Historical Realism Review: Assassin's Creed Mirage

[@Ludohistory]

Thanks for letting me consult on this! If anyone's curious for some more historical talk around AC Mirage, Blue came and talked through some of this with me live when I was going through it! The recordings of that whole playthrough are going up over the next week or so, and will be added to this playlist! kzbin.info/aero/PLvFfHAMv6EH8p21V6_jBQyoGPwbgVJ2rO

[@samuelflynn9521]

We all know you would never die on a hill but a strategically placed and historically relevant arched bridge.

[@SSGranor]

He might die on a dome, though, which, let's be real, is the hill of the architectural world.

[@JackSilver1410]

@@SSGranor What is a hill, but a dome of earth?

[@Saltyorange11]

@@JackSilver1410what is the earth but two domes on top of each other

[@loadeddice4696]

Just like Harald Hardrada would have done!

[@kevinr.9733]

@@Saltyorange11 Technically, they're on bottom of each other...

[@Oscar_Lasco]

Treating the Zanj rebellion as some secondary background thing is like playing in 1st century B.C. Rome and having someone say "Hey, here's a job for a guy called Spartacus,. Just a dude you know, some kind of rebel."

[@scottishfilmhistorian]

A webel on his way to Wome.

[@theanimeunderworld8338]

Domes, domes galore and more for sweet Blue

[@Reveal_City]

Lapis Lazuli from Afghanistan! One of the things I've learned so far 😅

[@theemperormoth5089]

Arches and Domes for my lord Blue!

[@18earendil]

We should send Blue to Chili to see the construction of the ELT, this is one big dome.

[@FuzzyStripetail]

After getting my degree from the House of Wisdom, I can now boast "Who's your Baghdad-dy now?" to anyone who didn't earn their degree from the House of Wisdom.

[@cloverharvest1145]

Abu bakr?

[@tjo6252]

😂😂

[@zaidkapadia6824]

This is so cringe

[@nourriadh6976]

As someone born and living in Baghdad, the game was a breath of fresh air! I loved seeing my culture presented in such a well-studied way. Also some structures from the Abbasid Caliphate still stand today like the Mustasiria school , although it's a little later than the time period presented in the game.

[@cole8499]

I know and the markets and the old buildings and houses my grandpa lives in a mud house like those in the game it's so nice to see it

[@rongeen4404]

The architecture and overall feel was good. But the cultural representation was a bit off. I know they were trying, but women without hijab, no Salam, modern day political sensibilities, I mean come on.

[@michealgironimo603]

​​@@rongeen4404modern day political sensibilities? In a 1st century game

[@tananario23]

@@michealgironimo603No. Next.

[@Gumnam-rt1co]

Can you tell me all places list of old Baghdad city remnants which are present in modern day .... ! Please

[@danidm5820]

"I'll be overly nice to the older games by ignoring them completely" is a level of shade I didn't expect from this video, but I appreciate.

[@edo.creative]

As someone who speaks hebrew, it was insane to suddenly hear it in the chatter while roaming the city. It was even better when i realized they had the same voice actress talking to herself

[@odd-eyes6363]

"Now I have to go back to being in shock that I actually like this game" -Blue and the entirety of the AC fanbase

[@pokeyscorpion8224]

Yeah speak for yourself

[@lizabee484]

I first fell in love with Islamic architecture and art when I studied the Moorish architecture of Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain for an art history class. I was absolutely floored by the mathematical and artistic intricacies of that building. Mirage giving me the opportunity to see so many of these pieces of art rendered in such high quality makes me positively giddy.

[@Sootielove]

Every time I've tried to research medieval cultures in the middle east, I found nothing but fetishised orientalism or complete nonsense. Even if Mirage isn't perfect, it really means a lot to have a game actually trying to show off an idea of what Baghdad might have been like without just being sexy bellydancers and evil muslims

[@standowner6979]

That just means that you haven't been doing good research on the topic

[@ceinwenchandler4716]

@@standowner6979 It could legit mean the original commenter just hasn't had time to dig through all the crap yet. Let me tell you, when you look into ANYTHING, you will find all sorts of off-topic nonsense, misinformation, oversimplified information, and the like, and it can take forever to filter it all out.

[@pippastrelle]

​@@standowner6979Historical research takes a degree of training. It's not uncommon for the average person to not be able to reach their depth or breadth, especially without access to academic resources

[@ungreatfulduck750]

@@standowner6979 I don´t think the comment is meant to be taken that literally, OP it´s just making a legit complain about one of the many cultures and time periods that get quite fictionally portrait. They could make the same comment on a plethora of other historicall cultures and doesn´t detract from the fact there maybe a good representation here and there. Sure, there´s some good documentaries on say Mayan culture, but most people would have acess to Apocalypto; that´s what OP is saying.

