Do All Assassin‘s Creed Games Have Open Worlds? A Definitive Look
With over 155 million games sold worldwide since 2007, few franchises can match the incredible popularity of Assassin‘s Creed. And one key pillar of what keeps fans coming back release after release is the series‘ signature vast open worlds. So do all mainline Assassin‘s Creed games incorporate open world environments? Unequivocally, yes.
The Progression of Ever-Expanding Open World Design
The epic, beautifully rendered settings players can traverse have become as central to the Assassin‘s Creed DNA as the Franchise‘s iconic hooded protagonists themselves. Let‘s examine how these sandbox environments have evolved across some of the most acclaimed entries:
- Assassin‘s Creed II (2009) – Boasting breakout critical reception and fan fervor, ACII built on foundations of the original by filling its Renaissance Italy open world with dense, thriving cities and new traversal abilities letting Ezio seamlessly parkour across rooftops.
- Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag (2013) – Ship boarding infused open world naval exploration brought unbridled freedom to exotic Caribbean islands and became a formula high point.
- Assassin‘s Creed Origins (2017) – Egypt doubled down on RPG progression systems and handcrafted discovery moments suited to its desert vistas and ancient tombs.
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (2020) – Delivering Ubisoft‘s largest AC open world yet at a staggeringly detailed 340km2, Valhalla‘s take on Dark Ages England has elevated emergent sandbox gameplay to unprecedented new levels.
While side projects like Chronicles have implemented more linear 2.5D platforming, every numerical main entry has tapped into what makes the series special — namely letting players loose as Assassins to stalk prey across impeccably reproduced eras however they choose.
Key Ingredients of an Assassin‘s Creed Open World
Examining the many superb sandbox playgrounds Assassin‘s Creed has invited gamers into over the past decade and a half reveals core open world ingredients setting the franchise apart:
- Parkour Movement – AC pioneered silky smooth parkour animated maneuvers facilitating breathtaking rooftop chases and escapes mirroring the free running athleticism of Assassins themselves.
- Stealth, Combat and Social Options – Tackle objectives any way preferred among stealth assassinations, aggressive melee showdowns or blending in through crowds.
- Dense Side Activities – From property investments to sea shanties, tomb raiding to gladiator arenas, engaging optional content supplements critical path missions.
- Diverse Wildlife and Dynamic Systems – Wildlife ecosystems plus sophisticated weather simulation inject open worlds with unmatched life and immersion.
By rewarding freedom and pursuing immersion through these and other next-gen elements, Ubisoft keeps perfecting a special sauce that has propelled Assassin‘s Creed to record popularity.
How Big are Assassin‘s Creed‘s Open Worlds Compared to Each Other?
As consoles and production budgets have grown across generations, so too have the sprawling frontiers offered in each successive title. Let‘s examine the measured real world physical sizes of some of the most enormous Assassin‘s playgrounds to date:
| Game | Open World Size |
|---|---|
| AC Odyssey | 240 km2 |
| AC Origins | 161 km2 |
| AC Valhalla | 340 km2 |
To put those gigantic measurements in perspective, Odyssey‘s ancient Greece could swallow Los Angeles 3 times over. Valhalla‘s medieval England lands nearly double the size of Origins‘ already immense Egypt. This steady upward trajectory shows Ubisoft‘s commitment to handcrafting their most ambitiously massive and dense open worlds bar none across the industry.
The Road Ahead – Pushing Open World Boundaries Further
If early benchmarks are any indication, entries on the horizon like the recently announced Assassin‘s Creed Mirage seem primed to advance the hallmark open world formula even further. Given the IP‘s continued meteoric success and that freedom of exploration rests firmly at its core, Ubisoft has every incentive to keep investing in technical and design innovations to let future assassins reach new heights.
As the Assassin‘s Creed franchise boldly ventures into its second decade, expectations remain high. Can Ubisoft continue delivering on the promise of transcendent historical open world epics groundbreaking 2007 original sparked? Here‘s betting gamers will be stalking templar prey from icy Asgard mountaintops to fire-scorched Ancient Rome across the next 15 years and beyond. Because for this beloved blockbuster series, more than ever before, the open world is the limit.
