Key Points
- Assassin’s Creed has sold over 200 million copies as of September 2022, making it a staple in the video game universe.
- Reddit is a trusted source for game recommendations, with passionate user opinions on which Assassin’s Creed titles are worth playing.
- The top eight Assassin’s Creed games recommended by Reddit include Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Assassin’s Creed Rogue, Assassin’s Creed Origins, Assassin’s Creed Unity, Assassin’s Creed III, and the Ezio Collection.
- These games are praised for their engaging storylines, open-world gameplay, and unique features such as ship-based combat and the ability to recruit other assassins.
Over the course of the last 16 years, Assassin’s Creed has been a staple part of the video game universe. Across numerous video game generations and multiple console formats, more than 200 million copies of Assassin’s Creed titles have been sold as of September 2022. Featuring 13 main games in total, plus an equal number of spin-offs, developer Ubisoft has established a universe that has led to a Hollywood movie, animated short films, and even a potential Netflix spinoff.
With so many games available across a dozen or so different consoles and formats, it can be difficult to discover which Assassin’s Creed title to play first. Fortunately, Reddit has done a lot of the work for you and can guide you to exactly which titles in the series you should start with. While there is not one universally agreed upon title, there are 8 different games that Reddit collectively agrees are worth playing, which is a testament to the strength of the franchise.
Let’s take a look at the 8 best games you should check out as part of the Assassin’s Creed universe.
Why Trust Reddit Game Recommendations?
For better or worse, Reddit acts as a hive mind that can give you deep insights into why a game is worth playing or not. Across many subreddits, including r/assassinscreed, there are thousands and thousands of posts asking or explaining why a particular title is worth playing. From /rgaming, r/ps4, r/ps5, r/xbox, and even the now defunct r/stadia, there is no shortage of places to look on Reddit for recommendations.
Unlike independent publications like IGN or GameSpot which will publish one or two reviews, Reddit is very much a collection of hundreds (if not thousands) of user opinions. These Reddit reviews deliver impassioned opinions on numerous Assassin’s Creed titles and why they are worth playing today.
With that in mind, let’s see which titles have risen to the top of Reddit’s recommendations.
Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag
- Meet Blackbeard, the legendary pirate
- Join the ancient war between Assassins and Templars, a war that may destroy everything the pirates have built
- Loot underwater shipwrecks
- Assassinate Templars in blossoming cities
- Hunt for rare animals in untamed jungles
- Search for treasure in lost ruins
- Escape to hidden coves
Better known as Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, this 2013 release is widely regarded as one of the best games in the series.
The sixth installment in the series, Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag originally released for the Wii U, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360, and is now available across many consoles including the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and the Nintendo Switch.
Regardless of where you play this popular title, you will find a storyline set in the West Indies during a time of piracy between 1715 and 1722. The main character is Edward Kenway, who is a family member of the character that was also the main protagonist in Assassin’s Creed III.
Receiving critical acclaim, the game would go on to sell more than 15 million copies before 2020. There is plenty of praise for its open-world combat and the use of ship-based combat, which was a new style of play not yet seen in any previous Assassin’s Creed title. Between its combat, stealth, plot, and overall fun, there is little surprise this r/ps4 thread indicated it’s the best game in this series.
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood
- Recruit and train promising young Assassins. Deploy them across the city as you see fit, or call upon them to aid you in your quests
- Collaborate with real historical characters such as Leonardo da Vinci, Niccolo Machiavelli and Caterina Sforza
- Swiftly eliminate your enemies using tools such as poison darts, parachutes, double hidden blades, hidden guns, and an advanced flying machine at your disposal
- Over 15 hours of single-player gameplay set in the city of Rome
Released in 2010 and billed as an action-adventure game, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood is another Reddit favorite.
As this r/assassinscreed thread will tell you, Brotherhood is a popular title in the series because of the fact that you can recruit other assassins to your cause. A direct sequel to Assassin’s Creed II, the game was first released on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 only to come to PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One more than six years later.
Played from a third-person perspective, Brotherhood is all about stealth, climbing, and environmental exploration. Combining all of these elements helped Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood earn plenty of critical acclaim for its roughly 15-hour single-player campaign. Add to that your ability to deploy your trained assassins across the city or have them aid you in a fight, and it was a really wonderful way to add a refreshed take on the franchise. As a bonus, you have a chance to work with real-life characters such as Leonardo da Vinci, which is just a truly fun addition to the title.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
- Preorder to meet a mysterious traveller that will prove to be much more than he appears as his past is revealed
- Choose which hero to embody throughout this epic journey, Alexios or Kassandra
- Your decisions shape the world around you
- Over 30 hours of choice dialogue and multiple game endings
- Demonstrate your extraordinary warrior abilities and shift the tides of battle during the Peloponnesian War
- Find uncharted locations, uncover hidden treasures, or cleave your way through entire fleets in naval battles
One of the most recent titles in the series, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, is a 2018 release that has quickly earned the praise of Reddit.
Originally released in 2018, Odyssey helped take the Assassin’s Creed series in something of a new direction by adding in a bit of role-playing elements. As the 11th game in the franchise, Odyssey retained many of the open-world elements that the series is best known for but reduced its dependency on stealth. A risky move for the game, it would pay off as the game received mostly positive reviews across the PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One releases. Selling more than 10 million copies in two years helped elevate the game into the upper echelon of the series.