[@karandullet380]

I would've liked sexy bellydancers

[@qahari4307]

As a devout Muslim who is obsessed with the first 4 centuries of Islamic history, this game was my fever dream. The fact my boy Al-Jahiz (who low-key discovered natural selection years ahead of time) got a shout out. My only sadness is not getting to see Imam Ahmad ibn hanbal 🥲

[@MenaceGallagher]

Not touching on Ahmad Ibn Habal is probably a bullet dodged on Ubisoft's part. He's a complex figure to address in Islamic history and even if the game had done this well, being exposed to the "hot-takes" of Reddit denizens on him is something I'd be keen to avoid.

[@Ushmadand]

Im with you Qahari, but I agree with the above comment in how it’s better this way. I’d rather see no Imam Hanbal than one that would be critiqued by people who either don’t know much about him, have a personal grudge against his school of jurisprudence, or are misled by a Ubisoft depiction of him.

[@ayubk2638]

Yh its probably for the best that we don't see prominent scholars depicted, especially for entertainment purposes. But one the plus side, you can see NPCs praying according to the Hanbali fiqh

[@Obi-Wan_Kenobi]

@@MenaceGallagher Complex? The vast majority of Muslims love Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, I could only imagine a few fringe sects of Muslims disliking him. And as for the average non-Muslim Joe, they know nothing about him. I think so long as the game was respectful and didn't try to do a full historical deep dive on Imam ibn Hanbal they would have been ok. Like just do something to show he was there.

[@dudebro765]

Assassins were historically Shias, Fatimid Shias. I assume you guys are Sunni. You seriously wanted Ubisoft to take a Shiite approach to one of the Sunni madhab founders? Because honestly, I doubt you would have liked it if they portrayed how the historical Assassins would have reacted to, seen and thought of Hanbal...

[@foulplayer7812]

Hey Blue, would you consider doing a video on the history of museums? You love history and architecture, so why not highlight humanity's earliest effort to preserve and present history to the general populace. For instance, you could talk about the Ennigaldi-Nanna's museum, the world's earliest museum, dating from c. 530 BC and devoted to Mesopotamian antiquities. Or you could discuss the Capitoline Museum in Rome. You'd have a lot of options and famous buildings to explore.

[@saulwiner2999]

Ahh but let's not forget the looming specter of colonialism.

[@bazzfromthebackground3696]

Probably because most museums are just stolen shit, and the history of them is a history of plunder.

[@melowlw8638]

oh that wiuld be suh a long video but it would be interestibg to see him tackle it even tho the topics he's talked abt seem much more archeo oriented to me

[@Peecamarke]

Or like, how a lot of museums (esp during colonial period) stole and smuggled artifacts from others countries? 🤷🏿

[@berrie-nice-to-meet-you]

6:50 hold up, mentioning the Zanj rebellion reminds me of my favorite historical anecdote that I hope is in the game. During the Zanj rebellion, in the city of Baghdad, a serial killer was found with the bodies of several young women strangled in his house. They whipped him hundreds of times, but this didn't kill him, so they killed him by crushing his testicles with a log. I'm not making this up, I can give you a citation from al-Tabari. Please tell me that the serial killer is a mission in this game

[@KaiHung-wv3ul]

The last part is....strangely specific....why that of all forms of execution?

[@Noctuam734]

@@KaiHung-wv3ul probably humilation

[@itwasidio1736]

this is perhaps the most metal execution I've heard of, they really went "oh you like strangling, here, lemme show you what pressure feels like"

[@azure4100]

Maybe they assume he was a rapist, since his victims were girls? And they had to do something to appease the anger of public. Just an assumption.

[@HistoryMonarch1999]

The enthusiasm and care the developers in Ubisoft Bordeaux had made me want to buy it especially with Muslims talking about in detail about the representation. I mean I know about the flaws but I understand because of what they had to deal with, basically working with smaller time and working with Valhalla assets too

[@EvanHBogle]

Yeah for a game that was meant to be a dlc for Valhalla, it is pretty good.

[@stefanlamb1179]

To me, the crowning glory of Creed was the irl rebuilding of Notre Dame from game footage after the fire. That to me is the ultimate flex and should be the goal of these games every time... bringing museums to life, exploring architecture (by literally crawling all over it). Goofy conspiracy plotlines are secondary to experiencing the historical world.

