Every Assassin’s Creed Game Ranked From Worst to Best (Including Shadows)

Assassin’s Creed is one of the biggest video game franchises on the planet. Ubisoft has released numerous entries in the series since its debut in 2007 and it has remained a cash cow for the publisher, even though it has required some reinvention to stay relevant. The series has been around long enough and endured enough revamps that everyone has their personal preference for which era of Assassin’s Creed is the best. Some prefer the smaller-scale games, some adore the big, almost overwhelming RPGs, and some just want a cool pirate game. Nevertheless, it’s a series that has taken many different forms, and with Assassin’s Creed Shadows finally out, we figured it was time to do a ranking.

This Assassin’s Creed ranking won’t include any of the spin-offs or standalone expansions. We’re only focusing on the core mainline games in the series, so don’t expect to see Assassin’s Creed Liberation or any other titles like that on this particular list.

#13 – Assassin’s Creed: Mirage

Assassin’s Creed: Mirage was intended to be more of a throwback to the original games, opting for a smaller-scale experience. On paper, that was a great idea and it had some great usage of things like social stealth in a dense world. However, the story and characters weren’t very compelling, and it sort of felt like a budget Assassin’s Creed game to fill a gap in Ubisoft’s release schedule. The game did initially begin its life as an expansion for Valhalla before expanding into its release, so that’s likely part of the reason.

It’s not a bad game, it’s just one that doesn’t hide its lower production value. I would love to see Ubisoft revisit a more focused Assassin’s Creed game like this in the future but really give it the backing it deserves, especially if that comes in the form of a remake of the first Assassin’s Creed game. It could even build upon some of the ideas in Mirage, but it needs a bit more oomph to it.

#12 – Assassin’s Creed: Revelations

Although Ezio’s story is foundational for this franchise and is brilliantly told, Revelations feels a bit tacked on in the grand scheme of things. Narratively, it’s fulfilling and I give it credit for carefully weaving Ezio and Altair’s story together, but it hardly advanced the gameplay of this series forward. Outside of a tower defense game, this is nothing more than the most refined version of the prior two entries.

Once again, this was a game that started as something much smaller. Revelations was initially conceived as a Nintendo DS game before it blew up into a mainline entry, possibly to buy time for the team on Assassin’s Creed 3 or ride the hype for Ezio. While not a bad game, it is arguably one of the least impressive installments in the long-running series.

#11 – Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate

Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate was the last game in the series before Ubisoft decided to revamp it as a big RPG franchise. The franchise wasn’t really innovating in the ways it should have. In fact, it was regressing in some regards by continuing to move away from naval combat despite pleas for more of it. We did get two protagonists in Syndicate, including a female for the first time in the mainline series, but they didn’t leave much of a lasting impression.

While steampunk London is a fun setting for a game like this, it’s a game that has kind of been forgotten about and gets left out of the conversation when it comes to Assassin’s Creed. It’s not bad, it’s not amazing, it’s just perfectly fine… and there’s nothing wrong with that!

#10 – Assassin’s Creed Valhalla

Despite being one of the most commercially successful games in the series to date, I have never been an Assassin’s Creed Valhalla truther. This might be blasphemy to some fans of the series, but it’s a bit too bloated for my liking and the combat lacked the heft that I desire from a Viking protagonist.

The world is beautiful and I can see the appeal for some, but it doesn’t excel in the areas that prior games do, nor does it stack up against its competitors outside of Assassin’s Creed. It tries to be a game for everyone and, in the process, lost sight of being a focused experience. However, it seems to have paid dividends for Ubisoft, financially speaking, so I may be alone on this one.

#9 – Assassin’s Creed

The game that started it all. Assassin’s Creed fundamentally changed gaming and Ubisoft forever. It’s a revolutionary game for its time and was a defining title for the Xbox 360/PS3 era.

However, compared to many of the games that came after it, it has shown its age and could really use a modernized remake/remaster. Nothing will take away from what it did for gaming, but Ubisoft was able to succeed this game with some killer follow-ups that took the formula and story to new heights.

#8 – Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood

Like Revelations, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood was developed pretty quickly to capture the hype of Ezio’s beloved story. To Ubisoft’s credit, despite cranking these games out as fast as possible, Ezio’s story still remains the best in the series. While still feeling a bit like Assassin’s Creed 2.5, the developer managed to innovate enough to keep things feeling fresh.

The titular Brotherhood is introduced, allowing Ezio to manage a network of assassins that can help him out in combat and do his bidding elsewhere. It’s an idea that has lasted throughout the entire series, so clearly Brotherhood did a lot right. On top of that, it was great to see more than just a lone assassin and instead focus on what this creed is all about when it’s in its prime.

