The upcoming action-adventure video game won't feature any kind of multiplayer features, focusing on the narrative

May 13, 2015 12:11 GMT  ·  By

Ubisoft has made it pretty clear that the upcoming Assassin's Creed: Syndicate won't have any multiplayer, as the team is instead focusing all its resources on creating a compelling single-player experience for the series' fans.

Last year's iteration, Assassin's Creed Unity, was the first one in the franchise to include full-on cooperative multiplayer, enabling users to tackle campaign missions together with their friends.

Unfortunately, the game elicited all kinds of negative feelings from the gaming community, mainly due to the fact that it had shipped before being finished, having numerous bugs, glitches, and performance issues.

Now, Ubisoft is determined to bring one of its biggest franchises back to its roots, realizing that the main reason people buy an Assassin's Creed game is for the personal experience they get from sneaking around alleyways and rooftops, stalking their prey.

Most of the gamers who played Assassin's Creed Unity likely did it alone, and now the developer believes that the resources invested in making sure everything is working properly in multiplayer could be put to better use in crafting a more enthralling single-player experience.

Some of the new features that Syndicate introduces, such as the ability to jack carriages and race them around town, would also be difficult to integrate and balance with a multiplayer mode, especially when it comes to having you immersed in a very personal battle to overthrow the Templars, who are in control of London.

There won't be a companion app for Syndicate

The fighting system has also been revamped, as it's illegal to carry weapons in plain sight, and everyone is using concealed weapons, from knives to brass knuckles, making battles more intimate, with more close quarters hand-to-hand action than in previous entries.

The system also requires controls to be much more responsive than in the past, and performance and animations to be fluid, as the team has also pointed out that the action will be much faster paced than in the past.

The upcoming video game is designed to offer players a narrative-driven experience, in the form of the story of Jacob Frye and his twin sister Evie, as they expand their influence on the city and solidify the strength of their gang, the Rooks.

Putting the focus on the core single-player experience that made the franchise so popular to begin with is indeed a smart move, but we'll have to see how all the different elements mesh together and how interesting the plot ends up being.

Assassin's Creed Unity tried to shift the focus from a power fantasy to a story about collaboration, to sharing the work and the glory with your team mates. Syndicate will return to the basics, renouncing everything that shifts focus away from the single-player experience.

Assassin's Creed: Syndicate is coming out on October 23 on the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 home consoles, and at an unannounced date this fall on PC.