Throughout the complete Assassin’s Creed timeline, a secret Assassin Brotherhood fights to promote freedom and individuality, while the Templar Order wants to restrain free will and impose its rule on all civilization. The Assassin’s Creed games focus on individual Assassins in their struggles to defeat the Templars. In addition to 14 mainline releases for PC and consoles, the Assassin’s Creed series also features many spin-off games for handhelds and mobile devices. With several upcoming games in the works, it’s safe to say the franchise will continue to bring more interesting settings to the table.
Assassin’s Creed Setting
The Holy Land
The first Assassin’s Creed game takes place during the Third Crusade in the Holy Land (modern-day Israel, Palestine, and Syria). The story revolves around Altaïr Ibn-La’Ahad, an Assassin fighting against the Templar Order in the year 1191. Assassin’s Creed principally features the cities of Jerusalem, Acre, and Damascus, rendered in a smaller scale than later cities in the franchise but with a level of care that started things off right.
Assassin’s Creed: Altaïr’s Chronicles Setting
The Holy Land
Altaïr’s Chronicles is a mobile game released as a prequel to Assassin’s Creed that also takes place in the Holy Land during the Third Crusade, and as the name suggests, it also follows Altaïr as the main protagonist. Tyre and Aleppo, found respectively in Lebanon and Syria, are added to the roster of cities.
Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines Setting
Cyprus
Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines is a PSP-exclusive game that takes place shortly after the events of the first game. It follows Altaïr again as he travels to Cyprus to learn more about the Templars’ intentions. Here, Altaïr can explore the cities of Limassol and Kyrenia.
Assassin’s Creed 2 Setting
Rennaissance Italy
Assassin’s Creed 2 is set in Renaissance Italy during the late 15th century. The game features the first appearance of Ezio Auditore da Firenze, an Assassin on a quest for vengeance against the Templars responsible for betraying his family. Florence and Venice are the two show-stopper locations in Assassin’s Creed 2, and Monteriggioni, San Gimignano, and Forli all make appearances as well.
Assassin’s Creed 2: Discovery Setting
Italy & Spain
Discovery is an iOS and Nintendo DS game that takes place within Assassin’s Creed 2, after the Battle of Forli DLC and right before the Bonfire of the Vanities DLC. Discovery is about Ezio’s quest to free his fellow Assassins from the Spanish Inquisition. Ezio’s adventures in Discovery take him to Spain, where he can visit Barcelona, Zaragoza, Granada, and Alhambra.
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood Setting
Italy
Brotherhood is a direct sequel to Assassin’s Creed 2 and takes place immediately after the events of that game. Brotherhood follows Ezio on his quest to destroy the Borgia family, members of the Templar Order. The game largely takes place in Rome, which is significantly bigger in scale than any cities previously featured in the series.
Assassin’s Creed: Revelations Settings
Syria & Constantinople
Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, the conclusion to Assassin’s Creed‘s Ezio trilogy has two stories revolving around previous series protagonists Altaïr and Ezio. Altaïr’s story takes place in 12th and 13th-century Masyaf (Syria), and Ezio’s story is set in 16th-century Constantinople, which is split into the districts of Constantine, Bayezid, Imperial, and Galatia.
Assassin’s Creed 3 Setting
Colonial America
Assassin’s Creed 3 takes place just before, during, and after the American Revolution, from 1754-1783. The game is set in Boston, New York, and the American frontier and follows two different protagonists: Englishman Haytham Kenway, and his half-Mohawk son Ratonhnhaké:ton, aka Connor.
Assassin’s Creed 3: Liberation Setting
Colonial America
Liberation is set in New Orleans towards the end of the French and Indian War, from 1765-1777. The game focuses on African-French Assassin Aveline de Grandpré, the Assassin’s Creed series’ first female protagonist, and her fight against the Templars who are trying to gain control of the city.
Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag Setting
The Caribbean
Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag follows notorious Welsh pirate Edward Kenway during the Golden Age of Piracy in the 18th-century Caribbean. The abundance of islands includes a lot of smaller locations, but some major ones are Kingston, Havana, and Nassau. In addition to stopping a Templar plot to use a First Civilization device to spy on world leaders, Assassin’s Creed 4 also has Edward help a group of pirates establish their utopian Republic of Pirates, free from either British or Spanish rule.