You’re standing on a hay bale. The wind is howling. Below you, a guard walks a predictable path, unaware that a hooded figure is about to ruin his Tuesday. If you’ve played even ten minutes of this franchise, you know the feeling. But trying to play all of the assassin's creed games in order is a nightmare task because Ubisoft loves to jump around time like a caffeinated history professor.
Most people think you should just follow the release dates. Others argue for a chronological timeline that starts in Ancient Greece and ends in Victorian London. Honestly? Both ways have their merits, but if you don't understand how the "Modern Day" story ties the historical bits together, you’re basically just playing a very expensive tourism simulator.
Let's break down the chaos.
The Desmond Saga: Where It All Began
Back in 2007, the first Assassin’s Creed felt like magic. You were Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad during the Third Crusade. It was clunky. The missions were repetitive. Yet, the parkour changed everything. You weren't just playing as a medieval hitman; you were Desmond Miles, a bartender trapped in a high-tech bed called the Animus.
Then came Ezio Auditore da Firenze.
Assassin’s Creed II, Brotherhood, and Revelations are often called the "Ezio Trilogy," and for good reason. We watched this guy grow from a cocky teenager in Renaissance Italy to a weary Mentor in Constantinople. This is the peak of the "Social Stealth" era. You blended into crowds, hired thieves to distract guards, and renovated Rome. If you're looking at all of the assassin's creed games in order, this is the heart of the franchise. It’s where the lore about the "First Civilization" (the Isu) actually started making sense—well, as much sense as ancient holographic aliens can make.
The American Saga and the Kenway Bloodline
Ubisoft shifted gears with Assassin’s Creed III. We moved to the American Revolution. We met Connor (Ratonhnhaké:ton), who was… moody. People hated him at the time because he wasn’t Ezio. Looking back, he’s one of the most tragic, complex protagonists in the series. This game introduced naval combat, which was a total gamble that paid off massively.
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Enter Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.
Edward Kenway isn't even an Assassin for 80% of the game. He’s a pirate who stole a dead man’s suit. It’s arguably the best game in the series. It’s definitely the most fun. You sail the Caribbean, sing sea shanties, and hunt legendary ships. It felt less like a stealth game and more like a grand adventure. Then came Rogue, which flipped the script. You played as Shay Patrick Cormac, an Assassin who defected to the Templars. It’s short, but it’s the only time we really got to see the "villains" as the protagonists. It bridges the gap between the pirate era and the French Revolution.
The Unity and Syndicate Era: Peak Parkour
If you want to see what a "next-gen" Assassin’s Creed looks like, you look at Unity. It launched as a broken, buggy mess in 2014. It was a disaster. But today? After all the patches? It’s arguably the most "Assassin" the series has ever been. The recreation of Paris is staggering. The parkour is fluid, stylish, and hasn't been topped since.
Syndicate took us to Industrial Revolution London. You played as twins, Jacob and Evie Frye. It added a grappling hook, which was basically cheating, but it made navigating the massive streets of London bearable. It was the last of the "old school" games before the series took a massive break to reinvent itself.
The RPG Rebirth: Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla
Ubisoft realized people were getting bored of the same loop. So, they went full RPG.
Assassin’s Creed Origins took us to Ancient Egypt. We met Bayek of Siwa, the literal founder of the Hidden Ones. The map was huge. You had levels. You had loot with different rarities. It felt more like The Witcher than Assassin's Creed.
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Then Odyssey happened.
Ancient Greece. No hidden blade for the main character (Kassandra or Alexios). You were a mercenary with a literal piece of an Isu artifact. Some fans hated it because it felt "too fantasy." You were fighting Medusa and Minotaurs. But as a game? It’s a masterpiece of scale. Valhalla followed, putting you in the boots of Eivor, a Viking invader in England. It’s a massive, 100-hour slog that dives deep into the mythology of the Isu, finally connecting the dots of the modern-day plot that had been dangling for a decade.
The Return to Roots: Mirage
After the gargantuan scale of Valhalla, fans screamed for something smaller. Assassin’s Creed Mirage was the answer. It’s a love letter to the first game. You play as Basim in 9th-century Baghdad. No massive skill trees, no 100-hour map. Just a city, a target, and a blade. It showed that there’s still a massive appetite for the classic stealth-heavy gameplay that started it all.
Chronological Order vs. Release Order
If you’re a completionist trying to tackle all of the assassin's creed games in order, you have a choice to make. Do you follow the history or the technology?
The Chronological Timeline (History-First):
- Odyssey (431 BC)
- Origins (49 BC)
- Mirage (861 AD)
- Valhalla (872 AD)
- Assassin’s Creed (1191 AD)
- The Ezio Trilogy (1459–1512 AD)
- Black Flag (1715 AD)
- Rogue (1752 AD)
- Assassin’s Creed III (1754 AD)
- Unity (1789 AD)
- Syndicate (1868 AD)
The Release Date Order (Evolution-First):
This is how most veterans played them. You see the mechanics grow. You see the modern-day story featuring Desmond, then the nameless Abstergo employee, then Layla Hassan, unfold naturally. If you play chronologically, the modern-day story will be a confusing, disjointed mess.
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Why the Modern Day Story Still Divides Fans
Look, let’s be real. Half the people playing these games groan every time they get pulled out of the Animus. "I just want to be a ninja," they say. But the modern-day plot is the literal "why" behind everything.
In the beginning, it was a race against a 2012 apocalypse. Later, it became a corporate thriller about Abstergo (the Templars) trying to control human consciousness. By the time we get to the "RPG Trilogy," it’s about preventing the literal collapse of the world’s magnetic field. It’s weird. It’s high-concept sci-fi. But it’s the glue. Without it, the games are just unconnected historical vignettes.
The Nuance of "Spin-offs"
We can't talk about the order without mentioning the smaller entries. Assassin's Creed Liberation was originally a Vita game starring Aveline de Grandpré—the first female protagonist. It’s great but small. Then there’s the Chronicles trilogy (China, India, Russia). These are 2.5D side-scrollers. They aren't "essential" for the main plot, but if you love the lore, the Russia entry is particularly cool for its tie-in to the modern era.
What Most People Miss About the Lore
The biggest misconception is that the Assassins are the "good guys" and the Templars are "evil." It's more nuanced than that. The Assassins value absolute free will, which often leads to chaos. The Templars value order and peace, which often leads to tyranny.
The games that explore this grey area—like Assassin’s Creed III and Rogue—are often the most intellectually satisfying. They force you to wonder if the Assassins are actually making the world worse by killing everyone in power.
Next Steps for Your Playthrough:
If you are planning to dive into the series for the first time, or if you're returning after a long break, do not try to play every single game back-to-back. You will burn out by the time you reach the third game. Instead, follow these phases:
- Phase 1: The Foundations. Play AC II and Black Flag. These represent the two "pillars" of the series (urban stealth and open-world exploration). If you don't like these, the rest of the series won't win you over.
- Phase 2: The Modern Evolution. Skip to Origins. It’s the best entry point for the modern RPG style and tells a fantastic standalone story about grief and vengeance.
- Phase 3: The Purist Experience. If you want the "real" Assassin feel, play Unity (for the parkour) or Mirage (for the classic stealth).
For those who care about the overarching narrative, keep a wiki page open for the "Modern Day" summaries. The games often do a poor job of explaining what happened in the previous entry’s present-day segments, especially if you haven't played the DLC. Stick to the release order if you want the narrative to make sense, but feel free to skip the original 2007 game if the clunky controls frustrate you—the "Ezio Trilogy" recap in AC II covers almost everything you need to know.