Breaking Down the First Hour of Assassin’s Creed Origins

We’ve been covering Assassin’s Creed Origins all week. From talking about the PC specs, to breaking down the new trailers, to ranking the nine main games in the series, it’s been an exciting week of boosting the momentum for Origins, which finally released today. The game has already amassed great reviews, and positive fan reactions are quickly coming in across social media. We’ve played the first hour of the game, and there is a lot to break down.

From the moment Assassin’s Creed Origins starts, players will be getting accustomed to a new style of combat. The changes to battle aren’t extreme, but there’s definitely some noticeable differences in comparison to the rest of the series. The controls in combat are a lot more freeing. Instead of the classic counter-attack and kill strategy that we’ve been accustomed to for years, now the focus is on dodging enemies’ attacks and finding the perfect moment to strike them back. Timing has never been more important when it comes to combat, because your enemies have this same new freedom. If there are too many targets surrounding Bayek, you can lock on to any target surrounding him and attack with your knife, one of the only weapons you’re given at the game’s outset.

When you get closer to an enemy, they will have a number above their head indicating the suggested level Bayek should reach before attacking them. Even in the first hour, there’s quite a number of enemies carrying armor or shields, so approach them with caution. Stealth is a good option for the first hour as you familiarize yourself with the region of Siwa.

The world is massive in this game. Ubisoft has been talking about this for months, describing how open ancient Egypt will be, but you don’t truly understand the scope of it until you’re playing the game. The developers have fully implemented the RPG style of gameplay for Origins. Your main menu allows for easy maneuvering between the map, Bayek’s gear, quests, targets, and abilities. Speaking of abilities- Bayek has a lot of them across the Hunter, Warrior, and Seer category, and they’re all in need of leveling up. The game starts you off with three, and then the rest is up to you.

Unlike previous games, your health in Origins doesn’t automatically rejuvenate just by standing still. You actually have to level up this ability now (which we strongly recommend doing in the first hour), and it’s the second ability one under “Warrior”. In the first hour, we only leveled up twice which gave us enough points for this new ability.

 

Another big change to Origins is the loss of “eagle vision”, which has been a staple of the series for a decade. Instead, Bayek has an actual eagle Senu that can fly overhead to scope the area for enemies, materials, and more. Initially we had some concerns about Ubisoft doing away with eagle vision, but Senu is far superior to the old mechanic. Senu is extremely smooth to control, and she is also able to “hover” in order to track Bayek’s target more carefully. The hover feature almost feels like a tunnel-vision experience, as you search the area with a literal “bird’s eye view”.

One of the main tasks players will come across in the first hour is using Senu to find materials in order to craft a breastplate. Soar high and use Senu’s “eagle vision” to scour the area for animals grazing. Gearing up with Bayek’s new breastplate should place you near, or over, level 2.

The first hour of Assassin’s Creed Origins is an experience, and it also shows Ubisoft’s confidence in taking staples of this franchise like eagle vision, combat, and a large map, and expanding them into something greater. For long time fans (and newcomers) who were on the fence about Origins, this game is definitely worth picking up. Check back this weekend for our full review of the game.