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Best quotes in Assassin's Creed II (2009) Share Written By: Edited By: TOWCB Team Back To Database The game introduced players to Ezio Auditore, a character who is often rated as the best of the whole series. range comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author A collection of articles from The Ones Who Came Before team. TOWCB Team

Quick-Fire Community Questions - Round 4: McHeisenburglar (Irakli) Community Interview Share 30 Sept 2018 Written By: Edited By: Ashlea Blackett Colum Blackett Back To Database Ashlea: Hello Irakli, thank you for taking part in round four of our Quick-Fire Community Questions series! We would love to ask you a few questions about your work as an admin for The Ones Who Came Before and your time as a Star Player at Gamescom. As we already know you are one of the fellow admins here at The Ones Who Came Before, but tell us a little more abut yourself and the role you play in the Assassin's Creed Community. Irakli: My name is Irakli, though I mostly go by McHeisenburglar online, and I’ve been a member of the community for a couple of years now. Most of my work involves graphic design for Assassin’s Creed-related projects, such as the yearly Assassin’s Creed Marathon, the Assassin’s Creed subreddit, and, of course, The Ones Who Came Before. Ashlea: We know that you do a lot of work behind the scenes work within the Community. Please tell us more about this. Irakli: All the projects I am or have been a part of are team-based, so they’re often a cooperative effort with a lot of moving parts. For example, I help organize the Assassin’s Creed Marathon, and while I do take care of the designs you see online, I also help with the schedule of the Marathon, formatting and updating our daily threads, figuring out giveaway details and so on. On the subreddit, I help with updating the CSS, reworking the rules, wikis, FAQs, configuring AutoModerator. Ashlea: So when did you first start playing Assassins Creed, which game was the first you played? What intrigued you about the franchise leading you to start playing? Irakli: The first Assassin’s Creed game I played was AC3, though I had heard about the franchise for years. It was when one of my favorite YouTubers started a walkthrough for Assassin’s Creed 3 that I was intrigued by the idea, the gameplay and even the graphics. A couple of weeks later I got the game, and I played through it right away. While I did enjoy the single player, it was AC3’s multiplayer that really got me hooked and kept me playing for months, and I still consider AC3 to have the best multiplayer in the series. PvP was initially the only reason I purchased AC4 the following year, though it wasn’t long before I played the story of that as well and officially became obsessed with the series. A couple of months later, I bought all of the games I had been missing and played through the series in a little DIY-Marathon. Ashlea: How long have you been a part of the Community? How did you first become involved with The Ones Who Came Before? How long have you been involved with the AC marathons and as a Reddit moderator? What do you enjoy most about each of these roles you have? Irakli: I have been part of the online/Reddit-based Assassin’s Creed community for a little over three years. I visited the subreddit for the first time in June 2015, after watching the E3 gameplay of Assassin’s Creed Syndicate and wanting to discuss it online. There, I saw an announcement for an ‘Assassin’s Creed Marathon’ and was drawn to it right away, and decided to reach out to the team and offer to help out. That’s really when I first started taking graphic design and project work seriously. A couple of months later, as the 2015 Marathon was already underway, I reached out to The Ones Who Came Before regarding some of their designs. We had been working with TOWCB for Marathon promotion and I’d spoken with Colum personally, and I thought I would give feedback on their graphics and suggest things they could improve for their branding, and within a couple of hours I was offered to join the team as a graphic designer. I spent the next two years working on annual Assassin’s Creed Marathons and making designs for The Ones Who Came Before, and in 2017, in preparation for that year’s Marathon, I talked frequently with Dylan/Turul, one of the subreddit moderators, as the Marathon had always been a cooperation between our team and the subreddit mods, to allow things like custom user flairs and daily stickied posts. There were a lot of things we needed to get done, and some of them would’ve been impossible through Twitter DMs alone, so I was given a temporary moderator role on the subreddit. This was primarily for Marathon purposes, but I was free to help out with other subreddit matters, as a ‘trial’ for being a permanent moderator. Over the following weeks, I helped fix some CSS issues, rework the rules and open up the official r/AssassinsCreed Discord Server, and by the time Origins rolled around, I was announced as an official addition to the team. I like these roles (and other ones I’ve had in the community) for different reasons, I suppose. The Marathon remains the project I’m most passionate and sort of ‘protective’ of, so whenever I’m not that free, I try to use most of my AC free time to help out with that. I really enjoy working on TOWCB because of how much graphic design experience and skill I get out of it. The logo we unveiled in 2017 remains one of my single favorite design projects to date. The subreddit, on the other hand, has taught me what moderating forums is actually like, and what goes into a well-managed and run subreddit/forum. Plus, 90% of the CSS I know is thanks to the AC subreddit. Ashlea: What is your favourite part of being in the community? Irakli: The memes are nice. Ashlea: Your Twitter name is quite unusual, could you tell us where the name McHeisenburglar came from? Irakli: Honestly, I don’t remember exactly how it all happened. A couple of years ago I had to register for some site, and I guess ‘McHeisenburger’ was pretty funny (I was binging Breaking Bad at the time), and I didn’t give it a second thought. Years later I had to register for Reddit, and I saw that ‘mcheisenburger’ was taken, so on a whim I decided to change the ‘burger’ to a ‘burglar’. It sort of stuck once I joined the community. Ashlea: One of your main responsibilities with The Ones Who Came Before is you Graphic Design work how did you get into graphic design? Are you self taught or was it something you learnt at school? Irakli: I initially got into graphic design when I watched some YouTube videos of people making graphics and wallpapers and whatnot, and thinking it was the most incredible thing in the world. I couldn’t fathom someone making their own wallpaper. So then I pirated a bunch of Adobe programs, including Photoshop, and tried it out for myself. I was not good AT ALL, but that didn’t stop me from making dumb crap every once in a while, including YouTube channel artwork and logos for fake companies. It was really the Assassin’s Creed projects that made me take it seriously, and really pushed me to actually be decent at design. The 2015 Marathon was the first project I worked on, and a lot of the tasks I had were things I’d never done before, so I learned it through trial and error, and they turned out good because I worked with a team that didn’t hesitate to criticize. Other projects followed it, including TOWCB, The Bureau Podcast, ‘Assassin’s Creed Legacies’, all of which helped me improve, even if incrementally. Now it’s fun to look back on those old designs and see the progress I’ve made. Ashlea: What it means to you to be selected as a Ubisoft Star Player? Was it something you were expecting or was it a complete surprise? Irakli: I would be lying if I said that I didn’t expect to be selected this year. I had been active in many parts of the AC community over the years, and had worked on various somewhat-known projects. However, I wouldn’t have been so confident if Sofija hadn’t been picked the year before. That invite made it clear to us that being a Star Player was actually realistic, even if by doing just project work like we were. Ashlea: As a star player you recently attended Gamescom, what were you most looking forward to about the event? Did it live up to your expectations? Irakli: In the weeks leading up to Gamescom, I didn’t know what I was most excited about, though I knew it wasn’t Odyssey. As we got closer to the event, a Twitter group was created of all the Assassin’s Creed people that would be attending Gamescom, which made it clear what Gamescom was going to be about — meeting people. In the end, the best part of the event was really the opportunity to meet so many Assassin’s Creed community members and other Star Players. I had known a lot of these people online, and actually having a face-to-face conversation felt surreal. The event itself was also outstanding, especially with the VIP treatment we got from Ubisoft, getting to play the games early, etc. Overall, the two days were unforgettable. Ashlea: Were you excited to be able to play AC Odyssey early? What were your thoughts about the game? Irakli: I had very, very little hopes going into the Odyssey demo. I was not excited for the game at all, and barely kept up with the news and marketing (definitely a first for me). I played the demo twice at Gamescom, and it was almost exactly what I imagined. It’s a beautiful, well-built game with a lot of stuff to do, but I have a hard time seeing its place in the Assassin’s Creed series. I don’t think it will be a bad game, in fact, I think most people that enjoyed Origins will have a good time with this game as well. Unfortunately, I don’t consider myself to be part of those people. Ashlea: Do you have any hopes for things you would like to see in the game? Do you have any concerns about anything? Irakli: Still have a bit of hope that the marketing isn’t telling the whole story, and there are more ‘Assassin’s Creed’ things in the game that we have yet to see. I’m hoping it enriches the lore and treats it carefully, though I don’t think that is too likely. As is the consensus, I’d love to see a lot of First Civilization exposition and involvement in Odyssey, as there is not much else to do in a time period that predates even Bayek. Ashlea: Now that you have been to Gamescom what do you have planned next within Community? Irakli: Honestly, I am not sure. Right after Gamescom I moved to Germany to start university, and so the last month has been a great change of pace for me. Unfortunately, this also means I don’t have as much time or heart to pour into Assassin’s Creed anymore, but only time will tell. I’ll try to stick around, but with university taking up more and more of my time and interest (and Odyssey… not), it might be time to take a small step back. Ashlea: Thank you so much for taking part in our fourth round of Quick Fire Community Questions. You can find Irakli on Twitter here comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Ashlea is the Editor/ Charity Project Coordinator for The Ones Who Came Before on its wide variety of social media platforms. Her main responsibilities for TOWCB involve creating and editing articles, organisation of events and coordinating our charity fundraising, as well as hosting the Rally The Creed Podcast. Ashlea Blackett

This Week in Assassin's Creed Virtual Photography: 16th - 22nd July 2022 Community Share 23 Jul 2022 Written By: Edited By: Aaron Young Ashlea Blackett Back To Database Welcome to the new weekly virtual photography roundup hosted by Aaron Young from The AC Partnership Program. Every week, we will be picking our top 5 favourite Assassin’s Creed shots and showcasing them on The Ones Who Came Before website, in order to promote virtual photography and talented content creators within the community. Aaron is a keen virtual photographer and loves to post his journeys through Assassin’s Creed on Twitter. Keep an eye on the site as more weekly shots are added, we are looking for capture across all Assassin’s Creed games. Tag your photos to the #TOWCBWeeklyCapture for a chance to be featured. 1) Berserker Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla This first capture comes from @ calisarah1998 over on Twitter. First up this week we have a capture of Eivor deep in thought. This is a powerful photo depicting the Viking theme of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. There are true Ragnar/Norseman vibes about this capture. Checkout the full tweet below to see some impressive editing skills from @ calisarah1998. I love how the darker colour tones and the cool haircut/tattoos all add to the story of a Viking contemplating battle. Link to set 2) Reflections Game: Assassin’s Creed Unity Photo number two comes from @ Amaya_Nocturna a member of our Assassin’s Creed VP TwitterCommunity. In this next image we head to Assassin’s Creed Unity, the game of choice this week for the AC15 celebrations. It is such a shame that Unity does not have a photo mode. That being said, you would not know it judging by the shots that are in this selection. This stunning photo, which is part of a glorious set by @ Amaya_Nocturna , really shows off the beauty of buildings. I adore the use of light bursting through the glass and settling on Arno. A real Assassin’s Creed photo. Link to set 3) The Kassandra Braid Game: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey This week’s third shot comes from @ MoonsDonuts over on Twitter. Photo number three really caught my eye due to the different perspective. Where portraits of the protagonist are usually from the front or the side, this one gives you a birds eye view aspect as seen by the player. What I admire is how @ MoonsDonuts has managed to showcase Kassandra’s amazing hairstyle. In addition we get a great look at the spear, quiver, bow and arrows. A true Misthios pose, beware of this warrior’s fury. 4) The Lonely Viking Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla VP number four comes from @ punkncreed over on Twitter. What I love about photo number four is the peaceful simplicity. A capture that very much symbolisesthe start of Eivor’s journey. The sun poking out from behind the mountain gives off Origins vibes, yet the cold colours say otherwise. Great use of the camera angle adds scale to the shot. You just know there are some gold icons on that mountain which need collecting. 5) Paris Game: Assassin’s Creed Unity The final capture of the week comes from @ Subject_72 a member of our Assassin’s Creed VPTwitter Community. I thought it only right that we returned to Unity for the final capture of the week. Once again this photo is from a brilliant selection and it was difficult to choose just one for this showcase. I picked this image due to the level of detail and French feel. Arno looks iconic in his classic dark blue Assassin’s outfit, watching out over the city. There are some excellent details on the buildings that just make Paris feel alive. I can’t wrap up without mentioning the exceptional Statue of Liberty, a fine addition to this game. Link to set comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Deel je gedachten Plaats de eerste opmerking. About the Author Aaron is a passionate Assassin's Creed fan who joined our AC Partnership Program as an Online Article Writer back in 2021 after the release of Assassin's Creed Valhalla. After building momentum and interest on TOWCB website for Virtual Photography, Aaron established TOWCB Virtual Photography Team, of which he is now Team Leader. Throughout 2024, TOWCB VP Team will be sharing community captures in dedicated articles, and providing a positive environment on Twitter for gamers to share their shots. Aaron Young