[@OverlySarcasticProductions]

Unfortunately that never ended up happening. The scans and models Ubisoft took for Notre Dame were not useful to the reconstruction teams. Because of copyright, model detail, etc, the cathedral as it appears in Unity is not an appropriate facsimile of the original. Ubisoft did make a donation to the reconstruction, but the game assets are not being used. -B

[@BJGvideos]

​@@OverlySarcasticProductionsWait, copyright of Notre Dame? How would they have any claim like that?

[@ndstumme]

If Ubisoft doesn't recreate it perfectly, then they've made something new which can be copywrited.

[@reganator5000]

@@BJGvideos as mentioned they can't recreate a model of notredam and retain copyright. There is also SOME concern over the accurate representation of major public locations from people worried about them being used to prepare attacks or thefts, which could have been a factor (as most planning authorities get to keep a record of things like blueprint requests)

[@BJGvideos]

@@reganator5000 I would assume that a building as old as that would have very few design secrets from notes over the centuries

[@raguelelnaqum]

Another criticism that I'd point out is very integral the fact that most of the important Zanj characters were either Mesosemetic phenotype or Afro-Arabic, when not only was Eastern Africa far less interposed with Persiac, Indian & Arabic settlement during this period (outside of the coasts), when teh Zanj, who were very much predecessors to groups like the Habshi/Siddhi & Afro-Iraqi, were primarily taken from Nilotic, Pagan Kushitic, Kalenjin, South African, and Far East Cong-River Basin (Ugandan, Rwandan, etc) peoplegroups, with minority malgasy population also interspaced with them (mainly because most Malgasy groups at the time were collaborating with the Zanzibari slave network). These are peoples represent of some of the darkest phenotypes in Africa & most of them instead resemble modern Afro-Iraqi, who have had nearly a millennium of genetic drift & intermixing to look the way they do.

[@PK-ex6nf]

A lot of Zanj were Cushitic (Some non-Muslim Somali - remember this is the 8th century) and Ethiopic Semitic as well. But also many southern African groups as well, few Malagasy as this was a little early for Madagascar’s big connection with the Islamic world.

[@issacmontgomery5245]

Blue talking about assassins creed is how i wish teachers talked about literally anything

[@Neptune0404]

A few weeks ago I had a very lifelike dream where there was a E3-esc presentation, where a guy from Ubisoft announced that after the lackluster reception of Mirage, Ubisoft had decided to change course. He explained how for the next 4 years *minimum*, there would be no new AC games, instead they would be releasing remakes of the first 4 games. And at the same time, in the background, they would begin work on the next proper AC games in the form of a planned trilogy titled AC Empire, set during the rise of the Roman empire, and would see the player travel across the mediterranean in a full length story reminiscent of the Ezio saga... I woke up and was legitimately distraught that it was just a dream.

[@Stupidude666]

That would be awesome. I had the same type of thought, but instead have it place during the height of the Silk Road. If they could make maps as big as a whole country on PS4/Xbone generation, surely they could do continents on PS5/XSX generation

[@billywarren007]

It’s great to see the amount of research they put in for this game, the effort it must have taken to even get a grasp on pre-sack Baghdad layout must have been insane.

[@lysanamcmillan7972]

Lord, I love when you're happy with historical presentations. Makes the times they may have screwed up even more interesting. Also, points for saying "Baghdad" more accurately than most of us English speakers usually manage.

[@EPadraigM]

I love it when you can tell that actual passion is put into a game which is frankly quite rare nowadays.

[@omppusolttu5799]

POV: you only play AAA-games.

[@EPadraigM]

@omppusolttu5799 No, indie games have started being passionless too. Although the less passionate ones do tend to sell worse so that's good.

[@Kokong]

Name one indie game with less passion than Mirage. Except hello neighbor, perhaps@@EPadraigM

[@JJJBunney001]

​@omppusolttu5799 POV: you don't play enough games if you think it's just a AAA thing. Indy games as well as AA games, by number, are far more egregious for being pushed out cash grabs

[@LaZodiac]

I've heard nothing but praise for the historical realism in this game, and how even if it's not always accurate, it's got love and care put into it. And that's good. I also saw people commenting on that one guy who says he steals shoes from the Mosque and acting with bewilderment at this deranged behavior.

[@TheWatcher51393]

FINALLY...! The *one* Assassin's Creed: Mirage review that I've been waiting for before I decide whether or not to play the game!

