Following a rumor on 4chan earlier today, Kotaku is reporting that Assassin’s Creed Empire won’t launch until 2017, with Ubisoft holding off on a big entry into the series in 2016.
Citing multiple sources “familiar with goings-on at Ubisoft,” Kotaku’s report says that the next Assassin’s Creed title is called Empire, is set in ancient Egypt, and won’t arrive until 2017. According to one of the sources, the decision to delay Empire from fall 2016 to 2017 was made today after the response to 2014’s Unity, and would give the developers more time for polish and improvements. The source then suggested the year break between releases could become a new thing for the franchise.
While the identity of the original poster on 4chan – who claims to be a Ubisoft developer – hasn’t been confirmed, Kotaku says, “Everything he wrote matches up with what I’ve heard independently for months.”
One of the more interesting comments from the 4chan poster is that Empire will act as a reboot for the series:
There won’t be an AC in 2016. You may screencap this and refer to it when nothing is shown in E3 2016. You’ll have to wait until 2017 for it. The reason: It will be a complete revamp of the series. The game is going for a Witcher feel, with player progression, freeform combat system. Horse is back, and boats too. It’s made by the Black Flag team.
More responses from the 4chan poster can be read over on NeoGAF.
You won’t be without Assassin’s Creed this year, as Ubisoft still has two more episodes in the Chronicles series launching over the next two months, and the movie will be out on December 21. A registered website domain also hints at an Assassin’s Creed Collection possibly on the horizon, and there’s also the fact that Assassin’s Creed Rogue still isn’t available on PlayStation 4 or Xbox One, despite being ported to PC in March 2015.
As for what may possibly take the place of Assassin’s Creed in fall 2016, Kotaku has heard that Watch Dogs 2 will be out later this year and is set in San Francisco.
Do you think it’s a good idea for the Assassin’s Creed franchise to take a year off?
