Ever since the release of Assassin's Creed Unity in 2014, the subsequent titles in the franchise have launched as exclusively single-player games. Part of this reallocation of resources can be seen as an attempt by Ubisoft to recapture the success the early days of the Assassin's Creed franchise found, with the stories of Altair and Ezio Auditore leading the charge. The trend of single-player focused gameplay will continue with the launch of Assassin's Creed Odyseey, though it doesn't mean Ubisoft hasn't considered bringing back its online components to a future release for the series.
News of the potential return for multiplayer was revealed during an interview between Game Informer and Ubisoft CCO Serge Hascoet. While there weren't many details revealed about what a new iteration of what an online mode for Assassin's Creed would look like, Hascoet was adamant to state Ubisoft wants to take a different approach in relation to how the games industry has evolved in the social space.
"We have many technologies, so it's case by case, but Assassin's Creed has no multiplayer mode, and that is very important for the social aspect of gaming, so we are looking into that."
It doesn't appear as though the newest entry, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, will see post-launch updates that will introduce any multiplayer components. As far as the history of multiplayer features in Assassin's Creed, online gameplay began with Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, offering less than a handful of game modes with players controlling NPC look-alike characters while trying to stalk and eliminate other players. While there have been small additions and tweaks to multiplayer with each new release, Assassin's Creed Unity made the biggest change by introducing less competitive, more cooperative missions to partake in with up to three other players.
Despite the relatively close launches between 2017's Assassin's Creed Origins and Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillmont has stated there will not be a new Assassin's Creed game releasing in 2019. Given the push for a more "live service" support model for the newest game, with timed in-game challenges and DLC story expansions, the chances of seeing multiplayer of any sorts looks to be a way's away for Assassin's Creed fans. When one considers the rejuvenation the franchise found last year with Assassin's Creed Origins, it may not hurt to continue putting off the desire for online gameplay a little bit longer.
Assassin's Creed Odyssey launches on October 5th for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
Source: Game Informer