Interview with Kate Heartfield Author of Assassin’s Creed: The Magus Conspiracy Interviews Share 8 Jul 2022 Written By: Edited By: Michael Smith Ashlea Blackett Back To Database Kate Heartfield is a multiple finalist for Canada's Aurora Award. A Sunday Times Best Seller (The Embroidered Book). A former journalist and editor for the Ottawa Citizen, with a degree in Political Science and Masters in Journalism. Her latest release is Assassin’s Creed: The Magus Conspiracy, the first book in The Engine of History Trilogy. You can read our review of her book at the link below and read further for the interview she and I had during her press tour with publisher Aconyte Books. Michael: Kate, How are you doing today? Kate: I'm doing great. Very happy to be here. Michael : I wanted to start with something you had said in an interview you did with Second Life Book Club about Assassin's Creed being bid in your household. Can you tell us more about the history you have with the series? Kate : Yeah, for sure. I'm just so happy to be talking about it and thank you so much for your enthusiasm and support. It’s really exciting to be talking with fans about this and joining this cannon. As you can tell, I'm excited. I have a lot of enthusiasm for the games and for the universe. So my personal history with Assassin's Creed is that I have a twelve year-old kid and a partner and all three of us are gamers. So we are quite frequently in our introvert corners of the house on a game of some kind. I've played Syndicate, and I've played a little bit of Origins and I am currently working my way through AC2 at the moment. I've watched my kid play even more Assassin's Creed. So there have been many, many hours where I've been sitting in the living room, doing some work and he's been playing Assassin's Creed on PS4 and my partner also plays and I watch him sometimes as well. So, between the three of us I've probably at least watched most of the games being played. Michael: It’s funny you note about playing through Assassin's Creed II. You also did some work with Choice of Gaming with the Magician's Workshop. Have you found any influence for the writing that you did with that from Assassin's Creed II, or vice versa? Have you noticed a lot of your personal choices for how you describe the characters, or the historical figures with how they [are] represented in Assassin's Creed II? Kate: I hadn't played Assassin's Creed II before I wrote The Magician's Workshop. So, I didn't have a connection from that direction. But it's interesting now having written it, because The Magician's Workshop is set in Florence in 1512. It's really interesting now, seeing the characters and that setting. And one of the things I love about all Assassin's Creed games is the immersiveness of the setting and feeling you're there in a way that interactive fiction kind of coerces you in a different way that emphasizes agency and everything else, but it doesn't have that visual element a video game has. Michael: How do you decide what mechanics to include, or write about, that were in the games? Kate: Yeah, that's really interesting, and it was definitely deliberate strategy on my part to think, "Okay, how can I take what's cool about playing Assassin's Creed games" and not really replicate that in prose, because it's not the same format, but create that same sense of excitement and same sense of immersion and the choice of having sort of side quests and multiple plots happening at the same time, and it all coming together. So, I thought about, I didn't want to make it too mechanical either as that can be quite annoying in prose if you had sort of "Here's my weapon's inventory". It wouldn't work the same way in a novel as the game. So in fact my editor had to pull me back a few times, because he noted that I would keep saying exactly what kind of knife it was or what kind of gun it was, and that kind of thing. And eventually "You don't have to give the entire serial number, everytime". So I had, maybe a little too much of that in mind. I was thinking about all of those aspects of a game and... You know I did want things like weaponry to be there though, and to be important to think about how can they reflect the personality of each of the main characters? Like which kind of knife would they choose, for example. In the same way that you make that choice when you are putting together your character in a game. So that was definitely top of my mind. Michael: Would you say that is the same thought process that you had when choosing which books for Simeon, specifically to study while he was going through his apprenticeship? Did you specifically pinpoint those books that you wanted him to read? What was your process with that decision? Kate: That was lots of fun. I think what I wanted to do with the reading list that Simeon has... So Simeon is the main character, one of the two main characters in the book. He's a soldier, and he has a sort of a unconventional education. We learn early on that he was quite bright, and taken into a rich person's house early on to be educated, but it didn't work out. So he has a sort of a patchwork of an education. Then he meets his mentor, who an interesting character in his own right. So the reading list, [the] books that Kane provides Simeon to read, I wanted them to reflect what I though an Assassin's education should be, or could be about. So its sort of a mix of different things. You have very traditional fighting manuals, these traditions of German and Italian and French manuals for swordplay and for wrestling. I thought it would be really cool to draw on that really old tradition, because the brotherhood itself would have been around for so long and they might have incorporated those traditions of those old fighting manuals. But then also, a sort of renaissance man approach to understanding the world. So there's fiction in there, there's philosophy. It is a bit of a grab bag of different things that I though an Assassin should know, but its also reflecting the personality of the teacher that's assigning them as well. Michael: When you're deciding the history that you want to explore, where you taking the "This is the historical timeline for this period, and then here are some blanks I can fill in fictional characters", or was it more of "Here is the idea of what I want to do. Let me find what period, or what events in history would fill into this"? Kate: For us it really started with the period. Aconyte and Ubisoft had an idea that they wanted a trilogy set in this period. So they started working with me about, "Well how could we develop something in this period, and what are some of the things that would interest us in terms of the Assassins and Templars are up to at this time?" So we did start with sort of a basic idea of the time and place. That it would be probably Europe and in this time. I think one of the things that really stood out, I know to my editor at Aconyte, was that the 19th Century had a lot of political assassinations. That every monarch had at least one attempt on their life, several of them were actually killed. You had the rise of anarchism and the rise of Marxism and the revolutions in 1848. So there is just a lot of political ferments happening. With those assassinations, it seems like an obvious thing to ask the question of "Are the Assassins behind them? Are they not behind them? What would be their relationship to the brotherhood and to the Templars?" So it really did begin with that question of "Okay, lets look at what's happening at the time". Then from there it was sort of finding different elements in the history that I thought kind of fed in thematically to what I wanted to talk about. Also, there was a little bit of that sense of, that's another thing that people love in the games, is the opportunity to have those cameos with historical figures and interact with those people. So, that's another thing I wanted to replicate in the novel. Michael: Did Aconyte approach you directly about this, or was this something you had to apply for? Kate: It came about through my agent, so it was one of those things where my agent knew the opportunity was there, and thought I might be a fit for it because I've written a lot of historical settings and I'm really interested in historical alt history and that kind of writing is typically what I do. And, I have a little bit of background in interactive fiction and game writing as well. So she thought, yeah this seems like it would be a good fit for you. If you're interested. So at that point, I developed some pitches for Aconyte and they liked them, and they started working on an outline, and back and forth on that a bit. So it really was sort of a collaborate process right from the beginning. Michael : Did you collaborate with the Ubisoft team, The game historians and such to work along with fitting this into the Assassin's Creed Universe? Kate: It was really... I haven't written tie-in writing like this before for any property, and so I wasn't sure what to expect in that regard. I found it really wonderful and freeing and supportive, the way that that works. They would sort of provide information and say here's where you can find the things that you need to know. Here are a few things that we want to makes sure that you're aware of, in terms of writing. But I was already quite familiar with the universe anyways, so that part of it I felt pretty confident in. Then it was just a matter of, when we would work on an outline or the manuscript itself, just running things past Ubisoft at various stages of the process to make sure there was nothing that I was unaware of that would step on somebody else's toes, or something like that. I would kind of flag little things, "Please not this part of it is related to canon from another game" or something like that people would be aware I was throwing in those Easter eggs, or whatever. Michael : I know that you're very big on representation in your writing. Were there any original characters that you had added for some form of representation in a game that's very heavily marketed towards a more male audience? Kate : It is something that I think about in every stage. So I try to keep it in mind all the time. There is always a little bit of tension between the don't want to write outside your lane, or write things without thinking that you haven't properly researched, or haven't done the homework for and that kind of thing. So, I'm conscious of that as well. I am trying to represent all kinds of people in my writing and consider the kinds of people who have been present throughout history, but maybe haven't had as many stories told about them. I again felt nothing but support from Ubisoft and Aconyte in that regard as well. Definitely I was aware that with gaming in general there's, I wouldn't say maybe the majority but certainly a significant male audience. I have a strong female character in this book. There's one sort of minor side character who is non-binary, although they wouldn't have that word to describe themselves probably in the 19th Century. But they are actually based on a small note about a circus performer I actually found that "Ah, I'll steal that from history". There is a circus performer who is billed with being "neither man, nor woman". I thought, "Okay, they're going in the book." So when I do find those things in history, where people have maybe not, have been forgotten a little bit, I'll be "Okay, I'll put them in the book" and that way we can have a little bit more of a complete representation. Michael: Have you had a chance to look at any of the other transmedia that Assassin's Creed has put out yet? Kate: I have, not all of it by any means. I got myself a few books, a few of the novels, because I wanted to get a sense of what an Assassin's Creed novel is like. I think I have two of the Oliver Bowden novels and I have Elsa Sjunneson's novel that just came out; Sword of the White Horse. So I've read a few of the books. I've taken a quick look at, I'm trying to remember which of the graphic novels it was. But, yeah, I've been aware of a few things, but I feel like there is a lot out there that I haven't seen yet. Michael : Are we expecting to see some modern day later on in the trilogy or are we staying specifically in the historical setting? Kate: Not everything's written in stone yet. So, I don't want to say for sure "this is how it'll be". The conversations I've had with Aconyte so far about the rest of the trilogy are that it'll be historical setting and sort of carrying on the story from the first book. Yeah, I don't want to say too much about it, because I don't want to scoop announcements that are coming fairly soon. That's how its envisioned is definitely to maintain that historical period. But I think its interesting because its a fairly recent historical period, so it has the potential to bring us up into the 20th Century, and start thinking about things like the Animus, and how we get to that. The door's kind of open there in some regard, but so far, no plans to write about the modern period. Michael: The trilogy for the Engine of History is set to go up through the beginning of World War I, is that correct? Kate: I think that's out there in the internet somewhere. So I think its within the bounds of what I can say yes to. And that's first how it was kind of envisioned when I talked about how they came to me with this period. That was kind of the vision, mid-19th Century to World War I, in that period some how. Michael : Are you avoiding well known periods in that time frame like Russia during World War I with Rasputin? Is that something you look at trying to avoid in depicting other historical settings that people may not know a lot about? Maybe telling more about the Crimean War or things like that? Kate: It's always a little bit of a dance, because sometimes there are interesting stories in the parts that haven't been told as often. So there are things that draw me to them, but then at the same time, there's a lot of value in having some familiar touchstones that people can say "Ah yes, I was waiting for this person to show up!" or something like that. So there's a sense of, you kind of have an expectation to a degree. I wrestled with that a little bit, with my novel The Embroidered Book, because that's a historical fantasy about Marie Antoinette. My first thought when I had the idea was, "Oh my God, Marie Antoinette's been written about so many times", but not in the way that I did it. There's only so much room for one of those big well known historical figures. I kept thinking, Catherine the Great is off to the side in this book and I can't really let her on, because then she would take over. So, there's only room for so many of those well know events and figures. I think the same is really true in The Magus Conspiracy. We have Ada Lovelace at the beginning, and she is not as well known as she should be, but she's fairly well known. Being Lord Byron's daughter, she's kind of a celebrity. So she takes up a lot of room in that way, and she looms over the entire novel, in her legacy. So, there aren't that many other historical figures that are known to that extent for the rest in the book, and the few people that do crop up tend to be a little bit less well known. Unless they are walking on for a small part like the Emperor in Vienna. Michael: Do you have an audiobook version coming out? If so, who is actually doing the recording for it, if you are able to say? Kate: It is Recorded Books. I'm trying to remember the narrator's name. It's just gone out of my head. Anyway, if you look it up, there is a Recorded Books version. I believe it is slated to come out August 16th. Which is the same day as the US paperback. Its available through Audible, Libro, and all sorts of places. Michael: I know from some of your previous interviews, you noted how nervous you were working with this tie-in for the first time. How are you feeling now after all the feedback you've received? Kate: Really great. Really relieved. Its nice that the initial feedback from people who know and love the games has been really positive. That's really nice to see. Of course, reviews are for the readers and not the authors, so I try to separate myself from them to some extent. It has been really nice, the things that people have tagged me in, and said directly to me about the book. Its really gratifying that people have welcomed it into the canon, and see how it fits in. Because its a little bit nerve racking, coming into something that's so beloved and so wide spread. That so many people have played these games. Timidly knocking on the door and saying "Here's my offering". You hope that it's okay and that you don't break anything. I feel it's been a great experience to write this story and I feel a lot of ownership over it. Even though it's an Assassin's Creed story, I feel very proud of it and how it worked out and sort of blended together what I like to do in fiction and what I think the game universe does so well. Michael : Who would be your ideal casting for your main characters? Kate: Oh my goodness, I haven't even thought of this. Who would be good? I'm trying to think. I don't know. I have such... I'm terrible when it comes to casting actors. I'm trying to think if there is anyone who is really... I can't think of a Simeon. Although I feel that there could be the perfect person and I'll think of them as soon as I hang up this call. With Pierrette, I don't know. She starts out quite young. I mean maybe, Millie Bobby Brown. I started watching Taboo which has Tom Hardy in it. He's so good. He plays a returning sailor of roughly the same time period. But I think he's got kind of an edge to him. I see Simeon as, even though he is kind of closed down, and somewhat cynical. He's got sort of a spark of innocence in him as well and a spark of really good will. So I don't know, maybe someone like Andrew Garfield, maybe? I'll wait for the fancast, because someone will have a better idea. Kane would be fun to cast. I want to thank Kate for sitting down with me over this interview. For the full interview, check out the video that we recently posted to The Ones Who Came Before YouTube channel. Assassin’s Creed: The Magus Conspiracy is available digitally and in the US as a paperback in August. The UK will see the physical release in October. comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Mike Smith is a collector of all things Assassin's Creed and a major supporter of transmedia who joined TOWCB as a writer from 2021 - 2024 With nearly a full library of Assassin's Creed media, his work explored the universe in order of Genetic Memory. Notably, his Assassin's Creed Timeline became an essential tool for fans of the franchise looking to complete their collection and consume AC media in a particular order. Michael Smith

