Summary
TheAssassin’s Creedseries has changed drastically over the years, with each new entry striving to offer more sprawling worlds and additional activities for players — sometimes to the point of overdelivering in scope. While the earlier entries were moretightly focused on the story, recent installments have shifted toward lengthy main plots additionally packed with side activities, a myriad of collectibles, and a wealth of optional content.
When it comes to the most universally belovedAssassin’s Creedtitles, rankings often vary from fan to fan,depending largely on the game’s setting, characters, and story. Fortunately, it’s easier to evaluateAssassin’s Creedgames based on the quality and depth of their optional content. Each title offers a distinct set of side activities, quests, and exploration opportunities not tied to the main plot, along with a unique direction that shapes how well this content fits within the game world. Below is a ranking of theAssassin’s Creedgames based strictly on the quality, variety, quantity, and overall enjoyment of everything offered outside the main story.
Assassin’s Creed Brotherhoodis a perfect example of a quality-over-quantity approach, but at the same time, it’s easily among the most generousAssassin’s Creedtitles of its era, largely due to itsinnovative assassin recruit system. Training assassins, calling upon them in combat, or sending them on missions across Europe feels exciting, almost like a game within a game, while simultaneouslyreflecting Ezio’s growth as a leadernarratively throughout the trilogy. On top of that,Brotherhoodpacks a ton of side content into a single, relatively small (by today’s standards) city, featuring an optional city renovation mechanic in Rome that feels meaningful.
Even though the game might lean a bit too heavily on collectibles (a common feature in earlierAssassin’s Creedgames), there are also Borgia tower liberations, faction and Romulus follower missions, and the Templar lairs with challenging platforming for parkour fans. Despite its compact size, the depth and integration of optional content into Ezio’s overarching story makeBrotherhoodone of the most iconic earlyACtitles, and rightfully so.
TakingValhalla’s criticism of bloat to heart,Assassin’s Creed Shadowstakes an entirely different approach to its optional content, cutting out almost everything that isn’t tied to the game’s assassin-focused core.Shadows' optional content revolves almost exclusively around dozens of targets scattered across the vast world of Feudal Japan (someavailable only during specific seasons), with players receiving only vague clues about their whereabouts — or whether each target even deserves to be killed or spared.
This encourages players to explore the map, discover new locations, and utilize the new scout mechanics to better understand where to look next. With this in mind,Assassin’s Creed Shadowsmay become a favorite for players who’ve long wanted to experience what it’s truly like to be an assassin on a hunt.
Beyond assassinations, players will find a modest selection of side activities and collectibles, mostly tied to character progression andunlocking new skills for Yasuke and Naoe. The game also includes numerous optional castles and fortresses to clear, which, coupled withShadows' refined stealth mechanics, can be a fulfilling endeavor on their own. Finally, the Hideout settlement system is the most flexible and intricate in the series to date, allowing players to shape their League’s base as they envision it — and then share it with other fans.
Assassin’s Creed Unitywas positioned as the first true next-genAssassin’s Creedtitle, with Paris’s architecture recreated at a remarkably accurate real-life scale and its streets brought to life through dynamic crowds and random events that enhance the sprawling city exploration experience. To this day, Paris remains one of the biggest and most densely detailed cities in the franchise and one of its most “lived-in” worlds, providing an intoxicating sense that there’s always something to do. Even a simple traversal across the rooftops of massive buildings is a joy, thanks toUnity’s verticality and refined movement system. The game also introduced co-op missions to the series, a feature still missed by some fans in later entries.
Unity’s optional content is exceptionally engaging and handcrafted,featuring creative Paris Stories side queststhat often involve historical figures, detective-style murder mysteries that feel fresh for the series, and intricate, riddle-based Nostradamus Enigmas. It also includes city renovation projects that echo Ezio-era titles likeBrotherhood. Naturally, Paris is also packed with collectibles of all sorts, encouraging thorough exploration of every corner of this dense, bustling city.
Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flagstill ranksamong the series' games with the biggest maps, thanks to its pirate-themed open world of the Caribbean and a deep naval exploration aspect. Having a map that large means it has to be filled with something, and the game is brimming with optional content. Outside of ship and crew customization and naval combat that runs deeper than inOdyssey,Black Flagfully embraces the pirate fantasy with treasure hunting, uncharted island exploration, deep-sea diving for underwater wrecks, capturing or liberating forts, and dozens of collectibles.
In terms of side missions,Black Flagoffers much beyond traditional assassination contracts and Templar hunts, featuring memorable and varied side missions that enrich the journey. While it does feature a vast map, it feels far less overwhelming than the later RPG entries. The variety and its tight integration with the pirate theme give the optional content a more curated, cohesive feel, which is why the game is oftenregarded as a fan-favorite amongAssassin’s Creedtitles.
Although it doesn’t offer much choice in quests and story,Assassin’s Creed Originskicked off the RPG era for the series with a rich Egyptian sandbox and one of the largest open worlds on the market at the time. The game features numerous story-driven side quests inspired byThe Witcher 3, as well as various other activities to keep players immersed and engaged outside of the main plot.
One of the game’s standouts is the ability to explore ancient Pharaoh tombs and the Great Pyramids themselves, along with the optional Trial of the Gods challenges, which feature epic boss fights against Anubis, Sekhmet, and Sobek. Additional memorable content includes gladiator arenas and chariot races for Bayek,all playing to the setting’s strengths. While far less bloated thanOdysseyandValhalla,Originsstrikes a solid balance between quantity and quality, keeping its activities from feeling overly repetitive.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey’ssetting ofAncient Greece is undoubtedly the game’s biggest draw, and it’s perfectly realized and delivered.Odyssey’s vibrant landscapes, unique atmosphere, and overall playful tone set the stage for an unforgettable adventure as the Misthios — a free mercenary for hire, doing the dirty work for anyone willing to pay.
The world is massive andpacked with quirky side quests, targets and cultists to track, mythical creatures to face,dynamic mercenary encounters, and much more. Set during the Peloponnesian War,Odysseyallows players to switch allegiances at will, weakening Athenian or Spartan forces and then participating in large-scale battles to determine the fate of each region in Greece.
Assassin’s Creed Odysseywas also the first in the series to fully embrace some RPG elements, introducing branching dialogue in both main and side quests. In addition, the gamefeatures a robust naval componentfor those who missed commanding and customizing their ship and crew like inBlack Flag. WhileOdyssey’s naval battles may lean a bit toward the arcade side, they still bring a welcome sense of freedom and adventure, fully embracing the romance of the sea.
Assassin’s Creed Valhallais arguably the leastAssassin’s Creed-ish in the series, fully embracing deep RPG mechanics and mythological elements, at times feeling almost likeThe Witcher 3.5: Skellige Edition. It stands asby far the most expansive and longest game in the franchiseto date, packed with mythical realms, RPG-style side activities, a wealth of optional content, and even additional game modes.
Benefiting from the longest post-launch support of anyAssassin’s Creedtitle,Valhallareceived three sizable expansions, along with smaller additions such as the free roguelike modeForgotten Saga. There’s also the optional, procedural River Raids mode for fans who enjoy the Viking aspect of raiding settlements and castles with their crew in search of treasure.
Beyond that,Valhallaisfilled to the brim with side activitieslike timed contracts, fishing, theOrlogmini-game, dozens of collectibles, tomb raiding, mastery challenges, side world events, settlement expansion, and more. Not to mention the several explorable mythological realms like Asgard, Jotunheim, and Svartalfheim — each featuring legendary monsters to slay. WhileAC Valhallaremains somewhat divisive among fans, its sheer abundance of optional content is unmatched, ensuring that every player can find something to enjoy while ignoring activities that may feel less satisfying.
