Assassin's Creed Mirage: What We Know

Speculation about the next Assassin's Creed game has been swirling since Ubisoft leaks earlier this year pointed to the studio working on an AC game beyond their Infinity project that went back to the game's roots of being primarily stealth-focused on a smaller map. I actually wrote an article here about the leaks in February and I'm pleased to see that most of the reports and speculation were on the money. Fans of the AC games have seen the franchise change a lot throughout the years, so many are rejoicing at the idea that Ubisoft wants to take players back to the gameplay that resembles classics like Assassin's Creed II. 

The following information comes from leaks, and they're pretty bare-bones. Ubisoft confirmed in a tweet that Mirage is the next AC game though so at least there's a start. Here's what we know about the upcoming AC installment, as well as some educated speculation:

• The game will follow Basim, an NPC from the previous AC game, Valhalla. Since there aren't many details out yet (considering this information was leaked and not from an official report), it's unclear if players will need a good understanding of Valhalla's plotlines to understand Mirage. No spoilers here, but Basim plays a rather significant part in the story and has some major developments in his tale during the course of Valhalla. If the other AC games are an indicator of the path Mirage is taking I would say you're likely safe reading a recap or watching a compilation on YouTube to get the gist of the story (if you want to avoid the Valhalla grind).
• The game takes place in Baghdad. While there isn't an official timeline in mind, I assume the game (given Valhalla's timeline) takes place during the Islamic Golden Age. It sounds like (given the original scope of development for the game and from the other leaked reports) it is going to stay small-scale and is more of a filler game to keep Ubisoft's release calendar full. Still, that focus on being stealth-first gameplay is a promising enough thread that I'm hopeful it'll be good. Sounds like the focus of the gameplay is focused on the city of Baghdad and won't expand much, if at all, beyond its walls. While I love an open-world or large-map game (I actually really enjoyed AC Odyssey), I think it'd be a huge breath of fresh air for the franchise to go back to what made it gold.
• The game is still a while out from launch. Despite being initially developed as yet another Valhalla DLC, the game has a tentative roadmap of 2023-24. We'll see if any dates firm up with official announcements.

Keep in mind that we're getting a Ubisoft showcase show on September 10th that should lay out a more official roadmap for what the publisher plans to roll out. Given the Mirage leaks, I expect they'll cough up more information about that game in particular.

Do you think Ubisoft can make a game that harkens back to the AC Golden Age? Or will this game provide a new twist in the ever-changing franchise? LMK in the comments below what your thoughts on Assassin's Creed: Mirage are!