Ubisoft have just released the World Premiere trailer for Assassin's Creed marking the dawn of a new era of the series Community The Assassin's Creed Community are raising money for Ocean Conservancy. Donate today Analysis Cracking the Isu Code: Part 4 Save 10% on officially licensed Assassin's Creed Origins merchandise with the code "TOWCB" Top Stories 16/12/21 By Preston Carbonaro Edited by Ashlea Blackett Share Assassin's Creed fans are working hard to crack messages written in the secret language of the highly advanced precursor race known as the Isu, and in the process, decode multiple hidden messages We here at TOWCB have joined the community efforts to try our hands at decoding these messages which are scattered around throughout the game; in Standing Stone puzzles, on Layla’s laptop, and even promotional content. We sincerely hope that none of you experience the Bleeding Effect during the decoding process … Interview with Magnus Bruun - Eivor Assassins' Creed Valhalla Merchandise Guide Q&A with Abubakar Salim - Bayek of Siwa TOWCB Plans for 2021 Netflix announce upcoming live-action Assassin's Creed series Female Vikings: The Real History Building an Assassin's Creed Community: Getting Started Mentors Guild Announcement Interview with Benoit Richer: Valhalla Co-Dev Game Director Interview with Eric Baptizat: AC Valhalla Game Director Interview with Jordan Van Andel (JorRaptor) Colours in Assassin's Creed: A Short Review 6 ways to stay entertained in the Assassin's Creed Community during isolation Interview with Carlos Ferro - Da Vinci 5 ways you can support TOWCB Interview with Jesper Kyd Col is the Community Admin for The Ones Who Came Before, and one of the Community Builders for The Mentors Guild. He is also a former Ubisoft Star Player, and has spent the last 7 years working within the Assassin's Creed community on countless projects. Twitter About the Author Preston Carbonaro Article contains ads that support TOWCB. Top Stories Decoding Brendan of Clonfert’s passage on the Isle of Skye (AC Valhalla)

Q&A with Chantel Riley (Layla Hassan) Interview Share 14 Feb 2018 Written By: Edited By: Colum Blackett (Col_96) Ashlea Blackett Back To Database Our Admin Col_96 conducted an interview with Chantel Riley, who provided the voice and motion capture performance for Layla Hassan in Assassin's Creed Origins! Col: Hey Chantel, thanks for joining us today! It's great to have you here for your first Assassin's Creed Community Interview! Before working on AC Origins, had you played any of the games before? If so, do you have a favourite? Chantel: Actually I have not played any of the games but I always knew about them. I remember always being very drawn to its beautiful graphics and animation. I never would have thought that after all those years I would get the opportunity to be a part of a great game. Col: Had you done much voice acting before working on AC? Chantel: AC Origins is my first Voice Acting job. Col: How did you find the voice acting/ mo-cap experience? Chantel: AC is my very first for both! Pretty dope one to start with if you ask me. I got to give my respects to voice actors around the world, especially the video game world. I learned a new division of acting through this opportunity. Its more than just going into a studio and recording some dialogue and grunts. It becomes you and next thing you know, your entire body starts getting active and helps with each line or audible sound. Mo - Cap was so cool. I've always wanted to try it out. So watching the game play and seeing Layla walk and talk and knowing they were my movements, was so crazy to me. #ILoveTechnology Col: When you auditioned for the role, did you know it was for a video game? Chantel: I did know it was for a video game but I didn't know which one. I didn't learn what game it was for until I actually booked the role. I was very excited and so was my brother since he is a big gamer. Col: Layla is the first third person playable Modern Day character since Desmond Miles. Did you feel any pressure at all when working on the project, knowing that fans were eagerly awaiting the return of playable Modern Day? Chantel: I think overall, I just wanted to deliver the best performance I could. I try not to allow the pressure to get to me because I know it will affect my performance in a negative way. So I focus on how fun the project was instead. Col: Concept art for Layla was actually leaked before launch due to an art book. Did you see how much hype and excitement this caused within the AC Community? Chantel: I did do some digging around about the leak and did see the excitement about Layla and the game. So of course, I got excited with them. Col: How would you describe Layla to a friend? Chantel: Layla is a highly intelligent and strong willed woman. She is courageous and won't stop until she is on top and gets the recognition she deserves. Col: Do you have a favourite Layla line? Chantel: I love when she says "F-- you Abstergo, I'm seeing this through". Its kind of like her war cry. So powerful. (Sorry mom...lol). Col: One thing that sticks with me when thinking about Layla is the respect that she shows when discovering the Mummies of Bayek and Aya within the cave. After intense Animus sessions, do you think she feels connected to them, possibly due to the bleeding effect? (even though they're not related in any way) Chantel: Definitely! I feel as though there is a much deeper connection than we think while entering into anyones past or psyche. Seeing what they see, experiencing what they experienced, I feel would have some affect on Layla. Col: Have you ever been to Egypt before, and do you know if Layla's cave actually exists? If so, would you ever consider visiting? Chantel: I have never been to Egypt but would love to visit one day. There is a tremendous amount of history that I would be interested in learning about. Col: In the Laptop files we discover that Layla actually contributed towards the Madrid Animus, seen in the AC Movie. Have you seen the Movie? Chantel: I have! Col: Have you seen much of the creativity within the Community, such as Assassin’s Creed Origins Fan Art/Cosplay Projects/Videos etc? Chantel: I had a chance to watch some youtube videos of fans playing the game. Col: Did you enjoy working on Assassin's Creed Origins, and would you ever return to the brand if asked? Chantel: I had an amazing time! I would love to come back if they ask. (Fingers crossed). We would like to say a massive thank you to Chantel for joining us for this interview, and to everyone at Ubisoft who made it possible! Chantel's Social Media Links: Twitter Instagram comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Col is one of the UK's leading Assassin's Creed Community members, and is best known for establishing both 'The Ones Who Came Before' fan community and 'Isu_Network' content creation program. As Team Leader for The Ones Who Came Before, Col was officially recognised by Ubisoft, becoming one the UK Assassin's Creed community ambassadors in 2016. He has attended many events after spending a decade in the AC Community, and has worked on countless projects, all of which you can find here on TOWCB website. He is also a former Ubisoft Star Player and member of The Mentors Guild, two recognisable community programs which opened doors and took his status within the AC Community to the next level. Colum Blackett (Col_96)

Rally The Creed Podcast: Episode 1 - Introducing The Ones Who Came Before Podcast Share 13 Sept 2020 Written By: Edited By: Ashlea Blackett Back To Database comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Bagikan Pemikiran Anda Jadilah yang pertama menulis komentar. About the Author Ashlea is the Editor/ Charity Project Coordinator for The Ones Who Came Before on its wide variety of social media platforms. Her main responsibilities for TOWCB involve creating and editing articles, organisation of events and coordinating our charity fundraising, as well as hosting the Rally The Creed Podcast. Ashlea Blackett

