The Assassin’s Creed series places heavy emphasis on its narrative, which has led to many tropes and cliches from the movies and TV shows being adapted into the gaming franchise.
What’s interesting to consider is that each entry has pretty much the same outline, so uncovering these cliches essentially tells fans what to expect. It also connects Assassin’s Creed to the style of movies and similar games that players might not have pieced together, so it’s worth diving in deeper into the cliches present in Ubisoft’s most prized franchise.
The Hero Is An Underdog Or Outcast
Even if it’s the ranked by fans, the protagonists pretty much always fall under this cliche trope. In general, the main characters have issues with their families, usually having been either abandoned by or estranged from their parents during the story.
The heroes are also never considered to be in positions of power or influence when the story starts, usually falling in underdog status. Connor Kenway, Altair, Kassandra, and Eivor all have conflicts with their own families, while they and the likes of Ezio, Frye twins, Edward Kenway also are considered outcasts who have to look out for themselves.
Cliffhanger Endings
This is a habit that has irked fans for quite a while by now, as the series never features a game with a complete ending. It’s a way for the develops to ensure that players return for future installments, but has the big side effect of leaving things incomplete in each game.
During the Desmond Miles Saga, every entry would feature a big revelation toward the Earth’s supposed destruction, while the Layla Hassan trilogy would bring a bombshell about the Isus. All the conclusions tend to be open-ended, with the following title quickly resolving them or delaying them further.
Monologuing Villains
An age-old trope that has seeped into video games as well, the Assassin’s Creed series particularly loves presenting villains who make use of this cliche. Antagonists never get to the point and it’s because they waste time waxing poetic that end up getting assassinated.
The characters most guilty of the cliche include Rodrigo Borgia, Haytham Kenway, Basim Ibn Ishaq, and Warren Vidic — these villains just love to go on long rants about how they will bring in a new age through their evil plans.
Disposable Love Interests
Characters like Sofia Sartor, Maria Thorpe, and Henry Green have been genuine love interests in the series, but there is a multitude of others that have come and gone. Ezio, Edward, Kassandra, and Eivor have had a number of romantic partners that ended up nowhere.
In fact, the series has gone further in the use of this cliche in recent times, where Eivor even had an affair with her sister-in-law, Randvi, which had no bearing on the plot even when her brother, Sigurd, learned about it. The love interests are largely there to distract from the main plot.
Mundane Side Quests To Fill The Runtime
This is a cliche found in every open-world game, as they want players to spend more time playing to justify the price. The side quests are entirely pointless for the most part, usually involving things like the assassins competing in racing challenges, dispensing with minor and unnamed villains, and fighting off attackers.
It didn’t feel like much of a cliche until the most recent games, with the likes of Valhalla bringing in mundane side quests because the open worlds are much larger. The downside to this has been that many players just don’t go through with playing the side missions.
Spunky And Rebellious Introduction Scene For The Protagonist
Even though this has gotten old by now and many fans make memes about them, the series continues to introduce heroes in such a manner. It’s a pretty archaic trope borrowed from movies, where the hero first shows up doing something they’re not supposed to.
The series itself started with Altair defying orders he had in an assassination mission, continuing with Ezio engaging in a gang fight, and child Connor confronting dangerous men who threatened his tribe. It keeps on happening to this day, with Eivor’s first scene portraying how she was a fighter even when she was a little girl.
Group Of Sidekicks
Interestingly enough, this wasn’t much of a cliche until the Assassin’s Creed series made it one. The series has largely featured an extended ing cast in each entry, with the protagonist having their own select bunch of sidekicks within the story.
Ezio had his sister, uncle, and Leonardo da Vinci, Kassandra had Socrates, Markos, and Phoibe, to go with many other sidekicks. The reason why this has become a cliche is that fans can easily predict that the characters will be placed in mortal danger at some point in the story and will be forced to rescue their brood.
Main Protagonist Doesn't Play By The Rules
A standard in gaming stories is that the main character doesn’t conform to whatever background they’re from and does what they think is right. None of the protagonists in the Assassin’s Creed games have fallen in line, with each one of them either defying their parents or even the creed itself.
Jacob and Evie believed in the creed, yet they went against the ones they were planning to assassinate and did whatever they wanted to reach the villain. Others like Edward and Kassandra didn’t align themselves with any group to focus on self-serving goals. By this point, it would be fascinating to have a protagonist who does listen to what they're told.
Leveling Up Over The Course Of The Game
There’s an upgrading aspect in all the games. It’s a long-running cliche of the gaming landscape in general, with the player forced to start off as a weak character who must keep on modifying to fight difficult enemies.
Rather than change things up, the Assassin’s Creed series has fallen even more into this cliche. The latest games have started presenting a skill tree, which has gotten exhaustive with every entry. It’s to the point now where it’s a challenge to complete the skill tree because there are so many upgrades.
Power-Up Weapons
Gamers are well aware of the trope where certain weapons are introduced with the express intention of allowing one-hit kills. It’s something of a e aspect because it can undermine all the weapons players have collected over the course of the game.
In the Assassin’s Creed series, power-up weapons show up near the end of a particular title, ranging from things like the Pieces of Eden or specific equipment that will allow players to dispatch enemies with relative ease. Part of the fanbase who like a challenge isn’t too keen on this cliche since it makes things way too simple.