Surprise! Assassin's Creed Mirage, the slimmer, Baghdad-set adventure launched in 2023, is getting fresh content set in AlUla, an ancient oasis city now found in Saudi Arabia.
A new story chapter with additional missions, plus general gameplay improvements for the whole game, will launch for free later this year.
Ubisoft made the announcement this morning via social media, in a post that's come rather out of the blue on a Saturday at the end of this year's busy Gamescom week.
That said, the arrival of more Assassin's Creed Mirage content has been expected. Earlier this year, Ubisoft declined to comment on a report in French financial newspaper Les Echoes that detailed a deal between Ubisoft and Saudi Arabia's controversial Public Investment Fund for additional Mirage content.
Today's confirmation that Mirage will soon get content set in 9th century Saudi Arabia therefore makes sense.
As for the location itself, AlUla seems a natural fit for an Assassin's Creed game, as an UNESCO World Heritage site with more than 7,000 years of history and towering rock formations that look perfect for a spot of Assassin's Creed parkour.
Launched in 2023, Assassin's Creed Mirage arrived as something of a palate cleanser between the epic Viking-set Valhalla and this year's similarly enormous Assassin's Creed Shadows. Mirage returned to the Assassin's Creed franchise's smaller, stealthier city-set roots for an adventure that felt inspired by the series' initial game.
Developed by Ubisoft Bordeaux, the game originally began life as an expansion for Valhalla focused on its mysterious Assassin character Basim, someone who ends up playing a pivotal role in the events of that game's finale. Fans had subsequently hoped to see more from the character, though it's unclear if this add-on will include any new answers to his ultimate fate.
After Mirage was released, players found an odd post-credits scene hidden in the game's files that Ubisoft has since acknowledged, though never fully explained. Perhaps this too will finally be addressed in Mirage's upcoming new content, more details of which will follow in the weeks to come.
Next up for Assassin's Creed Shadows, meanwhile, is the game's big Claws of Awaji expansion, curiously also developed by Ubisoft Bordeaux, that's due for launch on September 16.
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