Assassin's Creed Shadows Spoiler-Free review & personal impressions. Review Share 18 Mar 2025 Written By: Edited By: UbiCypher (Joe) Colum Blackett Back To Database Assassin's Creed Shadows might be the last minute effort to save Ubisoft or a suicide note. Alright, I'll try to be as grounded as possible but its not going to be easy. It took me around 35-40 hours to beat the game on Expert difficulty and sticking as much as I could to the main quest, barely doing anything secondary except at times that I saw myself forced to do so because of the level gating. I finished the game at level 34 (max is 60) with my gear upgraded on par and level 3 knowledge rank that gave me enough options to properly build my arsenal to overcome almost every challenge presented to both Naoe and Yasuke even though I struggled at times but emerged victorious nonetheless, having to abuse of passives that granted health on hit or on critical hit in order to survive without rations at times, specially because of how spongy bosses are for no reason. (*coughs* Odyssey). Japanese World & Parkour. Shot taken by Ubicypher on Xbox Series X|S. First things first, two days from now, you will be roaming the lands of the Kansai region at your pace with the beautiful score composed by The Flight (If you spent 100H+ on Odyssey you'd know) and honestly, that alone is pretty awesome. But, with every new innovation there is always something that is downgraded along the way. “Place history back at the center of the player’s experience” That is what Marc-Alexis Côté said back in December at the BAFTA awards in regards to how the narrative in upcoming games will be handled from Shadows onward, and back at the cent er it is, no doubt. Assassin's Creed Shadows is what I believe to be the most "virtual tourism-oriented" game in the series given the amount of details and non-stop cultural homages scattered under the form of side activities in the likes of meditating atop a mountain with a gorgeous vista on valleys or practicing Kendo katas with your katana in the middle of a pond with ducks struggling to comprehend what you are doing and why. Shot taken by Ubicypher on Xbox Series X|S. It is all there for the average Japanese enthusiast to experience and enjoy. Truly, if I were to compare the level of beauty this game has (not personally being a fan of Japanese culture myself) to other games in the franchise like Origin's recreation of Egypt or Odyssey's Greece which I'm more fond of, I believe this one wins the round. The graphics are just good and the textures very well detailed. This new entry I believe is what Unity was to the franchise back in 2014 and we can really see the engine upgrade Anvil Pipeline is. Granted, movement is similar to other games in this new trilogy, assets were obviously going to be reused, same as sounds like that darn screeching rabbit sound that was introduced in AC III back in 2012 but that's not the point. The gameplay is good, it has been polished and it shows, parkour feels fluid and it is actually cool to have its practicality and fluidity adapted to environments in the wild and around the world (Cliffs, Caves, Narrow Mountain Trails, Dense Forests, among many other environments in which parkour is actually fun to use) something that was totally forgotten and simply compacted into one full sandbox where everything was climbable because the protagonists were able to glue themselves on flat walls for some reason. No, not at all. That kind of immersion-breaking-albeit-fun climbing system has been overhauled. It is now more grounded and realistic clearly marking a difference between what is "realistically" climbable and what isn't for someone with the sufficient training. I actually was one of those rancid fellas that disliked the constant vaulting and acrobatics used just to descend from a 1-meter wall, but damn it if its not actually addictive. A few minutes in the game and I just couldn't stop using it. Actually, it is a step up from previous games, it gives you a reason to engage with parkour and actually pull off cool traversal sequences in order to avoid enemies or to reach the higher end of a Tenshu tower in contrast to the three previous games were you literally climbed everything in a straight line when you didn't feel like taking your horse to take a detour or simply did not wanted to play how it was indented, reaching your objective in an almost cheat-like way, but then you remember that it simply is the trade-off enticed with the RPG transition of the franchise, having the character built around the world and not the other way around. Well, forget all that. Now , everything is designed in a way that you have to plan where and how you're going to go, not everything is climbable and the hook is only really useful to climb towers that are otherwise not climbable without it or if you want to quickly acscend a wall instead of manually climbing it yourself (which comes in handy when you want to quickly pass by a guard's patrol detection view) and it is in these little moments of gameplay, specially at night, that you feel like a true Shinobi with Naoe. However, since the focus of it all was to actually and almost forcefully make you stick to preset parkour-made routes out in the wild, the traversal of certain regions of the map -specially the ones that are mainly populated with dense forests and steep hills- is hellish in almost every way, you will be forced to follow dwindling paths and small trails that realistically circle mountains and hills as an human being would do, but we are in a videogame after all, so the fact that the map is heavily dense with vegetation that you literally can't see in front of yourself when you "try" to take a shortcut is criminal. Also, the geography is mainly hills and steep mountains in almost every province in Kansai (the region in which the game takes place), so you will find yourself sliding downhill most of the time if you choose not to follow the path you were on just because you wanted to take a shortcut through the forest. It's irritating. Other than that, the recreation of Japan and its biome diversity is incredible, I didn't have the time to fully appreciate everything but from what I could gather during my rushed playtime was enough to know that I'll fall in love again when taking in the game's atmosphere in the following days where I'll be completing everything. You are going to love it if you're into Japanese culture, that's for sure. Shot taken by Ubicypher on Xbox Series X|S. Combat & Loot. Assassin's Creed Shadows Promotional Photo. If there is one thing I hated in this new trilogy, that would be the combat. Except for maybe Valhalla. You see, people have an insane obsession with Dark Souls and The Witcher and in truth, I couldn't care less about any of the two, I was actually happy with older AC's combat and recently I replayed AC1 for the sake of getting all those flags so I had time to appreciate the combat once again and it was actually pretty good. What do you expect from a medieval game, actually? It is well balanced between waiting for your opponent to strike and you observing when it was ok for you to land your hits without being hit by another NPC from the back, which, they loved to do when you decided to finally engage after a 2-minute staring contest with the AI. When you compare AC1's "tactical" approach on combat to the rest of the games in the franchise you can see how it has progressively deteriorated until it eventually became a simple-button-press scheme where you could be playing the game and tearing through armies with one single hand, specially more so when they added the "chain-kill" mechanic that completely cancelled the point of even attempting to use the appropriate combos that were "required" to take down bigger enemies as all enemy archetypes could be taken down with a simple chain kill. However, The RPG Trilogy attempted to change this for good by taking inspiration from the aforementioned games (The Witcher 3, Dark Souls, etc) by focusing on response time; Blocks, parry, dodge and so on. This not only changed how you play but also how everything is tailored around the character (Space, Locations, Arenas) etc, trading off enclosed or even, claustrophobic environments more akin to an Assassin for plain out "arenas" that once you see them you know a boss fight is incoming. Shadows does not fall short on this either, however, the combat is polished indeed. Naoe's combat is "doable" but clearly not your main focus and you will find yourself abusing of the classic "smoke drop-hide-stabby stab-" moves when tougher enemies spot you which can be fun but tiresome, specially in higher difficulties. You could argue that that's why there's the "One-shot" assassination but let's be real, turning it on after three games of full on RPG is a low blow and actually a hit to your Ego. At least for me. Plus, the game is intended to be played in Expert if you ask me. You basically become more careful and attentive to your surroundings which in the long run reward you with better executed approaches to your targets. Yasuke's combat on the other hand is highly addictive. There's nothing else to say. I got into the game thinking I would only play with Naoe (specially after three games playing as a mercenary-like figure) but God only knows how brutal the slap in the face was when I actually played with him and realized how good it is to play with him. The only thing I will say is this; you will instinctively know when and how to use either Naoe or Yasuke in the story. Assassin's Creed Shadows Promotional Photo. However, one thing you do not know when you will be able to use, is Naoe's legacy outfit. Shot taken by Ubicypher on Xbox Series X|S. There is ONE thing that Assassin's Creed has always been known for and that is the cool-looking attires each Assassin has worn in each game. It is basically a staple in the series. Each Assassin has one. Even Naoe right? Well, no. It is random and I actually got it in the early hours in a random chest without any explanation or plot-related reason as to why Naoe chooses that specific gear with, mind you, an actual Assassin crest holding together the many belts and ropes across her back. This genuinely pissed me off. And the worse part? It was in a completely different color too. I actually spent the game without actually acquiring the full set. Well, yes, technically I had it. But in another color and look I know it isn't a big deal but it is actually for me. Other than that, the loot system is Odyssey 2.0 with no major overhauls. Essence & plot. Shot taken by Ubicypher on Xbox Series X|S. Honestly, the story is weak. Don't get it wrong, it starts on a good pace, there's a lot of intrigue, the characters are mysterious and actually introduced in a badass allure. The Onryo (Main antagonists) are cool successors to the Cult Of Kosmos and Order Of The Ancients but as you progress in the game and begin tracking them down, the story quickly becomes yet another story of revenge. The Assassin presence is almost non-existent and the Templars are a joke, it was basically a hook to lure us in, sadly. At least for me. The Templar presence didn't really seem threatening nor important, not quite memorable to be honest. And their endgame is not really that well explained, there is of course your typical "control everything" theme but if just feels generic and frankly, one would ask himself why even put them in the story at all other than to make the audience remember that the franchise was once about these two factions clashing throughout history. Now, this is the most "sensitive" part of this review as I'm not allowed to disclose anything about more than the first 20 hours of the game, so, I'll just say it like this; If you complained about too much Isu presence in previous games, well, we went from 100 to 0 without cashing in the 50. Make of this what you will. Modern day wise, it is a miracle that I managed to pull off something from my contacts that got the game before the press review teams and myself, (yes those who were lucky enough on Facebook's marketplace) otherwise, you wouldn't have what I managed to prepare for you guys on the 20th. I'll keep digging on my end to bring the MD out and have it freshly dissected, but for now, it is basically about whoever is able to spend the most hours playing and completing the weekly missions to progress through the free battle pass in order to get more files and it is only a handful of rewards that you can get because then you have to wait for a weekly reset. This is for now all I can say on the game. Here's how I would rate it; Combat: 8 (Grounded but spongy). Exploration: 8 (Immersive but clunky). Progression: 8 (Skills are useful and some of them are OP). Control: 7 (I don't like the new layout and crouching with X|◾️ after three games being with B|⚫️ is not a smart decision). Loot System/Reward: 7 (Nothing out of the ordinary). Hideout Building: 9 (Probably the coolest feature but I can't give it a ten because of how janky it is, needs an update + frame drop on Series X|S and PS5 in the Hideout's area). Side activities: 5 (I see why Japan fans would get a boner but paiting animals, meditating and practicing katas is not for me). Side Quests: 9 (Extremely varied and in quantity, numerous characters and different sub-plots + your league's allies have personal missions like in Far Cry 5 to 6). Database: 5 (Descriptions are mainly historical but there is a lack of in-game character descriptions + nothing on the antagonists or detailed entries on individual characters like the ones that are part of the Templars or historical figures). Quest System: 3 (Structure of the narrative is horrible, abuse of flashbacks that are important, yes, but the game should have followed a traditional "memory block" flow to properly and chronologically understand the whole thing). Personally, I wiped out pretty much all of the Order of The Onryo and then I realized that I needed to complete a certain side activity in order to unlock a flashback for Naoe that allowed me to continue the main story when I thought it was only to kill the baddies, plus, those flashbacks lead to a revelation that is narratively important and by the time I did it, the shock of such a revelation and impact weight to the natural character development of Naoe was not the same. Ubisoft Québec thought that bringing back Assassin's Creed Mirage's Objective Board was good because it worked. Yes, but in that game because it was short and smaller, specifically designed as an homage to AC1 using the same style of "investigation missions". This doesn't work here and the game is so vast that you can easily loose track of what you were doing and what you have already done. Assassin's Creed Origins and Odyssey's quest logs would have been, in this case, more appropriate. In short, I'd give this game a 7.5 to 8. We'll see what the DLC's have to offer as the ending is left open. Shot taken by Ubicypher on Xbox Series X|S. comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author UbiCypher (Joe) is an Assassin's Creed Transmedia expert who worked as the Lead Admin for the Isu_Network social media team, providing consistent social media content in the form of Assassin's Creed lore trivia, puzzles and news coverage, spending countless hours researching the series and real history. In 2025, he stepped back from his social media duties to pursue other opportunities. UbiCypher (Joe)

Assassin’s Creed Virtual Photography: 4th to 15th March Community Share 20 Mar 2024 Written By: Edited By: Aaron Young Colum Blackett Back To Database Welcome to the biweekly virtual photography roundup hosted by Aaron Young from the AC Partnership Program. Every two weeks we will be picking our top 5 favourite Assassin’s Creed shots and showcasing them on The Ones Who Came Before website, in order to promote virtual photography and talented content creators within the community. This theme has been run by the TOWCB VP team. We have been monitoring the hashtag and the community hub to see all your wonderful shots. Keep an eye on the site as more shots are added, we are looking for captures across all Assassin’s Creed games. Tag your photos to #ACFirstCivVP for a chance to be featured. Theme: Assassin’s Creed Vikings Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla VP Artist: @ GwynVP The Ones Who Came Before Photo of the Week Judge: @ TuridTorkil Looking at this shot feels like coming home. Fornburg is such a beautiful settlement and I really like to return to it in the game. Gwyn did a great job capturing the Northern Lights, the majestic mountains and the warm fireplaces. Aaron “It is easy to lose one’s way on the road to glory”. The magic of Norway will never get old. Eivor’s epic saga begins in the frozen north, which gives way to some awe-inspiring backdrops. The virtual photography opportunities are endless, that is one of the reasons we still see many shots from Assassin’s Creed Valhalla on social media. This beautiful capture from Gwyn really caught my eye. I just love the colours and the strong Norse vibes. Eivor looks great walking in from her longship, torch in hand. The lights in the windows of the houses look so inviting and the sheer scale of that mountain in the distance is incredible. A truly wonderful piece of virtual photography. Corner Swing Game: Assassin’s Creed Mirage VP Artist: @ PodToGo “Once, I lived on the streets and answered only to myself”. The parkour opportunities in Assassin’s Creed Mirage are so much fun. The swing in this shot has to be one of my favourites, I am so glad the developers brought it back. Little moments like this really help to keep the flow when navigating the rooftops of Baghdad. I really like how Pod has captured this as a portrait, it allows for a fantastic composition. The lighting and shadow work is perfect, and Basim looks awesome swinging around the building. Action shots are extremely hard to achieve, and Pod has done tremendously well to align all the aspects in this capture. The Eyes Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla VP Artist: @ Murphys_Law_Vp “Do not let false victories blind you to what is true”. The Dawn of Ragnarok DLC is a long and sad tale, unfortunately after the length of the main game it can be a bit of a slog. However, it’s an expansion that is extremely picturesque to capture and there are plenty of Easter eggs to be found. Here we can see one of them, I never fully worked out who or what the creepy being is. I assume it is some Jotunn, but it sure makes for an impressive photo. I love the framing in this shot, the trees either side of the Jotunn and the autumnal red leaves on the floor add to the mystical atmosphere. Havi seems really badass just walking away from it without a care, very impressive photography. Reflective Game: Assassin’s Creed Mirage VP Artist: @ RossHiroAsmara “I will walk behind you, every step of the way.” I have found Assassin’s Creed Mirage to be great for capturing silhouettes, and the whole atmosphere of the game lends itself perfectly to this. Basim is a character who has a lot of inner turmoil, he often finds himself reflecting on who he is and what role he plays in the world. Here we have Basim in a classic Assassin’s Creed pose. I love the cinematic style of this, with the noise of the shot mixing well with that beautiful sun set. The silhouette is perfect, I adore that the sword and totem are standing out with their respective colours. A magnificent Mirage moment. The Light Game: Assassin’s Creed Mirage VP Artist: @ redmaiden_vp “And maybe someday you will find the light.” I am a sucker for a portrait with a black background. I think this style works so well in the Assassin’s Creed series, especially with the slogan ‘we work in the dark’. All the RGP games have exceptional lighting which makes taking shots like this a dream. We just had to feature this capture; it is so beautifully put together. I am a big fan of the framing, and how the saturation levels heighten the details on Basim’s face. You can see how deep in thought he is, almost poised for the assassination. The Red Maiden has only just started the Mirage journey and I already know I am going to enjoy seeing all the shots. And that sums it up for this Assassin’s Creed virtual photography recap list! Thank you for checking out the photo collection. This would not be possible without the virtual photographers out there so a huge thanks to them. Until next time keep those shots coming in! comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Deel je gedachten Plaats de eerste opmerking. About the Author Aaron is a passionate Assassin's Creed fan who joined our AC Partnership Program as an Online Article Writer back in 2021 after the release of Assassin's Creed Valhalla. After building momentum and interest on TOWCB website for Virtual Photography, Aaron established TOWCB Virtual Photography Team, of which he is now Team Leader. Throughout 2024, TOWCB VP Team will be sharing community captures in dedicated articles, and providing a positive environment on Twitter for gamers to share their shots. Aaron Young

