The Assassin’s Creed series has always featured a large cast of villains (that “friend” you met early in the game will probably try to kill you before the end) and things could get incomprehensible fairly quickly. Ubisoft looks to resolve this with Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, as the baddies are all tied to one wonderfully-mustachioed gangster.
“Crawford Starrick’s full organization: seven henchmen, each controlling the pillars of London society,” the narrator states in Syndicate’s “story trailer.”
These henchmen include the “negligent doctor” John Elliotson and “mad scientist” David Brewster, who conduct experiments at the cost of their patients’ lives; the traffic-controlling Pearl Attaway; and “criminal mastermind” Maxwell Roth. Those ‘staches are giving The Order: 1886 a run for its money.
Naturally, Starrick and his followers are Templars, and twins Evie and Jacob Frye take it upon themselves to regain control of London with the help of its local citizens. This means taking out local gangs, recruiting followers, and, of course, assassinating dozens of people.
In contrast to the seriousness of both last year’s Assassin’s Creed Unity and Assassin’s Creed III, this year’s game looks to offer a dry sense of humor. When a guard asks, “weapons?” as Jacob Frye approaches a door, he states that he doesn’t need any because he brought his own, and he warns of an unscheduled stop as the train he is running along falls apart and explodes.
What’s curious, however, is that the video description states that you’ll play “as gangster assassin Jacob Frye,” with his sister’s playability listed below as an additional feature. Given the emphasis earlier videos and previews have put on the “dual protagonist” model of Syndicate, as well as the gameplay differences between the two, it would be a shame to see Evie relegated to a secondary role.
Assassin’s Creed Syndicate hits Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC on October 23.
