UBISOFT's Assassin's Creed III: Liberation is an upcoming release for the PS Vita which will feature the series' first female protagonist. Assassin's Creed itself has a surprisingly strong female following in the gaming community - strong enough that it loudly voiced disapproval when Ubisoft announced that the third hero in the franchise would again have a Y chromosome. As a gamer who has played and loved every entry in series I was also hoping for something we hadn't seen previously.
Almost as if they expected the backlash, Ubisoft has released screens for an upcoming handheld game with a notably more curvaceous lead. But something is rotten in the state of Denmark (actually Bulgaria in this case, as the game is being developed by Ubisoft Sofia). Recent press released have tacked on that the game world itself is developed by Abstergo Entertainment.
For a quick background, Abstergo is the antagonist of the series. A group of modern day Knights Templar bent on world domination who fight against our plucky assassins who only want to live free in a world without tyrannical rule. The series uses a deus-ex-machina (or a McGuffin machine) that allows modern mankind to access their DNA and thus travel back through time and space and relive the lives of their ancestors in a virtual world. Both sides use the technology to discover lost secrets and train their modern agents.
None of this is new information. But I found the recent press release about the new handheld game being developed by the "bad guys" to be puzzling, the blogosphere is buzzing with speculation. Until I considered the gaming industry. My past predictions on gaming trends have been accurate, so much so that I was encouraged to start sharing my views. Follow the logic closely it will move quick.
- The game takes place in Abstergo Industries (proven)
- All "past lives" require current users with the DNA of their ancestors. (proven)
- The current user is a Templar (Logical Conclusion, it takes place at Abstergo)
- If the current user is a Templar, and the game features an assassin. At some point an assassin had to defect to the Templars. (Logic again)
- The first female protagonist in the Assassins Creed series is a stinkin' traitor.
You might need to go back and read that last line again. Deductive reasoning is a powerful tool when applied properly. Unfortunately it's all part of the mindset of male writers in the video game industry. Why else make sure we all know the character is female? It signifies a tonal shift. Why else would they again make sure we all know this is an "Abstergo Entertainment" game for the FIRST TIME in the series. Again change.
If you have a strong independent female protagonist whose sex is being touted before the game's release she is either A) Homosexual, B) Treacherous, or C) Eye Candy or Love Interest. Why else draw attention to it? I say this because if she was just another main character, her sex should not matter.
After all, history is made up of men and women. Unless you are Ubisoft, then it is made up of men and traitorous tropes.
Source:
http://www.shacknews.com/article/74879/assassins-creed-3-liberation-developed-by-abstergo-entertainment
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