Art is defined as the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination to be appreciated primarily for beauty or emotional power. Typically, when one thinks of traditional art forms, paintings and sculptures are the first things to come to mind. However, over time, other mediums have been accepted under the art umbrella. Music, literature, and photography have, over time, been lumped into the art category and, most recently, movies and television have joined the ranks. Now, in the 21stcentury, we have a new medium that is just as large and impactful as those previously mentioned: video games.
Compared to the other forms of art mentioned, video games are most like movies and television. They combine elements of other art forms to create a new type of art. The difference between video games and movies and television, though, is how they are consumed. The participatory nature of videogames allows consumers to take a more active role in the way they interact with this particular art form. After all, they are games, but they sometimes are much more. In this piece, I examined a specific game whose artistic qualities reach this higher plain. Today’s game is Assassin’s Creed: Origins.
REINVENTING A FRANCHISE
The Assassin’s Creed franchise has been around for many years and admittedly I have not played the majority of the titles. Origins was my introduction to the franchise and it instantly made me a fan. I know that many consider Assassin’s Creed II to be the best the series has to offer and that there are a lot of Assassin’s Creed fans who don’t actually consider Origins an AC game because of the changes Ubisoft made to the gameplay formula. However that is the very reason why Origins is special.
Before its reinvention, Assassin’s Creed had a very specific gameplay style. For the most part, players were meant to be stealthy and clever. The player character was never meant to be a powerful warrior that could take on a bunch of enemies in a strait up fight. They could easily be overwhelmed if not careful. There was usually only one-way to approach situations: the assassin way. Origins changed this, however, by adding play style options all the while keeping a lot of what made Assassin’s Creedpopular in the first place. There were also many more RPG elements in terms of items and gear customization, which added more personalization for each player’s interpretation of Bayek, the main character.
There was also a new skill tree system implemented with three distinct branches: warrior, hunter, and seer. These branches gave unique abilities, most new to the franchise, and they allowed for very different play styles depending on what combination of abilities the player chose. These changes were necessary to revitalize a franchise that has been around for more than a decade. And while all of these changes seem like simple tweaks, they were necessary in order to accommodate Assassin’s Creed: Origins’ setting.
THE GLORY OF ANCIENT EGYPT
Ancient Egypt is what truly makes this game spectacular. In the age of modern gaming, there are many vast and intricate virtual worlds that have been created, so many in fact that they have become somewhat of a standard and sometimes an afterthought. In Assassin’s Creed: Origins, however, the landscape takes center stage. When Bayek hits a sync point and the camera rises into the sky to slowly spin around and show you all that’s around, you are in awe. Seeing the Great Pyramid of Giza in the distance all the while knowing that you will actually be able to climb it later is truly remarkable.
Not only is the world stunning, but it is populated as well. Sure most of the NPCs are just mindless drones with no names or personalities, but in Origins they were at least programmed to give the appearance of having a daily life cycle. They work during the day and they sleep at night. They talk with one another and they react when things happen around them. These aren’t groundbreaking enhancements, but they are enough to make the game world feel alive.
There is so much to explore in Assassin’s Creed: Origins and while some of the quests can get repetitive, the world as a whole keeps you invested. There is so much to see and discover that the repetitive gameplay can be overlooked. The splendor of Ancient Egypt is fully realized in this game and if it doesn’t make you feel like you are actually there, it certainly makes you feel like you are on an adventure. This is why Assassin’s Creed: Origins IS art.