00:00 Welcome to Mojo Plays and today we're looking at 10 classic Assassin's Creed features set
00:05 to make a grand return in Mirage.
00:08 Welcome, hidden one.
00:11 Tailing Missions
00:12 Hated by gamers everywhere, tailing missions were once an extremely common part of the
00:22 medium, with Assassin's Creed leading the charge.
00:26 Black Flag may be universally beloved, but few would disagree that it's got too many
00:31 of these tedious missions.
00:33 Well, Mirage is bringing tailing missions back, albeit not in large numbers.
00:39 There are, thankfully, very few of them, but we've been following people around since those
00:44 interrogations in the very first game, so it wouldn't really feel like a classic AC
00:50 title if they weren't here in some form.
00:52 And keep an eye out for that other infamous mission type, Paper Chasing.
00:57 There is one Paper Chase hidden out there in Baghdad.
01:08 One-Hit Assassinations
01:18 Valhalla brought back the Hidden Blade, gifted to Eivor by Mirage's protagonist, Basim.
01:24 But by default, the Hidden Blade wasn't a one-hit kill assassination, just like in Origins
01:30 and Odyssey, but in stark contrast to every other game before them.
01:35 You could, however, toggle the option for one-hit kills in the menu.
01:40 Mirage goes back to basics, giving you one-hit assassinations regardless of the level of
01:45 the enemy, which makes more sense.
01:48 Just because someone is seven feet tall and carrying an axe doesn't mean they'd miraculously
01:53 be able to survive being stabbed in the head.
01:57 Fans will definitely love this return to form.
02:06 In-Game Factions
02:16 They were a key part of the Ezio trilogy, but you haven't been able to use in-game
02:21 factions to your advantages really since the transition to PS4 and Xbox One.
02:26 And that was a long time ago now.
02:29 Not being able to send in thieves, mercenaries, or courtesans to distract enemies definitely
02:35 limited the stealth opportunities in the games that dropped them.
02:38 But factions now return in Mirage.
02:41 You'll need to get various tokens -- merchant tokens, scholar tokens, and power tokens -- by
02:47 completing optional contracts.
02:49 And then you can use those tokens, as opposed to currency, to unlock distraction or blending
02:55 opportunities in certain missions.
03:04 Social Stealth
03:05 Yes, another big feature that's been sorely missing from the last few games is social
03:10 stealth.
03:11 They tried to bring it back in Valhalla, but it didn't really work.
03:15 You could blend with the scenery in restricted towns, but you couldn't blend with groups
03:19 of people, making it an almost useless feature.
03:23 Social stealth has returned to Mirage, with Basim able to easily blend with groups of
03:28 people to avoid the detection of guards, as well as still sitting on benches.
03:33 Arguably, the lack of social stealth in recent games makes those worlds feel more lifeless.
03:39 There are NPCs, sure, but you can't engage with them.
03:43 And with social stealth, the NPCs become invaluable tools for Basim.
03:49 Eavesdropping
03:55 Not every game made use of the eavesdropping mechanic that appeared in Assassin's Creed
04:00 1.
04:01 As well as that first one, eavesdropping was a key part of 3 and Black Flag, especially
04:07 when they were combined with a tailing mission.
04:10 Eavesdropping is back in Mirage, but no, you won't have to complete tailing missions that
04:14 desynchronize you for getting too far away at the same time.
04:18 You'll find some NPCs having an important conversation and sit on a nearby bench or
04:24 lurk in a hiding spot, blending into your surroundings and listening to them to unlock
04:28 stealth opportunities and missions.
04:31 And the big eavesdrop radius is back too.
04:43 Investigations
04:52 The first game is designed around Altair getting the name of a target and then having to conduct
04:57 investigations in whichever city he's been sent to to unlock the assassination mission.
05:03 In later games, investigating targets was all part of narrative-heavy missions, but
05:08 in Mirage, the freer structure of going to a place and being told to uncover what you
05:13 can is back.
05:15 It's definitely more engaging and narrative-heavy than it was in the first one, but this is
05:20 the core way the story unfolds.
05:23 You'll have an investigation menu to look at your targets, key allies, and places of
05:28 interest, and you'll go and explore each of them to unlock the main target for that
05:32 area of Baghdad.
05:38 Eagle Vision
05:39 Assassin's Creed Origins massively changed Eagle Vision by tying it to Senu, Bayek's
05:45 actual pet eagle, that can explore environments, find treasures, and tag enemies.
05:50 By Valhalla, some form of Eagle Vision, now known as Odinsight, had returned, but Eivor
05:56 still had their trusty raven soon in.
06:00 Mirage really has the best of both worlds.
06:03 Basim's got another eagle, Ekindu, but he's also got true Eagle Vision again, revealing
06:09 enemies, chests, and mission items, highlighting them all in different colors.
06:15 And you can keep it turned on for as long as you need it, just like in the older games,
06:20 though Basim won't be able to run while it's active.
06:24 Assassination Missions
06:25 It is time, Basim.
06:27 What is your plan?
06:30 That will be for Basim to decide.
06:32 Big sandboxy assassination missions reached their apex in Unity and Syndicate.
06:38 You had various scripted opportunities for distractions, infiltrations, and always an
06:43 interesting unique kill.
06:45 But you could also ignore all that and tackle the mission in your own way.
06:50 But there was a general absence of big open-ended assassination missions in Odyssey and Valhalla.
06:57 You'll be pleased to hear this isn't the case with Mirage.
07:00 And all of Basim's major targets are in stealth arenas like this where he has many
07:05 varied opportunities and ways to reach his target, some more interesting than others.
07:11 It's up to you to explore and find out how you want to approach the mission.
07:23 Insta-Kill Counters
07:30 Many will say that the insta-kill counter attacks from the older games are unbalanced.
07:34 But you can't deny that they've always been a lot of fun to exploit.
07:39 They also return in Mirage, provided you make use of the parrying.
07:43 When Basim parries a normal enemy, he'll get the option to one-hit kill them.
07:48 This doesn't work on all enemies, like the pikemen or brutes, who still need to be dodged
07:53 and blocked, but it does work on the majority.
07:57 Considering Basim is significantly weaker in combat than Eivor, Cassandra, or Bayek,
08:02 getting this option back keeps the combat fun and makes you think more strategically
08:07 during encounters.
08:18 Notoriety
08:30 The Notoriety system was key in the Ezio trilogy and Assassin's Creed III.
08:35 You'd have different levels of notoriety depending on what actions you'd been witnessed
08:39 doing, which would make guards more immediately hostile towards you.
08:43 It's now been about 10 years since the Notoriety system left the series, but in Mirage, it's
08:49 back.
08:50 Not only do you become notorious after carrying out big assassinations, just like in the first
08:55 game, but you'll regularly be bribing heralds and tearing down posters to lower Basim's
09:00 wanted level.
09:01 It's always been an interesting system that adds depth to the world by changing the way
09:05 NPCs react to you.
09:13 Let us know down in the comments whether you think Mirage is a true return to form for
09:17 the series.
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09:26 Thanks for watching.
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