Assassin's Creed is a long-running series with multiple ongoing storylines and characters woven throughout history. Fans take few things at face value at this point. Even a seemingly standalone title is steeped in lore. Such is case with Assassin's Creed Chronicles, a series of smaller adventures showcasing new assassins dealing with strife in their homelands. These 2.5D platformers may not boast the grandeur or power of their peers, but they're still part of this series
As with any game in the series, that means players must prepare for a deep dive into convoluted lore. Only those with their own Eagle Vision can understand the little references scattered throughout this trilogy and what they mean for the rest of the franchise.
9 Different Settings
A new setting is always exciting for this series, as it boasts a slew of narrative and gameplay potential to be mined. Assassin's Creed has never covered China, India, or Russia, let alone during these time periods. This brings plenty of novelty in itself and infuses these locales into the larger mythology; the Assassins had a hand in shaping these places' history. This changes the way players look at them forever.
Most impactful is Russia. Not only is it tied with real figure Anastasia Nikolaevna, but it's set in 1918, makin it the most contemporary entry in the series. It puts players one step closer to that modern-day Assassin's Creed title that the developers have been building to for so long. That may or may not happen at this point, but the Russia episode gives players some idea of how it would be.
8 Shao Jun
The Assassin's Creed series mostly crafts a new setting and characters for each entry. As such, protagonists usually aren't connected to one another. This sub-series bucks that trend with its first episode: China.
Heroine Shao Jun is actually a pupil of Ezio, the fan-favorite star of Assassin's Creed II, Brotherhood, and Revelations. First introduced in the Embers short film, Jun takes her training back to her homeland and begins a new Brotherhood there. Chalk it up to fan service for Ezio lovers, but most of the Italian Assassin's pupils up to this point were NPCs. Seeing one of them as an actual player character, who honors her master and faithfully continues his work, is especially gratifying.
7 Arbaaz Mir
Shao Jun is not the only familiar face to headline this trilogy. Arbaaz Mir also hails from another source: the Assassin's Creed: Brahman comic book. It focuses on his efforts to free his people from an oppressive regime. However, his influence goes further still.
Arbaaz later had a son, Jayadeep Mir, who mentored the twin Frye protagonists in Syndicate. In many ways, Arbaaz's adventures are the origin of everything Jayadeep knows, essentially making the India episode a direct prequel to Syndicate.
6 Nikolai Orelov
Rounding out the returning stars is Nikolai Orelov. He headlines the Russia episode, but he originated from the comic, Assassin's Creed: The Fall. This is hardly surprising, given the wealth of other material linked to this franchise.
Unfortunately, Orelov eventually defected from the Assassin Brotherhood. His descendants joined the Templars and proved a constant thorn in the Assassins' sides. Chief among these was Daniel Cross, who decimated the modern Brotherhood and proved a prevalent threat to Desmond Miles in the series' early entries. It's irony incarnate that Nikolai's Assassin exploits form his section of Chronicles.
5 The Precursor Box
MacGuffins are important in Assassin's Creed, often carrying over for multiple games. Whether they be staffs, keys, or magical apples, these artifacts always last through the ages. That remains the case in this trilogy.
The prize this time is the Precursor Box, which Ezio entrusts to Shao Jun in Embers. The Assassins and Templars constantly vie for it here, with it repeatedly changing hands and leading into the next entry. It even jumped to consoles when it was taken by Shay inAssassin's Creed Rogue. This in itself forms the start of Assassin's Creed Unity. Who knows where this box will show up next, and which chain of events it will set off?
4 Specialized Gadgets & Abilities
Assassin's Creed Chronicles is littered with familiar toys and moves, but not all of the protagonists have the same advantages. Pickpocketing is standard for Arbaaz, but not the others. He also uses chakrams, which function the same way as his peers' throwing knives. Meanwhile, Shao Jun's firecracker substitutes for the regular smoke bomb. Previous console entries let players have most of these abilities (or at least variations of them).
One can only assume they're passed down from person to person within the Brotherhood. That said, certain members are presumably more comfortable with certain tools. This helps distinguish the characters from one another, while retaining the familiar gameplay.
3 The Precursor To The Animus
One surprise perk to the Precursor Box is the ability to imprint memories of past users onto current ones. Anastasia Nikolaevna demonstrates this when she's overcome with the memories Shao Jun. This might be the precursor (pardon the pun) to the Animus.
This pivotal device allows people to relive the experience of past individuals, essentially paving the way for this entire series. It even operates on genetic memory like the box does. Given these similarities, it's easy to imagine Abstergo taking notes when crafting their groundbreaking machine.
2 Another Playable Historic Figure
When Anastasia has Shao Jun's genetic memories, she's imbued with a host of Assassin abilities. Players thus take control of her for select segments. Not only does this add some neat novelty to the tale, but it marks the second time players take on the role of a historical figure.
This series typically crafts its own characters, but protagonists subsequently interact with real people of the time and influence history through those interactions. Chronicles cuts out the middleman and lets the player take the wheel of a real person. The only other time the series allowed this was with Jack the Ripper in Syndicate, and even that was a twist reserved for DLC. This makes Anastasia's prominant role a much bigger milestone.
1 Pieces Of Eden
Players have been chasing these mythical artifacts through the whole series. Most entries include at least one Piece of Eden, and the desire for it fuels the actions of both Assassins and Templars.
Though they're not the main attraction here, these glowing treasures are still present. They're not used for vague combat purposes, but instead as a power source for the Precursor Box. That's right, the gifts of the gods are now glorified batteries. Considering the only alternative power source is a bolt of lightning, though, the Pieces of Eden are still exceedingly valuable. Plus, it simply wouldn't be an Assassin's Creed story without them.