Assassin's Creed III Preview

By Roberto Campos

Over the last several days, Assassin’s Creed III has been the talk of the web. Leaked concept art has sent everyone into speculating mode as people try to decipher what the potential plot to the next game. The newly released trailer for the latest entry in the series offers some much needed insight for what is to come.

From what we have seen from the concept art and the trailer, we can confirm that we will be exploring colonial America. The British Red Coats seem to be the enemies that will meet the fate of your many blades this time around. This is interesting because the new assassin protagonist dawns wardrobe that resembles Native American origins, if this character turns out to be Native American it contradicts history.

The Native Americans sided with the British since they saw the colonist as a threat which could potentially take their land. But what is even more interesting is reference of “Mohawk 1777” in the beginning of the trailer in the bottom left-hand corner. The Mohawk Indians, who lived in the Mohawk Valley located in upstate New York, fought on both sides of the revolution. This might explain why this assassin is killing Red Coats and seems to be on the side of the colonist. Even if this assassin is not Indian, it is safe to say with his Native American wardrobe, and the reference to “Mohawk 1777,” that he has ties to Indians.

 The trailer also reveals a George Washington-like character, I’m not going to certify it in stone that it is him because who knows, Ubisoft might make it someone else. This Washington-like character is shown leading the revolutionist into battle against the Red Coats and the assassin watches as the events unfold. The Assassin’s Creed universe has brought historical figures into its realm, such as Leonardo Davinci, and bringing George Washington to the series would definitely make for a very interesting story. It would be interesting to see the assassin group you belong to have direct ties to the foundation of the creation of America.

When I first learned that Assassin’s Creed III would be taking place in America it turned me off. The series has done a very good job at removing itself from modern western culture. Obviously the parts with Desmond are western influenced, but that part of the plot is needed to show how history has led us to this highly western influenced society. The franchise has taken parts of early history, some which many people are not too familiar with, and placed an interesting twist to them to cater to their story. It has placed its assassin’s in early Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cultures, cultures that were very powerful in their time. That is what has made the franchise so unique and so interesting. The environments in which their stories took place have been interpreted in different ways; they were gray, unlike the very black and white American Revolution.

The American Revolution seemed too easy and obvious for a plot choice and environment choice. But the more I thought about it and from what the trailer has shown, this is the perfect choice and direction for the series. This is the game the Assassin’s Creed series needs.

In a press release on Mar. 5, 2012 by Ubisoft they state, “Assassin’s Creed III will hit store shelves on October 31, 2012, encouraging gamers to experience the American Revolutionary War not written about in history books.” The series has been historic, but has changed history when needed to create a narrative that is compelling. The history creates the foundation for its lore about alternate universes and all the other crazy story plots that bands like The Beatles sung about on Sgt. Pepper. The narrative for the Assassin’s Creed franchise is complicated, but it has become stale, even though the plot still introduces interesting elements.

The franchise has started to rehash what it has put out in previous games and introducing a radical change like the American Revolution not only changes environments, but allows Ubisoft to take new direction. What would be more radical than changing the history behind the country that has greatly influenced the world around it ever since its inception?

Placing an assassin in this era is what this franchise needs because this franchise is beginning to look like franchises like Kingdom Hearts. The reason I compare the two is because Kingdom Hearts keeps creating games that add to the narrative but are starting to become pointless. The last two Assassin’s Creed games have greatly added to the narrative of the game but Ubisoft cannot keep adding to the plot without an end in mind or it will become a huge story that is hard to explain.

The good news is Ubisoft has that in mind, with this game being the end of Desmond’s story. Having Assassin’s Creed III be the end and by changing the environment, it will give this series the boost it needs to go out with a bang. Unlike the previous installment’s, in which the environments you visit are established powers, America will be a less established. From the screen shots and the trailer, it shows the assassin in the forest, so gameplay will mostly likely be much different than what we have come to know.

With all this in mind it is without a doubt that Assassin’s Creed III is going to bring something different to the table and make sure the series does not end quietly. It will be interesting to see all the new information as it rolls out as we approach its release date of Oct. 31, 2012. This game is certain to refresh this series, give gamers a different experience than the established series has given them before and make Assassin’s Creed III a game that is in foreground of titles to play in 2012.

Assassin’s Creed III will be available Oct. 31, 2012 for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC. It will also be released for the Wii U but its release date is to be announced.

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