Assassins Creed Mirage: is all the glitter worth the gold?

Mirage sadly isn’t that game despite the enormous attention and care the game’s makers have put in.

Hyderabad: With a shift to Baghdad, and a return to its roots, what does it mean for the franchise’s reboot?

Playing Mirage, the latest game in the iconic Assassins Creed franchise was like slipping my hands into an old glove – warm, comfortable, familiar and likeable. In a matter of minutes, I was picking pockets, scaling walls, jumping rooftops and channeling eagle vision– almost like a return to my favorite haunts.

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A lot has been said about the franchise’s return to its roots and in the first couple of hours with the game I couldn’t be happier. The gameplay was laced with oodles of nostalgia, and there were moments in the early game when I was lost in the spectacle. The opening cinematic – when all the assassin protagonists lined up was one, and then when I witnessed the shiny cerulean blue domes of Anbar and Baghdad, it almost felt like a return to Istanbul in Brotherhood.

However, one can’t judge a game on nostalgia alone and I was soon cribbing about the same things I have always cribbed about with Assassins Creed. Nostalgia is a dual edged sword after all, and I feel by returning to a formula and style that the franchise had walked away from it needed to get everything absolutely right.

Mirage sadly isn’t that game despite the enormous attention and care the game’s makers have put in. The free running remains a hit or miss, and the open world can get glitchy or bugged for unexpected reasons. For example, in one of the missions, a donkey decided to bray right beside where I was hiding and all the stealth I could muster evaporated in a jiffy.

I like the new combat style, the return of throwing knives, and the renewed focus on stealth and assassination. However, a lot of the experience lacks novelty. Yes, there is the notoriety mechanic and Basim can tear posters to become inconspicuous but so could Ezio.

There are unique ways to tackle main missions (like “Jailbreak”) but I could do that in Unity with Arno. Basim can eavesdrop on unsuspecting soldiers but so could Connor. Every time I encountered a game mechanic, I couldn’t help but wonder what was new and unique to Basim’s journey?

That, I think that is essential for Ubisoft and Assassins Creed going forward. What is a new form of interaction or engagement that can keep players interested? What next after the hidden blade? Subversion of history is cool and at this point expected, but can the Assassins lore keep expanding?

I did really like the narrative and plot in Mirage and the authenticity of the dialogue is fantastic. However, the experience despite getting most elements right, needs to offer players a bit more. It is tough to recommend Mirage due to its short campaign and an overall lack of novelty.

However, if you want to explore Baghdad and Mesopotamia in its sunlit, dust filled glory, I am not getting in your way.