Ubisoft is looking to go back to what made the original Assassin’s Creed titles so popular, and that even includes the lack of DLC and micro transactions. In a recent Reddit AMA, Creative Director Stephane Boudon stated there’s currently no plans for Assassin’s Creed Mirage DLC.
The news is highly notable coming from Ubisoft which in the past decade has been known for adding extensive amount of in-game purchases, and DLC content. Mirage is set to bring back simple gameplay mechanics last seen in Assassin’s Creed I and the Ezio trilogy of games. A focus on stealth mechanics, an incredibly reduced open-world on par with AC Revelations and Unity, and the assassin’s tool belt of smoke bombs, throwing knives, along with more are set to make Mirage a game longtime fans are reminiscent of. The creative directors have previously stated that Mirage is a love letter to Assassin’s Creed I, in both aesthetic, story and gameplay.
While the statement from Creative Director Boudon indicates any DLC content won’t be coming to Mirage, it still does leave the door potentially open for in-game content, which at the current time not expected, still remains to be seen once the game officially launches in the Fall.
Ubisoft has demurred fans in recent years for the ways in which micro-transactions have been essentially shoved in the face of players. Assassin’s Creed Origins which released in 2017, came as refresh to the franchise at the time, however, it wasn’t immune to the barrage of paid upgrades, such as outright buying resources, revealing map locations, and mere cosmetic items. That formula only got worse in the following sequels, Odyssey and Valhalla, where full-blown pages in the menu were dedicated to in-game shops filled with purchasable cosmetics, upgrades, and numerous amounts of DLC story content. Ubisoft isn’t alone when it comes to the overwhelming amount of micro-transactions that have plagued games in the past decade, though Ubisoft seems to be a leading culprit in the amount of content players can spend money on.
Assassin’s Creed Mirage is set to release on October 12th, 2023.