Ubisoft’s XDefiant Is Another Letdown For One Type of Assassin’s Creed Game

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home January 4, 2025 2 Views 7 Min Read
Ubisoft’s XDefiant Is Another Letdown For One Type of Assassin’s Creed Game

Many players had high hopes for XDefiant closer to its launch in May 2024, with the ambitious FPS multiplayer title being able to pull from a wide range of popular Ubisoft IPs for its in-game factions and playable operators. This gave a distinct feel in terms of looks and abilities throughout the game’s roster of characters, while anchoring the title to longstanding and beloved franchises to appeal to a very wide catchment of fans.

Despite the potential that many thought that XDefiant had, the game is set to shut down in June, only about a year on from its initial release. This has led to a lot of the title’s lofty post-launch content plans releasing earlier than intended, including an eye-catching faction based around Ubisoft’s iconic Assassin’s Creed franchise. Like the other in-game factions of XDefiant, this AC-inspired group is well-adapted to modern-day combat, offering a fascinating larger glimpse into what Assassin’s Creed‘s narrative conflict looks like in a fleshed-out current-day setting. Fans have been hoping for an expansive modern-set AC title for some time, and the bittersweet presence of the Assassin’s Creed faction in XDefiant only serves as a cruel reminder of the potential that this concept has.

Split-image showcasing the MP5A2 in XDefiant

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XDefiant Briefly Puts the Spotlight On a Relatively Unexplored Aspect of Assassin’s Creed

The Assassin’s-Creed-inspired faction for XDefiant was added to the game as part of its third and final season, which saw a huge amount of content for subsequent seasons all be released all at once. One of three new factions, the Assassins feature operators that boast the unmistakable hooded look of the iconic brotherhood, while utilizing a range of weaponry and abilities taken straight from the action-adventure franchise.

This includes Assassin’s Creed‘s iconic Eagle Vision mechanic to track enemies, the series-defining Hidden Blade, player-stunning Cherry Bombs, and even the extremely powerful Apple of Eden which offers temporary teleportation. These AC-flavored features are blended seamlessly with XDefiant‘s modern setting and predominant use of current-day firearms, showing just how viable a modern-set Assassin’s Creed title can actually be.

While many AC games have famously included sequences based in the modern day, the games are foremost known and defined by their historic settings, which have ranged from Ancient Egypt, the Renaissance, and soon-to-be Feudal Japan thanks to the upcoming launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows. These earlier settings are more conducive to the franchise’s penchant for things like parkour getaways, tense melee combat, and complex assassination avenues, many of which would be somewhat lost with the modern technology of the current day.

XDefinat’s Assassin’s Creed Faction Can Hopefully Spur Forward a Modern Release For the Franchise

Despite this, Ubisoft does not shy away from giving fans fascinating glimpses into the modern dynamics of the Assassin Brotherhood and its ever-raging war against the Templar Order. Many players understandably want a fully-fledged modern-day experience to fully explore this. Assassin’s Creed 3 had an extensive combat sequence set in the modern day that was a defining part of the game’s story, showcasing even further that a comprehensive current-day AC experience could work for the IP.

Sadly, fans will not have much longer to see how Ubisoft decides to flesh out XDefiant‘s Assassins faction, with only a tantalizing glimpse into the modern practices and combat approaches of the group ultimately being shown. Hopefully, with the upcoming launch of the Assassin’s Creed Infinity hub, Ubisoft will be able to focus on more unique and ambitious AC experiences without getting in the way of more expansive mainline releases. If this is the case, then XDefiant‘s short-lived faction can hopefully provide some inspiration for a dedicated modern-set Assassin‘s Creed experience in the near future to finally give fans what they want.

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