‘Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India’ Out This January 12! Next Chronicles in Series Gets Out On February
Just as Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China was rolled out, fans have been wondering if Ubisoft will feature different versions as well.
Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China is a 2.5D adventure game about Shao Jun. Fortunately, Aymar Azaizia, Head of Content at Ubisoft Montreal, confirmed that Shao Jun will be joined by two more local heroes.
“We’re talking about Chronicles, plural,” said Azaizia.
For Assassin’s Creed comics readers, it will not be difficult to guess who the new stars will be. The two other Chronicles will be about India and Russia. The Chinese version focuses on Shao Jun during the Sikh Empire in 1841. The Russian version will be about Nikolai Orelov facing challenges during the post-revolutionary Russia in 1918. Then, Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India will be about Arbaaz Mir in Amritsar 1841.
The Story of Arbaaz Mir
Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India is a single-player game. It is expected to be released on Xbox One, PS4, PC, and PS Vita on January 12 for both the U.S. and U.K. The PS Vita launch will be on April 5.
Arbaaz Amir will be battling for his nation as the war between the Sikh Empire and the East India Company continues. Arbaaz Amir should retrieve the prized Koh-i-Noor diamond, an essential Piece of Eden that belonged to the Assassin Brotherhood. He will be stealing it from the Master Templar.
Aside from getting the diamond, Arbaas Amir will need to protect Hamid, his mentor, and Princess Pyara Kaur, his lover.
The Next Chronicles, Russia
Nikolai Orelov will be the main character for Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: Russia. The storyline will be an intersection of the events in Assassin’s Creed: The Fall and Assassin’s Creed: The Chain. Nikolai Orelov had to leave his family to finish his final assignment for the Assassin Order.
Nikolai Orelov’s final task is to steal a rare artifacts from the Bolsheviks. He was in the middle of his mission when he witnessed the murder of Nicholas II’s children. Nicholas II, or Nikolai Aexandrovich, was the last Tsar of Russia. He was the Grand Prince of Finland and the king of Poland.
Nikolai Orelov was able to save Princess Anastasia. He tried to protect her and the artifact and escaped from the Templars.
Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: Russia will be out for Xbox One, PS4 and PC on Feb. 9.
Innovative Gaming and Contemporary Illustration
Assassin’s Creed Chronicles Art Director Glenn Brace noted that the entire series would be very illustrative and cohesive. They tried to revisit the past decades and centuries to really get accurate representations of the different eras.
Brace also said that the 2D illustration has allowed them to integrate the contemporary Chinese ink which demonstrates Shao Jun’s character.
“Russia’s really exciting. It’s 20th century, so we have photography, graphics, poster art, constructivism, and we fused all those together to achieve an even more stark contrast to the other episodes,” added Brace.
With India, they had to get inspiration from the 19th century British journalistic imagery.
“We took influence from lithographs. Color was a key component; we boosted that, and we mixed some Sikh-influenced patterns into the world,” says Brace. “So again, it’s a fusion of a traditional medium of the period with a very modern, contemporary take.”
They also highlighted the important color schemes of each chronicle. With China, the stealth theme was very evident. India has some bright red and yellow colors. They also had to add splashes of color whenever Arbaaz Mir swings his sword.
Assassin’s Creed Chronicles can be played in order or not, but Ubisoft is giving an incentive for those who have finished the three.
Lead Game Designer Xavier Penin said there will be a narrative linking between the games.
“As [the games] have to be independent, it’s not huge. It’s not central, but it’s there, especially for the fans. And if you finish Russia, and you’ve played the other two, there’s a special ending that’s really interesting for the fans and ties the Chronicles together.”
[Image via Chesnot, Getty Images.]