Answers Lost in Time: A Review of Assassin’s Creed Escape Room Puzzle Book Review Share 17 Feb 2023 Written By: Edited By: Michael Smith Ashlea Blackett Back To Database Banner Art by TOWCB Artist Thea Marie Rivedal (@ Moonchildgecko ) This article contains amazon affliliate links which help to financially support TOWCB #AD Glyph Puzzle from Assassin's Creed II (image by ActualSpider-Man) Stealth, combat, parkour, and puzzles have all been staples of Assassin’s Creed since the first game, but more so since AC II. Clay Kaczmerek was the first puzzle master that we unknowingly followed as we solved his clues to find “The Truth” of the Isu and the core of the Assassin’s Creed story. Solving the various glyphs that were sprinkled around Italy brought a logical aspect to the games that players hadn’t experienced in the first instalment. With each release after AC II, puzzles of some sort have been included to reward the player with additional stories or physical rewards (in-game) that we could use with our character. Author James Hamer-Morton Influenced and crafted by the mind of Escape Room artist James Hamer-Morton, comes a new experience for puzzle enthusiasts and fans of Assassin’s Creed titl es ' Assassin’s Creed Escape Room Puzzle Book .' A new adventure that traverses previous locales of the games as the reader follows an original character Joey through the ages, solving puzzles to stop an impending vision of the future, where a mysterious new villain uses an Isu Artifact to control the masses. Through the use of various puzzle types, readers of this book will pull at the threads of the interwoven story and have an experience similar to that of an escape room themed within the AC Universe. The escape room company that James co-founded “James Hamer-Morton is one of the masterminds behind UK boutique escape room chain 'Deadlocked' - the pioneering powerhouse behind hit episodic online escape rooms 'The Insiders' and 'The Cyphstress'. He was created in a lab specifically for the world of immersive experiences - whilst cutting his teeth starring in art house films and moonlighting as games level designers, he soon turned their hand to the world of 'alternative reality games' -devoting his life to transporting their audiences into the centre of their own artisan adventures. From this he came up with the 'Escape Room Puzzles' series, of which there are now four books.” (Quote provided by the author) The third Escape Room book by James Hamer-Morton I learned during a chat with James that he was approached by Ubisoft as they wanted a similar book for the Assassin’s Creed series to that of his previous works; something he was very excited to do being a fan of the series himself. Having a chance to write an original story for Assassin’s Creed and injecting the pages with puzzles, guiding the reader from one era to the next via the use of the Animus, is a dream for any author and fan of the series. The print error from the end of Chapter 3 While I will be breaking down the contents of the book fro m the story to the dificulty of puzzles, I must start this review with a note for anyone that is planning on picking up this unique entry to the transmedia line; the book has a handful of editing errors that resulted in a broken progression half way through the book. At the end of the third chapter, the Assassin that Joey is controlling within the Animus is provided incorrect information by the target of the confession room. This incorrect information, which is a puzzle itself, provides a list of numbers that are clues to the letter placement of the various identifiers of the target “My name 4, my location - 3,...” This will lead readers to a collection of letters that do not solve the puzzle, in turn stopping them from progressing without looking at the answer section of the book, or turning the page and disregarding the error. The answer section is the correct answer to the puzzle but due to a change of Editors and the publishing of a draft that James had provided to show what he would do, before making the actual puzzle (which changed the order and numbers used in confession), the book in the English version was printed with this broken experience. The correct solution from Chapter 3 James shared his annoyance with this issue as, before I reached out to him about it, prior to our chat he was not aware that his latest work was released with such an error. He shared his process of how he will write the story of each chapter and decide the puzzles he wants to use before sending them to the puzzle checkers and editor to make sure that they will work in all translations. For example, if the phrase “Leaving something up to chance” is said for a puzzle that uses directions such as up, down, left , and right, you can’t use that clue as in another language the key word “up” would not translate in the context that he was using. This is why puzzles that use names or deliberate translations are used. So when he was sent the copy for the test read, it was the correct version, but unfortunately the printing did not follow that same copy and was released incorrectly. He also informed me that he did not write the Answer section of the book, but thankfully the answers are correct so the reader can progress with its assistance. So knowing this, please keep in mind that the current English publication has this error, but can be solved via the Answer section or by just continuing to read the story. The story is a great read and worth purchasing the book for this alone. It fits well within the confines of the series’ lore without damaging anything. Both the author and myself consider it canon, but there isn’t a hard yes to the question of if it actually is. When asked about it by another fan, Aymar Azaïzia (Transmedia and Business Development Director for Assassin’s Creed) stated in his response, "It’s a puzzle book! It’s full of riddles inspired by our lore and characters. It’s definitely not bi[n]ding and would not affect our games with crazy twist that would jeopardize the universe" ( Source ) Readers complete puzzles as they work through the story The story follows a new character Joey (an easter egg to fans of the game Tunneling Through Time , another Deadlocked creation), a museum security guard that notices an artifact having moved when watching the CCTV feed. What is really cool about Joey is that the author deliberately did not gender the character so that the reader could give their own choice to the protagonist much like how you can choose your gender in some of the most recent titles in Assassin’s Creed. This leads to the book’s first puzzle (a letter organization puzzle based on the sides of dice) and the introduction of the Isu Artifact (a double bladed dagger ) which the adventure is shaped around. In this prologue, and the following first chapter, Joey meets the Assassin’s Brotherhood and begins to learn about the opposing Templar Order and the use of the Animus. From here, each chapter takes place in both the modern (day for story progression) and a genetic memory for the bulk of the puzzles, as well as exploring the mystery of the artifact that Joey found. The Animus revisits Ancient Greece, Egypt, Viking London, Damascus, and Venice, with cameos of main characters such as Bayek and Altair, but also supporting characters like Leonardo Di Vinci and fan favorite Markos from Kefalonia. With this and the addition of a new Isu who influences Joey and acts as a sort of AC III Juno (another Isu) with each page turn. Each memory fits within the timeline of their respective game which provides the story the possibility of being canon. However in certain chapters such as Chapter 4 where the Animus Avatar and Masyaf Assassin, Faisal watches Al Mualim give his speech to the attacking Templar forces as his three Assassins take their Leap of Faith from the fortress above (the opening scenes of the original Assassin’s Creed), to then read that Faisal is assisted by a horse riding Altair is a bit confusing as the time frame of making said jump and getting to the gates seems possible but out of place. However the speech Al Mualim is giving is cut directly from the game; another point towards the book being canon in my opinion. The first puzzle of the book The puzzles progress in difficulty and as the story moves forward and each will provide solutions for other puzzles in the chapter. So while in the first chapter, the reader will find a solution to every puzzle when they complete it, later chapters won’t give clues for a puzzle right away, but the solution to a later one will provide what is needed to complete said challenge. This is clearly explained in the “How to Use This Book” section in the opening pages. The reader is directed to read the story up until a labeled stopping point and then review the content of the story up until that point to gather what is needed to solve the forthcoming pu zzles. However, the story does not have false answers, or dead ends like similar books of this type that would make the reader restart an area in the chapter. This is something that I shared with James, about being a cool idea to improve on replayability. We also discussed how some of his earlier books had suggested time frames for puzzles, but that was not something the publisher wanted going forward. Additionally, some of the puzzles can be answered just by knowing the history of the games and which genetic memory follows the current one depicted in the chapter the reader is on. Puzzle 1 Difficult Hint If the reader still has issues figuring out a solution, the answer section is broken up into 4 levels of hints and solutions. Difficult Hints for inspiration on how to approach the puzzle. Puzzle 1 Medium Hint M edium hints prov ide pointers for those that are stuck. Puzzle 1 Easy Hint Ea sy hints provid e help to those that are truly lost, and the final section contains the actual answer to the puzzle. I myself had to reference all of them at some point for individual puzzles either due to being stuck, just wanting to see what the hints would be for a puzzle, or due to the unfortunate misprints in the text. So every level of puzzle lover should get a fun experience from the book and the challenges it presents. One of the various cut-out sections of the book Discussing the physical book itself, I mentioned the fact that while only a $15 USD book, being informed that certain pages would require you to cut out sections to make things like a cipher disk or sliding items into place to get a phrase, is hard for myself and a lot of other collectors who do not like to damage their items. I had made suggestions on adding additional pages that are left blank on one side or even having sliding pieces like those used in a children’s book would be nice. Understandably though, this would add to the production cost of the book and raise the cover price. James shared that in his other titles, a QR code is provided for all of the pieces that need to be removed for puzzles on a printable document so the reader didn’t need to do this to the book itself. When reading, I used a combination of a document software on my phone, a notebook, and scraps of paper to make what I needed to solve the puzzles without making marks or cuts. It was also mentioned that Jame’s bio or “About the Author” page was not included in this book unlike his previous releases, which is sad as it would be a great insight into who this author is to the series, learning that he is a master at his craft in escape rooms and puzzles. Luckily, the publisher is aware of the various errors I brought to his attention and will hopefully print a revised edition in the future. An addition that I will easily repurchase to have a complete and working copy of this enjoyable experience. I hope we get a sequel to Assassin’s Creed Escape Room Puzzle Book as I loved this entry to the series and, now knowing the level of care the author puts into his work, makes me want more. In addition, compared to the VR Escape Rooms that Ubisoft has released in the past, this is something that requires no physical and expensive hardware which means anyone and everyone can pick up a copy and “play” this title at their own pace no matter where they are. For fans of the series and those that enjoy the escape room experience, this is worth picking up and spending an afternoon with. Currently the book has only been published in English (from what I can find) and is available from various bookstores at an MSRP of £14.99/$16.95. Amazon US: Amazon UK: comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Mike Smith is a collector of all things Assassin's Creed and a major supporter of transmedia who joined TOWCB as a writer from 2021 - 2024 With nearly a full library of Assassin's Creed media, his work explored the universe in order of Genetic Memory. Notably, his Assassin's Creed Timeline became an essential tool for fans of the franchise looking to complete their collection and consume AC media in a particular order. Michael Smith

