Why Assassin's Creed 2 and 3 Had the Best Writing the Series Has Ever Seen

One of the most memorable moments in the entire Assassin’s Creed series occurs early in Assassin’s Creed III. Haytham Kenway, having assembled his band of assassins in the New World (or so it seems), initially presents as a hero. He uses a hidden blade, possesses the charisma of Ezio Auditore, and even rescues Native Americans from prison, battling British redcoats. Only his utterance of the Templar phrase, “May the Father of Understanding guide us,” reveals his true allegiance. This surprising twist perfectly exemplifies Assassin’s Creed’s untapped potential.

The first game introduced an intriguing premise—locate, learn about, and eliminate targets—but fell short narratively. Both Altaïr and his victims lacked personality. Assassin’s Creed II improved things with the iconic Ezio, but its adversaries remained underdeveloped, notably Cesare Borgia in Brotherhood. Only in Assassin’s Creed III, set during the American Revolution, did Ubisoft dedicate equal effort to developing both hunter and hunted. This created a seamless narrative flow, achieving a balance of gameplay and story rarely replicated since.

While the current RPG era is generally well-received, many believe the series is in decline. Reasons cited include increasingly fantastical premises (battles against gods like Anubis and Fenrir), romance options, and the controversial use of a real-world historical figure (Yasuke) in Assassin’s Creed: Shadows of Memories. However, I argue the decline stems from the series abandoning its character-driven storytelling, overwhelmed by sprawling open worlds.

Over time, Assassin’s Creed has incorporated RPG and live-service elements: dialogue trees, XP systems, loot boxes, microtransactions, and gear customization. The larger the games became, the emptier they felt, not just in terms of repetitive side quests, but also in storytelling. While Assassin’s Creed Odyssey boasts more content than Assassin’s Creed II, much of it feels underdeveloped and wooden. The extensive dialogue options, intended to enhance immersion, often have the opposite effect. Lengthy scripts, accounting for multiple scenarios, lack the polish of earlier, more focused narratives. The sharp, screenplay-like scripts of the action-adventure era produced well-defined characters, unburdened by a structure demanding player-driven shifts in personality.

This breaks immersion; the interaction feels with computer-generated characters, not complex historical figures. This contrasts sharply with the Xbox 360/PS3 era, which featured some of gaming’s finest writing. Examples include Ezio’s defiant “Do not follow me, or anyone else!” after defeating Savonarola, and Haytham’s tragicomic final words to Connor:

“Don't think I have any intention of caressing your cheek and saying I was wrong. I will not weep and wonder what might have been. I'm sure you understand. Still, I'm proud of you in a way. You have shown great conviction. Strength. Courage. All noble qualities. I should have killed you long ago.”

The writing has also suffered from a simplification of the Assassins/Templars dynamic. While modern games present a simple good vs. evil narrative, earlier games explored the moral ambiguities. In Assassin’s Creed III, defeated Templars challenge Connor’s (and the player’s) beliefs. William Johnson suggests the Templars could have prevented genocide. Thomas Hickey criticizes the Assassins’ mission. Benjamin Church highlights the subjectivity of morality. Even Haytham undermines Connor’s faith in Washington, revealing the latter’s role in burning Connor’s village. The result is a story that leaves the player with more questions than answers—and is all the better for it.

The popularity of “Ezio’s Family” from Assassin’s Creed II’s soundtrack highlights the impact of character-driven storytelling. The PS3-era games, particularly Assassin’s Creed II and III, prioritized character development. While I appreciate the improved world-building and graphics of recent games, I hope the series will eventually return to its roots, delivering focused narratives that recapture the magic of its earlier installments. Unfortunately, in the current gaming landscape, this might not be considered “good business.”