[@AliDD-p2e]

is a middle eastern who loves history so much this channel became my favorite of how accurate and honesty blue and red talk about history you can see how both are very passionate when they talk about history very few could make me this impressed while talking about history I recommend this channel t9 anyone interested in history you won't be disappointed

[@jesustyronechrist2330]

I love these types of videos, because it shows that if you just have the passion and interest, there's NO EXCUSE to skimp out on the writing. Or maybe better word is "unfocused". Ubisoft definitely has, especially in regards to AC for a while now. They've been spreading their focus and vision into dozens of modular pieces with a general theme, but they don't utilize the time periods to their fullest. Notable people or events feel more like "requirements" everyone adds with a sigh, or at best almost like easter eggs.

[@Falconwing66]

I’m so glad AC isn’t afraid to be itself again after so long. It’s a fantastic step back in the right direction, it’s reinvigorated my passion for the series, and it’s just fun to play.

[@paultowl1963]

Thanks for the effort put into this review. I agree it was fun just to explore and listen.

[@1D991]

Currently downloading it, wasn't going to buy it but the fact they've gone back to realism instead of ridiculous anachronism got me interested. Also been playing since the original, looking forward to booting it up tonight~

[@Reveal_City]

Been waiting for this!!

[@TheRoseFrontier]

Oh wow this really does look beautiful!! I've never played Assassin's Creed, but I love hearing you talk about it. Really gives a lot of food for thought just for the game design aspect, and what it means to capture the spirit of an era and of a people in media...

[@ayubk2638]

One nice detail Ubisoft added to the game was the fact that the Adhaan for Fajr in game is different to the Adhaan for other prayers, which is accurate to real life. There's also NPCs who'll actually perform prayers, while facing the right direction.

[@tonyjoestar2632]

Hey Blue, I know it's been about a year I think since episode 41 of the OSPodcast, but I'm marathoning them on Spotify and can't leave a comment there. I really wanted to say how funny it was that you chose to finish your tests with a broken thumb instead using your off hand. Awesome video here too, so glad to see AC back to form.

[@JulianApostate]

Regarding Scandinavian temples and stave churches, there's actually quite a few scholars that claim stave churches are modelled on pre-Christian temple architecture. There are finds in southern Sweden (Scania/Skåne) and other places that support this

[@foggy8298]

I’d love this to become a series on this channel!

[@bazzfromthebackground3696]

At 4 or 5 videos isn't it already?

[@foggy8298]

@@bazzfromthebackground3696 shhhhhhhhhhh

[@nyxhighlander9894]

Would love to see Rome and Byzantium get this treatment

[@supremercommonder]

Isn’t ezio in both Rome and constinopal

[@lucasblaise11]

R/whoosh. It's ok bud

[@compatriot852]

I think a larger scale early Hellenistic period is a more fitting choice as it connects Odyssey to Origins. Plus Indo-Greeks and Bactria are a civilization that rarely gets representation

[@nyxhighlander9894]

@@supremercommonder yeah but give them the new artifacts and lets see Rome in its height during the 300s

[@supremercommonder]

@@compatriot852 would love that I live near texila In Pakistan where the indo Greek where as Buddhist

[@Nivom2233]

AC Mirage was wonderful to explore. It felt like the good old days. Highly recommend it to anyone who hasn't tried it yet.

[@compatriot852]

We've gotten Egypt, Greece, and now Islamic covered. Makes me wonder if they'll expand it to a wider scale by covering the wars of the Diadochi after Alexander the Great's death or the far off Indo-Greek kingdoms/Bactria

[@ΣτελιοςΠεππας]

The Diadochi wars are *way* too complicated to be covered in an AC game. Even a Game of Thrones type TV show would have a hard time doing it.

[@gamerin4d]

I'd love to see a game set in Gaul during or after the Roman invasion/subjugation

[@dajoker8998]

Egypt is Islamic 🗿

[@bunnywaffles1190]

So just to be clear, Blue IS recommeding that there is finaly a recent AC game that is worth buying, right? Because I have been burned before and my delicate heart hopes for a return to form.

[@OverlySarcasticProductions]

I truly did not expect to like this game, but I'm having a great time. Watch other reviews from creators whose opinions you value to build a better picture, but in my not-a-professional-games-journalist opinion, it's fun and I liked it quite a lot. -B

[@meurer13daniel]

the story is a mess but gameplay if quite fun. Best stealth in the franchise.

[@HeribertoEstolano]

I have two historian friends that are massive Assassin's Creed fans; one used lots of the games as an education complementary tool when he was a teacher (totay he does metalworking), the other used AC as an example of historical preservation in digital media for her Master Degree Thesis on Birmingham University 4 years BEFORE the Notredame Cathedral accident.

