Ubisoft’s next mainline game in the Assassin’s Creed franchise is Assassin’s Creed Hexe, a darker, more narrative-focused title that delves into the days of the Holy Roman Empire and the Witch Hunts of Germany, and a new teaser indicates that Ezio Auditore may be returning. Outside its initial announcement, Ubisoft has kept Assassin’s Creed Hexe as close to its chest as possible, but plenty of information has surfaced online.
In Assassin’s Creed Hexe, it is believed players will step into the shoes of a young woman named Annika, whose intellect puts her in danger from the ongoing Witch Hunts. How the German brotherhood, the Templars, the nature of the Witch Hunts, and presumably Isu artifacts come into play remains to be seen, but it’s also long been rumored that Ezio would play a significant role in the game. A teaser in Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced supports this (and therefore there are some SPOILERS ahead).
Ezio’s Family Plays in the AC Black Flag Hexe Teaser Background
Assassin’s Creed Hexe has been leaked to take place in Wurzburg and Nuremberg, Germany, which is important because Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced teases one of those locations in the final Rift. The final Rift gives fans a look at the St. Lorenz Cathedral standing alongside iconic locations related to more modern AC games: a Pyramid for Assassin’s Creed Origins, a Greek Stoa for Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, a Viking longhouse for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, a Japanese Castle for Assassin’s Creed Shadows, and an Abbasid architectural building for Assassin’s Creed Mirage. Those who are more musically inclined have pointed out another important fact: the music ties to Ezio.
Find the odd one out before the timer hits zero.
As pointed out by Assassin’s Creed creator Zephyrss on Twitter, the music that plays during this Final Rift is “Ezio’s Family,” the track by Jesper Kyd released in the original AC2. Notably, none of the games teased in this Rift have anything to do with Ezio—save for the lingering rumor that he appears in Assassin’s Creed Hexe. Now, to be completely fair, “Ezio’s Family” has become something of an iconic sound for the franchise and it has been used in other disconnected ways before too, but Ubisoft likely knew it was feeding the Ezio rumors (as they have been around for a long while) when creating this Rift.
For those unfamiliar with the Assassin’s Creed Hexe rumors, it is said that Annika is a descendant of Claudia Auditore—Ezio’s sister, making Annika Ezio’s family. Although it is not exactly explained, Annika is apparently able to communicate with Ezio somehow, like via an Isu Artifact or Memory Seal (as used in Assassin’s Creed Revelations). There is also apparently a tug of war between Ezio’s interpretation of the Creed and how it applies to Annika, as well as that of Wulfgang’s of the German Assassin Brotherhood. It all remains to be seen, but hopefully, Ubisoft manages to land the storytelling here.
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
For some folks, there’s no reason to bring Ezio back as his Assassin’s Creed games are still iconic. At the same time, he’s the beloved face of the franchise for a reason, and so if it’s done right, it could build out the games without purely banking on nostalgia. Only time will tell, though.