There has been a lot of speculation on the future of the Assassin's Creed franchise as of late. Multiple leaks and rumors point to different settings, stories, and more for the historical action-turned-RPG series. Most recently, a lot of speculation has centered around Assassin's Creed Rift, which one leaker stated would be set in the Aztec Empire. However, it seems that despite fans asking for an Assassin's Creed game to be set in the ancient Aztec civilization for some time, the series may not be heading for that time period as yet.
But there is a chance that another highly requested historical setting could be coming to Assassin's Creed in the future. Feudal Japan is a location that players have asked for since the beginning of the franchise, and there have even been multiple fan creations showing what a game in that time period could look like. Recently, one fan showed off an incredible Unreal Engine 5 demo of a Japanese Assassin's Creed, and now it seems that hopes may finally become a reality, as a Japanese Assassin's Creed game is reportedly on the cards.
This rumor comes from Jeff Grubb, a known games journalist who runs a podcast titled "Jeff Grubb's Game Mess." During the most recent episode, Grubb discussed the future of Assassin's Creed, mentioning both Assassin's Creed Rift and Infinity, the latter being a live-service title which would feature multiple settings in one game. According to Grubb, the plan for Assassin's Creed is that after Infinity launches, the next game for the franchise will be set in Japan.
Grubb's co-host, Mike Minotti, added that according to recent reports, a Japanese setting for Assassin's Creed could actually appear within Infinity, rather than being set after it. Minotti argues that it would make sense for Ubisoft to launch Assassin's Creed Infinity with one of the most requested settings in order to boost sales. Even if Assassin's Creed Infinity were to include a Japanese historical location, it could be years before fans get to see it.
As stated, Grubb and Minotti didn't just talk about Assassin's Creed Infinity, and most of the discussion about the franchise actually revolved around Assassin's Creed Rift and the rumors surrounding it. Grubb corroborated the current theory that Assassin's Creed Rift will be set in Baghdad and that it will feature a much smaller scale of gameplay similar to the traditional games of the series, rather than the expansive RPGs that have been seen since Assassin's Creed Origins.
Assassin’s Creed Infinity is in development.