This Week in Assassin's Creed Virtual Photography: 26th March -1st April 2022 Community Share 12 Apr 2022 Written By: Edited By: Aaron Young Ashlea Blackett Back To Database Welcome to the new weekly virtual photography roundup hosted by Aaron Young from The AC Partnership Program. Every week, we will be picking our top 5 favourite Assassin’s Creed shots and showcasing them on The Ones Who Came Before website, in order to promote virtual photography and talented content creators within the community. Aaron is a keen virtual photographer and loves to post his journeys through Assassin’s Creed on Twitter. Keep an eye on the site as more weekly shots are added, we are looking for capture across all Assassin’s Creed games. Tag your photos to the #TOWCBWeeklyCapture for a chance to be featured. 1) Wildlife Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla This week’s first capture comes from @ GeeketteAna over on Twitter A first wildlife capture for our weekly roundup. I really like the Autumnal feel of this shot, with the fox as the main focal point. This truly is a beautiful photo. I feel like Valhalla really nails the design of foxes in the game. After playing Ghost of Tsushima I never thought this possible. 2) Cave Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Photo number two comes from @ _Jellybird over on Twitter. Sticking with Valhalla and we have a wonderful shot of Eivor exiting a cave ready for battle. I love the details on this one with the rippling water and the egg shaped cave entrance. The lighting is on point to, giving a window like feel. Not quite sure where this is on the game but I would like to find it. 3) England’s Beauty Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla This week’s third shot comes from @ Chris25551 over on Twitter. I picked this shot because of its beauty. Valhalla has such great scenery, and this showcases it. A fantastic, almost painting like capture that encompasses the range of colours in England. The sun breaking through the clouds creating a misty haze adds to the mystery of this shot. 4) Nefertiti’s Throne Game: Assassin’s Creed Origins VP number four comes from @ ophierian_vp over on Twitter. A change of game now for capture number four. This tilted image gives a great sense of depth to a sun-drenched imagine of Nefertiti’s Throne. It’s been a long time since I played the Curse of the Pharaohs, but I might just need to make a return after this. I especially love the small details in this shot. 5) Companion Game: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey The final capture of the week comes from @ Elvira04289 over on Twitter. I like this capture for two reasons: one it showcases Kassandra and Ikaros brilliantly, and in such fine detail. However secondly it made me smile. Ikaros definitely looks like he is photobombing here. I miss Senu and Ikaros so much, as they were great additions to their respective games. And that sums it up for this week’s Assassin’s Creed virtual photography recap list! Thank you for checking out this week’s photo collection. This would not be possible without the virtual photographers out there so a huge thanks to them. Until next week keep those shots coming in! comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Aaron is a passionate Assassin's Creed fan who joined our AC Partnership Program as an Online Article Writer back in 2021 after the release of Assassin's Creed Valhalla. After building momentum and interest on TOWCB website for Virtual Photography, Aaron established TOWCB Virtual Photography Team, of which he is now Team Leader. Throughout 2024, TOWCB VP Team will be sharing community captures in dedicated articles, and providing a positive environment on Twitter for gamers to share their shots. Aaron Young

Understanding the Isu Language: Grammatical Cases and Pronouns Analysis Share 3 Oct 2024 Written By: Edited By: Edenoi ActualSpider-Man Back To Database The Isu language, unlike English but like certain other languages such as Latin, marks the grammatical case of a noun using various endings. The case of a noun essentially describes its role in the sentence. In English grammar, you might be familiar with the terms subject, direct object, etc. The case endings for the Isu language are as follows: Grammatical Case Endings Inanimate nominative no ending Animate nominative -s Genitive -às Dative -àæ Concrete accusative -ch Abstract accusative -á Animate accusative -m Locative -æ Ablative -os Causal -ôd Instrumental -h There are a lot of cases and you may not be familiar with all the terms, so let's go over them. The nominative case is for the subject of the sentence: whoever or whatever is doing the action. However, the Isu language actually has two different nominative endings, depending on whether the noun is animate (describing a person) or inanimate (describing anything else). Note that the Isu may not necessarily consider humans to be animate. The genitive case indicates a possessor, very similar to how you would use the -'s ending (as in "Desmond's birthday") in English. The dative case indicates a receiver, what you would call the indirect object of the sentence in English. In the sentence "I gave my dog a bone," the dog would be in the dative case. The accusative case marks the target of a verb, the direct object. Isu actually has three whole endings in the accusative. We have an animate ending like in the nominative case, but we also have two separate inanimate endings, what we'll call concrete and abstract. Concrete nouns describe things that physically exist, whereas abstract nouns describe concepts. These are essentially gendered endings like you might be familiar with in languages like Spanish or French, but in the case of the Isu language, grammatical gender has nothing to do with being male or female. The locative case indicates the place where the action takes place, for example "in the Animus." The ablative case indicates something which the action is moving away from. For example, in the phrase "a call from my dad," the dad would be in the ablative case. The causal case indicates the beneficiary or purpose of an action, such as "for the creed." The instrumental case indicates a tool being used to perform an action. In the sentence "Assassinate the target with a hidden blade," the hidden blade would be in the instrumental case. Additionally, Isu uses the infix -r- to indicate pluralization. To decline a noun, start with the stem, then add the plural marker if appropriate and finally add the ending for the appropriate case. Personal pronouns are a special case. They sometimes use the same endings as regular nouns, but not always. Isu pronouns can be broken down into first-, second- and third-person in the singular and plural, just like in English. Pronouns Singular First Nominative Hṃ Genitive Hmàs Dative Hmàæ Accusative Hṃ Locative Hmæ Ablative Hmos Causal Hmôd Instrumental Hmh Note that the instrumental case may not be accurate as the instrumental form of the second-person pronoun does behave differently from the other cases, and there are as yet no examples of the first-person singular pronoun in the instrumental case. Likely there's a vowel missing because "hmh" is not actually a syllable and very hard to pronounce. Second Nominative Dű Genitive Duàs Dative Duàæ Accusative Dúm Locative Duæ Ablative Duos Causal Duôd Instrumental Dúh Third Nominative Hoæ Genitive Hàs Dative Hàæ Accusative Hoæm Locative Hæ Ablative Hos Causal Hôd Instrumental Hh The third-person singular pronoun has not actually appeared at all in any of the sources that have been released, but we can guess what it should look like by analogy with the third-person plural pronouns, the definite articles, and the number "one," all of which we'll get to later in this article. Plural First Nominative Ṇsṃ Genitive Ṇsmàs Dative Ṇsmàæ Accusative Ṇsṃ Locative Ṇsmæ Ablative Ṇsmos Causal Ṇsmôd Instrumental Ṇsmh Second Nominative Æű Genitive Æuàs Dative Æuàæ Accusative Æúm Locative Æuæ Ablative Æuos Causal Æuôd Instrumental Æúh Third Nominative Toæ Genitive Tràs Dative Tràæ Accusative Toæm Locative Træ Ablative Tros Causal Trôd Instrumental Trh The definite article (like the English "the") is not required in the Isu language but can be used for emphasis in certain situations, such as when referring to "The Council" that seems to have ruled Isu society. Definite Articles Inanimate nominative Hæz Animate nominative Hæz Genitive Hàs Dative Hàæ Concrete accusative Hæzch Abstract accusative Há Animate accusative Hæzm Locative Hæ Ablative Hæzmos Causal Hæzmôd Instrumental Hæzh The last concept we'll cover in this article is the word for the number one: oænos. This word is used to refer to a single person or object, but it can also mean "once." The word can even be doubled to mean "one and only one." Additionally, it can be pluralized to mean "everything" or "everyone": oænosr. It can also be negated to mean "nothing": ṇoænos. More Isu Studies You can find more articles on the Isu language linked here: Understanding the Isu Language: The Basics comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Eden is a codebreaker who joined The Ones Who Came Before during the Assassin's Creed Shadows (Red) promotional campaign, helping the team to decipher numerous codes and puzzles used for marketing. She is also a high school Maths tutor, and has previously published a few short TTRPG's with more projects in the works. She first started playing Assassin's Creed in 2010, and is especially interested in the glyphs and puzzles, and platforms such as Assassin's Creed Initiates that expand the lore in creative ways. Edenoi

Assassins Creed Mirage Character Reference Guide Released Community Share 26 May 2023 Written By: Edited By: Colum Blackett (Col_96) Aaron Young Back To Database Ubisoft has today released a character reference guide for Assassin's Creed Mirage, featuring close-up turnaround images for Basim Ibn Ishaq and his Mentor Roshan. The guide reveals a number of hidden details that will no doubt make it an essential resource for cosplayers looking to replicate the outfits, weaponary and tools. For non-cosplayers, it is a sneak preview at what is to come in Assassin's Creed Mirage. Check out the guide below, and keep an eye on our social media channels (below) to stay up to date on everything Assassin's Creed! PDF File comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Col is one of the UK's leading Assassin's Creed Community members, and is best known for establishing both 'The Ones Who Came Before' fan community and 'Isu_Network' content creation program. As Team Leader for The Ones Who Came Before, Col was officially recognised by Ubisoft, becoming one the UK Assassin's Creed community ambassadors in 2016. He has attended many events after spending a decade in the AC Community, and has worked on countless projects, all of which you can find here on TOWCB website. He is also a former Ubisoft Star Player and member of The Mentors Guild, two recognisable community programs which opened doors and took his status within the AC Community to the next level. Colum Blackett (Col_96)

TOWCB: 7 Year Anniversary Update News Share 14 Aug 2021 Written By: Edited By: Colum Blackett (Col_96) Ashlea Blackett Back To Database Hey Assassins! Today we mark seven years since the creation of The Ones Who Came Before! Although we are immensely proud of the community we have created and our fans, it didn't feel right to throw a huge celebration this year. There are much more important things going on in the world right now, such as the widespread sexual misconduct allegations within the video games industry, and the Covid-19 pandemic. It just didn't feel right to us to throw a huge celebration, so we're keeping it low-key. We'll be dropping some Assassin's Creed Valhalla Season Pass Codes on Twitter over the next week, courtesy of Ubisoft. Instead of the usual week-long celebrations, we will be using our platforms to highlight female members of the Assassin's Creed community in an initiative known as the 'Community Uplift Initiative'. We will also be promoting the 'Assassins In Need' community fundraiser, which has raised nearly £1400 for World Federation for Mental Health. Behind the Scenes As many of you know, The Ones Who Came Before is run by Col & Ash, who are getting married in November. The past 12 months have been tough for everyone, and we've actually been struggling financially to support the community in ways that we would like. Worldwide giveaways are no longer a possibility, and the website only remained up and running due to a credit card. To make matters even worse, the gaming PC we used to run the website completely died in June, so things have slowed down on our end as we battle with a slow laptop. It's currently not possible for us to even play Assassin's Creed, but we've started saving for a new machine. As you can imagine, this makes running an AC community pretty hard. If you would like to support TOWCB, or even our Wedding / Honeymoon fund, you can do so via Amazon links. Simply click the links before making a purchase, and we'll get a small percentage from Amazon. It doesn't cost you any extra: Another way you can support us is by purchasing our Assassin's Creed items, which will soon be appearing on eBay. It's up to you, but all support is greatly appreciated. Other than that, we just want to once again express our thanks to the community for an amazing seven year journey. We are incredibly lucky to be Mentors within the community, and we look forward to working on new projects for our fans as soon as possible. Thank you for your support. Col & Ash. comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Compartilhe sua opinião Seja o primeiro a escrever um comentário. About the Author Col is one of the UK's leading Assassin's Creed Community members, and is best known for establishing both 'The Ones Who Came Before' fan community and 'Isu_Network' content creation program. As Team Leader for The Ones Who Came Before, Col was officially recognised by Ubisoft, becoming one the UK Assassin's Creed community ambassadors in 2016. He has attended many events after spending a decade in the AC Community, and has worked on countless projects, all of which you can find here on TOWCB website. He is also a former Ubisoft Star Player and member of The Mentors Guild, two recognisable community programs which opened doors and took his status within the AC Community to the next level. Colum Blackett (Col_96)

