Is Assassin’s Creed Mirage (AC Mirage) Worth Buying?

Assassin’s Creed Mirage (AC Mirage) is here, and it’s a decidedly different to the last few AC entries. But, while there’s been plenty of praise for the game, some have also criticised it as feeling dated. So is AC Mirage actually worth buying?

What You Should Know Before Buying Assassin’s Creed Mirage

The first thing to understand about AC Mirage is that the story is not great. I’m not a huge fan of the series’ framing story, but more often than not, the historical story has me hooked. Here? The world is gorgeous, and it does feel like you’ve been thrust back in time.

But as a character, Basim isn’t the most interesting AC protagonist. And the Animus story? It doesn’t really add much to AC’s already sprawling story. In short, if you’re going to be buying AC Mirage for the story, be prepared for disappointment.

Related: When Assassin’s Creed Mirage Takes Place in the Timeline

Once you’re past that, you’ll have a blast with AC Mirage’s sneakery and stabbing. It was the right move to draw upon the older AC games and not being able to flee to another region dials up the tension. It’s activities feel more streamlined, as does the game as a whole.

Combat is fine but you rarely feel like you could take on the whole world. You’re a badass, but not an AC Odyssey level badass. And because of that, stealth is more important than ever. You’re not going to be going around Sparta kicking enemies off cliffs.

It didn’t feel dated to me, possibly because the original Assassin’s Creed was my introduction to the series. But if you started with Odyssey or Valhalla you could miss some of those games’ features, Sparta kicking, XP-based levelling and so on.

Our sister site Destructoid called it “.. the best assassin simulator yet. Scaling the beautifully architectures buildings in Baghdad is peak Assassin’s Creed.” I’m sure Agent 47 might have issues with the former statement. But this is a gorgeous, neatly packaged game, an excellent stealth actioner, trimmed of previous games’ bloat. And above all, it’s fun.

So is Assassin’s Creed Mirage worth buying? If you can live with the story being so-so, then yes, it absolutely is at the launch price point of $49.99 USD. Whether future games should head in the same direction, well, that’s an argument for another day.

If you’re looking for more on the game, check out how to reduce your wanted level in AC Mirage.