Rumor: Two ‘Assassin’s Creed’ games to release in 2014?

A recent interview hints that Ubisoft might be planning on releasing two Assassin’s Creed titles across next-gen and current-gen platforms next year.

When Ubisoft announced that Assassin’s Creed is now an annual franchise, many gamers felt dubious about the proposition: could the landmark series turn lukewarm and bland with yearly iterations re-hashing the same material in different ways? Would it be overdone like the ill-fatedCall of Duty: Ghosts?

On the heels of Assassin’s Creed: Revelations and Assassin’s Creed III–both of which have been regarded with disdain by the gaming sphere–gamers were worried that the franchise was going downhill.

The stellar critical reception (and sales figures) of Assassin’s Creed IV has allayed those fears. With Black Flag, Ubisoft has weathered the trepidation quite well and proved that the studio is still very much on its game.

But can the studio (and gamers, for that matter) handle putting out two Assassin’s Creed games in the same year?

In a recent interview with Examiner, Ubisoft Sofia producer Momchil Gindyanov shared that “multiple releases are a possibility” for 2014:

“Definitely [multiple releases a year] is a possibility. That being said, I don’t believe AC Liberation and AC IV are in competition as both games provide different experiences and I’m sure our fans enjoy both.”

Based on Ubisoft’s announcement of a yearly Assassin’s Creed release, we can surmise that there may be as many as two games for 2014: one being a brand new game for next-gen consoles and the other the HD re-released of Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation.

Further Speculation arises whether Ubisoft will continue this trend past 2014–most likely not, considering the overkill factor involved with developing two concurrent games…however we may see the series splinter off with further adventures on the PS Vita.

One of the biggest concerns that gamers face with the possible “two Assassin’s Creed games a year” scenario (aside from cost) is not being able to really digest the story and gameplay to prepare for a new game. That was one of the points that Examiner brought up, along with the concern that a new release so soon might affect sales figures.

It’s quite important to give gamers enough time to thoroughly enjoy the game itself. Millions of players are enjoying Edward Kenway’s exploits across the 18th Century Caribbean, and quite a few of them haven’t really thought about a new Assassin’s Creed game. Release too many games too soon and you risk over-saturating the market as well as diluting your core constituency, and that’s never a good thing.

Keep in mind that this is based on conjecture and rumor, and although Gindyanov’s statements are indicative of certain possibilities, it’s important to remember that nothing has been confirmed at this point. It’ll be interesting to see how this story pans out, and if any other Ubisoft employees make further statements.

Although Ubisoft already has an idea on how the series will end, there’s a multitude of unexplored paths for the franchise that spans across the wake of time itself.