Brotherhood also releases in the era of tacked-on multiplayer modes, but Ubisoft managed to do something that actually worked fairly well. Assassin’s Creed had a fairly underrated online mode for a while that allowed players to hunt each other in a PvP setting, utilizing social stealth to remain undetected. Although it didn’t take off like some other games, it was a worthy effort from the IP.

#7 – Assassin’s Creed 3

Hot take alert: I really like Assassin’s Creed 3. It felt like a notable leap forward for the series after the Ezio trilogy in terms of its gameplay. Being able to stalk prey from the trees and string them up, parkour through the inside of buildings, and command a ship made Assassin’s Creed 3 feel somewhat next-gen at the time. Ubisoft upped the ante tremendously, which was needed after Revelations failed to deliver any notable innovations.

Although Connor isn’t the most colorful character, the American Revolution setting was an inspired choice for an Assassin’s Creed game and was a nice change of pace from all the European settings in the prior games. There’s something really satisfying about hunting animals in the snowy woods of Colonial America and then taking down redcoats in the streets of New York.

#6 – Assassin’s Creed Unity

Assassin’s Creed Unity was admittedly a disaster upon release and may have crippled Syndicate as a result. It was a buggy mess, but once all of that was patched up, it became clear it was a fantastic and ambitious game. Its ambition was on full display with unreasonably large crowds, a co-op story, and a level of depth and density that hasn’t really been replicated in one of these games since. While Unity’s ambition may have been the source of its bugs, it’s a game that still manages to be utterly captivating to this day.

#5 – Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Assassin’s Creed Shadows finally takes the series to Japan after nearly 20 years. While its story leaves a lot to be desired, Shadows manages to scratch the ninja and samurai itch fans have had for decades now. Naoe and Yauske contrast each other perfectly, giving players the choice to take objectives on with precise, effective stealth or brutal head-on engagements. The combat itself has been radically improved to be more engaging and rhythmic, taking cues from Ghost of Tsushima and the Batman Arkham series. It makes sword fights challenging, thoughtful, and even a bit cinematic when two blades perfectly clash against each other.

Ubisoft also managed to make this behemoth of a game more digestible without compromising on its size. There’s still a ridiculous amount of stuff to see and do, but your map won’t be overpopulated with obnoxious icons. The RPG elements also feel less in-your-face, and you won’t feel over-encumbered by weapon/armor stats or special loot if you don’t want to engage too deeply with that side of the game.

#4 – Assassin’s Creed Origins

Assassin’s Creed Origins brilliantly soft-rebooted the series while taking us back to the very beginning of the story of the assassins. It was a bold new direction for Assassin’s Creed and one that could’ve been a historic fumble that killed the series had it not gone well. However, it saved Assassin’s Creed and gave it the fuel it needed to keep going. The RPG nature of the game was exactly what fans were looking for from Ubisoft and allowed it to evolve in an exciting new way.

On top of that, Egypt is one of the most jaw-dropping settings in the series. It’s a joy to explore and admire, especially for those who have any kind of fascination with that piece of the world and its history.

#3 – Assassin’s Creed 2

Assassin’s Creed 2 is arguably the best story in the series as we learn about Ezio’s tragic beginnings. The game gives birth to one of gaming’s best protagonists, features a tremendous score, and sets the tempo for the series going forward from a gameplay perspective. It’s one of the great sequels in gaming and once again helped define Ubisoft’s future.

#2 – Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

Combining Assassin’s Creed with ancient Greece just makes sense and it’s kind of surprising it didn’t happen sooner. Odyssey takes the best parts of Origins and expands upon it in all the right ways, along with a glorious return to naval combat. On top of that, Ubisoft doubled down on the RPG of it all by empowering players to make choices in the story, allowing for a more meaningful and engaging narrative that’s directed by the player.

It is one of the best RPGs Ubisoft has made and is kind of astonishing for an Assassin’s Creed game. With that said, how can you not get swept up by slicing people up as a Spartan warrior?

#1 – Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag

Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag was a huge breath of fresh air. By making it a pirate game, Ubisoft infused new life into the series after five games that were gradually pushing the needle forward. Edward Kenway was a charming character, free of some of the brooding charisma vacuums in some of the past games, and he felt like a welcomed addition to the ongoing saga.

On top of that, being able to explore a massive open world by sea for the first time and get into epic ship battles was a welcomed addition. To this day, I am not sure another Assassin’s Creed game has managed to rival the scope and scale of this one. I’m pretty curious to see how Ubisoft reimagines the game with the rumored remake of Assassin’s Creed 4.