Assassin's Creed IV is steadily approaching its October release and Ubisoft wants you to remember that via the newest trailer exclusively for the UK people. The trailer itself is nothing special mind you, unless of course you find digitally simulated explosions something special, but watching the trailer made me reflect on how much the series has changed in the span of 6 years spread throughout 6 games (including ACIV).

Case in point, the E3 2007 trailer for the very first Assassin's Creed:

Or the reveal trailer for Assassin's Creed II:

Remember that thick sense of mystery and intrigue that these trailers exuded when you watched them? The kind of tone that a series which deals with an ancient and secret ring of man-killers, who are also trying their damnedest to hide their faces, warrants? I like explosions as much as the next guy, and I get that not all games in a given franchise need to be the same, thematically or tonally, but you also need to be aware of exactly what it was that made people's heads turn and take notice the first time around. There's a reason people are starting to get sick of the Assassin's Creed series ever since Revelations; it's lost that spark, that air of mystery which the first two games capitalized on so well. Ubisoft can pile on as many features, as many historical figures and as much glossy visuals as they may want to but I'm afraid they cannot redeem the utter quagmire of uninspired muck the series has fallen into without some massive effort.

...wait—where were we? Oh yes! NEW ASSASIN'S CREED IV TRAILER EVERYBODY!

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