Assassin's Creed Origins finally confirms Watch Dogs is set in the same universe

Assassin's Creed Origins has confirmed, once and for all, it takes place in the same shared universe as fellow Ubisoft series Watch Dogs.

The theory both series are connected is not new. Ubisoft has played with the idea before, and slipped references to each into the others' games.

Assassin's Creed Easter eggs feature in both Watch Dogs 1 and 2, while Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag includes mention of Watch Dogs' fictional evil corporation Blume.

By far the most obvious crossover, however, remains that of Black Flag character Olivier Garneau - which we reported on all the way back in June 2014. Garneau has a notable role in Black Flag's modern day section, before he travels to Chicago (where Watch Dogs 1 is set) and then appears in that game as a target in a side-mission.

Previously, Ubisoft dismissed this whole episode as non-canon. Writing on Twitter, Ubisoft Montreal narrative director Darby McDevitt described it as a "little joke". Subsequent games attempted to throw doubt on the crossover, mentioning Garneau as simply having gone missing.

Until now...