Assassin’s Creed Mirage will have a photo mode, and an open world that will make it worthwhile.
Ubisoft Art Director, Jean-Luc Sala addressed this question on a Reddit AMA. As reported by PSU, this was what he had to say:
“Yes we still use the photomode and you will have a lot of opportunities as Baghdad and surroundings are really visually stunning. You can also try to photo safari the now extinct Arabian Ostriches.
We’ll have the same feature set as for ACV, but you will also be able to play in-game (and capture shots through Photomode) with our AC1 nostalgic filter.”
For those of you who are curious, yes, the Arabian ostrich is a real extinct species that was once ubiquitous in Iraq, and the region around it, and important in Middle Eastern culture. It was driven to extinction in the 20th century, but of course, we are going all the way back to the 9th century in Baghdad.
As expected, Ubisoft’s historical research for this latest Assassin’s Creed has been extensive, which means that we will be seeing a surprisingly lively and well detailed version of Baghdad.
The desert of the 9th century isn’t the same thing that we imagine the desert is like today. While Basim will likely be spending most of his time in Baghdad, we may get multiple opportunities to see much of the rich flora and fauna of the Iraq deserts, as well as the oases, rivers, and maybe even the forests and marshes, at a time when the wildlife dominated civilization and not the other way around.
There is also a great opportunity here for Ubisoft to showcase just how advanced a civilization Baghdad had when it was the center of the Caliphate. Yes, it was the center of religion, but also, the leading center of scientific progress. At this time, Europe was well in the middle of medieval life, and still dealing with Viking raids.
But of course, every Assassin’s Creed fan knows, the immersion into historical setting is every bit part of the greatest appeal of the franchise. Some avid fans may be more likely to use Assassin’s Creed Mirage’s photo mode on Assassin’s Creed Mirage: Discovery Tour, a more likely showcase for what Ubisoft had been able to create of this ancient city.
Assassin’s Creed Mirage will be releasing on October 12, 2023, on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on Ubisoft Connect and Epic Games Store.
