Assassin’s Creed Mirage Review: Stealth is Back in Style (Xbox Series X)

It’s fascinating to see the perception that the Assassin’s Creed franchise has taken over the years. Around the point of Assassin’s Creed Unity and Syndicate, the fan base felt tired of seemingly getting the same game every year. Ubisoft decided to change things up with Origins and leaned heavily into the RPG elements. It sparked a new sense of success as the following two games went even deeper with the RPG angle. With its 15 anniversary happening now, fans now look with rose-colored glasses at the more stealth elements that Assassin’s Creed was built on. It seemed that Ubisoft paid attention and decided to go back to basics with Assassin’s Creed: Mirage.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage is available on October 5th for $49.99 on Xbox Series X/S & Xbox One, PlayStation 4 & 5, and PC. The game is also available day 1 on the Ubisoft+ subscription service.

There will be very minor spoilers from Assassin’s Creed Valhalla.

Story: From Thief to Assassin

Assassin’s Creed Mirage focuses on Basim Ibn Ishaq, a street thief from Baghdad who has their life altered after a significant theft assignment. He soon encounters the Hidden Ones (the precursor to the Assassin’s Guild) and becomes one of them as we see his journey to become a master. Lee Majdoub plays Basim with the right amount of charisma while showing why Basim is a force to be reckoned with. You watch his performance and instantly buy that he’ll be a future master assassin.

A fun supporting cast joins him along the journey. His mentor, Roshan, is a clear standout and steals every scene she’s in. And the talented Shohreh Aghdashloo plays her; how can you go wrong with that? Sophia Eleni plays Hayda, a childhood friend from Basim’s past who plays a huge part in his path. There’s equal parts mischievous and heartfelt emotion when she encounters with Basim.

Basim looks over his city.

Valhalla Not Required

Now Basim was first seen in Valhalla, but if you haven’t played that entry then don’t worry. Valhalla is not required if you want to play Mirage. The game chronicles Basim’s early days and his journey in the brotherhood. You’ll get to know the information from the previous game in a different way, but any newcomer should be able to follow. As a Valhalla fan, it’s great to see the backstory of this complex character. 

Lean & Linear

A big selling point from the marketing is how linear this game is compared to the last few games. The storyline is fairly straightforward with Basim’s journey as a Hidden One. Gone are the numerous side quests and multiple objectives in this game. Not that it’s a bad thing, far from it, but it’s refreshing to focus a majority of the game on the main story. It got to a point where some of the side quests would overtake the main story in some games. While there’s still Assassin contracts and collectibles to gather, Basim is the sole focus here.

Nothing more satisfying than an air assassination.

Gameplay: Very Sneaky

When Assassin’s Creed went heavily into the RPG side, there was a shift in stealth combat. It’s not that it went away, but it felt more like an option. You could sneak your way and silently kill enemies or charge in like a warrior. In Mirage, the stealth way is the only way. Thankfully, it feels great and satisfying. Planning out your attacks and getting the jump on enemies feels like old school AC again. Classic moves like bench assassinations and blending into crowds are back in your arsenal. Ubisoft really went back to basics and showed what made this franchise special in the first place. Along with stealth, parkour is also a big factor again.

It feels more similar to the style we saw in Unity with its up and down mechanic. Since we’re in a huge city again, there’s many things to latch onto. You can feel how detailed this system is as it never tiring parkouring even during the later parts of this title. It still needs a bit of work as sometimes the input would confuse you going down instead of up and vice-versa. When you’re getting chased by the city guards, it makes a world of a difference. But it only happened a couple of times during my playthrough and wasn’t that much of a pain.

The hidden blade is about to strike.

Combining the Old & New

Now just because Ubisoft did away from the RPG elements doesn’t mean they did away with other aspects of the newer games. What’s cool about it is the harmony between the old and new. It’s like they’re using the lessons learned from the feedback amongst fans. Take the usage of the Eagle vision and the bird companion, Enkidu.

They’re both featured here and work well together. Enkidu works for the longer range as you plan out your stealth tactics over large places like the Prince’s Palace or the Prison. When you’re taking out guards, the Eagle Vision will help you out in a pinch immediately by detecting nearby threats. So yes it’s a throwback, but the game is more of a celebration of its 15th anniversary.

Same Ubisoft Open-World 

If you’re looking for a different kind of Ubisoft open-world then you’re going to be disappointed. It’s very mapped and holds your hand, but thankfully not too much. The content featured besides the main story is a lot of collectibles and a few side-quests. The side-quests (known as Tales of Baghdad) are intriguing. While not the full-fleshed out activities featured in the RPG entries, they still leave a pretty good impression. With the collectibles, there’s not too much to mention. Just grab them all to complete each district. The only unique ones were the Historical Sites because each discovery told a detailed factual entry about the city and culture. Any game that can make you learn is always a win.

Now a small grip I have is the layout of the map itself. Any of the white icons like most of the collectibles are hard to see because they blend in with the map. Then when you try to zoom in, it becomes way too detailed and hard to follow. Thankfully, the main objectives and the Tales of Baghdad stand out in a crowd of a cluttered game page.

Smoke bombs always come in clutch.

Graphics & Sound: Beautiful Baghdad

The map of Baghdad may not be the best game design, but the look of Baghdad is stunning. Yes, the area isn’t as large as Odyssey and Valhalla, but it’s still massive. Most importantly, the city of Baghdad is very immersive. The streets are busy with traders and people roaming around. You can escape it by parkouring the rooftops and still be amazed at what’s being offered. The cherry on top is each time you get to synchronize a viewpoint. The beautiful sprawling view of the area with the music blaring always sends me chills.

Speaking of the music, the score is incredible. Brendan Angelides does an incredible job composing the score that’s sure to create goosebumps. The main theme, “Mirage Theme”, is so good that when it plays during the menu, I let it continue instead of jumping back in to play because the music is that good.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage was reviewed on Xbox Series X with a key provided by Ubisoft.