It's hard to deny that 2017 was a notable year as it marked a major retooling for the franchise and Assassin's Creed Origins was the outcome. If you ask me I'd say the results were mixed, but I'll get into it proper with my ramblings below based on exactly 80 hours played total.

Breaking the series' convention, Origins goes back in time to Ancient Egypt as we follow Bayek of Siwa and his journey of revenge after a massacre took place in his village, resulted in his son getting killed and certain faction revealed itself just enough for Bayek to follow their trail. He's not in this alone as his wife Aya is pursuing the same goal off-screen, albeit more enveloped in higher level players that can affect all of Egypt and beyond. I'll get to Aya in due time, though. Needless to say this group of proto-Templars is up to no good and it falls on proto-Assassins to take them out with some nuance to who's right and who's wrong. Possibly because neither is really the modern equivalent familiar to us from franchise at large and, as you may have guessed by now, this IS an origin story.

Now we get to my problem with story – I lean more towards not liking it when observed as a whole. Bayek is no big damn hero you might expect from other Assassin's Creed titles. He's a Medjay, protector of the people in service of the true Pharaoh, which goes hand-in-hand with constant pleas for help you'll be getting from people as sidequests. Also has a very clear goal of avenging his son and clearing immediate corruption in the process, but doesn't see the big picture. That's where Aya steps in as game wrestles control away from you and forces her as a playable character for milestone moments which end up being more spectacular and engaging than the mundane “track the target, do some side missions, kill the target” routine. Problem? I don't care for Aya as the protagonist nor can you alter her equipment from a mechanical standpoint. Not to mention you can clearly tell she's getting in just a bit over her head without realizing it. Which left me conflicted because I liked seeing her story beats and even gameplay, reminiscent of the old ways franchise did things with more handcrafted parkour or stealth sections, but she never earned any of it and just ended up disrupting my time with Bayek where I wish some of it went to instead.

Since I'm on narrative and storytelling I might as well cover the characters. Bayek himself fits into this “living mythology” world where Gods have many facets and their praise is in the open wherever you look. As a Medjay he's almost akin to a handyman albeit one where martial prowess and skills of deduction are most valued. Personality-wise our protagonist definitely has layers. Sorrow over his son, at times barely contained rage and sense of humor are all mixed together for a believable character. Which is good since most others aren't that fleshed out or get lost in the shuffle. Historical figures like Cleopatra, Caesar and lesser known ones notwithstanding. Aya comes across as, ironically, more suited to being the protagonist if only she had the screen time. A domineering personality with a long-term plan and clearly pushing Bayek's button to prod him along. I was slightly amused when 60+ hours towards the finale game gets some key people together and expects me to remember who they are when I maybe had twenty minutes tops with them. Less said about intrusive modern day segments and Layla as the new POV the better.

Before I get into gameplay and other subjects I'd like to point absence of traditional Database included in every other game. I suppose it makes sense considering we're working with ancient history and Ubisoft most likely took some liberties, but to offset this they introduced historical tours and readable notes aplenty you come across in the game. I quickly lost interest in both.

If I had to easily summarize changes in design of Assassin's Creed Origins compared to earlier entries it would be sacrificing parts of its identity to become a more familiar action RPG. Said genre re-alignment comes from Ubisoft's self-proclamation. However, this also means one thing – Origins has stepped into the arena with acclaimed action RPGs the likes of The Witcher 3, etc. all the while coming across as unprepared.

I suppose the biggest change is a structural one as Origins feels like this “evolved” version of franchise's take on open world where you have greater freedom when it comes to the order in which you tackle assassination targets. Sure, there are level recommendations, but since you have side chores activities and side quests to tackle along the way I was never lagging behind. Now that I think about it I'd regularly over-level every piece of content in the game simply by playing all the stuff leading to it. I'd loudly argue Origins has too many zones for its rate of progression and had I not intentionally wanted to complete everything I could've easily skipped about half of them. Which is a big problem since that loop of clearing out maps is the bulk of what you'll be doing. Essentially, the more you build your game around the idea of only following the critical path the more redundant everything else begins to feel, doubly so when your game is too big for its own good, TRIPLE so when you have a trusty eagle that can just scout everything for you pinpointing it on the compass. Just keep in mind you're still unlocking chests and climbing towers to uncover the map no matter how much they've tried to cover it up. Not to mention game runs headlong into dumbing down its signature parkour system and then further aggravates the matter by mostly taking place in deserts, swamps and shanty villages. Occasionally sliding down a pyramid doesn't redeem general absence of places to clamber across.

