The Assassin's Creed series recently reached its 12th installment, but the historical stealth franchise would have been better as a simple trilogy. While there was a two-year gap between the original Assassin's Creed and its sequel, Assassin's Creed 2, since then developer Ubisoft has released a new entry in the series almost every year. As of writing there are 12 main Assassin's Creed games and multiple spinoff titles, but the franchise only really needed three games.

The first Assassin's Creed title, released in 2007, sees protagonist Desmond Miles dragged into a war between two factions that stretches back to prehistory. Desmond comes from a long line of Assassin warriors, so the group's modern-day Templar rivals kidnap him to study his genetic memory. Using a machine called the Animus, Desmond is forced to relive the memories of his Assassin ancestor Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad during the Third Crusade. The game introduced the franchise's three gameplay pillars of melee combat, social stealth and parkour traversal while establishing the long-running conflict between the Assassins and Templars.

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In many ways, 2009's Assassin's Creed 2 is an ideal sequel. The game continues the first game's plot as Desmond escapes from the modern Templars and befriends a group of Assassins. Seeking to end the war between the two factions, Desmond reenters the Animus and explores the Italian Renaissance as ancestor Ezio Auditore da Firenze. Assassin's Creed 2 features real-world landmarks, like the Vatican and Rialto Bridge, and Ezio is considered by many to be the franchise's best protagonist. The sequel also improves upon each of the first game's gameplay pillars by introducing new melee weapons and attacks, enhanced social stealth mechanics, and more advanced freerunning moves. The game's modern storyline ends with the Templars tracking down Desmond's group, setting up a third installment to finally settle the ancient feud.

Brotherhood & Revelations Killed Time Until Assassin's Creed 3

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However, instead of Assassin's Creed 3, the second game in the franchise was followed by two direct sequels titled Brotherhood and Revelations. Rather than introducing a new historical time period and playable ancestor, these two games continue to follow Ezio's life story as he travels to Rome and Constantinople. The modern storyline is also developed, with the Assassins laying low in Italy.

While Assassin's Creed and Assassin's Creed 2 build towards an epic conclusion, Brotherhood and Revelations needlessly pad out the story. Nothing noteworthy happens in Brotherhood until Desmond kills Lucy, and Revelations just kills time by keeping Desmond locked in an Animus coma. While exploring the complete story of Ezio in Assassin's Creed is interesting, detailing his entire life following the events of Assassin's Creed 2 seems unnecessary. His story could have been expanded through other media, or even as spin-off games released after Assassin's Creed 3, but the third game should have capped off the trilogy by bringing players to a brand-new time period with a unique new hero.

Annual Releases Made Assassin's Creed 3 Less Special

When Assassin's Creed 3 did finally release in 2012, the game saw Desmond explore the American Revolution using the memories of Native American ancestor Ratonhnaké:ton. While the title did bring Desmond's story to a definitive conclusion and explored a new historical setting, the game received a mixed reception in the fanbase. Ratonhnaké:ton, also known by adopted name Connor Kenway, was compared unfavorably to iconic Assassin's Creed protagonist Ezio due to his stoic personality and hotheaded tendencies. Assassin's Creed 3 delivered an impressive recreation of several early American cities, and the vast wilderness that connected them, but the title failed to add anything innovative to the Assassin's Creed franchise's three core gameplay pillars.

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Had 2012's Assassin's Creed 3 been a direct follow-up to 2009's Assassin's Creed 2, the game likely would have been more well-received received. The modern events of Brotherhood and Revelations could have easily been incorporated into the third game, especially if Ubisoft spent three years created a massive installment rather than developing three short titles for yearly release. The various new features added between Assassin's Creed 2 and 3, like online multiplayer and recruiting Assassin allies, would have been extremely impressive if they weren't first introduced in Brotherhood and Revelations. Progressing from the Holy Land in Assassin's Creed to the streets of Florence in Assassin's Creed 2 to lush forests and American historical figures in Assassin's Creed 3 could have made for a perfect gaming trilogy.

Desmond Miles Was Assassin's Creed's True Protagonist

Easiest Assassin's Creed Protagonists to Cosplay Desmond

Brotherhood and Revelations took the wind out of Assassin's Creed 3's sails, and seven subsequent successors have beaten the historical fiction franchise into the ground. Following the death of Desmond Miles in AC3, the modern-day segments in games like Black Flag and Unity place players in the role of an Abstergo Industries employee. The franchise's most recent trilogy, which began with Origins and concludes with Valhalla, then introduced a brand-new modern protagonist named Layla Hassan who explores the lives of warriors from distant settings like Ancient Egypt and the Viking Age.

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For the first five games, Desmond Miles was the Assassin's Creed protagonist, and his death in Assassin's Creed 3 should have been a dramatic concussion for the series. While there would then be the potential for a follow-up trilogy starring a new protagonist like Layla, Ubisoft instead proceeded to release Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag only a year after his demise. Some fans feel that the Assassin's Creed franchise doesn't need a modern-day storyline, but Desmond served as relatable glue that held the franchise's various historical settings and bizarre sci-fi elements together. Assassin's Creed, or at least the initial trilogy of games, should have died with him.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla marks the 12th major installment in Ubisoft's open-world adventure series, and rumors suggest that the next Assassin's Creed game may be revealed soon. While the series did receive some beloved titles after Assassin's Creed 3, like Black Flag and Origins, the franchise may have been much neater and more fondly remembered as a short and sweet trilogy. Assassin's Creed 3 could have been more well-received had it not followed several annual releases, and Revelations and Brotherhood did little to meaningfully progress the series' story. More Assassin's Creed is certainly on the way, but Ubisoft should have realized why three is such a magic number.

Next: The Next Assassin's Creed Should End The Series' Long-Running Story