why we’re using our modern Valhalla engine to build a smaller game that pays homage to our original game, focusing more on stealth, close quarter combat, parkour, and a denser city that goes back to our roots. Middle East with Baghdad as the focal point”.
Because it’s a smaller game, Assassin’s Creed Mirage is also cheaper at launch, with an RRP of $49.99. The company continues to develop its upcoming Assassin’s Creed Infinity platform, which will reportedly allow them to make different experiences available in different dimensions.
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