Definition
Assassin’s Creed is an open-world action-adventure video game franchise developed by Ubisoft, first released in 2007. The series is built on a unique premise: a secret, centuries-long war between the Assassins (who fight for free will and individual liberty) and the Templars (who seek to control humanity through order and power). The games span historical eras — the Third Crusade, Renaissance Italy, Colonial America, Victorian London, ancient Egypt, Greece, and Viking-age Norway — with players controlling a member of the Assassin Brotherhood in the past, while a modern-day framing story involves a corporation called Abstergo Industries using a machine called the Animus to extract genetic memories. The series is known for its parkour movement, stealth mechanics, historical accuracy (often praised by historians), and its signature hidden blade — a retractable wrist-mounted weapon used for assassinations.
Why It Matters
Assassin’s Creed is the internet’s favorite history lesson disguised as a video game. The franchise turned millions of gamers into accidental history enthusiasts: after playing Assassin’s Creed II in Renaissance Florence, players Googled the Medici family. After Black Flag, they researched pirate history. After Origins, they learned about Ptolemaic Egypt. The games are so historically detailed that teachers have used them in classrooms, and historians have debated their accuracy in academic journals. The internet’s relationship with Assassin’s Creed is defined by its memes: the “Leap of Faith” (a dive from impossible heights into a haystack), the “Eagle Vision” (a gameplay mechanic that highlights enemies), and the phrase “Nothing is true, everything is permitted” — the Assassins’ creed, which has become a philosophical punchline. The franchise also matters because it represents the peak of Ubisoft’s open-world formula: climb towers to reveal map areas, complete side quests, collect meaningless collectibles, and repeat. The internet both mocks this formula and keeps buying the games. Assassin’s Creed is not just a game. It is a platform for historical tourism, a meme factory, and a reminder that even the most formulaic entertainment can spark genuine curiosity about the past.
Example
“He played Assassin’s Creed II in 2009. He climbed the Duomo in Florence. He had never been to Florence. He felt the city. He researched the Medici. He read about Savonarola. He argued on forums about whether the game was historically accurate. He was 16. He learned more history from a video game than from school. The hidden blade was cool. The history was cooler. The blend of both was Assassin’s Creed. A game that taught without teaching. That entertained without insulting intelligence. That made history feel like a playground. And the playground was real. Even if the haystacks were not.”
Related Terms
- Ubisoft — The French developer and publisher behind the Assassin’s Creed franchise
- Templars — The secretive order that serves as the primary antagonists throughout the series
- Animus — The fictional machine that allows characters to relive ancestral memories
- Hidden Blade — The iconic retractable wrist weapon and symbol of the Assassin Brotherhood
- Leap of Faith — The dramatic diving mechanic that became the franchise’s signature move