[@thejudgmentalcat]

Tbh, "The Mummy" 1999 got me interested in ancient Egyptian history, and I don't even mind that it wasn't very accurate 👍

[@mera-mori]

ah, blue and domes. how much fun was spotting all of them I wonder

[@jessicastrike5640]

Wonderful video Blue! I always love your AC content, I really enjoyed your detail diatribe but it would be great if you did a breakdown similar to this for the older games before origins as well

[@thewanderer5506]

Honestly my favorite part of Mirage was the codex covering aspects of life as well as historical places/people. I knew absolutely nothing about Islamic life B4 this game and it was great getting a peek at it.

[@tirdadkashani6690]

This game included so many Iranian things it blew my mind! On one hand I like that we’re getting all this publication. On the other I HATE that they are mixing so many innately and uniquely Iranian things with the Arabic world! From the architecture to nearly all the scientist, and even places like “Anbar”, “Carvanserai”, “Bazar”, “Alamut!!!” For context Alamut is nowhere near a dessert and in fact it’s very close to Tehran! Even some of the code names for the Order members where Iranian mythical creatures. And so many of the people we meet are Persian but they don’t look any different to the rest of the character designs! Some have the obvious accent but that’s not always the case… People in America already can’t differentiate Iranians from Arabs, and this definitely doesn’t help.

[@Bruce-itsbruce]

Alamut isn't on the game map and is just shown as somewhere in a mountainous area quite remote from Baghdad, requiring signifcant travel to get between them. *Some* of your other issues can be answered by Persian influence being very strong in early Abbasid Bagdhad; even though that alliance was much weakened by the time the game is set in, that mark was still there.

[@tirdadkashani6690]

@@Bruce-itsbruce I agree that they did a good job of showing Alamut is quite far from Baghdad, but I was mostly talking about the scene in the last mission where it seems there's a line where the desert ends and the mountains begin. That is NOT representative of the environment near there at all, there's so much greenery and grass fields everywhere. To your 2th point, the huge persian influence on the Abbasid khalifate is unfortunately remembered as "The Islamic Golden age", where thousands of years of knowledge and innovation from an ancient powerful Empire was stolen and rewritten in Arabic, along with all the new works of the academics of the time, most of whom were Iranian as you can even see in the game and in real life. However the architecture they took from us was mainly for military use and tactical fortification. Every home didnt have WindCatchers like the game showed! (Windcatchers are the earliest form of indoor cooling invented thousands of years ago by Iranians) romans had heating we had cooling lol

[@andrewmirror4611]

About that comment "we had to include everything because we may never get the chance to do it again" What a way to say Prince of Persia is dead dead for real now

[@KrMees]

Blue was probably so happy he could use the word Uchronia in a video again @ 4:46

[@pike7090]

Blue, if your interested in the folkloric feel of historical settings and creative anachronism, I’d love to here your opinion on the show Resurrection Ertugrul. It’s long, but pretty entertaining with a lot of content on pre-ottoman turkic tribes, focusing specifically on the Kayi

[@loglorn]

"Long" is a bit of an understatement lol that thing is massive. Couldn't bring myself to get through the plot even if i was interested in the historical tidbits and in how the turkish conceptualize the crusades.

[@SomasAcademy]

~4:21 I'm like 90% sure those are traditional pigeon lofts of a style seen in several parts of the Islamicate world including Egypt and the Arabian Peninsula, not "West African Minarets." I've seen a lot of West African minarets, and aside from also being made out of clay and having wooden beams sticking out, they don't particularly look like the things seen here, while the many holes in these structures are very characteristic of pigeon lofts.

[@jacklovejoy5290]

6:10 One egregious error, Hebrew was extinct as a spoken language at this point and had been since about the fifth century CE at the latest but was more likely extinct by the second century CE, Mizrahi Jews (the Jews of the Middle East) would have spoken Arabic in Arabic or Persian in Iran. It was only used as a liturgical language and was not revived until the 1800s by the Zionist movement. That's why Ashkenazi (European) Jews spoke Yiddish and Beta Israeli (Ethiopian) Jews spoke Amharic.

[@Ludohistory]

A fair correction! There was Aramaic text also rendered in the game, and I did think Hebrew endured alongside it, so that's on me. But there are buildings that are likely synagogues in the game world (though none explicitly identified as such), so hearing fragments of liturgical speech is still within the realm of possibility

[@glasgowblackchigowski6117]

i've been thouroughly immersed to a ridiculous degree in this game's setting depiction, it's so lively and artistic and full of wonders to see and examine, despite its faults and outdated game design it still offers a great experience for any one who's an assassin's creed enjoyer definitely

[@dancemacabre26]

The Arabic calligraphy hidden in the logo is sooo cool! man I love this series

[@kibathefang6022]

We already have upcoming games in Japan and China. Now I would want to see India next. Considering the Isu lore and with India having a lot of gods and goddesses as well, with also having a very large mythology, it would really be interesting.