Gameplay within Assassin’s Creed Odyssey allows players to choose between either a female or male protagonist. As a descendant of Spartan King Leonidas, the player explores Greece either on foot or on horseback. Redditors praise the 45-hour campaign as refreshing with its updated take for more modern consoles.
Assassin’s Creed Rogue
- Resolution upscale allowing you to play in 4K on PS4 Pro in 1080p
- Experience the Assassin's Creed universe from the perspective of a Templar
- Play as Shay, who, in addition to the deadly skills of a Master Assassin, also possesses never before seen skills and weapons
- Equip Shay's deadly air rifle for both short and long-range combat
- Distract, eliminate, or confuse your enemies by using a variety of ammunition
- Includes 2 bonus missions from the original deluxe edition & Customization & items packs
Over its 10.5-hour single-player campaign, Assassin’s Creed: Rogue puts you right into the battle between two mysterious factions fighting a war in the middle 1700s.
Set in something of a real world that stands in for various locations around North America, the plot develops before and while the French and Indian War is taking place. Your protagonist, Shay Patrick Cormac, is a privateer by day, assassin by night, who becomes a Templar in the game and begins to hunt down members of his former brotherhood. Unfortunately, the game was released to mixed reviews with praise going to the story and gameplay, while detractors focused on its short length.
Even with positives and negatives, Reddit is alive with r/PS4 subreddit posts highlighting how well Rogue has stood the test of time. Many Redditors even place Rogue in front of other surprisingly popular titles like Assassin’s Creed Valhalla.
One nicety that comes through on Reddit is how much appreciation there is for the music of the game, something of a surprise when many people only emphasize gameplay.
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Assassin’s Creed Origins
- Play as Bayek, a protector of Egypt whose personal story will lead to the creation of the Assassin’s Brotherhood
- Experience a completely new way to fight as you loot and use over one hundred weapons with different characteristics and rarities
- Enjoy deep RPG progression mechanics, choose your preferred abilities, and challenge your skills against unique and powerful bosses
- Pick and tackle quests at your own will and pace
- From deserts to lush oasis, from the Mediterranean Sea to the tombs of Giza, fight your way against dangerous factions and wild beasts
As the 10th game in the series, Assassin’s Creed Origins had high expectations, and while it isn’t a perfect game, it’s definitely high on the list for Redditors.
Set around Egypt in the years 49 to 43 BC, the protagonist of the game seeks revenge for the death of a family member. As a unique twist for the game, the storyline helps explore the background between the two long-running groups in the series, the Assassin Brotherhood and the Templar Order. The release of the game was met with high praise around the storyline, gameplay, voice acting, and overall interesting characters.
Selling over 10 million copies, the Origins game primarily focused on the eighth generation of video game consoles. Redditors in the r/assassinscreed subreddit have praised the game’s beautiful graphics and lengthy story that lasts around 30 days for the single-player campaign. Combat, in particular, was also given high praise due to a unique weapons system that allows melee attacks that were different from those in other Assassin’s Creeds games that came before this title.
Assassin’s Creed Unity
- Brand new stealth gameplay, combat, and parkour
- Deep customization mechanics
- Unique co-experience play
- Discover Revolutionary Paris
The eighth game in the series, Assassin’s Creed Unity, is the direct successor to the popular Black Flag release.
Continuing the long-running story between two groups that struggle to preserve peace, Unity was released in November 2014 for the PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One. It would also play on Google Stadia in 2020 with updated graphics for modern PCs.
The game itself was praised for its strong visuals and characters, though its storyline did not receive the same level of success as some of the more popular games in the franchise. Regardless, Assassin’s Creed Unity would go on to sell more than 10 million copies and release a free DLC over the course of its console availability.
In an action-adventure game, stealth continues to play a popular role, but the real beauty of this game was the 1:1 recreation of Paris. Players are free to explore one of seven districts that help make up the city, including popular locations like Le Louvre and the town of Versailles. Redditors in r/PS4 threads have praised the game’s ability to use parkour and labeled it as one of the most underrated titles in the series.
Assassin’s Creed III
- 4K resolution, new character models, polished environment rendering and more
- Revamped gameplay mechanics
- Assassinate your foes in a variety of deadly ways with a vast array of weaponry
Over the course of its roughly 16-hour campaign, Assassin’s Creed III takes you back to the American Revolutionary War and follows two characters who attempt to influence the outcome of the war.
In this game, the main protagonist is Connor, an 18th-century assassin who has the new ability of being able to wield dual weapons. Assassin’s Creed III was also the first in the series to introduce new weather elements for rain, snow, and fog. By adding different seasonal elements, the gameplay changes as a player would run slower in snow or have visibility reduced by weather-related occurrences.
Assassin’s Creed III stands out for its multi-platform approach, as it was released on more platforms than any other game in the series. This is one of the reasons why Redditors on r/assassinscreed praise the game on top of its beautiful historical setting. Today, you can pick up the game for PlayStation or Xbox with enhanced graphics in 4K resolution, as well as enhanced environmental elements.
Wrapping Up
As a series that has sold well over 200 million games across 13 different titles, it should come as little surprise that Reddit is full of praise for many titles in the series. While not every game in this series has held up across modern consoles, the 7 titles here are absolutely the best in the franchise.
If there is one outlier not named here, the Ezio Collection which features Assassin’s Creed II, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, and Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is another strong recommendation across Reddit. With many more games planned within the franchise including a Netflix series, Assassin’s Creed will continue to be a big name in gaming for the foreseeable future.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©dennizn/Shutterstock.com.
