Assassin's Creed Origins (2017)

Maybe its not you Creed, we've just grown apart over the years. You were interesting when we first met in 2007, you came a long way since that very rough debut, we had some good times together but you've just lost focus now. Changing the period with the exact same shtick just didn't do it for me. I tried with you dear Origins in 2017, I thought you were terrible, and gave up after a few hours, writing you off as shallow and repetitive; we had our distance apart and I thought I would give the relationship another go. I've now finished your main campaign and the Hidden Ones DLC. You're stunning to look at, but the conversation is dire, i didn't care for your story, I hate your levelling system, your world feels like a big empty MMO, I thought it was a terrible idea to set a game in the desert wastelands of Egypt and you did not persuade me otherwise.

It appears that others cant see past your looks and enjoy exploring your game. However this is the worst sub 40 hours I've spent on a game this year, and that's coming from someone who has finished Pokemon Scarlet. May others enjoy you, I have had my fill.

Thanks for the memories. Time to move on. Sheldipez

Steam Curator

Assassin's Creed Origins has done a lot to differentiate itself from prior entries in the series, and I found that most of it was a profound success.

The new combat system feels way more dynamic and large than any other Assassin's Creed title, but it still manages to keep that spectacle.

Egypt is a beautiful and different breath of fresh air, and the story is as fun as its always been.

The level requirements to do the main quest coupled with some boring side quests keep it from being as amazing as I wanted it to be, but it was still one great experience.

For my full thoughts, click the link below to see the video review:

Update 2022-08-04: I tried for a third or fourth time with this game and again gave up after a short while.

At the time of playing this game, I'd dabbled in just about every Assassin's Creed game soon after they came out. They just never do it for me though. This game started a new trend of getting more RPG-y and I really liked that. I liked the story, loved the setting, loved the bird flying mechanic for exploration, thought the character was interesting. I really don't know why I didn't finish it. Then Odyssey came out and per usual I tried it out and fell in love with it. It felt so much like Witcher 3 in many respects. I was also enamored with the graphics. I probably took more screenshots in that game than any other. The scenery is stunning. Then I played Valhalla and it wasn't quite as good as that. Maybe I should go back and give Origins another shot.

I have always been a fan of assassins' creed games, some for the story, others for the characters, or just because I find the environment and time period interesting, but never for the gameplay. However, for this game, they finally changed the repetitive and boring fighting with a new style that was supported by a large variety of weapons to match your preferred playstype. Did it still need a little more smoothing over to make the fighting amazing? Yes, but compared to what it used to be it's a huge improvement. The world of Egypt felt very alive and unique, I loved the locations, the nature, and its inhabitants from citizens to iconic figures like Cleopatra. The protagonist and his wife were okay characters, I can't say they were the strong part of the game, but the world itself was just too strong for me to drop or get bored with this title. I can only imagine how much more polished the sequel games feel.

AC: Origins is a fantastic game, the new Open World model is exactly the right formula to properly explore the vast landscape of the time period.

The attention to detail in the varied environments (Egyptian, Hellenic, Roman) really draws you into the game, with a lot of depth given to the various interactions with people, objects, etc.

The main game is a pretty decent haul (took me 72 hours, along with most sidequests), which can get a little repetitive at times, but all-in-all I didn't really notice big chunks of time because it's enjoyable to be in the world they've created. I really like Bayek as far as characters go, and the story is good enough overall (excellent in parts).

I wasn't a big fan of the maritime events, as well as some forced play as Aya (except for the last bit), and I'll just leave it at that.

I played 3/4 of the game on a 4K / HDR TV, and the remaining on a 30 fps 1080p 27" IPS display (HDMI 1.4, ugh), and it's no surprise that you sacrifice a lot of the appeal of the game when you aren't playing in 4K / HDR.

I'm looking forward to playing the 2 x DLCs, and of course Odyssey and Valhalla. However, I'm pretty sure I won't sacrifice 4K / HDR for those playthroughs.

So my enjoyment of this game took a hard left turn towards the end. The game just refused to end. There were, no joke, three instances where I was like "Ah, ok this is definitely the end" and NOPE, 7 more hours left. They introduced characters left and right, and we're still doing so by the last 2 hours. The game also feels like 3 games in 1, to it's detriment. It's actually often more Greece centric than it is Egypt, it feels. And in the last few hours you're fighting Romans, also. I bought this game because I LOVE ancient Egypt, but I feel like they didn't do much at all with the major landmarks. The pyramids at Giza we're just, like, there. There was a little with them, but only a little.

