Like a veteran assassin with a bad back and rusty set of hidden blades, the Assassin's Creed series has kind of lost its edge a bit. More bugs than an episode of The Really Wild Show, Assassin's Creed Unity almost killed the franchise dead. And while developers put things right with Assassin's Creed Syndicate, the games playing public was losing interest - with Syndicate recording the worst week one sales of any major Assassin's Creed game last November. So what next for the series that was once the jewel in Ubisoft's crown? Well: if the rumours are to be believed, the company is already beavering away on something under the codename Assassin's Creed Empire. But where is it set? When is it coming out? Who's making it? Read on to find out the answers to these questions and more... WHERE WILL ASSASSIN'S CREED EMPIRE TAKE PLACE?The Assassin's Creed series has clocked up more air miles than Palin, Pilkington and Polo combined. We've hidden in the haystacks of Jerusalem, Damascus, Acre, Florence, Venice, Rome, Constantinople, Boston, New York, Havana, Nassau and Kingston, Paris and most recently Victorian London. And that's not even including 2D platform spinoffs that take place in China and India. After Assassin's Creed Syndicate, we were kind of expecting something a bit more modern. Perhaps a WWII backdrop, or maybe even a full game set in modern-day New York or something. However, if the reports are to be believed, Ubisoft is thinking the exact opposite. Assassin's Creed Empire will reportedly be set in ancient Egypt - so expect temples, pyramids, Pharaohs and tombs aplenty. The rumours were started by a 4Chan poster who claims to be an Ubisoft employee. As dubious as that sounds, it was later backed up with information gathered by Kotaku. In fact, we may have already had our first glimpse of Assassin's Creed Empire. You might remember a few years back seeing a leaked screenshot (above) and video (below) for something called Osiris, which was thought to be Prince of Persia-related. It's possible that this could now be part of Assassin's Creed Empire, especially if the rumours of an ancient Egypt setting are true. It's also worth noting that this character and a shot of the pyramids can be found in Assassin's Creed Black Flag - just look through the Abstergo emails. [youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5523MGHVI8s[/youtube] There's also been talk of ancient Rome and ancient Greece settings, which could open the door for a brand new trilogy starring the same character. WHAT ELSE CAN WE EXPECT FROM ASSASSIN'S CREED EMPIRE?Going all the way back to ancient Egypt will allow Ubisoft to be even more creative with the story. In fact, that alleged Ubisoft employee on 4Chan reckons they can do whatever they want, without historical accuracy holding them back. The new protagonist will reportedly be an ex-slave who barely speaks. Here's hoping when he does, players will have dialogue options like The Witcher (below), which is a game the developers are said to be inspired by. Made by the team at Ubisoft Montreal - the guys behind Black Flag and the forthcoming Far Cry Primal - the game will also feature full "player progression", a "freeform combat system" and colourful game world. That includes blue skies, lush vegetation, desert sequences and mirages, as well as horses and boats for transportation. Oh yeah, and you'll also have an eagle under your control. Will this explain your eagle vision power? We'll just have to wait and see. SO WHEN WILL WE BE ABLE TO PLAY IT?It's fair to say that Assassin's Creed needs a break. In fact, it could be argued that it needed a break about three or four years ago, before the series reached breaking point with Assassin's Creed Unity. Fortunately, Ubisoft has seemingly had the good sense to give the series a much needed rest. Of course, nothing's been confirmed as of yet, but it's likely Assassin's Creed Empire will now be released in 2017. BUT WHERE WILL I GET MY ASSASSIN'S CREED FIX IN 2016?A complete lack of Assassin's Creed in 2016 would just feel plain wrong. So if you are craving some stealthy AC action, then you might want to try the recently released Assassin's Creed Chronicles: India, which was actually surprisingly good for something that's such a huge departure. Then there's 2D follow-up Assassin's Creed Chronicles: Russia, which releases next month. We could also get Watch Dogs 2, which is kind of like Assassin's Creed, only with more hacking. Finally, there's the Assassin's Creed film starring Michael Fassbender, which hits cinemas on December 21.
