Nineteenth Century New England and American Midwest
Yes, we know, dear God not another Assassin's Creed in America. Hear us out though. The knee-jerk impulse is to say a 19th century Midwest Assassin's Creed would embrace a frontier vibe, but thats been done and clapboard saloons arent really that fun to climb. A better time period would be the years leading up to the Civil War, when abolitionism had become a strong national movement and the Industrial Revolution was taking hold. See, isn't that cool?
Its not hard to picture Assassins working with Harriet Tubman to operate the Underground Railroad, assassinating slavery supporters alongside John Brown, defusing clashes between Irish immigrants and nativists in Boston, or even crossing blades with a very young Templar Thomas Edison. Also, the Midwest was Abraham Lincolns stomping ground, and if we dont get a chance to meet the Great Emancipator in his early days as an unassuming blue-collar lawyer, then why are we even playing these games? Ditto if we dont get to join in the chase for John Wilkes Booth.
Nineteenth Century - Industrial Revolution England
The times, they are a'changin'. That's probably not what the working class of England said in the late nineteenth century, because that's the completely wrong accent, but the Industrial Revolution was just kicking off so I'm sure they'd subscribe to the sentiment. During this period there was a rapid shift in the country's economic structure, forcing people to relocate to packed urban locations in the shadow of the soul- and often body-crushing factories. This led to vast increases in crime, infant mortality, general mortality, and social depravities of every stripe. It's exactly the kind of place that the Assassins and Templars would want to "fix".
An Assassin growing up in this place and time would be pretty amazing to behold, like a way more violent Oliver Twist. Imagine the struggle to help people, the tiny glimmer of hope you would create every time you save a bizarrely familiar citizen from thugs and struggle against your circumstances. There could even be a cool story about the Assassin protagonist being wooed by Templar promises of health and prosperity but slowly learning the Templars aren't everything they seem. And if you're still not convinced, think about this: this was the period when Jack the Ripper was out in full force. Theeeere you go.
Twentieth Century - Madrid, Spain
Setting anything in the 20th Century is pretty unlikely for Assassins Creed. For one, widespread use of firearms renders melee combat obsolete. For another, series lore says that any period after the commercial success of the automobile is difficult for the Animus to properly render (translation: Ubisoft said screw it). Problems of creating a modern setting aside, though, the Spanish Civil War satisfies three major requirements of the series: its cities and countryside were filled with beautiful landmarks just begging to be climbed; its completely ignored by other games; and it presents a clear moral conflict tailor-made for the Assassins. I mean, a loose underdog confederation of anarchists, republicans, and anti-fascists on one side, and a unified front of Nazi-backed (and possibly Templar-backed) fascists on the other? Sounds about right.
Riding through the Pyrenees with Basque saboteurs, skulking through bombed-out streets or scaling El Escorial in the shadows of the conflict sounds way too cool, firearms be damned. Besides, the Spanish Civil War is notable for not being a completely mechanized war. Sure, it was Germanys test bed for World War II, but widespread use of horses, a relative scarcity of automatic weapons, and no shortage of amateur soldiers mean it could still feel period-accurate without having to sacrifice too much of ACs traditional feel.
Twentieth Century Summer of Love San Francisco
OK, yes, this ones just Ubisoft winking at a Simpsons reference, but that doesnt mean its not fun to think about. Hippies may not have been known for embracing murder as a political tactic - err, most of the time - but otherwise their communal, freedom-loving ideals line up nicely with those of the Assassins. Also, given that this is part of Desmonds matrilineal line, odds are good that exploring this place would put players in the shoes of Desmonds mysterious mother, and we bet she's a badass.
Given that Desmonds father was born in 1948, we can assume his mom would be around the same age, putting her in her late teens or early 20s during the summer of 1967 - an ideal age to be in the middle of countercultural upheaval as an active Assassin. True, there might be issues because cars, but San Francisco is a relatively walkable city. Also, when you consider that August 1967 saw the assassination of American Nazi Party leader George Rockwell at the hands of a gunman who escaped by running across rooftops, this starts to seem like less of a joke.
But you forgot
The world is a big freaking place, and when there's many millennia of human history to play with, there's an insane amount of options for where the series' magic brain time machine should land next. What setting do you want to see in a future AC? Would you love to visit the places we've mentioned here, or can you do us one better? Are you ready to climb everything? Tell us in the comments below, and remember to synchronize before you leap.
Want to take a Leap of Faith into more Assassin's Creed? Check out our Assassin's Creed Unity and Assassin's Creed Rogue Road to the Reviews, and Insane conspiracy theories Assassin's Creed says are true.