I gave the game a 4 because, while it soured pretty hard at the end for me, 75% of me playing that game was a joy, even if the story and characters were weak. Part of the reason I was so keen ok finishing it quickly is not the games fault, also. Yes, it's padded and the pacing is bizarre in the last 7 or so hours. However, I just have a lot going on at the moment with trying to ship my first book (wexsdrift.com), and I really wanted to put this game to bed and focus on the book more. And every night for 3 nights in a row I'm like "Well, this feels like it's wrapping up, so I'll just polish it off tonight." Then midnight hits and STILL ITS NOT DONE. I mean, there's even that part in so many games where a character turns to you and goes "Hey, once you get on this boat you can't come back. Make sure you take care of everything beforehand." That is the signal in EVERY GAME that it's about to end. This is it, the last mission or 2. But no, the game just keeps chugging on.

Also towards the end you are virtually forced to do side quests. I don't like side quests. I used to. I don't anymore. I've done a trillion side quests in my life and I can say with certainty that 90% of them are forgettable fluff. But you hit a point around level 28 where your next spot is lv 30 and you have to do meaningless and boring side quests to catch up or it's brutally hard. I'm OK with sidequests existing, just don't make me do them.

Also....why the hell does Cleopatra have a british accent? Every single person in that game has a location-specific accent. Greek, italian, egyptian. Even if they're bad, they still make sense in a way. And Cleopatra sounds like she's eating chips on the lift. Makes no sense and took me out of it a bit.

Look, I'm complaining a lot here. But if you forgive the games last few hours it's a very good game. It's fun and if you're willing to do some side quests and sink 40 hours into it, it's worth it.

Bought this like 2 years ago and never played. Finally got around to it and wow, it's way more fun than I expected. I've been pretty lukewarm on past AC games, so I haven't played one since Brotherhood. I love ancient Egypt though, so I thought I'd give this a shot when it came down in price. But wow, it's super fun to play. You feel very powerful and the game just glides along very smoothly (so far). Having a good time.

The story is OK, I like Bayek and think his background with his son might be interesting. Though whoever wrote this game has never heard a human woman speak, apparently. Every woman is insufferable in AC Origins. It's weird.

But the physical act of playing it is great!

Like the title says, this game is a disappointing Assassin's Creed game but it is a pretty good open world action adventure game. Gone are the tight interiors and crowded streets of a previous games and in its place stands a true open world. The aspirations found in AC III to move the series to wide open spaces are achieved in this game. Gone are the interstitial, semi open areas that were present even in the first game -- remember travelling between cities on a horse?

The changes to minute to minute gameplay are quite substantial. Gone are the stellar assassination puzzles found in Unity and Syndicate and in it's place a core loop of outpost raiding and special move based combat.

With that all being said, when I could only feel the echos of AC at the edges I still have fun playing this great third person action game and taking it on those merits there were some stand out aspects that players will find special.

Let's talk about Bayek and Aya! They are high on the list for some of the best protagonists in the series. Their motive is rote--revenge for the death of their son that he felt responsible for--but their chemistry, on and off again, will they won't they feeling was communicated really well.

One of the assassination targets, The Hyena was well developed and actually gave me pause when the game tasked me with the assassination. She mirrors Bayek's motives and methods but is working towards a different and doomed outcome. She is killing on the hopes she can bring back her child. Whereas Bayek is killing so as to cleanse a seemingly terrible influence in the hopes no other children will die.

I enjoyed the 'papyrus puzzles' side quests, in particular 'giant's cup’ and 'x marks the spot’. Cinematics after confirming the kill of the major targets were very well done. 'The Crocodile' comes to mind. More than any other game some elements worked extremely well to make the player feel that these discussions each assassin has with each target take place in a timeless boundless realm--Shady's doll raining from the sky, quick cuts, the target lounging with the sacred crocodile. Bayek wading through chest high water with dozens of children's’ hands pulling them under. Is it the animus? Is it a metaphysical blend somewhere in the target's mind? Is it within a meeting of the two people's minds? Really good stuff!