[@Dzzy123]

Which era of India?

[@omershaik6374]

As a lover of history, i'm really excited for this game. As a jew with 3 out of 4 grandparents from Baghdad, i dread how ubisoft chose to show that history... Baghdad wasn't kind to the jews, especially at that time (the qhalif that died in 861 even ordered them to be marked with yellow badges). I hoped they had at least some actual iraqi jews on the team to approach the delicate subject of the jewish community in baghdad. But i am willing to bet they probably didn't

[@lwillpower]

Never played the discovery tours but i vividly remember reading every single codex entry in ACII as a kid, cannot be understated how valuable those are if done well

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

LOVED this game guys! Epic history tv videos helped me prepare!🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@eureka2694]

Thanks, I didn't know the game was out already. 6:21 I'll watch the rest later

[@paulm.8660]

One of my favorite things about ACII was the iption to switch the dialogue to Italian, which made the whole experience much more immersive (even allowing that modern Italian was only one dialect of the Romance languages spoken on the peninsula at the time). I'm thrilled that this new entry is in Arabic, with background characters speaking other languages as well

[@raarsi-dar]

I'm guessing when Ubisoft started their first games (and when they released Valhalla) that they weren't trying to go for National Geographic certification for historic accuracy.

[@hkleproductions]

fun fact: my old university tutor was one of the historical advisors for this game! Shout out to Glaire, she's so cool and so knowledgable!

[@Alex-ru4rv]

Ultimate Question: as someone who hasn't bought an Assassin's Creed game since Syndicate for obvious reasons, do you think there was an Anton Ego flashback moment to AC1 while playing this game?

[@llsilvertail561]

I’ve never play Assassin’s Creed but I can feel just how much relief you feel towards the history in this game XD

[@Basilililisk]

Yeeeeeaaaaaaah... this was a surprise considering how poorly the last game (valhalla) treated both the AC theme and norse history/mythology.

[@IvanMoncure]

on the topic of AC Valhalla, weren't the designs of Stave Churches inspired by Odinshof's that likely existed before them? I was under the impression that this style was adapted to suit local needs as they changed, not that it was some kind of an import from somewhere else in the world. After all, being such an elaborate style of construction you'd expect at least a few hundred years of prior architecture bridging the gap between very simple iron age structures and these complex pieces of carpentry and design.

[@mosesmm5473]

Still watching RadBrad's playthrough of it and I gotta say, it looks great. Makes me regret that I don't have a console anymore as this really reminds me of AC: Brotherhood, which is my favourite title in the series. The success of this game makes me hopeful that they'll make another one based in this era give or take a couple centuries-maybe even an AC based in India during the classical period and China during the Medieval period, or perhaps further back during the Warring States period.

[@rileyxsko]

One of the things I've loved most about AC games were the codex entries. I've literally read them all.

[@waberiibrahim6052]

Hello Blue, it seems to me that the term Zanj doesn't include the eastern African ( people from Ethiopia, Somalia, Eritrea and the likes...) but the Bantu people. Which are considered to be from a different ethno- cultural group. Apart from this minor detail, your video was awesome.

[@Ludohistory]

Unfortunately, that's not correct - al-Mas'udi's geography makes it really clear that the coast of Somalia and Kenya (i.e. Zanzibar) is the region medieval Arabic authors considered the zanj, and that Bantu peoples from the area that is now Mozambique, northern Madagascar, etc. were considered to be distinct from the Zanj. That being said, al=Tabari doesn't seem to use 'zanj' in a particularly systematic way, meaning that the enslaved rebels he identifies as zanj likely came from a much larger area than the geographical Zanj, and Bantu people could have been included.

[@JonCrs10]

Yeah, there's a reason why its called Zanzibar and its so far south im Africa after all

[@Ludohistory]

@@JonCrs10 er... I'll concede I erased about 100 miles of Tanzania, but the current city Dar es-Salaam is around the southern edge of what medieval authors considered the Zanj from what I've read, so no, it's not "so far south"?

[@waberiibrahim6052]

@@Ludohistory But Kenyan are considered part of the Bantu peoples. So the Zanj are mostly Bantu peoples.

[@xzodiayinzero5929]

​@@waberiibrahim6052Kenta has Nilotic and Bantu people.

