Assassin’s Creed Games Have Lost Their Way, The Movie Stayed Truer to the Series

While the Assassin’s Creed movie wasn’t exactly Oscar-worthy, it ironically stayed truer to the series’ original vision than recent games have. You’ll notice newer titles have largely abandoned the sci-fi framework and modern-day segments that made the franchise unique, becoming fundamentally standard historical action games. The film, despite its flaws, maintained the core DNA of genetic memory exploration and dual narratives – elements that once defined what made Assassin’s Creed special. There’s quite a story behind this fascinating role reversal.

While the Assassin’s Creed franchise has consistently delivered compelling historical adventures through its games, the 2016 movie adaptation stumbled harder than a novice assassin attempting their first leap of faith. You’d think the film’s emphasis on present-day storytelling would’ve alienated audiences, but ironically, it stayed truer to the series’ original vision than recent game releases.

If you’ve followed the franchise’s evolution, you’ll notice how newer titles have practically abandoned the sci-fi framework that made the series unique. Remember Desmond Miles and those intriguing modern-day segments that tied everything together? They’re now about as rare as a peaceful Templar.

While you’re busy scaling pyramids in Origins or sailing the Mediterranean in Odyssey, the Animus storyline has become little more than a footnote. Despite earning an unfortunate 18% on Rotten Tomatoes, the film at least attempted to maintain the series’ signature dual narrative.

The much-maligned movie, for all its faults (and there were plenty), actually maintained the delicate balance between past and present that defined early Assassin’s Creed games. Sure, the film’s Spanish Inquisition sequences might’ve been harder to see than a hidden blade in the dark – thanks to that peculiar color grading – but at least it didn’t abandon the series’ core premise of genetic memory exploration.

You might argue that the games’ shift toward pure historical adventure has improved the experience, and you’d have a point. The interactive nature of gaming means you can lose yourself in meticulously crafted historical playgrounds without missing those sci-fi interruptions.

However, this departure has left the franchise feeling more like “Generic Historical Action Game #47” than the unique blend of past and present storytelling that originally set it apart.

It’s a bit like ordering your favorite complex coffee drink, only to receive a basic cup of joe – sure, it might still taste good, but it’s lost the distinctive elements that made it special.

While the movie crashed and burned harder than a poorly timed leap of faith, at least it remembered what made Assassin’s Creed more than just another historical action series.