Unveiling the Missed Marvel: Kassandra's Exclusion from Assassin's Creed Mirage is a Golden Opportunity Lost

Highlights

Assassin's Creed games are known for their engaging protagonists and the connection they build with players over the course of the game.

Kassandra, a beloved protagonist in the Assassin's Creed franchise, is sorely missed in Assassin's Creed Mirage. With her possession of the immortal Staff of Hermes and previous appearance in Assassin's Creed Valhalla's DLC, fans are disappointed by her absence, considering her potential to make appearances in multiple games.

The Assassin's Creed franchise boasts various strengths, including parkour, stealth, combat, and historical settings. However, one of the most defining features of an Assassin's Creed game is its main protagonist. Typically spanning multiple decades, an average game strives to establish a profound connection between the player and the protagonist, which can be incredibly successful.

Throughout the past 15 years, Assassin's Creed has introduced a diverse range of protagonists. While not all of them have been memorable, a handful have stood the test of time. Whether it's the original hero, Altair, the beloved Ezio, or the entire Kenway lineage, the franchise has featured many iconic protagonists. The more recent entries have also maintained this tradition by creating memorable characters, such as Kassandra in Assassin's Creed Odyssey. It is a missed opportunity that she does not appear in Assassin's Creed Mirage.

Assassin's Creed Mirage Could Have Included a Kassandra Cameo

Kassandra, the more popular of the two protagonists in Assassin's Creed Odyssey, embarks on her journey over 1200 years before the events of Assassin's Creed Mirage. Despite this chronological gap, Kassandra's presence in the recent game remains unchanged. Throughout Assassin's Creed Odyssey, she engages in battles on both sides of the Peloponnesian War and disrupts the activities of the Cult of the Kosmos. It is during these events that Kassandra learns about her biological father, the renowned mathematician Pythagoras, and his possession of the mysterious Staff of Hermes. This artifact grants immortality, as evidenced by Pythagoras' extended lifespan.

In a significant turn of events, Pythagoras passes the Staff of Hermes onto Kassandra, effectively rendering her immortal. As a result, Kassandra lives unharmed until the present-day events in Assassin's Creed Odyssey when Layla, a new Assassin initiate, encounters her. Kassandra willingly relinquishes control of the staff, sacrificing her life in the process. However, during the immense time gap spanning thousands of years between the historical timeline in Assassin's Creed Odyssey and its present-day narrative, Kassandra is presumed to be free to appear in any location desired by Ubisoft.

Ubisoft has already accomplished this by featuring Kassandra prominently in Assassin's Creed Valhalla's Fated Encounter DLC. Released in December 2021, this DLC showcases Eivor, the protagonist of Valhalla, working alongside Kassandra to unveil the enigmatic magic plaguing an island. It is revealed that the cause of these troubles is a Piece of Eden, an ancient Isu artifact that Kassandra is searching for globally.

Considering the groundwork laid out in Valhalla, many fans anticipated seeing Kassandra in some capacity in Assassin's Creed Mirage, which is set a few decades prior to Valhalla. Given Kassandra's pursuit of the Pieces of Eden, it would have made sense for her journey to include Baghdad or even pass through it en route to another destination. Regrettably, Kassandra is absent from Assassin's Creed Mirage. Although this allows the game to focus on Basim and his personal journey, even a brief appearance from Kassandra could have strengthened the connection between Assassin's Creed Mirage and the broader franchise. However, it is worth noting that Assassin's Creed Mirage already accomplishes this to a significant extent without revealing too much.

Assassin's Creed Mirage is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.