[@kab6754]

I think Blue convinced me to give this game a try

[@alechs]

i really liked how it was possible to finish the game's story in a reasonable timeframe. like, i didn't need to play for 50 hours to leave what felt like the first act; and while i liked Odyssey and Valhalla, i haven't felt that way in a while.

[@antoniomoreira5921]

There's a very interesting video by Schwerpunkt on the historical "Assassins"

[@burnplaysgames]

Assassin's Creed genuinely makes some of the best, most historically and gameplay worthy maps I have ever played. Ubisoft really nails it each time.

[@theanimeunderworld8338]

I think it was said they'll use the data collected for the Unity game to rebuild Notre Dame

[@SuperRONDALE]

@@theanimeunderworld8338the last great assassins creed attempt by Ubisoft. Everything else has been safe, cookie cutter and just bad gameplay

[@Ludohistory]

@@theanimeunderworld8338 This is actually untrue - due to copyright and memory requirements the Notre Dame in AC Unity is not close enough to the actual building to be useful for the rconstruction. Ubisoft offered the data, but the French government and reconstruction team declined.

[@pokeyscorpion8224]

@@theanimeunderworld8338Yeah that didn't actually happen, but Ubisoft did make a donation to the rebuilding effort

[@everestjarvik5502]

I had no idea there was a new AC game until i saw the thumbnail for this video 😮 I can’t wait to play it (in a couple years when it gets cheaper haha)

[@Bruce-itsbruce]

It's already cheaper than their regular games, but some people are getting it for less than a third of the price by starting a Ubisoft Plus account, which lets you play the game for no extra charge, and then cancelling it.

[@robertprueter3292]

Anytime a high profile, popular media (nonetheless a video game) treats non western cultures with genuine grace and respect makes me happy. I have never cared for or about the Assassin Creed games, but that this does a good job of representing the feel of old Baghdad and Islamic culture is an absolute win. Good job Ubisoft (don't get used to the praise).

[@runningthemeta5570]

Even despite it’s problems, I still really liked Mirage. I liked that it was a return to form for Assassins Creed.

[@timelesskiwihistory]

100% agree with everything here! Yea, there are some creative liberties take (and I do have some major gripes with how al-Mutawakkil's death played out), but Mirage does the best job at portraying history of any Assassin's Creed game imo.

[@MM-du7je]

they never examine the zanj rebellion because the devs went out of their way to not include anything that might be viewed as even slightly critical

[@dr.zoidberg8666]

It's a lose-lose proposition. They'd have conservatives crying about the game being "woke" & "too political" & they'd have progressives hyper-focusing on whatever they get wrong or gloss over.

[@theanimeunderworld8338]

We got so many domes in this game Who's found the Dome of the Ass?

[@unicorntomboy9736]

I cannot wait for AC Red in 2024, which is (finally) going to tackle Feudal Japan, which is something I have been wanting for years I sn most interested in when exactly it takes place. I think Heian period Japan would be the most compelling Edit: Alternatively,1590-1600 Japan would be a perfect period to explore too

[@projectportal7284]

I just finished the game and that ending kinda pissed me off. Compared to Valhalla, this didn't cone close. Both interns of story or scale. I got Syndicate vibes from the world, which I love but also, isn't this guy meant to be a secret villain in the last game? I thought we'd get an anti hero game from this. Not exactly the angle, nor ending I hoped for. Kinda likeable main character nonetheless

[@lochness5524]

I feel like to help with this, we’d need a new game to bridge the gap between Loki’s awakening and him meeting Sigurd, so we can see him develop into the character he was by the events of Valhalla

[@darthplagueis13]

I'm kind of looking forward to see what they do with their next game. From what I understand one of the titles they're working on for their whole Infinity thing, codenamed "Project Hexe" is going to be set in the Holy Roman Empire in the 16th Century, which just so happens to be a setting that I actually do know a little bit about. It's also going to be interesting because apparently they want to adress the topic of witch hunts, which is a bit of a loaded topic. I'm interested to see their take on religion and faith at the time. It's very easy to present witch hunters as just these murderous hateful bigots, but I'd be interested in seeing the elements represented that even allowed the witch panics to spiral so much out of control in the first place, the fears and concerns of people going through a very dangerous and difficult period, trying to find a cause for the devastation that was wrought upon the general populace by a variety of unfortunate factors. A Witch Hunter who does what he does because he genuinely believes that he is protecting the innocent from evil magics and satanic cult worship is a far more interesting character than one who does what he does because he hates women and wants to burn them at the stake. Also, if we don't get a glorious, flaboyant, puffy slashed outfit for our Assassin I'm going to riot. 16th century HRE has literally all of the drip, at least if you're a Landsknecht.

