Assassin's Creed 4 Director Wants Egypt Sequel

Egypt has long been a rumored setting for an Assassin's Creed game. Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag game director Ashraf Ismail resurrected this line of speculation in a new interview by saying he wants to make a sequel set in the Gift of the Nile.

"I'm not saying we are going there, but one day I would love to explore Egypt as a setting for this game," Ismail told Examiner. "Ancient Egypt could be a really cool place. We have a really cool explanation for how we can do this, and it is with this Animus device that allows us to go to anytime in history."

The Assassin's Creed series has typically moved forward in time with each new sequel. The first was set in the Middle Ages, Assassin's Creed 2 and its direct sequels were in the Renaissance Era, and AC3 took place in colonial America. However, as Ismail points out, they took the series back a few decades for AC4.

"It was never a set rule that we always get closer to the present day. We were a bit surprised by people who saying, 'how do you go back in time, how's that possible?'"

Ancient Egypt would be a great setting but it does have one major drawback. The setting would require Ubisoft to take away the naval battles that were introduced in AC3 and became a central feature in AC4. Warships loaded with cannons and mortars simply didn't exist back then.

Still, not every sequel needs to incorporate every feature from the previous games. Assassin's Creed 3 didn't bring back that tower defense crap from AC: Revelations and that was the right call. I'd rather a developer cut a few old features for a sequel rather than waste time trying to find new ways to reheat them.

Bringing the series back to Egypt could actually be quite liberating for Ubisoft. With each new game, they've been able to introduce more advanced technology for players to wield like firearms and warships. These new toys distracted from the fact that the underlying systems of the series haven't changed much from one game to the next. The more primitive technology of Ancient Egypt would force Ubisoft to find some other way to spice up the usual formula. Maybe they'll revamp the stealth or the melee combat in the game?

We still don't know for sure that Egypt will be a setting for an AC game, though. Perhaps the comic book, Assassin's Creed: Brahman, will shed some light. Ubisoft previously said that Brahman, set in India during British colonial rule, will provide hints about "what the future holds for Assassin’s Creed beyond Black Flag."