Basim takes the reigns of Ubisoft’s beloved Assassin’s Creed franchise in Assassin’s Creed: Mirage, and the game also ushers in a return to the original game’s stealth-centric gameplay. Over the years Assassin’s Creed has continued to reinvent itself and introduce new Assassins to the franchise, including Basim, who made his debut in Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla. Actor Jack Quaid has been a fan of the franchise since the beginning, and couldn’t be more thrilled to jump into Basim’s early adventures in Mirage. ComicBook had the chance to speak with Quaid all about his time with Mirage as well as his love of the Assassin’s Creed franchise overall, and the spark was first lit with the original Assassin’s Creed.
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“I go back to the first game with Assassin’s Creed. I remember when I was in middle school, I’d have sleepovers with my friends and we would just be constantly playing it. I think what really hooked us was, I thought it was a really cool window into history,” Quaid said. “I mean, yes, it’s a video game, like the first one is set during the Crusades. That’s just such an interesting time period, such a wild time, and the gameplay was always incredible. We loved the fact that you could parkour everywhere. I remember we loved the stealth gameplay.”
That’s one of several reasons why the concept of Mirage appealed to him, as Ubisoft has talked quite a bit about how Mirage implements more of the original game’s stealth concepts. Over the past few entries, Assassins could pretty much jump into a fight and battle their way out of it in any fashion they chose. With Mirage, however, the focus shifts back to stealth and staying out of sight being the priority, though there’s still plenty of fun to be had.
“I am what I describe as a little sneaky boy for when I play video games. I love stealth and I love that this game feels like it is going back to the roots of those original games where stealth is very… I feel like in a lot of games, stealth is an option, but not really the most fun way to play,” Quaid said. “But in this one, it feels like stealth is the way to go, and I love sneaking up behind people with the hidden blade or choking somebody out. It’s a good time. It’s a very, very good time.”
While Basim made his introduction in Valhalla, fans will see what led Basim to his adventure with Eivor and what shaped him as a person and an assassin. There have been so many great Assassins in the franchise’s history already, and Quaid thinks Basim will be yet another fantastic addition to the legacy.
“It’s always really exciting when you get to see kind of the backstory of a character that you’ve grown to love. I love that he hits all of the great notes of all of the best Assassin’s Creed protagonists, which is they’re a… I wouldn’t say, average Joe, but someone who… It’s a rags-to-riches story. You know what I mean? I love when they start out very much in their world with their own problems and they get thrust into this world of the Order,” Quaid said. “I always loved those kinds of stories, so I think he’s hitting all those notes, and it was great to play as him from humble beginnings.”
Oh, and if you think you can just breeze through areas and lose any enemies without much effort, think again. “They don’t forget about you in this game. The AI’s really good. They’re like, We’ve got to search for this guy. We’re not going to forget about him just because he went into a bush,” Quaid said.
We of course had to ask Quaid who his favorite Assassins were in the franchise, and while Altair came close, it was a Kenway and the beloved Ezio that made his top two. “Is it really basic of me to say Ezio and Altair, is that basic? I mean, I did love Edward Kenway. So I’ll go Edward Kenway and Ezio. I think those are my two favorite protagonists,” Quaid said.
Two stellar choices, though you really can’t go wrong with most of the Assassins in the series. Let us know which Assassins has been your favorite in the comments or by hitting me up on Threads @mattaguilarcb, and you can jump into Basim’s journey in Assassin’s Creed: Mirage right now, which is available on PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC, and Luna.
