The next instalment of Assassin's Creed is hot on our heels, and we take over the life of Basim in a coming of age tale filled with cunning action and a stunning story. You may know Basim from the previous game, Assassin's Creed Valhalla, where his story was intertwined with that of Eivor Varinsdottir. But Assassin's Creed Mirage will take us on a journey through Basim's youth to him becoming a Hidden One. So why should you pre-order in time for release day?
1. Revisit a familiar world!
One thing that Assassin's Creed has done in the past is explore the tales of the Brotherhood across the world. But with AC: Mirage, we're going back to the game's roots. Baghdad is rich with ancient culture, colour and adventure. Set 300 years before Altair and the Third Crusade, Basim will use Baghdad as his playground as the game utilises parkour around the map with a sense of familiarity. We see the return of the corner swing, object vaulting and pully elevators, as well as new techniques introduced like the pole-vault - allowing you to cross large gaps between rooftops efficiently. Compared to Valhalla, which was made up to represent almost half of historic England, Baghdad is narrower and filled with more obstacles from the get go. With less open space to traverse, players will find themselves hiding and climbing across the map much like we did in the days of Altair and Ezio. From what we see in the trailers, this is going to be a nostalgic adventure for all Assassin's Creed fans, heading back to where the love for the game truly began.
2. The Glass Cannon
Unlike the previous entry into this game series, Basim is not built like a Norse warrior who can hack and slash his way through enemies. Described by the developers over at Ubisoft Bordeaux as a "glass cannon", you must utilise Basim's capacity to escape and hide - sound familiar? Akin to the gameplay of the very first Assassin's Creed game, you can use many tricks to escape from the imminent danger of your enemies. Smoke bombs, bribery and social blending will be your biggest allies when playing through this story. But this doesn't mean he will fall at the first sign of conflict. Equipped with extensive weapons and tools, Basim will be able to fight his way out of a sticky situation when needed.
3. An Immersive Dubbed Experience.
For fans who want to truly feel like they're in the Golden Age of Baghdad, or those who are native Arabic speakers, Mirage is going to be available in fully dubbed Arabic. Yes, you read that right. With this game being rich in a vibrant history of the Middle East, the folks over at Ubisoft have ensured that the experience for players will be as authentic as possible. We've already got an stellar cast in the English edition, with Shohreh Aghdashloo as Roshan and Lee Majdoub as Basim both who can speak Arabic. To see such an homage to the culture which fills the world of Assassin's Creed Mirage is truly brilliant. Will you be playing in English or Arabic?
4. Teleporting Assassins?
To show the prowess of Basim's agility, there's a new ability that can have this cunning assassin take out multiple enemies by what appears to be teleportation. But that's not quite the whole truth. Ubisoft wanted to show exactly how agile Basim was, but to make this truly effective and immersive they have added in some...effects. What seems to be Basim flitting from enemy to enemy with superhuman speed is explained so simply by the fact that we, the player, are actually watching this play through the Animus technology. Though we see some special effects, similar to the days when you had the "last seen" status in older games, Basim is actually just incredibly fast. Cool, right? Though this ability cannot be activated willy nilly, there has to be some thought put into it's use, we're pretty excited to see this gameplay in action.
5. Much More Streamlined.
Compared to it's predecessor, Mirage is significantly more compact. Though you may initially feel this is a negative, it means that the game is not crammed full of side quests that are endless, nor do you need to take on pointless tasks to progress further in the game. As much as I personally loved Valhalla, getting the support of the counties was tedious and frustrating as it was necessary to progress the game. But it looks as though Mirage has ditched this aspect, giving a familiar breath of fresh air when approaching Basim's story. Only time will tell if this is beneficial for the franchise.
Hopefully, this guide has swayed your decision to play the next installment of this iconic series! Assassin's Creed Mirage releases on October 12th for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Xbox One/Series X. You can pre-order your copy now for just £44.95 by clicking the button below!
