Honestly, most Assassin’s Creed games are about feeling like a superhero in a historical playground. You’ve got the hidden blades, the flashy parkour, and the satisfaction of taking down a corrupt pope or a greedy industrialist. But then there’s Assassin's Creed Jack the Ripper.
Released in December 2015 as a standalone expansion for Syndicate, this thing didn't just add a few missions. It completely flipped the script. It traded the sun-drenched rooftops and brawling gangs of 1868 London for something much darker, much grittier, and—if we're being real—downright disturbing. It’s been years, and yet, the way Ubisoft handled the "Autumn of Terror" still stands out as one of the most atmospheric pivots in the entire franchise.
The Setup: 1888 and a Very Different London
Twenty years. That’s how much time passes between the end of the main game and the start of the DLC. Jacob and Evie Frye aren't those cocky, bickering twins anymore. They’re in their 40s. Jacob has been trying to keep the London Brotherhood afloat, while Evie has been off in India, learning new techniques from the Assassins there.
But London has changed. The Industrial Revolution’s shiny veneer has rubbed off, leaving behind the soot and misery of Whitechapel. When you step into this version of the city, the color palette is drained. It’s grey, oppressive, and foggy. The "Rooks," the gang you spent dozens of hours building up in the base game? They’ve been co-opted. They aren't your allies anymore; they’ve fallen under the influence of the Ripper.
Who is Jack the Ripper in Assassin's Creed?
The game doesn’t leave you guessing for long, but it takes a massive swing with the lore. In this universe, Jack isn't just some random psychopath. He was one of Jacob Frye’s own initiates.
Imagine that. You spend the main game "liberating" the city, only to realize you accidentally trained a monster.
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Jack was a boy Jacob rescued from the Lambeth Asylum—a place where he’d been traumatized after his mother was murdered by Templar lackeys. Jacob thought he was saving the kid by bringing him into the Brotherhood. Instead, he gave a broken, unstable mind the tools of a master assassin. Jack eventually saw the Creed as a failure, believing Jacob was too soft and that the only way to truly "fix" the world was through pure, unadulterated terror.
Playing as the Villain: A Risky Narrative Move
One of the most polarizing things about Assassin's Creed Jack the Ripper is that you actually play as him. Ubisoft didn't just make him a boss at the end of a corridor.
You inhabit his mind.
These segments are... well, they’re a lot. The screen distorts, words start flickering across your vision, and you hear Jack’s internal monologue—a rambling, chaotic mess of resentment and madness. While Evie’s gameplay focuses on non-lethal "Fear" tactics (she uses non-lethal spikes and smoke to scare guards away), Jack’s version of the Fear system is lethal and brutal. He doesn't just kill; he "slaughters" to send a message. It’s a bold choice that makes the player feel genuinely uncomfortable, which is exactly what a story about the world's most infamous serial killer should do.
The Fear System: How the Mechanics Changed
In the base game, combat was basically a rhythm-based slugfest. In the DLC, it’s all about psychological warfare.
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Evie brings back "fear" techniques from India. You get tools like:
- Fear Bombs: These let out a screeching noise and a puff of smoke that sends enemies into a panic.
- Spikes: You can pin an enemy to the ground with a massive spike, which scares the living daylights out of their buddies.
- Brutal Takedowns: These are context-sensitive finishers that are so intense they can make an entire squad of guards drop their weapons and run away.
It changes the flow of the game. Instead of having to kill every single guard in a restricted area, you can strategically terrify one or two, and the rest will clear out for you. It felt like Ubisoft was experimenting with something deeper—a precursor to the more complex systems we’d see in later RPG-style entries.
Fact vs. Fiction: What the DLC Gets Right
Ubisoft is usually pretty good at the history side of things, even when they’re shoving secret societies into the mix. They worked closely with historical records of the 1888 murders.
- The Victims: The game acknowledges the "Canonical Five" victims, like Mary Jane Kelly and Annie Chapman. However, in a clever bit of "AC logic," it posits that these women were actually members of the Brotherhood who were trying to stop Jack.
- The Crime Scenes: The recreation of Mary Jane Kelly’s room at 13 Miller’s Court is hauntingly accurate to the actual police photographs from 1888. It’s a somber moment in the game that reminds you that, despite the sci-fi framing, this was a real tragedy.
- Abberline: Detective Frederick Abberline, the real-life lead investigator on the Ripper case, returns as your primary contact. The game portrays him as a man at his wit's end, caught between a panicked public and a killer he can't catch without Evie's help.
Why It Still Matters Today
People often overlook Syndicate because it came out right before the series went full RPG with Origins. But Assassin's Creed Jack the Ripper proved that the old "Black Box" mission design and social stealth could still feel fresh if the atmosphere was right. It’s a horror game disguised as an action-adventure.
It also gave Evie Frye the spotlight she deserved. While Jacob was the "face" of the main game, Evie is the soul of the DLC. Seeing her as an older, wiser, and more lethal woman taking on her brother’s greatest mistake is a great character arc. It's rare to see a female protagonist in gaming allowed to age and remain just as capable—if not more so—than her younger self.
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Ready to Revisit Whitechapel?
If you're looking to dive back into this specific chapter, here are a few things to keep in mind:
First, make sure you've actually finished the main campaign of Syndicate. The emotional weight of the DLC relies entirely on your connection to Jacob and Evie. Without that, the "betrayal" of the Rooks and the fall of Jacob's initiate won't hit nearly as hard.
Second, pay attention to the environment. Ubisoft hid a ton of detail in the "Ripper Letters" and the newspaper clippings scattered around. These small bits of world-building bridge the gap between the historical reality of 1888 and the fictionalized struggle of the Assassins.
Lastly, don't rush the "Fear" tutorials. The system can feel a bit clunky at first if you try to play it like a standard AC game. Once you start leaning into the psychological aspect—using the environment to terrify your enemies rather than just stabbing them—the DLC really comes into its own. It’s about control, not just combat.
Grab the DLC as part of the Syndicate Season Pass or as a standalone purchase. It’s usually on sale for a few bucks during Ubisoft publisher events, and for the atmosphere alone, it’s worth every penny. Just... maybe leave the lights on for the final mission in the asylum. It gets weird.