Future-planning seems at the forefront of Ubisoft’s collective hivemind right now.
For starters, the studio outed the full DLC structure of its madcap RPG South Park: The Fractured But Whole‘s season pass – sentient towels, trips to Casa Bonita and all.
But not content to announce the long-term gameplan for one of their oncoming AAA titles, they’ve also given Egypt-set open-worlder Assassin’s Creed: Origins the same treatment with a new DLC-orientated trailer of its own…
Takeaways:
- Those picking up Origins‘ premium Gold Edition (£80 / $100) or standalone Season Pass will have two major expansions to dive into after the core campaign: “Curse of the Pharaohs” and “The Hidden Ones”.
- The former introduces a new open-world region where Bayek must overcome dead Pharaohs and mythological beasts in “a mystery that turns into a living nightmare”. We’re hoping that doesn’t mean re-watching the Assassin’s Creed movie, as the two experiences sound uncannily similar.
- As for “Hidden Ones”, expect to witness “the next step in the Brotherhood’s story” as the first followers of everyone’s favourite Creed – Bayek included – travel to the Sinai Peninsula to brawl Roman conquerors heralding a threatening new epoch.
- What’s more, Gold Edition purchasers will also get Horus and Roman Centurion customisation packs featuring new outfits and mounts for our newfound Assassin protagonist and his noble steed.
- That’s not to say Ubisoft won’t provide those sans Season Pass with free DLC, though. Game director Ashraf Ismail says to expect an “epic challenge” in Trials of the Gods, where Animus glitches pitch Bayek against the likes of Anubis and other fearsome deities.
- Plus look out for daily challenges at Nomad’s Bazaar yielding secret items, a Photo Mode enabling players to soak in the glorious sights of Ancient Egypt, the near-obligatory Horde Mode and a Discovery Mode framing the open-world in an educational light, all costing £0.00 to download.
Whether dedicating so much effort to developing Origins‘ post-launch content – as opposed to keeping their focus on crafting as groundbreaking an Assassin’s entry as possible for Day 1 – will work in Ubisoft’s favour remains to be seen.
After all, if the finished product coming our way soon doesn’t deliver truly overhauled combat and a compelling core narrative on a par with Ezio and the Kenways’ beloved escapades, then no amount of DLC will necessarily correct this misstep.
At the same time, however, given the extra year of development Origins has had what with the franchise’s 2016 hiatus, one can hardly blame developer Ubisoft Montreal for using that to their advantage, and most fans surely won’t complain at the thought of returning to Ancient Egypt on numerous occasions after the credits roll.
Catch the full trailer for yourselves below, and keep your eyes peeled for our verdict on Assassin’s Creed: Origins when it arrives on Xbox One, PS4 and PC this October 27th.