The "Assassin's Creed" series has traditionally been known for two things: the opportunity to explore and parkour through faithfully recreated historical settings, and stealth.
Ubisoft's flagship franchise has gone through much transformation since the first entry in 2007, and while a focus on stealth gameplay hasn't always been there, the formula has gone largely unchanged.
"Assassin's Creed Mirage" is the 13th mainline instalment, this time bringing the series to ninth-century Baghdad, during the rule of the Abbasid Caliphate.
Players take on the role of Basim, a thief-turned-assassin who was first introduced in 2020's "Assassin's Creed Valhalla," which actually takes place after "Mirage" chronologically.
Fortunately for anyone looking to break into the franchise for the first time, "Mirage" is designed to be a largely stand-alone experience that doesn't require knowledge of the series' overarching mythology to be enjoyed.
That may, however, be disheartening news for any longtime fans looking for the overall story to move forward or any nostalgic narrative nods.
There is no pleasing everyone, of course, and a poll of 10 different fans on the best "Assassin's Creed" game might yield 10 different responses.
Some might say the Ezio trilogy, set in Renaissance Italy and then Ottoman-era Constantinople, was the pinnacle of the franchise, with its fan-favourite protagonist and gripping story.
If nautical nonsense be something you wish, "Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag" will float your boat.
And others might prefer the more modern "Assassin's Creed Origins" or "Assassin's Creed Odyssey" with their massive maps and role-playing elements.
"Mirage" was touted as a return to basics, with its significantly smaller map, a shift away from RPG mechanics and a renewed emphasis on stealth gameplay.
The game mostly takes place in Baghdad and the surrounding area, and completionists might need only 40 hours or so to finish — a far cry from, say, the 200-plus required to see and do everything in the ancient Greece-set "Odyssey."
"Mirage" — like many of its predecessors — largely plays out like "Far Cry," another Ubisoft series that relies heavily on a successful formula involving sprawling open-world maps, player choice about how and when to approach missions, and eliminating lieutenants to get a shot at taking down the main villain.
Canadian actor Lee Majdoub, who played Agent Stone in the "Sonic the Hedgehog" movies, voices Basim. Shohreh Aghdashloo, who starred as Chrisjen Avasarala in the sci-fi drama "The Expanse" but is also known among gamers as Admiral Shala'Raan vas Tonbay in the "Mass Effect" series, plays Roshan, Basim's mentor.
Both make the best out of a by-the-numbers story about good guys freeing a city taken over by corrupt bad guys in positions of power.
It's a decent yarn on its own, but pales next to tales told in past "Assassin's Creed" games.
The same can be said of the gameplay.
A renewed emphasis on stealth is welcome, but it is trivially easy to avoid the gaze of guards, who return to their routines moments after witnessing murders right in front of them.
One disappointing mechanic that "Mirage" introduces to the series is Assassin's Focus, which allows the player to mark multiple enemies and execute them at the same time. Mark and execute was divisive when it was brought into the "Splinter Cell" series, another Ubisoft property, in 2010's "Conviction." That franchise, whose latest instalment released in 2013, was synonymous with stealth, and it remains puzzling as to why the developers decided to include a "win button."
In "Mirage," stealth kills fuel the Focus meter, and the bar fills up relatively quickly, meaning stealth sections that could otherwise have been challenging can be bypassed with the press of a button. This takes skill, tension, patience and timing out of the equation.
The combat, while slightly tougher than in earlier instalments, still boils down to parrying or dodging, then striking. Throwable knives and other tools are abundant, meaning even swarms of enemies can be dispatched with ease.
Side activities in Baghdad include such things as looking for collectibles, pickpocketing and completing contracts — nothing we haven't seen before.
Because of the lack of innovation in "Mirage," it doesn't feel like an essential entry in the canon. It is, however, more "Assassin's Creed," and that's not a bad thing.
Leaping from tall buildings into hay piles is as gratifying as ever, as are air assassinations.
Codex entries about culture and life in ninth-century Baghdad are educational, and the accompanying photos are a nice touch.
"Mirage" will be disappointing to players looking for something new, and while an overreliance on the series formula keeps the game from being great, it's still an enjoyable outing.
"Assassin's Creed Mirage" is available Thursday on PlayStation, Xbox and PC.
A digital copy of the deluxe edition was provided for the purposes of this review.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 4, 2023.
Curtis Ng, The Canadian Press
