Last week, we asked you to spotlight Basim from Assassin’s Creed Mirage using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights:
04.10.2023 - 12:07 / wccftech.com
Assassin's Creed Mirage is out tomorrow on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S|X. The game marks Ubisoft's return to the series' roots at the request of a sizable portion of the fanbase. Whereas Assassin's Creed Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla were more akin to open world action roleplaying games, this is meant to be a much smaller stealth-focused game.
For our full review on the game, check out Nathan's article. Here, I'll focus on the PC performance. Let's begin with the system requirements, confirmed just two weeks ago. According to Ubisoft, the following configuration should be able to play at 4K with Ultra settings and 60 frames per second:
My test configuration is massively more powerful:
Assassin's Creed Mirage features a built-in benchmark tool, just like most of Ubisoft's recent PC releases, which is commendable. However, while the average FPS shown in the benchmark is 71 frames per second (with everything set to Ultra), it only achieves that result with the help of NVIDIA DLSS set to Quality mode. That's the least of the problems, though. Far more aggravating is that the frame graph shows massive variance, ranging from a minimum of 8 FPS to a maximum of 138 FPS. The lowest 1% and 0.1% FPS drop as low as 36 and 22, respectively.
In practice, when you play Assassin's Creed Mirage, you can feel all these stutters. They're usually not massive compared to other games, but they're always there, a constant reminder that you're not getting a smooth experience despite the high-end PC.
I've also captured some gameplay roaming the streets of Baghdad, and the frame rate mirrors what was registered by the benchmark tool. CPU utilization seems to be a big problem, as it rarely goes above 30%. Unfortunately, it's a common issue to most of the technically underwhelming PC games released in the past year.
It isn't even like the game sports cutting-edge visuals. There are no advanced rendering techniques like ray tracing or path tracing here. Moreover, as mentioned by Nathan in his game review, some of the characters look straight out of the last console generation. Honestly, from a graphics standpoint, it may even be a step back from previous games like Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Valhalla, despite the newer version of the Ubisoft Anvil engine used in Mirage.
At least in terms of options, Ubisoft delivers. Users can tweak the following settings:
As promised ahead of launch, all the base upscalers are available, including Intel's XeSS. With NVIDIA DLSS you can also select native quality, which is effectively DLAA, and it's nice to see it supported since most games do not. There are also sharpening and Field of View (FoV) sliders, although the latter is based on a percentage, which makes
Last week, we asked you to spotlight Basim from Assassin’s Creed Mirage using #PSshare #PSBlog. Here are this week’s highlights:
is filled with puzzles for you to complete and one of the first you will discover is the Upper Harbor Gear Chest. There are a number of quests and puzzles for you to solve throughout your time in Baghdad and the surrounding districts including the Tales of Baghdad Quests.
Players of will soon realize that they will need crafting materials to upgrade their items in the game. These can be found in several different manners throughout the game, but players might not be able to find them consistently, particularly at the beginning of their journey. However, there are consistent methods of finding them, if players know where to look as they traverse the city of Baghdad.
In , the final Head of the Order must be found and eliminated to free Baghdad, which turns out to be the former concubine of the Caliphate, Qabiha. Qabiha is a clever woman, and the Palace is well protected when Basim seeks to infiltrate it. Doing so without getting caught will be easier said than done, and once inside the Palace, it is quite challenging to leave it without being followed by every Guard in the vicinity.
Basim's main weapon in is a sword, so it's important for him to wield one that looks good as he slices and dices through the guards of Baghdad. Unlike other recent titles, alternative weapons like axes or bow aren't present in the game, meaning that one sword or another will remain equipped throughout the entire game. None of the available blades in are entirely lacking in style, but some are more basic than others, making abandoning less glamorous options once others become available to Basim a good call.
A hallmark of any game in the series, Basim must eliminate targets throughout , one of those being Al-Mardikhwar. This target is one of the Order members at the end of the multiple Investigations that began at the Sharqiyah Bureau for the Hidden Ones in Baghdad. Finding and eliminating him will take some creativity from Basim, as well as help from the Rebels.
As you make your way through , playing as Basim, you will be tasked with eliminating several targets with the first major enemy being Al-Ghul.After infiltrating the Damascus Gate Prison early in your attention will turn to eliminating the first of five targets. With the game set in the desert, many of the locations that you will visit are settlements, and Caravanserai set just outside of Baghdad, is the one where you will find Al-Ghul.
Assassin's Creed Mirage is a return to the series' roots in a sense, bringing players to 9th Century Baghdad. But how does it stack up so far compared to the recent series entries? Here is our review in progress.
There are nine Wilderness Gear Chests scattered around the outskirts of Baghdad in . These chests contain the Hidden One Dagger and Hidden One Sword, as well as their respective Upgrade Schematics. The last three chests contain pieces for the Isu set. Each item from these chests is extremely powerful and boasts a compelling reason to acquire it, but it will be no walk in the park. All the Wilderness Gear Chests are hidden in restricted areas, making it difficult for any assassin to find them.
Daggers play a big role in , so picking the design with the best looks can have a surprisingly major impact on the game experience. Although each dagger has its own unique stats, it's possible to prioritize aesthetics thanks to a transmog system included in the game. Blacksmiths will change a weapon to have the look of another for the reasonable price of 50 dirham, so it's easy to pick a blade that has the perfect perk and make it look like one that offers a little more flair.
represents a concerted effort by developer Ubisoft to return this once immensely popular franchise back to its beloved roots. In spite of abandoning the controversial RPG-style gameplay of the past several entries in the franchise, maintains an impressive array of customization options — most significantly in the character aesthetic department. Though the latest installment in the series has a limited supply of unique outfits and costumes when compared with previous installments, the developer has evidently elected to value quality over quantity as the vast majority of 's apparel options are exceptionally well-designed — though, inevitably, some are so much better than others.
Looking for the Abbasid Knight Upgrade Schematics across Baghdad in is a perplexing challenge. However, it is completely worthwhile. When out of enemy sight, the Abbasid Knight Outfit slowly regenerates Basim's health, making it ideal for an assassin of his nature. The Abbasid Knight Sword and Dagger that come with the set are also worth picking up. However, the set isn't finished even if you have all the pieces. To properly complete the collection, you must find all the Abbasid Knight Upgrade Schematics scattered throughout the map.