With the confirmation that Assassin’s Creed Codename Jade will now be officially called Assassin’s Creed Jade, fans will undoubtedly turn their attention to the weight of the legacy that comes with the long-running Ubisoft series. Trying to distill a full-fledged experience that is well known on both consoles and PCs to the mobile platform is a daunting challenge, but for Executive Producer Andrei Chan, that is a challenge he and his team are more than happy to take on.
“It was always our initial target to make sure it feels like Assassin’s Creed, and to make sure we are staying in the canon. We want to contribute to this story in a meaningful way,” said Chan. “We want to be very respectful of Chinese history and culture, while remaining honest to the freedom of the Assassin’s Creed world.”
This means that while the focus is on third-century China in ancient times, there is still room for iconic franchise faces, such as Kassandra from Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, and the possibility of visiting other lands, a key feature that is part of the mobile adventure in Assassin’s Creed Jade that will come free for players after launch.
Large vistas also await, with the current map showing more points of interest as players synchronize more viewpoints, another great avenue to show off the scale of the game on mobile.
One big departure from the established formula, however, is the ability to create the playable character from scratch in Assassin’s Creed Jade. But once that is done, what awaits players will be familiar and intuitive, even if it’s not delivered in the traditional sense. Touch controls for the protagonist make it possible to go anywhere the player desires, with context-specific actions popping up when there is a need. Climbing and assassinations come to mind and will be easy to pick up for most players, even those new to the series.
Combat will also feature a scope that is quite extensive, with various weapons and loadouts allowing players to switch their approach according to the foe. Chan explained that “some weapons work better against certain enemies” and for players who master them all, they will become “effective enough to kill everyone” standing in their way. Add to that progression systems for both the character and individual weapons, and the depth of Jade reveals itself.
Any fears that going mobile will create some sort of wall to progression are also unfounded, as Chan reiterated that Assassin’s Creed Jade will be “playable from the start to the end without spending any money,” with monetization still being looked at by the team to ensure that players have the optimal experience. While Chan and the rest of the team continue to work towards pushing out the game in the best form possible, it becomes clear that their sights are set even further beyond the horizon.
“Launch is only the beginning, and we will continue to focus on creating valuable content for our players. This could be new features that we want to add to the game or improvements on current ones, or the regions and maps we talked about earlier. It is really exciting, and we hope that fans will come along with us for the ride.”
There is no set release date just yet for Assassin’s Creed Jade, with a 2024 window the target for both iOS and Android devices. Hopefully, when players take the trip back to ancient China, they will do so knowing that a true Assassin’s Creed experience lies in wait.
