Like any long-running franchise, Assassins' Creed has had it is fair share of highs and lows over the years. From its origins as stealth-action game to the sprawling open-world RPG it is now, everybody has their favourite game and their own reasons for loving the games they love.
So, because I obviously love conflict and because Assassin's Creed Valhalla has just come out, I decided it was time to rank all 12 main games from worst to best. Try and remember that is my opinion, blended with some feedback from the rest of the GAMINGbible team. I might see this as the definitive list, you might see me as a hack moron. It's a beautiful cycle.
Assassin's Creed Unity
Pour one out for Assassin's Creed Unity. The French Revolution was an inspired setting for the franchise, and Ubisoft's recreation of 18th Century Paris was absolutely stunning for the most part.
The problem, as I'm sure most of you remember, is that game itself was an absolute mess. The few things Unity had going for it were bogged down by a lame story, meme-worthy graphical glitches, a smorgasbord of bugs, and some seriously dody gameplay. A lot of it has been fixed since launch, but it still pretty much sucks.
Assassin's Creed III
If Assassin's Creed II represented a stunning leap forward for the franchise after the first game, Assassin's Creed III was a brief stumble backwards. It's not that the third game - set during the American Revolution - is bad, it's just that it's really quite boring.
Connor Kenway is destined to be remembered as the worst Assassin in the entire series, while many of the games biggest and best ideas simply weren't executed nearly as well as they should have been. Speaking of executions, it takes Assassin's Creed III literal hours to really get into the action, and that's unforgivable.
Assassin's Creed Rogue
I think it's fair to say that Assassin's Creed Rogue is one of the more overlooked games in the series, not helped by the fact that it was essentially an expansion for Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag.
Still, as far as add-ons go, Rogue is one of the best I've ever played, bringing new dimensions to the well-established universe by asking us to play as Templar and fight to prevent assassinations. A bold choice for a game with "Assassin" in the title, but one I feel paid off in the long run.
Assassin's Creed
Ubisoft
I'm sorry, okay? I know claiming the original entry in such a popular series is actually the fourth worst is bound to ruffle some feathers, but come on guys... it was the first entry.
We can appreciate the legacy of Assassin's Creed and its importance in the industry while also acknowledging that almost every game that came after it was better in pretty much every way. So yes, I love Assassin's Creed and always will. I think it's a fantastic, exciting, and incredibly important game that had a huge impact on AAA developers around the world... but I also know that the many, many sequels it went on to spawn are vast improvements that build on its impressive foundations in a number of ways.
Assassin's Creed Syndicate
Releasing hot on the heels of the disastrous Unity, Assassin's Creed Syndicate often gets associated - rather unfairly - with the huge dip in quality we started to see as a result of the annual release cycle.
The truth is that Syndicate is an excellent little adventure that makes the most of its fog-covered Victorian London setting. Jacob and Evie Frye are two of the most interesting Assassin's the series has ever produced. They were certainly the best since Ezio, at any rate.
Assassin's Creed Revelations
Ubisoft
Assassin's Creed Revelations is a super important game for the lore buffs out there, as it finally wraps up the journeys of Ezio and Altair, the assassin's from the first two games in the series.
Advert
While I wasn't personally chomping at the bit to discover what had been going on in Altair's life, getting to see Ezio's story wrap up after several years and a handful of games made for an incredibly satisfying experience. On top of this we had gameplay that had settled into a comfortable and engaging groove, plus an unexpectedly fun tower defense mini-game. Bonus.
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
A direct sequel to the critically acclaimed Assassin's Creed II was always going to be a hit... wasn't it? I mean, you can see that I've named it the fifth greatest Assassin's Creed game of all time, so you can clearly see that I at least think very highly of it.
And so should you! Everything you loved about Assassin's Creed II is present and correct. Ezio is back, the gameplay is as focused and tight as you'd want it to be, and there are enough new twists to ensure it's not just more of the same. A slick open-world Rome, the ability to enlist your own band of followers, and a shockingly good multiplayer mode? Fantastic.
Assassin's Creed Origins
The transition of Assassin's Creed from stealth-action game to open-world RPG was a fairly shocking one at the time, but I think most of us can look back on Assassin's Creed Origins and see it as the bold and reinvigorating leap of faith the series needed to take.
While traces of the series as we knew it survived, it had been infused with elements of modern RPGs like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. The beautifully put together and occasionally alarmingly vast Ancient Egypt served as the backdrop for an ambitious and deeply emotional story, packed with sidequests, mini-games, and a lot of heart. Bayek is easily one of the best Assassin's of the series, and I shall stan him 5eva.
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Assassin's Creed Valhalla is arguably the best-looking and bleakest game in the series yet, completing the series' years-long journey from stealth-action to RPG. And yet, while Valhalla feels entirely fresh and new, fans will be delighted to learn that this viking adventure has revived a surprising amount of what made the original games so special.
There's an awful lot more focus on stealth and assassinations for one thing, and while the world is massive, exploring it and taking on its many side missions never feels too overwhelming or - crucially - like much of a grand. A brilliant entry that should please fans old and new.
Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
Before games like Origins and Odyssey came along, I truly believed that Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag would be the biggest Assassin's Creed game I ever played. "Surely," I thought to myself as I sailed across a massive ocean in search of adventure, "this is as good as it gets."
As it turns out, Assassin's Creed would get better... but it took years for Ubisoft to top the nautical exploits of Edward Kenway. And even then, the influence Black Flag has on the newer games is plain to see. Tighter combat, naval battles, a much greater emphasis on exploration and building your very own team of gruff sailors - these are just a few of the things this fantastic game introduced into an undeniable series highpoint that took everything that worked about classic Creed and turned it up to 11.
Advert
Assassin's Creed Odyssey
Is Assassin's Creed Odyssey too big? Most likely. I'm not sure I'll ever see everything Ubisoft's Ancient Greece adventure has to offer, but I'm always drawn back to it every few months to have a damn good try.
Odyssey is utterly gorgeous. A sprawling adventure that's immensely generous with its content, hiding new adventures and stories across every inch of its perfectly realised, sun-kissed map. From the leafy forests of Sparta to the stormy oceans that surround Athens, Odyssey is a game that truly makes you feel like you've gone on a journey. It's one that sags in places, to be sure, but it hits more often than not.
Oh, and Kassandra is everything and if you didn't play as her I'm not entirely sure what you think you were doing.
Assassin's Creed II
Assassin's Creed II isn't just the best Assassin's Creed game of all time, it's the ultimate sequel. Ubisoft took everything about the first game that worked and made it better, while simultaneously throwing in a bunch of new features to help further endear us to the budding franchise.
The charming Ezio Auditore was a revelation after the dour Altair, and a perfect match for Renaissance era Italy, one of the most fascinating periods in history, thoroughly mined of all potential by Ubisoft. Missions had more depth and felt more impactful, combat was improved beyond recognition, and our hero's arc from beginning to end is one of the best Ubisoft has ever given us. This is easily the definitive Assassin's Creed experience, and has yet to be topped.
Assassin's Creed was the birth of something special, to be sure... but without Assassin's Creed II, the franchise simply wouldn't be the powerhouse it is today.
Featured Image Credit: UbisoftTopics: Feature, Assassin's Creed, Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Ubisoft