New ‘Assassin’s Creed’ announced, will be set in Feudal Japan

Ubisoft has announced a new game set in the world of Assassin’s Creed at their Ubisoft Forward. Titled Assassin’s Creed: Codename RED, it joins the previously announced Assassin’s Creed: Mirage. 

Codename RED will be set in Feudal Japan and while Mirage is reported to be a smaller experience, it is Ubisoft’s next large open-world RPG akin to Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla. As of writing, there is currently no information as to which assassin players will control. It’s also unclear if, like in previous games, we will be able to change the gender of our protagonist. However, we do know that the game will be developed by Ubisoft Québec.

That was not all Ubisoft announced at the Assassin’s Creed showcase, where they celebrated 15 years of the beloved series. The developer announced a new mobile game set in China, Assassin’s Creed: Codename JADE. There also will be Assassin’s Creed: Codename HEXE, which looks like it might deal with the occult and take the series into more of a horror tone, perhaps even taking place during the Salem Witch Trials. They also announced that Netflix will be moving forward with a live-action Assassin’s Creed series adaptation that it is currently in production.

Of course, Assassin’s Creed fans have been clamoring for a game set in Feudal Japan for over 10 years, as the moves of an Assassin could easily apply to a ninja, shinobi, or samurai. Now that the series has evolved to be larger RPGs, it would seemingly fit the model even better. The developers have not announced an official release date for Codename RED. Since they are releasing one final expansion for Valhalla “in the coming months” and Mirage in 2023, it seems like we will not get Codename RED until at least 2024. 

Interestingly enough Ubisoft announced that both Codename RED and Codename Hexe will be branded under their new Assassin’s Creed: Infinity umbrella, which was described as an entry point for the series. They also described a standalone multiplayer aspect for the brand which was not elaborated on. The last time the mainline Assassin’s Creed games had multiplayer was in 2013’s Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. The idea of a standalone aspect for the multiplayer is not necessarily a bad thing, as the multiplayer in Assassin’s Creed games never felt bad, just tacked on.

As for Codename RED, we will have to wait and see exactly what aspect of Feudal Japan’s history the game will adapt, but many fans will undoubtedly be looking forward to it.