Skip to main content

Assassin’s Creed III topples Ubisoft pre-order record

Assassin's Creed III
Image used with permission by copyright holder

As of now the upcoming Assassin’s Creed III holds the record among Ubisoft-published games for attracting the most pre-orders.

Recommended Videos

You’d think that an imminent blockbuster title accomplishing a feat like this would drive Ubisoft to plaster its record-setting pre-order figures anywhere it can find a proper outlet for the news, but the PR blast announcing this milestone is surprisingly devoid of solid numbers. While Ubisoft repeatedly points out that Assassin’s Creed III currently has over twice as many pre-orders as its predecessor Assassin’s Creed Revelations, we’re never told exactly how many pre-orders that might be.

Still, Ubisoft executives seem elated by this news. “Assassin’s Creed III is one of the most anticipated games of the year and this impressive pre-order mark is just a hint of the game’s potential,” said Ubisoft’s senior vice president of sales and marketing Tony Key. “When players discover the new features, historical period, characters and gaming experience that the development team has worked so hard to create, we’re confident that they will agree that this is the biggest, best Assassin’s Creed game yet.”

As if searching for something to replace the bizarrely missing pre-order figures, the rest of the announcement helpfully reminds prospective players that there is still time to pre-order the game as well as its $30 Season Pass (which will allow players to pre-purchase a wide swath of DLC additions for the title at a 25-percent discount) prior to the title’s official launch on October 30. While Ubisoft directly quotes GameStop president Tony Bartel in its press release — call it cross-brand synergy, if you’d like — those of you suddenly interested in pre-ordering Assassin’s Creed III can visit almost any gaming retailer to register your official interest in this title.

If you’re still on the fence though, we have a number of things you should probably see in anticipation of Assassin’s Creed III. Things like this trailer, this examination of the game’s upcoming alternate history DLC and this interview with the game’s writer on how he approached writing a story that is equal parts conspiracy fiction and a fanciful retelling of the events surrounding the Revolutionary War. It’s all great stuff, and whether it convinces you to buy the game or not, at least now you’ll be able to respond thoughtfully when your best pal mentions that time that he jumped out of a tree to stab a British loyalist in the throat.

Earnest Cavalli
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Earnest Cavalli has been writing about games, tech and digital culture since 2005 for outlets including Wired, Joystiq…
How to get Knowledge Points and what they do in Assassin’s Creed Shadows
One of the protagonists in Assassin's Creed Shadows.

By the time we get to Assassin's Creed Shadows, most of us will be familiar with how the games work. Since transitioning more towards RPGs than stealth games, the titles have not only gotten longer but also embraced skill trees. Naoe and Yasuke each have unique progression paths to work through, but right away you will notice that most of the best abilities are gated off. Like Scouts, Knowledge Points are a new feature that you will need to master if you want to be the best assassin possible. We'll share all our knowledge about Knowledge Points with you.
How Knowledge Points work and how to get them

Knowledge Points are a separate system to XP that allows both Naoe and Yasuke to unlock the better and more powerful skills in all their skill trees. Unlike XP, you can't earn them by performing normal tasks or taking out enemies. Instead, Knowledge Points are rewarded for doing specific non-violent activities in Assassin's Creed Shadows.

Read more
How to get and use Scouts in Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Naoe perched on a spire in Assassin's Creed Shadows.

There are plenty of familiar mechanics returning in Assassin's Creed Shadows, such as fast travel and earning XP to level up both Naoe and Yasuke. One of the many new features you will be introduced to early in the game is the Scouts. Once you unlock the Hideout and are given your initial Scouts, they will become an essential tool for finding your next objective and gathering vital resources needed to upgrade your Hideout. However, how to use them or get more isn't very clearly explained for how essential they are. Let us fill you in on all the details about how Scouts work in Assassin's Creed Shadows.
How to get and use Scouts

Scouts have several primary functions, the first and most important being to scout areas on the world map. Very often, your next objective will not be placed on the map, but instead, you will have directions on the rough location of where it will be. This is where Scouts are necessary. By following the game's directions on the map, you need to put your cursor over the area it is describing and assign one or more Scouts to reveal the area. You do this by pressing Square or X to bring up the dispatch menu and then deploying them at that area. You can see how many Scouts are available on the bottom left of your screen and can assign multiple to an area by pressing the right trigger. The more Scouts you use to scout an area, the larger the area they will reveal.

Read more
How long is Assassin’s Creed Shadows?
Yasuke in Assassin's Creed Shadows fighting an enemy. He's dressed in his samurai armor.

It's no secret that the Assassin's Creed games have gotten longer and longer over the years. This is typical for Ubisoft open-world titles, but many are hoping that Assassin's Creed Shadows has scaled back on the bloat a bit. There's always fast travel and finding the fastest ways to earn XP to cut down on the grind, but there's only so much time that can be saved. If you're worried that this game might be another 100-hour time investment to fully complete, let's use our Eagle Vision to scout out how long Assassin's Creed Shadows is before you start playing.
How long is Assassin's Creed Shadows?

As you would expect, the amount of time you could put into Assassin's Creed Shadows will vary wildly based on how you approach it. You can focus on just the story and nothing else, tackle a handful of side missions and activities, or attempt to complete anything and everything the game has to offer.

Read more