What AC Mirage's Expansion & Revival Means for the Franchise & Ubisoft

Two months’ time ago, Ubisoft made a surprise announcement. Out of the blue, it was revealed that Assassin’s Creed Mirage, almost two years after its initial release, would be receiving a free expansion before the end of the year. This expansion now titled “Valley of Memory” would take players to Al-Ùla in Saudi Arabia, a UNESCO site and key part of Saudi culture and history. These news were as said definitely a surprise, but were mostly met with praise and excitement from fans, even if it was odd this expansion was coming this long after release. But why is that? Was this always secretly planned, is it a desperate business move, and is it related to Ubisoft’s new supposed partnership with Savvy Games Group, an investment firm based in Riyadh in Saudi? We explore the different aspects of this, from business decisions, fan reception, its impact on the AC franchise and more. Let’s dive into it!

Ubisoft, Savvy Games Group & Business

Last year in 2024, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot reportedly accompanied President of France Emmanuel Macron on a trip to Saudi Arabia, to meet with Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and other Saudi leaders, with the goal of spreading the impact and reach of French culture. Based on an internal company Q&A published by GameFile, this caused dissatisfaction within the company and was not to everyone’s liking, one employee specifically asking if supposedly partnering up with a nation against the company’s democratic values, is another hit to their already damaged and dwindling reputation. Ubisoft did not make any direct comments on this claiming “We do not comment on rumours”, and reportedly afterwards stated they believe there’s a difference between the controversial Crown Prince and the Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, as well as Savvy’s parent company.

Some time after Guillemot and President Macron’s trip in January this year, French news outlet Les Echos reported Ubisoft had supposedly entered a partnership with Savvy Games Group, leading to the creation of DLC for Assassin’s Creed Mirage, despite multiple previous claims the game was meant to be a standalone experience without plans for additional expansions. Ubisoft have neither confirmed nor denied a partnership with Savvy or Saudi Arabia in general, but nonetheless the DLC was conveniently announced by Guillemot in Riyadh in August, during the New Global Sport Conference.

Despite no official confirmation of a partnership between Ubisoft and Savvy, the timeline, alleged business decisions and the fact the DLC comes at no additional cost, does indeed raise the question, is the choice of developing this DLC purely a creative decision, or a direct result of Savvy’s likely investment in Ubisoft, possibly in an attempt to promote Al-Ùla and attract tourists? As mentioned also, the fact that the DLC is free - also compared to expansions for previous AC games as well as years of (infamous) microtransactions - can indeed feel odd, also taking into consideration the current state of Ubisoft and their recent financial struggles. Could they really afford to put money and resources into developing an expansion they wouldn’t make a dime off, or is it being free a result of funding from partners? At the most, a spokesperson from Ubisoft has stated "This title update to Assassin's Creed Mirage was made possible thanks to the support of local and international organisations, through access to experts, historians, and resources to ensure the creation of an authentic and accurate setting.”.

Fan Reception & Impact on the Franchise

Business decisions and potential controversies aside, as mentioned, despite the suddenness of the announcement of a free expansion, it was mostly met with praise and excitement from fans, some even stating it absolutely feels like the right decision, and the timing of it comes along at the perfect moment. It is very likely there is some truth to this. Bringing new life to one of the company’s most critically acclaimed titles in recent years - especially coming off of said financial struggles and the intense and controversial marketing campaign for AC Shadows - can ultimately serve as a bit of cleansing, and help restore players’ faith in and love for the company. Also taking into consideration the perception of Assassin’s Creed in recent years - the series going in a drastically different direction with most new games, causing polarisation amongst fans - bringing new life to the most critically acclaimed instalment in a long time that was a fresh breath of air, being as much of a return to roots as possible, reintroducing classic as can be Assassins (Hidden Ones) VS. Templars (Order Of The Ancients), with a story structure and gameplay formula reminiscent of the 2007 original, does indeed feel like an easy, yet effective and nostalgic move, and it shows.

