Assassin’s Creed Riftis reportedly the codename for an upcoming release within the franchise. As reported by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier,Ubisoft is converting a DLC forAC Valhallainto a full-blown game, using Basim as the protagonist. It is not an open-world game, by all accounts, focusing on stealth gameplay and a smaller scope. In short, it sounds like a classicAssassin’s Creedgame.
That’s not a guarantee it follows this same pattern, but many fans understandably hope so. While many love theopen-worldAssassin’s Creedgames, there’s little reason Ubisoft couldn’t produce them both. If it is a return to form for the franchise, it’ll be interesting to see how it plays out from here. What’s more interesting is that Eurogamer corroborated Schreier’s report, also adding that the game will be set in Baghdad. This gives fans some clear insight into what the game could be like.
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Assassin’s Creed Rift: Basim in Baghdad
There’s not really a whole lot for a game focused on Basim to explore. WithAssassin’s Creed Valhalla, fans see him arrive in England, get trapped in Yggrasil, and his eventual freedom in the modern-day. This makes one important thing clear: this is likely an “origins” story of sorts for Basim. Not only does this logically fit the reported setting, but Basim mentions being in Baghdad as well.
While Eivor/Odin and Sigurd/Tyr’s personalities never click, it’s clear that Basim and Loki are one and the same. It wasn’t always this way though. Basim reveals that things for him changed after meeting Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi, the head of the library of the House of Wisdom in Baghdad. al-Khwarizmi dies around 850 AD, roughly 20 years beforeAC Valhalla’s entry on the timeline. So, if Basim/Loki spent time trying to find Tyr/Odin using assassin resources for about this long (as he often served theHidden Ones' purpose in other countries), a game set in Baghdad must be set in his early life.
Basim was young when he joined the Hidden Ones, quickly training to become a Master Assassin. In other words, this could easily reconcile his age, and set the game around 840/850 AD as a young man. When Loki’s consciousness manifested in Basim, he was noted to suffer from manic episodes leading to Loki’s consciousness. Thus, not only does this really help narrow down the year, but it seems likely players will explore Basim’s story leading up to and possibly including his consciousness merging with Loki.
As always, players can expect the game to play with history—if not mythology, too. Historical events of Baghdad that may or may not relate toBasim’s storyinclude the following:
Ultimately, it’s uncertain where Basim ties into all of this, as well as what the overarching story ofAssassin’s Creed Riftends up being. But, for now, there’s reason for classic fans to hope for another entry similar toAC UnityandAC Syndicatebefore it.