This Week in Assassin’s Creed Virtual Photography 12 Month Special: 30th - 5th February 2023 Community Share 7 Feb 2023 Written By: Edited By: Aaron Young Ashlea Blackett Back To Database Welcome to the new weekly virtual photography roundup hosted by Aaron Young from The AC Partnership Program. Every week, we will be picking our top 5 favourite Assassin’s Creed shots and showcasing them on The Ones Who Came Before website, in order to promote virtual photography and talented content creators within the community. Aaron is a keen virtual photographer and loves to post his journeys through Assassin’s Creed on Twitter. Keep an eye on the site as more weekly shots are added, we are looking for capture across all Assassin’s Creed games. Tag your photos to the #TOWCBWeeklyCapture for a chance to be featured. This week we have our 12 month special, you will find 1 shot from the last 6 months ranked by myself. There were so many wonderful captures over the months it really was a difficult task picking out 6. 1. Nordic Adventure Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Month: September 2022 The winning shot comes from @ _ Virtualtourism This shot resonates with me as I feel it is the essence of Assassin's Creed Valhalla. When looking at this capture all I can think of/hear is Out of the North by Jesper Kyd. That stunning sky takes me back to my first time on the game, memories that I will never forget. I have said it many times before Valhalla has such beautiful scenery. The composition is o n point, I am lo ving Eivor stood atop of the mountain with the hood up and torch in hand. 2. A Hero’s Tale Game: Assassin’s Creed Origins Month: August 2022 2nd Place goes to @ Jakeste66386991 This is probably one of the best send-off shots you could hope to take. It is my pick for August 2022 because I feel it signifies how I felt at the end of Assassin's Creed Origins. This capture is so gorgeous, the silhouette of Bayek walking off into the sunset is a real delight. I remember at the time being a fan of the b order too, as it makes the shot stand out. That sun though is something else. 3. Valhalla Awaits Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Month: December 2022 3rd Place goes to @ Petanni If Ubisoft ever wanted a photo to signal the end of Assassin's Creed Valhalla, it's this one. The colours of this shot are tremendous. I really can't get enough of those autumnal trees. There is something poetic about Eivor walking off into the countryside dressed as an Assassin. No one really knows what's in store for Eivor, but sometimes its best left to the imagination. 4. Outsider Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Month: October 2022 4th place goes to @ punkncreed I love this shot because it resembles both Assassin and Viking. I adore the use of depth of field in this image drawing your focus to Eivor, with the background slightly blurred. The mist and the flickers of light are such small details but add a great deal to the ambiance of this capture. Eivor feels like an outsider here, someone trying to go about their work incognito. 5. Pirate Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Month: November 2022 5th place goes to @ PodToGo Next up we have one of many awesome Kenway outfit shots from PodToGo. I was surprised how well this legacy outfit fits the time period of Valhalla. You have to admire captures like this, they give us insight to what the older games would look like today. Although the outfit look s cool, it's the surrounding area that really catches my eye. 6. Beautiful Countryside Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Month: January 2023 6th place goes to @NoviKaiba23 It feels weird writing about this shot so soon after selecting it for the weekly showcase. This picturesque capture is a complete delight on the eyes. There is a real magical vibe to this shot, mostly brought on by the deep red flowers and the lighting. I think Michael Doyle summed it up perfectly in our previous article, everything together within this shot, mirrors the principles of the brotherhood. And that sums it up for this week’s Assassin’s Creed virtual photography 6 month special. A special thank you to everyone who has taken part over the last 6 months, I would not be able to do this without you. Thank you for checking out this week’s photo collection. This would not be possible without the virtual photographers out there so a huge thanks to them. Until next week keep those shots coming in! comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Partagez vos idées Soyez le premier à rédiger un commentaire. About the Author Aaron is a passionate Assassin's Creed fan who joined our AC Partnership Program as an Online Article Writer back in 2021 after the release of Assassin's Creed Valhalla. After building momentum and interest on TOWCB website for Virtual Photography, Aaron established TOWCB Virtual Photography Team, of which he is now Team Leader. Throughout 2024, TOWCB VP Team will be sharing community captures in dedicated articles, and providing a positive environment on Twitter for gamers to share their shots. Aaron Young

The Memory Corridor #25 Released AC Games Versus History & Future Historical Settings Podcast Share 4 Jun 2023 Written By: Edited By: Gustav Poulsen (Gargudon) Colum Blackett Back To Database In Episode 25 of The Memory Corridor, host Gargudon is joined by AC community member and content creator AC_Landmarks for a comparison of historical time periods and characters portrayed in the games and real history, as well as a deep dive into potential future historical settings. Covering everything from the real life Templars, the Renaissance, the American Revolution and much more in between. comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Gustav is an active community member who specialises in Podcast Hosting & Composing. By joining the program, he has had the opportunity to expand his audience and further his skills, even helping to revive 'The Memory Corridor' series, which had been offline for nearly a year. His unique skill set made him the perfect candidate for our AC Partnership Program, of which he has been a part of since it began back in 2019. He is known in the community for the Sounds Of History music project; an original instrumental project featuring five tracks inspired by AC, written and produced by him, and more recently, video interviews with Jesper Kyd and Lee Majdoub. Fun Fact: Gustav is the only member of our team to have a tattoo of TOWCB logo! Gustav Poulsen (Gargudon)

Assassin's Creed Shadows Merchandise Guide Merchandise Share 6 Feb 2025 Written By: Edited By: Colum Blackett (Col_96) TOWCB Team Back To Database ! Widget Didn’t Load Check your internet and refresh this page. If that doesn’t work, contact us. comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Col is one of the UK's leading Assassin's Creed Community members, and is best known for establishing both 'The Ones Who Came Before' fan community and 'Isu_Network' content creation program. As Team Leader for The Ones Who Came Before, Col was officially recognised by Ubisoft, becoming one the UK Assassin's Creed community ambassadors in 2016. He has attended many events after spending a decade in the AC Community, and has worked on countless projects, all of which you can find here on TOWCB website. He is also a former Ubisoft Star Player and member of The Mentors Guild, two recognisable community programs which opened doors and took his status within the AC Community to the next level. Colum Blackett (Col_96)

Assassin’s Creed Virtual Photography: 1K Celebration Community Share 18 Aug 2024 Written By: Edited By: Aaron Young TOWCB Team Back To Database Welcome to the biweekly virtual photography roundup hosted by Aaron Young from the AC Partnership Program. Every two weeks we will be picking our top 5 favourite Assassin’s Creed shots and showcasing them on The Ones Who Came Before website, in order to promote virtual photography and talented content creators within the community. This theme has been run by the TOWCB Virtual Photography team. We wanted to celebrate reaching 1K members in our Twitter VP Community. This has been a joy to watch as we have grown over the years. Thanks to Ubisoft we were able to mark the occasion with a VP contest. We have been monitoring the hashtags and the community hub to see all your wonderful shots. This time we will be putting the spotlight on the winners and allowing them to tell us a bit about themselves and their wonderful captures. Keep an eye on the site as more shots are added, we are looking for captures across all Assassin’s Creed games. Tag your photos to #ACFirstCivVP for a chance to be featured. Theme: Assassin’s Creed VP Community Celebration 1st - Ship of the Desert Game: Assassin’s Creed Origins VP Artist: @ saskiaemmischVP I am Saskia, 28 years old, and I’ve been doing virtual photography as a hobby for about 2 years. I got into this pastime because I always loved the worlds and designs of video games and wanted to capture them. At some point I started posting my pictures, which is why social media and virtual photography also became a hobby. Since then, I’ve nurtured and cultivated my passion for it and put a lot of effort, work, and creativity into my VP. I came up with the picture itself because I love silhouettes. I happened to find this cave in Assassin’s Creed Origins and placed my camel in such a way. I then adjusted the photo mode settings so that this silhouette effect with the great colours was created. I thought the idea of a slight reflection in the water was very nice. My pictures are usually created spontaneously in the game, and that’s also the most fun. I hope that I can soon inspire this community with my VP from Assassin’s Creed Mirage. Aaron Saskia is a worthy winner of this competition with this beautiful shot from Assassin’s Creed Origins. I really love the minimalist approach with the reflection on the water. The blackout framing works perfectly and compliments the rich warm orange of the cave. This is an exceptional capture, and I can’t wait to see what Saskia can do in Mirage. 2nd - Longship Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla VP Artist: @ playpausephoto Imagine being a Viking far from land with nothing to see but the vast sea. All you hear are the crashing waves, the creaking sound of the oars and the wind tugging at the sails. The longship must feel so small, and the dark waters so endless. This is the feeling I tried to capture in this photo. I used a strong contrast between light and dark and a minimalistic composition to create a sense of isolation. I am truly honoured to be selected as one of the winners. It was my friends at TOWCB that introduced me to the games and the support from the AC community has been amazing from day one. Aaron A striking piece of virtual photography from Malin. I love the contrast and how it makes the wood on the ship pop. For me it is ingenious to split the shot down the middle of the longship, allowing us to only see half of the crew. There is a real isolating feel to this capture that fits with the narrative of long voyages to new lands. Assassin’s Creed often lends itself to minimal VP so I am very excited to see what Malin can capture in AC Mirage. 3rd - The Light Game: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey VP Artist: @ Yumejin Taking photos in video games has been an attraction to me since I was very young. The thought of seeing your favourite character in action and pausing the game just to enjoy the smallest details and immortalizing them all in a photo, seemed so appealing and interesting to me. Through time, as video games got more and more advanced, so did the technique of taking photos in them. The winning photo was taken by me just after I started going more in depth and taking virtual photography more seriously. Through learning different techniques of composition and how to take advantage of lighting and colours, I managed to capture a part of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey that is so visually pleasing and immediately sends you to Greece. Throughout my journey as a VP, I encountered so many talented people, and I also got so much encouragement, the AC community being one of the many cases in which everyone is very friendly and always supportive towards all the photos. I also see such a huge plethora of people who make amazing shots and play such different games, and it makes me realise that this whole VP community is great because it celebrates the universe of gaming and the beauty of exploring every frame to get the best photos. A worthy third place. Aaron What is so spectacular about this capture is the shadow work. I adore how the roof section is completely dark creating a frame around the photo. The pillars and meshing on the left really grab the attention as they leave varying shadows on the beautiful flooring. The shot really shows the wonders of Ubisoft’s attention to detail when creating these worlds. 4th – Setting of the Sun Game: Assassin’s Creed Origins VP Artist: @ astroghost001 I took this shot in Assassin’s Creed Origins by using a trainer to change the time of day, this allowed me to get the sun into an interesting position. I then used camera tools to get this extreme angle where it looks like the sun is rolling down the slope. I waited for Bayek to call Senu and that’s how I took the shot. In Lightroom I changed the colour from orange to purple just because I like exotic colours, and I already had a lot of sunset/amber shots. As a virtual photographer I like to try different styles and experiment a lot, every month I try to do a new style, also I love to work with colours to achieve a vibrant feel. Aaron What a breathtaking capture this is. The silhouette of Bayek with Senu on his arm is exceptional and the sunset mesmerising. I love how AstroGhost has experimented with the colours to produce something so unique and captivating. The line down the centre from the sand dunes really adds a new dimension parting the colours beautifully. 5th - Flowering Game: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey VP Artist: @ NovA1990 I hadn’t initially planned to capture this shot. I was photographing Kass, but I wasn’t satisfied with the results. So, I decided to take a break and explore the surroundings using the camera mode. That’s when I noticed the curve of the cherry tree branch, framing the birds flying by. After some careful adjustments, I managed to align the photo just right. I then did all the normal editing in Lightroom Classic and finished by adding blur to the birds. Aaron Sometimes amongst all the chaos you need a little serenity. Nova has definitely found that with this exquisite shot of a cherry tree. The vibrant colours of the petals have such a calming effect and the birds in the background are wonderfully placed. At first glance they almost look like petals blowing off the tree. This is a beautiful photograph, worthy of its place in this article. 6th – Shooting Star Game: Assassin’s Creed Mirage VP Artist: Couch_Gamer2k23 To introduce myself I go by Couch_Gamer in the community, an avid lover of video games and someone who fell in love with virtual photography through the community. Until last year I had no idea what a photo mode was and as soon as I was introduced to it through the community, it made me realise you can appreciate a game more through it. About this shot, I was playing Mirage one night and I found out when you look at the sky during the night time you can see shooting stars and from my childhood, I heard stories from my grandparents that a shooting star when passing through, grants you a wish. So, I too decided to take a shot when the shooting star appeared on the screen. Took me a few tries but I was able to capture it. I admire the TOWCB community of Assassin’s Creed a lot for appreciating newcomers like me and giving a platform to showcase or participate in these types of events. They have been doing it for 10 years and I wish them all the best for next 10 years. Aaron This is such a tranquil shot that almost captures the essence of Assassin’s Creed Mirage and Basim's story. I love the black and white as it serves to promote the beauty of the starry night. Obviously, the shooting star is a fabulous addition, but so too is the composition with just enough white sand appearing at the bottom. I think having Basim stand with his back to us in white robes gazing into the night sky is a kind of insightful moment. 7th – Tomb Raider Game: Assassin’s Creed Origins VP Artist: @ BetweenDPixels Origins was my first Assassin’s Creed game, and Bayek is my favourite character from the games so far. Exploring these worlds is amazing and finding likeminded fans in the AC community has made it better. I can’t wait to keep exploring through my Assassin’s journey to see what other adventures and characters await. Not to mention the photo mode opportunities I already know to expect. Thank you for all the support. Aaron For me this is Assassin’s Creed Origins. There were so many promotional captures of Bayek walking with a torch in a tomb. The framing is excellent with the foundations of the pyramid surrounding Bayek. I really like how one lantern is aflame, and the other isn’t but compensated by the torch in his hand. The warm colours of the desert shine through with Bayek’s face covered in shadows but encompassed by the classic white hood. A contrast of a man who has gone through a crucible. 8th – Spiralling Game: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey VP Artist: @ BreizhThe “On the heights with eternal geometric shapes…. we perpetuate our credo from generation to generation” My name is TheBreizhGamer I have been passionate about virtual photography for around 10 years. I appreciate the world of Assassin’s Creed for all the historical settings that the saga takes us through. Assassin’s Creed Origins and Odyssey, although criticised enough, are my favourite AC. I salute here all the talented artists who have been selected and it is an honour to be part of them. A big thank you to the entire TOWCB team. Aaron A feast for the eyes is what springs to mind when I think of this shot. The dazzling tiles of that incredible roof really capture the attention. I find myself almost mesmerised by them. I do like the little triangle at the top and the white point with Kassandra atop of it. These little details help take you away from the stunning backdrop. 9th – Warrior Game: Assassin’s Creed Origins VP Artist: @ Tigas_VP Assassin’s Creed Origins marked my return to the saga, unfortunately I hadn’t played the series since Assassin’s Creed 2. I love the game and the fact that it takes place in Egypt, combining this with my passion for virtual photography was incredible. Aaron Tigas is one of my favourite Assassin’s Creed Origins photographers, this is mostly due to the cinematic effect of the shots. I adore how intense this capture is with Kensa staring us down from behind the shield. I do like the sparks and the mist just behind her as it adds to the atmosphere. She is a fierce gladiator, and I think Tigas portrays that with this shot. 10th – Field of Reeds Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla VP Artist: @ thefrostysm My name is Frosty, and I’ve been a part of the VP community for approximately 9 months now. One of my all-time favourite games series is Assassin’s Creed. I wasn’t old enough to play the first few games, so I started with Assassin’s Creed 3. That game was so impactful for me in so many ways that it has solidified itself as one of my favourite games of all time. I’ve played every AC since and don’t plan on stopping any time soon. Regarding my shot, this is from AC Valhalla and my focus was to show the peaceful, mindful side of Eivor. With so much rage, violence, and pressure as a new Viking King, I imagine what he would do to gather himself and his thoughts. A stroll through a seemingly endless field of roses seemed perfect to me. Thanks again for the selection, it really means a lot. Aaron Every time I see a shot like this I think of Gladiator, how could you not. Although not reeds this time, these awesome plants really make the capture with their red and white contrast. There is a huge element of reflection to this shot with Eivor walking away from the camera. I feel like it would fit as a scene following one of the tragic moments of the game. Having black and white with a colour splash really heightens a piece of VP and that is evident here. And that sums it up for this Assassin’s Creed virtual photography recap list! Thank you for checking out the photo collection. This would not be possible without the virtual photographers out there so a huge thanks to them. Until next time keep those shots coming in! comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Compartilhe sua opinião Seja o primeiro a escrever um comentário. About the Author Aaron is a passionate Assassin's Creed fan who joined our AC Partnership Program as an Online Article Writer back in 2021 after the release of Assassin's Creed Valhalla. After building momentum and interest on TOWCB website for Virtual Photography, Aaron established TOWCB Virtual Photography Team, of which he is now Team Leader. Throughout 2024, TOWCB VP Team will be sharing community captures in dedicated articles, and providing a positive environment on Twitter for gamers to share their shots. Aaron Young