[@zicuvalentin2251]

Next game A.C is more INTERESTING because is creator of ODYSSEY

[@felisasininus1784]

The Chinese voice acting for ambient characters in this game varies greatly in quality and is generally hilarious, in one way or another. 😂

[@DrewTrox]

I really liked the museum mode on Odyssey. Do they still do that?

[@Ludohistory]

The historical codex entries they have in the main game use the lessons they learned from Discovery Tour, but no dedicated Discovery Tour mode has been announced for Mirage (one did exist for Valhalla). I hope they make one though!

[@grayrook8637]

Ya know what good for them to make this video now. I am sure this is not intended given the situation of Israel, Blue is just reviewing a game but it is nice that a voice can celebrate the historical impact of Islam and remind us it is a whole world beyond the more violent elements worth talking about and loving.

[@Primaeros]

> glances over at a city in a bottle over in The Dreaming hold up-

[@senku3402]

Ac mirage might get a dlc, if your at the home page it says there’s going to be available content, I’m excited for more ac mirage 😮

[@Devadas44]

Huh, as someone who's only played 3-4 games, i feel like giving this a go.

[@Astra7525]

"What? Ubisoft draping their game in the clothes and symbols of actual political movements while pointedly avoiding to say anything about the peoples whose skins they picked to wear?? Perish the thought..."

[@folkloric3059]

The history was definitely the strongest part of the game. It was fun learning and seeing these historical sites and institutions. But damn was the story, gameplay, graphics, and especially acting performances bad.

[@itwasidio1736]

you're right about the story but the stealth gameplay is actually pretty good if you don't count the.... teleportation mechanic

[@iyousef46]

Well done Blue, I admire the extent of your knowledge.

[@rabidtred2783]

Wait a minute. This is the first time ive ever actually read the codex in any ac game and they speak of the Zanj rebellion. Its not shown in gameplay but they do tell you in the menu.

[@andrewmahaffy5802]

Blue, I'd love to see you do a video or something on various Japanese castles, like Himeji Castle (as an example). Maybe do it with a guest like Gaijin Goomba or something.

[@jerryy2081]

I have to say in defense of the use of stave style temples in Valhalla, while there is no evidence to suggest these were exact, it is still historically sound to suggest that Norse temples may have been built in such a way. European churches share many architectural similarities, especially that of the basilica. With how unique the stave design is, it's theorized that they were possibly styled similar to pagan temples given the lack of available local resources to produce traditional stone works seen throughout the rest of Europe. Coupled with how Christianity has a tendency to wipe away pagan history and how flammable a Norwegian stave church is, it would suggest that any archeological evidence of pagan staves has simply been destroyed. It's a little unfair to criticize filling in the gaps of one setting, but not extend this to other. Historical accuracy is a near impossible task, but historical soundness, I would argue, has been achieved in both entries

[@pymandres]

reminds me of farya faraji’s video about norse music, where he points out that vikings would have looked like other northern europeans before and after christianization, despite the trend of making them look like vaguely shamanistic native american snow people

[@adil0028]

To the KZbinr, minarets are present across Islamic history all over the world, and those rounded domes you called Taj Mahal-ish? They were inspired from Uzbekistan architecture, which is honestly the closest we can get to Bagdhad-esque style city in this age.

[@Gwalchmai1793]

AC has generally been poor when using the historical context for their plot. Unity is the worst: it never used the context of French Revolution just to make a Romeo and Juliet love story. It's always disappointing

[@johncliffalvarez6513]

Awesome! I need to play this version.

[@davidhaas3111]

I’d love to see one of these videos made about AC1

[@smoltaengoo]

really cool game probably the most ive enjoyed since rogue

[@LujeAldwald]

My gods! Yesss I'm so excited

[@Rukdug]

I am so incredibly happy and honestly surprised that the Zanj and the Nestorians were included in this game, and I know most games wouldn't include them.

[@NathanS__]

*UCHRONIA!* that's the word! I've been trying to remember that damned word ever since Red mentioned it on a podcast episode that I couldn't refind. Uchronia.

[@pike7090]

Spoilers for the end of Mirage: . . . . . . . . . . . . . When Basim discovers what’s under Alamut, and connects with the precursor Isu side of himself- the way they speak to each other, and connect reminds me a lot of how Sufi writing and philosophy treat oneness with god- I’m no expert on the subject and am not a Sufi myself, so I can’t elaborate, but it was very interesting how they played out that last part