A full-blown Assassin’s Creed experience for mobile | Impressions - Assassin's Creed Codename Jade

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Assassin's Creed Codename Jade is a mobile spin-off of the Assassin’s Creed series, set in the third century BC during the time of the Qin dynasty in ancient China. In this game, players take on the role of Xia, an adopted child of the master Wei Yu, who embarks on a quest for revenge after their close friend is betrayed. As the story progresses, Xia uncovers secrets about the past and a powerful force that threatens to destroy everything they hold dear. For those confused, this is different from the upcoming Assassin’s Creed codename Red, which is set in another oriental region, Japan.

Codename Jade is rumored to be released next year, but for now, it is currently conducting a closed beta test for 5,000 lucky players that were selected during a registration phase last July. The closed beta test will last August 3 to 11. Currently, there is no way to access the beta without getting whitelisted, so even  sideloading the APK would not work.

I wasn’t able to get access to the game, fortunately, closed beta test players have begun posting their footage online, and with permission from one of them; youtuber shooothim1991 has granted me permission to share one of his gameplay footage. Special thanks to him!

The first part showcased the game’s combat, which is highly reminiscent of the last three mainline games in the series. This definitely looks like a cut-and-dry continuation from the same cloth, albeit toned down to fit mobile devices and implemented with touch controls instead. There is no firm information on whether the game will support physical controllers like the Razer Kishi or Xbox wireless controller, but support is highly likely.

The footage opens into us taking control of master Wei Yu, battling a Roman General which is suspiciously a reused asset from AC: Odyssey, nevertheless the combat system featuring the main character using a Spear still looked quite impressive and right at home as a mobile game. 

It then cuts to Wei Yu talking to a familiar character for Assassin’s Creed fans: Kassandra, who is revealed to be the one we have conducted a deal with. Soon enough, it now takes us to a character creator setting that allows us to select the gender and customize the main character’s looks, including the eyes, nose, mouth, etc., which is a first for the series.

Now, it would not be an Assassin’s Creed game without its iconic stealth and assassination gameplay, and the footage also showcases part of it. The gameplay format is basically the same here, consisting of hiding around rooftops and bushes, and performing takedowns on unsuspecting guards, as well as the iconic exploration and parkour segments. It looks like nothing is toned down here gameplay-wise, and we are essentially getting a full-blown Assassin’s Creed experience for the first time on mobile.

For those wondering about the price, the good news is that Assassin's Creed Codename Jade is set to be a free-to-play game, adopting the model popular in mobile games. However, there is a bit of worry for me here as free-to-play usually comes synonymous nowadays with gacha gaming and grindy progression. I hope the developers will find the right balance between free-to-play and premium players, resulting in an enjoyable experience for both