This Week in Assassin's Creed Virtual Photography: 21st - 27th May 2022 Community Share 6 Aug 2022 Written By: Edited By: Aaron Young Ashlea Blackett Back To Database Welcome to the new weekly virtual photography roundup hosted by Aaron Young from The AC Partnership Program. Every week, we will be picking our top 5 favourite Assassin’s Creed shots and showcasing them on The Ones Who Came Before website, in order to promote virtual photography and talented content creators within the community. Aaron is a keen virtual photographer and loves to post his journeys through Assassin’s Creed on Twitter. Keep an eye on the site as more weekly shots are added, we are looking for capture across all Assassin’s Creed games. Tag your photos to the #TOWCBWeeklyCapture for a chance to be featured. 1) Pharos Game: Assassin’s Creed Origins This week’s first capture comes from @ flyingfeather_g over on Twitter. This week’s first shot takes us back to Egypt, and one of the most stunning locations in the game. The Lighthouse of Alexandria features fairly early in the story and serves a wonderful viewpoint. I love the view you get from this shot, especially with the ship sailing away. I really hope a portrait function comes to consoles. 2) Anubis Game: Assassin’s Creed Origins Photo number two comes from @ G_G_snaps over on Twitter. Sticking with Origins, and another amazing shot but this time taken during the Trials of the Gods. I actually thought this mini mode in Origins fit the theme of the game brilliantly. It reminds me of the Scarecrow scene in Arkham Asylum. This is a perfectly timed shot showcasing the amazing detail of Anubis, and the wonderful atmosphere that is created in these fights. 3) The Northman Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla This week’s third shot comes from former AC Partnership Program Member @ vikingdad278 over on Twitter. This capture is a crossover of Valhalla meets The Northman. With sword and axe in hand, Eivor could not look anymore Viking. I have seen a few shots like this since the film’s release, and with the Last Kingdom and Valhalla on Netflix there’s never been a better time to play this game. Despite the incredible feel of this shot I can’t help but think Lion King. 4) Lazy Day Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla VP number four comes from @ Yamis_Art over on Twitter. Photo number four brings a little peace to this showcase. I love the simplicity of this capture, the depth of field lets you know that there are amazing things in the background but on this occasion a sleeping cat is all that matters. Animals and there behaviours in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla are some of the best I have seen. We all needs animal pictures every now and again. 5) Collection Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla The final capture of the week comes from @ Jakeste66386991 over on Twitter. The final shot of the week is a clever one. I do like it when people edit their photos and put them together in one cool photo. I actually thought this capture summed up Assassin’s Creed Valhalla really well. Eivor with the hood representing the Assassin’s. The Raven (Odin) signifying Vikings/Norse and the cross symbolising the Saxons and Alfred. And that sums it up for this week’s Assassin’s Creed virtual photography recap list! Thank you for checking out this week’s photo collection. This would not be possible without the virtual photographers out there so a huge thanks to them. Until next week keep those shots coming in. comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Поделитесь своим мнением Добавьте первый комментарий. About the Author Aaron is a passionate Assassin's Creed fan who joined our AC Partnership Program as an Online Article Writer back in 2021 after the release of Assassin's Creed Valhalla. After building momentum and interest on TOWCB website for Virtual Photography, Aaron established TOWCB Virtual Photography Team, of which he is now Team Leader. Throughout 2024, TOWCB VP Team will be sharing community captures in dedicated articles, and providing a positive environment on Twitter for gamers to share their shots. Aaron Young

Assassin’s Creed Virtual Photography: 6th to 17th January Community Share 30 Jan 2025 Written By: Edited By: Aaron Young Renzo Back To Database Welcome to the biweekly virtual photography roundup hosted by Aaron Young from the AC Partnership Program. Every two weeks we will be picking our top 5 favourite Assassin’s Creed shots and showcasing them on The Ones Who Came Before website, in order to promote virtual photography and talented content creators within the community. This theme has been run alongside @ saskiaemmischVP the winner of our VP competition in 2024. Saskia has been around for some time now and has such a distinctive photography style. You can often find her beautiful minimal or moody shots throughout various games on social media. Saskia has recently joined @ ArtistofSociety where she will be supporting virtual photographers and building a community. You can feel the passion Saskia has for VP and we are delighted she has joined us for this theme. Keep an eye on the site as more shots are added, we are looking for captures across all Assassin’s Creed games. Tag your photos to #ACFirstCivVP for a chance to be featured. Banner by Turið Torkilsdóttir Theme: Assassin’s Creed Moody Cold Desert Nights Game: Assassin’s Creed Mirage VP Artist: @ wingsforsmiles The Ones Who Came Before Photo of the Week Judge: Saskia Saskia I love the dark and moody atmosphere in this shot. Combined with the fog it envelops the silhouettes of the rider and the trees. I also find the shot to have minimalist inspiration, which is a very nice addition. This adds to the overall clarity of the picture. Aaron Moody isn’t really something that springs to mind when capturing Assassin’s Creed Mirage. The sun-drenched, golden city of Baghdad is full of corruption but remains one of the most beautiful locations we have visited in the series. I have to applaud wingsforsmiles for producing a shot that effortlessly fits the theme. This exquisite silhouette of Basim atop his camel is situated so smartly amongst the trees. I love the use of deep blacks and lighter blues, coupled with the fog to give that mysterious feel. There is such a seriousness to this shot, and Basim remaining in the shadows suits his story arc perfectly. The Golden Archer Game: Assassin’s Creed Origins VP Artist: @ Defalt368 It's nice to see some Assassin’s Creed Origins return to these articles. Once again, it’s not the first game I would think of for a moody shot, but Bayek epitomises the moody hero. Josh has nailed the framing in this capture. The sun encased elegantly between the arrow, string and riser, but also surrounded by the clouds in the sky. I like how Bayek is a silhouette and having him pose with a bow fits with his skills as an archer. It would have been easy to make this a black and white photo but keeping the strong orange glow reminds the viewer that we are in the hot deserts of Egypt. Wandering Viking Game: Assassin’s Creed Valhalla VP Artist: @ BetweenDPixels The essence of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is two siblings wanting to step out from their father’s shadow and forge their own path in England. Although at times this can be lost in the pure scale of the game, it’s humble beginnings always live on throughout the story. This shot instantly wows you with that sun lighting up the clouds providing the photo with a tantalising glow. There is a balance of colours here that match the English countryside, and despite the dull moody tone they serve to add some warmth to the shot. For me this capture symbolises the journey Eivor has experienced. I really like how she is strolling off into the unknown with new horizons in front of her. The Wheat Game: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey VP Artist: @ cyriellevp.bsky.social Assassin’s Creed Odyssey often has some really unique moods that are linked to the varying landscapes the game has to offer. This is a real treat for us virtual photographers. You can see in the shot above that Cyrielle has managed to capture the beauty Odyssey has to offer. There is a nice moody ambiance to this photo with the ominous sign of birds flying away. The dark cloud entering from the left adds a dull tone and there is that nice haze in the sky. I like how the camera is situated giving height to the shot. Being amongst the reeds obviously brings the Gladiator feel and that sad mood that you experience at that point of the film. The Odyssey Game: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey VP Artist: @ wondernoob.bsky.social Just before the launch of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Ubisoft released promotional shots of the game showcasing the jaw dropping scenery and Kassandra exploring the Greek world. This capture reminds me of them but instead of bright colourful landscapes, here we have the moody and shadowy version. It's nice to see this darker side to Odyssey, the game actually has quite a few harrowing moments. I am enjoying the lower textures and how they amplify the fog to shroud the photo in mystery. The tree looks so realistic, and I like how Kassandra is walking towards the forest evidently in search of her next victim. And that sums it up for this Assassin’s Creed virtual photography recap list! Thank you for checking out the photo collection. This would not be possible without the virtual photographers out there so a huge thanks to them. Until next time keep those shots coming in! comments debug Comments Write a comment Write a comment Share Your Thoughts Be the first to write a comment. About the Author Aaron is a passionate Assassin's Creed fan who joined our AC Partnership Program as an Online Article Writer back in 2021 after the release of Assassin's Creed Valhalla. After building momentum and interest on TOWCB website for Virtual Photography, Aaron established TOWCB Virtual Photography Team, of which he is now Team Leader. Throughout 2024, TOWCB VP Team will be sharing community captures in dedicated articles, and providing a positive environment on Twitter for gamers to share their shots. Aaron Young