Chief reason Ubisoft likely branded the game as an action RPG is because it goes well beyond what series did when it came to power progression. Not only is there an extensive gear system included, but Bayek's advancement also comes in the form of unlockable abilities to choose from as you level up. Better invest in automatic looting whenever you kill enemies or you'll be pressing that loot button a whole lot since there's absolute loot bonanza going on. You know the drill – various weapon types with all the usual rarity color coding to go along. With seven weapon types, ranging from fast dual swords to heavy maces, you get some genuine variety to work with. Add to that four bow types with their own gimmick, on top of a shield you always carry, and there's a decent selection to mix and match from. Much to my surprise Origins doesn't go too heavy on stats and is more about getting those perks included on specific gear pieces. As there is no way to reclaim sold or salvaged equipment I'd suggest keeping all legendary stuff as you can upgrade it and potentially see it as more useful later down the road. Alas, armor itself is solely cosmetic as it brings no bonuses to the table. As is your trusty steed, be it camel or horse. Although...

What do you actually use all that for? Why, for combat, of course.

Combat is the second major system that got overhauled for Origins. Now you have two bows/weapons equipped and can switch between them freely, plus the addition of a ranged tool on top of it. Developers have decided to go with rather popular Souls-like system by binding offensive/defensive functionality to trigger buttons, but retaining lack of challenge at its core. You'll learn to be vary of enemies based on their level more than anything else since that little number is the biggest factor in whether you can instantly stealth kill them or if you have to go through the rigors of dull combat. Enemies can charge their attacks, but so can you now to break through their defensive posture. It's a decent change to an old system that really needed more dangerous and engaging enemies to shine. Sadly, aside from the occasional aggressive dual wielder easily handled with a smoke bomb you won't find any of it here. Besides elephant bosses.

What else can I talk about.... ah yes, the DLC. There are two worthwhile ones and I did get 15-ish hours out of them. I'll start with The Hidden Ones as it picks up some time following the end of the main story and the Roman threat has not gone away. In fact their power endures in Sinai where the eponymous group now operates in secret by aiding the local resistance leader. Sadly, not everything is as clear cut as Bayek embraces his new role. The Hidden Ones is largely more of the same. If you liked taking out underling targets so far think of this as couple of small zones providing what you want. Second notable DLC is also far grander in both execution and design as The Curse of the Pharaohs takes Bayek to Thebes at an even later date. I think this is either some serious hallucination material or just non-canonical, but it involves rising mummies, visiting Egyptian afterlives and chasing down a familiar artifact to all the fans of the first game. This is the REALLY chunky addition to the game as it not only adds way more areas to explore, but also raises the level cap and allows further equipment upgrades via new supernatural material. Out of the two I would heavily recommend the latter although it will heavily depend on your tolerance for the base formula. Personal advice is to do the story and explore along the way organically so as to avoid retreading the same areas.

Lastly I get to wax poetic about the production values because they really are up there. An open world game from 2017 should not look this good, but I believe Ubisoft had already shown off their capabilities with Unity... so much so that game required extensive support to run decently. Visuals were always there and they remain there. With Origins we've shifted from dense urban locales to sweeping desert dunes, colossal temples and murky swamps festering with crocodiles. Let's not even talk about Greek and Egyptian cultural differences present everywhere as they blend together. Soundtrack might not be everyone's cup of tea, though. Not to say it doesn't have memorable or bombastic tracks because it dies, but where it truly shines are subdued environmental pieces building atmosphere as you trek in the shadow of the pyramid and see something shimmering in the distance...

Final Thoughts and Rating?

Assassin's Creed Origins left me rather lukewarm and I don't think it's my expectations that are to blame. What we got feels more like a sidegrade than a momentous shift in design Ubisoft touted as they proclaimed this as their proud entry to the action RPG arena. Bayek's mission of revenge to track down his son's killers, birth of the Assassins as we know them and exploration of Ancient Egypt has left Origins with one hat too many to balance. Add to that a combat overhaul, reduction of parkour's traditional importance and “built for longevity” warehouses of loot to sort through may not be everyone's favorite combination given what we've come to expect, but I think stellar presentation, solid story when it clicks and sheer size of the game will ensure it holds your attention for a while.