Lastly, my final issue is simply preference, but this game is way.. too.. long. I'm used to my AC games being 10-15 hours for the main story so staring down 30 plus hours for the main story alone was a little daunting. I didn't finish the last few missions - as I burned out on the core loop. I watched the finale online and I have to celebrate this game on everything it does well however, I'm disappointed that the series is going this way. With the release of Valhalla, it seems like this direction is very much the way the series is going -- big, long, open. I understand they needed to evolve the series and they have done it to great success, but I think it has been at the expense of fans of the original games. I hope they return to their tight urban environments and focus on blending in/stealth in a future game. If anyone reading this has suggestions for other games in the original AC vein that I can play to tide me over, please leave a comment!

UPDATE: This is going back to maybe six months after I posted this original review, but I recovered from my burn out and went back to finish the game - I really didn't have much left in the end (cue LP's 'In The End'). I also mopped up a few of the final discovery missions I hadn't completed - I am really loving that addition to AC games.

Finished in 39 hours

Too repetitive for my personal taste. There is almost no variability after just 5 hours in the game, all you getting is a little higher numbers in equipment and new territory to explore. The plot is mediocre there is absolutely no development in gameplay in any way and while the open-world itself is beautifully done, it is hardly enough to keep me motivated.

I guess all modern Ubisoft games are made this way. It's like bubblegum: if you are into it you may chew it every day, but in this case this looks like a habit not a hobby.

Killed Berenike aka crocodile and I really hope I am at least half way through the game, my God AC is repetitive.

I understand that this is what modern open world games are all about but damn there is absolutely no development in mechanical gameplay. It's all about getting all the marks on the map and having a little boost to your numbers of attack/defence/hp. At least the world itself is beautifully crafted and really enjoyable to explore (though there is no real reason to do so)

This game is much bigger than previous Assassin's and I don't think it's for good. It took me 55 hours to get the Platinum trophy and I feel really tired (I also finished around 100 side quests and there was more). Egyptian setting is really interesting and I liked the idea that Brotherhood was founded there, but it was quite difficult to follow the plot between exploring all question marks. And it's all the same: kill a captain / animal, find a treasure, repeat hundred times.

I hope someday we'll see new AC which will take place in a city (not a whole country) and there will be deep, exciting story, but not today.

I want to start this review by saying: 3 Stars is NOT bad.

This review is spoiler-free.

The game is good, it is an amazing open world and exploring ancient egypt is a lot of fun in this setting. There are a lot of sidequests, each themed around a different small backstory with unique characters, and they all play differently.

The RPG-based progression system with leveling up your character, investing skill points and basically being able to choose a specialization adds a lot of depth to the game and allows for multiple playthroughs.

Last but not least: The ACP (Animus Control Panel) is a very solid feature that allows you to basically mod the game very quickly yourself. A good example for this: I dont like having to shoot someone 10 times in the head with an arrow to kill them, even in an RPG, so I set the ranged damage to 400% and enabled instakill assassinations.

And now for the bad.

Reminder: This review is based on opinion, some facts may be more or less favourible to you, depending on what you look for in a game.

The story drags on for waaay longer than it should have. It took me about 20 hours (according to uplay) to complete the main story of the game, but it felt like an eternity. I also did some sidequests here and there to keep up with the level (sadly, this is necessary, because of the RPG progression. Enemies are very difficult if you are on at least 2 levels lower or more). The character development of Bayek, the main character, is inconsistent, to say the least.

But the worst part is the constant break of immersion. The game takes this beautiful setting to fully immerse you in ancient egypt, even with spoken language, and antics of the NPCs. Yet you keep getting torn out by pointless Animus modern day cutscenes (like in the old AC games). There are multiple, long parts of the game that are played with a different character, which puts in question the implemented RPG progression system.

To finalize this review with a metaphor: Its like eating a big, juicy, flavourful strawberry, but the seeds keep getting stuck between your teeth constantly and you dont have a toothpick.

OVERVIEW

• Rating: 8/10
• Hours played: 37
• Pros: combat, side missions, story presentation, strong protagonist
• Cons: main quest, progression system, repetitiveness

I played the game once on the PC, doing the entirety of the main plot and a substantial amount of side content. I haven't touched any of the DLC's.

REVIEW

Assassin's Creed Origin's (AC:O) represents a new beginning for a series that was plagued by far too many titles and little inovation between them. In this game, developers looked for new sources of inspiration and ended up with a product that has upset many for its changes, but managed to bring some needed fresh air.

