Assassin’s Creed Odyssey has been officially confirmed today by Ubisoft and we shall know more about it next week when E3 2018 starts. We already know that the upcoming Assassin’s Creed title will be set in ancient Greece, where in the country’s mythological and historical events does Odyssey fit in though?
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey has been officially confirmed today by Ubisoft and we shall know more about it next week when E3 2018 starts. We already know that the upcoming Assassin’s Creed title will be set in ancient Greece, where in the country’s mythological and historical events does Odyssey fit in though?
We have two theories, one mythological and one historic, that might fit the setting and story of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey:
Homer’s Odyssey And The Trojan War
If you just take the name of the next installation in the Assassin’s Creed franchise, Odyssey, refers to an ancient mythological story-poem by Homer. Homer is the legendary writer of Iliad and Odyssey, which follow the events and aftermath of the Trojan War (can be seen in the movie Troy).
The Iliad is set during the Trojan War, the siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek kingdoms. It focuses on a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles lasting a few weeks during the last year of the war. The Odyssey focuses on the journey home of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, after the fall of Troy.
As you can see, Odysseus could be a key factor if Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is what it seems to be. There’s a problem here though, if you want to fit an Assassin’s Creed game somewhere in history then you need different places and lots of land. Homer’s Odyssey is mostly about Odysseus naval journey back to Ithaca, which means that if the game is set in that time of history then a lot of water will be featured in it, making the game extremely linear.
Odysseus journey is one of the most iconic and interesting stories in the Greek mythology, featuring Cyclopses, Gorgons, Women-only islands and more. The Odyssey has seen many movies around it in the past but is one of those stories that could use a decent video game title to portray it.
Sparta and the origin of the Hidden Blade
Another theory suggests that Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is indeed tied to Origins but not as a sequel but a prequel of shorts. Let me explain; After you meet with Aya again in Origins as Bayek, she entrusts you with a hidden blade that she says was used to kill Xerxes, a Persian King whose name is strongly tied to greek history. In this theory, we suggest that Odyssey is set in Sparta before the Persian war, much like we’ve previously seen in the movie 300.
One thing to support this is the short clip revealed by Activision today, showing the famous “This Is Sparta” killing kick that we’ve seen in 300. This also helps the hidden blade theory, which could make complete sense since the developers of the franchise are now taking us deep into history to experience the creation of the Brotherhood and the Templars. The keychain which leaked yesterday doesn’t offer much of an exposition in that aspect since almost all ancient Greek helmets used the same pattern, however, it could resemble a Spartan “perikefalea”.
This theory is the most logical one even though it is way too obvious. If this comes to be true, then we are caught between the Persian-Greek war and especially the war of Thermopylae which is one of the most iconic greek battles. Center of attention on the greek side is the general Leonidas and King Xerxes (which we mentioned above and was killed by a hidden blade used in Origins).
The historic part of Xerxes’ death is not that obvious, even though his eldest son Darius (seen in Brotherhood as the first user of the hidden blade) as the mastermind behind his father’s assassination.
Caesar and Greek-Roman Era
Another short and less likely possible theory about the setting of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is that of the gap between Caesar’s leave from Egypt and his assassination. In the four years of that gap, Caesar was the center of several battles in Greece with the biggest one being the battle of Pharsalus. Another big confrontation has taken place in Greece with some of the Origins’ characters present. naval battle of Actium. In the latter, Cleopatra was also present who sent her own fleet to support the Roman side which took place after Caesar’s assassination.
This theory seems way too specific and too “war based” to be an Assassin’s Creed title. However, when the upcoming title was first teased, the Twitter post showed a picture of Meteora which is one of the places Caesars passed from and is actually closed to when his biggest battle took place. This seems too far-fetched, however, we’re looking at theories here so everything is worth mentioning.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey doesn’t have much information yet, so seeing things from a historical point is the only way to make sense of it. Even though the name “Odyssey” may be tied to Homer’s poem, it is often used as a synonym for “Struggle” so any era in ancient Greece could be legit in that aspect. For what it’s worth we’ll be able to stop speculating in a week when E3 2018 officially starts and the setting of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey will be finally revealed.
