Four years after release, now is the perfect time to buy Assassin’s Creed Origins

If you buy one game today, you should buy Assassin’s Creed Origins.

“Eh?”, I hear you say. “That’s a four-year-old game that’s seen two sequels come and go since its release. What are you going on about?”

Pitchforks down, folks – I have a good reason for making the recommendation. Developer Ubisoft is looking into bringing a next-gen 60fps patch to the 2017 title, smoothing its performance to make the most out of consoles like the Xbox Series X and PS5. 

The news came in an official tweet celebrating so-called “AC Day”, the annual cheerleading event for all things Assassin’s Creed:

If the recent 60fps patch for Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey is anything to go by, gamers will be in for a treat. The Anvil engine that both Origins and Odyssey are based on seems to scale well with the new-gen consoles, delivering a consistent 60fps in the Greek-themed game, and is likely to perform similarly with Origins.

To further entice, the game is on sale at both the PlayStation and Xbox stores, putting it at a bargain price whether you’re looking to tap into the seemingly-upcoming next-gen upgrades or not. Over at the Xbox Store, the base game is currently priced at $14.99 / £10.99, while PlayStation owners can also pick it up at $14.99, and even cheaper in the UK at £9.99.

It’s also heavily discounted for PC players over at Steam, where it’s currently got 80% sliced off its price tag, bringing the price down to $9.99 / £9.99. Of course, those with a fast enough PC will already be able to push Assassin’s Creed Origins not just to 60fps, but to even higher frame rates beyond that, too.

And, if you’ve already played the game, I’ll be preaching to the converted here – Assassin’s Creed Origins is in many respects the best Assassin’s Creed game there’s ever been.

Building a case for Origins

Origins marked a departure for the Assassin’s Creed series upon release. Stealth takes a back seat in favor of visceral combat, while the game’s free-roaming take on ancient Egypt was vast and detailed without being overwhelming.

As the name suggests, if you’ve never played an Assassin’s Creed game before, Origins is a great place to start. It reveals the birth of the brotherhood of assassins, and requires little prior knowledge of the franchise to dive in.

And it’s a great experience throughout. With some light RPG mechanics, Origins sees the series totally embrace the open world ethos, and does so with style. Its Egyptian setting is (in my opinion) the most interesting historical period the series has covered so far, with the game recreating legendary locations like the Nile and Great Pyramids with genuine majesty. The story is among the best the series has delivered too, with vengeful protagonist Bayek genuinely likable. 

Those that opt for the DLC packs won’t be disappointed either, with Origins leaning in more heavily into mythology than previous games (something Ubisoft has since explored more deeply, most notably with Assassin’s Creed stablemate Immortals Fenyx Rising).

It’s a modern classic, and one that holds its own easily today. If you’re feeling the winter chill, you could do a lot worse than soaking up the sun in Assassin’s Creed Origins – that 60fps patch can’t come soon enough.