The changes to combat were among the most significant ones, departing from the animation-based style to a proper hitbox-based action system that feels like a middle ground between The Witcher 3 and Dark Souls. Combat now can actually provide some challenge (at least on harder settings), there's a decent variety of weapon types with varied movesets and secondary stats and players are free to switch their weapon sets throughout the playthrough. Despite the importance of stealth to gameplay and lore, AC games have always had a lot of combat - the difference now is that it actually has a fun system.

On the other hand, the RPG progression system that they attempted wasn't well implemented in my opinion. AC:O is heavily based on character and item levels, and though they created an interesting upgrade tree (that was a bit evocative of Witcher 2 for me), they failed to make compromise and give players actual choice. Because of the pace in which the character levels, and the recommended levels for both main story missions and side content, it's far too easy to just obtain all of the useful abilities on each branch. It would have been much more interesting to actually choose between being a combat master, a super stealthy assassin or an artificer with a cool toolset, but I suppose that would defeat the purpose, since an Assassin is supposed to be all of those things. Either way, that was a wasted potential, for me.

One thing they nailed, though, was the side content. AC:O features an array of very good side quests that expanded and developed the setting. They are varied and well written, significantly increasing the value of the game for me. On another note, the main story was a big disappointment: the present timeline is outright boring, and the egyptian timeline was way too long, while feeling like it lacked a proper climax. Most characters felt underdeveloped, with Bayek being the only significant saving grace - he is one of the best ever AC protagonists, his humanity and kindness being well balanced by his grief and desire for vengeance worked really well. Also, his scenes with children were generally really cute.

Egypt was almost like a secondary protagonist, though, as it is expected on a title in this series. They always do a good job depicting the time period, and AC:O is no exception: exploring the vast open world, with varied and astonishing environments was a joy, I loved the cities, the tombs and pyramids and the feeling of exploration when travelling on horse(or camel)back. That, coupled with the music and voice acting makes for a great presentation of the story.

The size of the map, the amount of side quests and the lenght of the main story all contribute to AC:O becoming a very long game. Not to mention the heavy focus on levelling, which compels the player to keep doing optional stuff regardless of how much they are enjoying it. I'm ok with content-heavy products, as they seem to be a better investment of time and money, but the gameplay doesn't feel varied enough to sustain it. After 30 hours, I lost interest on doing side stuff, because even though I was interested on the narrative side of them, it felt too repetitive on a gameplay level and I wanted to be done with the whole thing.

CONCLUSION

AC:O is the most fun and unique AC game since Black Flag. It's not the most original piece you'll ever find, but it does represent an important evolution to the series. A bit more care to the main story would have actually made it into my favourite AC, but I suppose I can be happy with what I got and expect Odyssey to deliver on that front.

Pro/Con list because I can't be bothered. I'm comparing this to AC2, that being the only other one I've played.

PROS

• Combat is actually fun most of the time
• No "get seen and you automatically fail" missions
• The world is good looking and fun to explore
• I can't pinpoint exactly how they improved the climbing mechanics, I just know I didn't fall to my death nearly as many times
• Arguably more interesting character (though Aya would have been more interesting, given that she actually has a personality)
• That Final Fantasy XV crossover was incredibly stupid, but I got a cool-looking sword from it
• The eagle was cool
• Getting rich wasn't laughably easy, so it made exploring and finding loot actually worth it
• Levelling system made doing side quests worth it

CONS

• Combat is heavily emphasized over stealth and strategy (you know, the assassin part)
• The in-memory plot is exactly the same as AC2 (murdered family member(s), investigating perpetrators leads to larger conspiracy which ends up involving a golden orb thing) and went WAY longer than I thought it would (or should), and the out-of-memory plot...isn't a plot? Like, some things happen to a character, but there's not actually a story there. It's not even clear what her goal is. And yes, I tried to read some of the computer files but they were boring (and also when did games start making their font painfully tiny? Not everyone has a 60-inch TV). While I like lore dumps as much as the next guy, I shouldn't have to pore over optional text files just to figure out why I should care about what's happening.
• I specifically chose Origins over Black Flag because the whole ship thing didn't interest me, and then they made do ship stuff anyway, and it was boring
• The best weapons are prohibitively expensive to upgrade, so that even if I liked a weapon, it just wasn't worth using it when it would cost an arm and a leg (albeit someone else's, obviously) to make it as effective as the one I just got
• The skill tree has some real garbage options in it. Like, I have to spend a skill point just to be able to wait for time to pass (the thing that open-world games have been letting you do for free since forever), or I can spend a point or 3 to automatically loot enemies (oooh, real time saver there, now I don't have to press a button). And the reward for getting to the end of a branch, rather than being a cool superability: a 1% damage boost to the related weapon, purchasable ad infinitum. So exciting.
• Although I can (if I invest enough skill points to get the ability) to a "chain assassination" (which also sometimes doesn't work for reasons I did not figure out) I can't take out two dudes in one move, which was the best part of AC2. Also it seemed like ledge takedowns were a lot harder in this one.
• I set a lion on fire and then it attacked me and I caught on fire and then I died and I don't know I just feel like that shouldn't have happened