The fact that the DLC trailer also officially naming it Valley of Memory in early October, got more views in 24 hours than the trailer for AC Shadows’ recently released Claws of Awaji expansion got in a month is telling something. It says that despite its young age, players are already starting to have a nostalgic relationship with Mirage given its classic formula, and it is slowly leaving a legacy other recent instalments in the series have failed to, and tells that despite its successful and fateful launch and mostly positive reception, even the newest entry of Shadows might not be sticking with some players for the long run. 

This also raises the question, why is Ubisoft not just sticking to a formula for their flagship franchise that is more or less always met with praise, and instead doing all this push and pull, first removing than re-adding elements to new instalments that only result in polarisation? This is not saying the series has to be repetitive and every game the same, and it does indeed need to evolve adding completely new elements every now and then. One of the most household titles of the franchise - Black Flag - did exactly this to most players’ surprise, but in the end to positive reception. Every game can introduce a new narrative, new locations, gameplay elements and more, but in the very end, does it need to rely upon the same backbone and structure more or less, to keep a loyal fanbase and leave an enduring legacy?

Among the many instalments in the franchise, it is really only a few games that have really left their mark in gaming history - up there with games like Grand Theft Auto V, Red Dead Redemption II, The Witcher 3, The Last Of Us and more - but even the older ones that didn’t do so on that level, are starting to be looked upon in a different, more nostalgic light by everyone from players simply missing the classic AC formula, the modding community starting to bring experience enhancing mods to these games, to those only experiencing them for the first time even to this day. This adds further to the fact that most newer instalments have so far failed to create an enduring legacy on the same level, with Mirage now becoming the odd one out, that given the circumstances and new life being brought to it at the perfect time, could end up having a legacy on the levels of Black Flag and Assassin’s Creed II.

Nostalgia & What Can Ubisoft Learn?

Even if it is odd suddenly bringing new life to a two year old game, it is as said clearly the right move, and tugging on the nostalgia strings, is an easy and cheap, yet clearly very effective move. This raises the question, given the current state and perception of the AC franchise, does it need to rely more on nostalgia, and could it ultimately survive on that for so and so long? 

Overall we live in a time where nostalgia overall clearly sells, be it music where genres like Pop-Punk & Nu-Metal have reached levels of popularity not seen since their inception 20-25 years’ time ago, with massive festivals and many of their biggest names today playing stadiums, or movies where a film like Top Gun Maverick in 2022 turned out one of the biggest and most critically acclaimed hits in newer times. 

So is there really any reason for Ubisoft to not try and tap into this even further? Perhaps similar to the Inside The Mind DLCs for Far Cry 6, bringing back iconic villains of previous games, if this was done for Assassin’s Creed, bringing back say the “big four” - Altaïr, Ezio, Connor and Edward - it is certainly likely it could almost become a main selling point. For now and the foreseeable future though, it can be as simple as a game with a backbone and structure reminiscent of the 2007 original, to old and new fans’ liking, creating a game like Mirage, that with new life also reintroducing classic elements like replayable missions and optional objectives, is bound for a legacy few instalments have achieved.

Conclusion

To slowly wrap things up, even if it is sudden and regardless of any alleged and potentially controversial behind the scenes business deals and partnerships, bringing the Valley of Memory expansion, to the most critically acclaimed and classic instalment of Ubisoft’s flagship franchise in recent years - slowly also achieving legacy status already - is without a doubt the right move for both the franchise and the company, coming along at the perfect moment in time. Following almost two years of financial struggles, maybe the most and intense controversial marketing campaign in gaming history, a dwindling reputation and trust towards and more, putting out a free expansion reintroducing even more classic elements, will ultimately serve as a bit of a clean slate, reminding players what it is they love about the franchise and company.

Source:

https://www.gamesindustry.biz/ubisoft-workers-raised-concerns-over-alleged-deal-with-saudi-arabia-says-new-report