Assassin’s Creed Shadowsadds a solid variety of interesting new ideas to the all-too-familiar formula, and one concept in particular feels like the perfect basis for an even more interesting implementation inAssassin’s Creed: Codename Hexe.Ubisoft announcedHexein September 2022 with a reveal of its project title and logo, teasing the future of the series at the same time as the announcements ofMirageandShadows(then calledCodename Red).
Ubisoft hasn’t yet revealed much aboutHexebeyond its project title and logo, some leaks and rumors have naturally swirled around the game, and they make it sound like a major departure from other recent titles. By name alone, it’s easy enough to hazard a guess that it’s a bit more interested in the occult thanShadowsis, a concept that could make for an even more shadowy take on the franchise. As luck would have it,Shadows' own name is more than window-dressing, and the light-based stealth that it introduces could be the perfect ingredient forHexe.
Assassin’s Creed Hexe Sounds Like A Horror Spin
A Darker Take On A Pulpy Franchise
Therumors surroundingAssassin’s Creed Hexehave painted it assomething closer to a horror take on the franchise, which seems well-enough supported by the tone of the reveal teaser alone.Hexeis the German word for witch, suggesting a setting that focuses on the witch trials that took place in 17th century Germany.
Aside fromHexe, the only other announced Assassin’s Creed games are the mobile titleJade, a standalone multiplayer experience calledInvictus, and a Netflix project.
The concept makes sense as a next step for the series, which hasn’t yet set a game in Germany. The 17th century is also a major chronological gap. While the Ezio trilogy covers the late 15th and early 16th centuries,Shadowssteps into the late 16th, andBlack Flag, Rogue, 3, andUnityall squeeze into the 18th,the Assassin Brotherhood’s activities in the 17th century have only been covered in auxiliary media.
Where Assassin’s Creed Shadows Takes Place In The AC Timeline
Assassin’s Creed Shadows fits into the complicated Assassin’s Creed timeline, spanning centuries of history across four different continents.
According to a report fromInsider Gaming, earlyHexefootage showsa protagonist named Elsa using witchcraft while on the run from German soldiers on dark city streets. This apparently builds on the fear system found inAssassin’s Creed Syndicate’sJack The RipperDLC, revisiting the strengths of one of the franchise’s most interesting expansions.
Shadow-Based Stealth Would Be Perfect For Hexe
Light Matters Even More In Horror
Going off of that description, it sounds like a focus on light and shadow as stealth opportunities would be even cooler inAssassin’s Creed Hexethan inShadows.I’ve had a ton of fun using the cover of night and tossing shurikens to take out lights inShadows, and it’s certainly appropriate for the shinobi fantasy. It’s not a game that’s built around night or shadows at its core, though, and while other conditions like fog and rain are equally interesting, I’ve infiltrated just as many castles by avoiding sight lines in traditional ways while broad daylight streams down.
“Coming Back To The Roots Of Parkour & Stealth”: Assassin’s Creed Shadows Creative Director Teases What Longtime Series Fans Have To Look Forward To
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is going back to basics, says its creative director, with a renewed focus on stealth and parkour over action gameplay.
Leaning into more of a horror-tinged take on 17th century Germany could shift the focus on shadows to be at the core of the overall game experience.Media centered around the supernatural has long focused on light and shadows, from Dracula’s aversion to sunlight in Bram Stoker’s original novel to the high-contrast German expressionism that defined classic monster movies.
IfAssassin’s Creed Hexeis a smaller-scale game,it could focus on discrete nighttime story segmentsrather than accepting a continual flow of time likeShadowsdoes. In an allegedly “dark and gloomy setting” of"cobbled streets," hiding down alleyways might be more useful than crouching in tall grass or even running on rooftops
Hexe Has Interesting Opportunities, But It May Not Explore Them
Still Too Early To Say
Assuming Elsa does indeed have witch-like powers,the role of moonlight in witchcraft also makes for some interesting dynamics. I’d be fascinated to see the game explore trade-offs between the covers of shadow and power that could potentially be associated with the moon, providing the opportunity to fluctuate between a subtler focus on stealth and a riskier interest in power.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows Dual Protagonists Explained
Everything to know about playing and switching between Naoe and Yasuke, the two protagonists who share the spotlight in Assassin’s Creed Shadows.
We don’t yet know for sure if otherAssassin’s Creedgames are adopting the new stealth mechanics introduced inShadows, butShadowsdirector Charles Benoit did tell me in aScreen Rantinterviewthat he plans to keep using it if he directs anotherAssassin’s Creedgame himself. WhileHexeis being developed by a different team over at Ubisoft Montreal, I’m certainly hoping that some ofAssassin’s Creed Shadows' advancements have managed to sneak into the game during development, and light-based stealth is the one I’d like to see most.