So, basically, it's better than AC2 in terms of mechanics and setting (the latter being a slightly unfair comparison, given the age difference), while story-wise it's both the same (in-memory) and way worse (real world). It's fine, but what it does well other games do better, so it has a hard time justifying its existence.

Odyssey was also on sale, though, so...third time's the charm? We'll see. (But it's probably not.)

Assassin’s Creed has taken you to many different locations and many different historical periods. Origins places the birth of the Assassin Order late in Ptolemaic Egypt. In all Assassin’s Creed entries, the setting is the most compelling aspect of the game. One cannot find a better time and place than Ptolemaic Egypt, with the glories of Ancient Egypt vividly displayed alongside the coincidence of the Hellenistic and the Roman cultures. While the world still feel sufficiently ancient, locating the game during this time period allows one to explore the memorable monuments of Ancient Egypt while encountering characters and such as Julius Caesar and Cleopatra who are more familiar to a general audience.

The order of the Assassin’s found its inception in revenge. Bayek, a Medjay, seeks to avenge the death of his son. This quest will take him and his wife, Aya, throughout the land, from the temples to the monuments, from hovels to palances. Historical figures from Cleopatra, Pompey, Apollodorus, Brutus, Cassius and Caesar all make an appearance and have a place in the game’s events. Bayek and Aya’s shared grief grant them courage to stand up to the most powerful Egyptian, Greek and Roman leaders. Their personal grief is transformed into a movement that would stand against tyranny in their own day and beyond.

Bayek and Aya are strong characters, some of the strongest the series has presented since Ezio. One can see how the Assassin’s Order could rise from their strength and determination. While their story is a step forward for a franchise that has offered a series of forgettable narratives and protagonists, the highlight is, as in other games, the world that is recreated in the game. One can explore the glories of the high-Hellenistic culture on display in Alexandria, or the more traditional Egyptian culture in settings such as Memphis, “new” wonders such as the Library of Alexandria or the ancient Sphinx and Pyramids. There is likewise great environmental variety, from the dense chaos of Memphis to the rational order of Alexandria, from rugged mountains, barren deserts and the swampy expanse of the Nile Delta. The combat and upgrade system has evolved over several iterations to allow individual preference to determine how missions will be completed. The open world, while segmented according to player level, still allows freedom to explore the recreations of ancient wonders.

The level of detail undertaken by the developers is truly monumental. While each game offers the player the chance to turn ancient times and places into a playground, Origin’s has gone beyond all the rest. One can one encounter the Pyramids and the Sphinx recreated in great detail, hear actual Greek and Egyptian spoken in the background of the world and see credible reconstructions of decayed ruins and long-lost wonders. More than that, the educational value of the developers work is enhanced by Virtual Tours one can take in the developers recreations. The historical, cultural and religious background is no longer relegated to text that few take the time to read is now showcased in its own mode The respect to the source material and attention to detail that the developers have poured into this game alone deserves commendation as they seek to make this entry more than mindless entertainment.
Strong characters, a compelling historical setting and a fascinating environment make this one of the strongest entry in the Assassin’s Creed franchise in quite a while. However, since the demise of Desmond, the modern-day narrative has failed to offer a compelling or coherent narrative. Whatever continuity and sense of urgency in the overall purpose and mission of the modern Assassins has been building towards has been squandered by their random and unfocused plot. Like previous entries, what occurs in the present feels recycled and is unmemorable. While the formula of changing Animus characters for each entry works due to their grounding in each individual historical period, changing modern-day protagonists each entry makes the current day narrative feel disjointed and incoherent.

While the present-day storyline falls flat, the rest of the game is a return to form for the series. The break in yearly development yielded results in one of the strongest entries into the franchise not only recently, but overall.