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''Assassin's Creed Odyssey – Legacy of the First Blade'' is a
downloadable content Downloadable content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can either be added for no extra cost or it can be a form of video game monetization, enabli ...
(DLC) pack developed and published by
Ubisoft Ubisoft Entertainment SA (; ; formerly Ubi Soft Entertainment SA) is a French video game publisher headquartered in Saint-Mandé with development studios across the world. Its video game franchises include ''Assassin's Creed'', '' Far Cry'', ...
for the 2018
action role-playing An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action game and role-playing video game, role-playing genre. Definition The games emphasize Real-time ...
video game ''
Assassin's Creed Odyssey ''Assassin's Creed Odyssey'' is a 2018 action role-playing video game developed by Ubisoft Quebec and published by Ubisoft. It is the eleventh major installment in the ''Assassin's Creed'' series and the successor to 2017's '' Assassin's Cree ...
''. Set both during and after the events of the main story, the pack follows the protagonist of the base game, a legendary Greek mercenary known as the Eagle Bearer, as they face a new threat to the Greek World in the form of the Order of the Ancients, a precursor organisation to the
Templar Order , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...
, who serve as the perennial antagonists of the ''
Assassin's Creed ''Assassin's Creed'' is an open-world, action-adventure, and stealth game franchise published by Ubisoft and developed mainly by its studio Ubisoft Montreal using the game engine Anvil and its more advanced derivatives. Created by Patric ...
'' series. It also explores the history behind the signature Hidden Blade weapon of the Assassin Brotherhood, and how ''Odyssey'' is connected to other installments in the ''Assassin's Creed'' franchise. ''Legacy of the First Blade'' is the first major downloadable content pack for ''Assassin's Creed Odyssey''. It consists of three episodes: ''Hunted'', ''Shadow Heritage'', and ''Bloodline'', which were released periodically from December 2018 to March 2019 for Microsoft Windows,
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...
, and
Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third base console in the Xbox series of video game consoles. It was first released in North America, parts of ...
. Each of the DLC episodes were met with mixed reviews from critics and video game publications. The overall quality and thoughtfulness of the story's writing, as well as its engaging cast of characters, have been praised. However, a pivotal narrative development that sets the player character on a predetermined path to start a family, either out of love or to continue their family bloodline, was poorly received by critics and fans, who felt it betrayed the game's role-playing nature. In response to the controversy, Ubisoft released a patch which made minor adjustments meant to better reflect the nature of the relationship for players who prefer a non-romantic storyline.


Gameplay

''Assassin's Creed Odyssey – Legacy of the First Blade'' is a downloadable content (DLC) pack for the 2018 video game ''
Assassin's Creed Odyssey ''Assassin's Creed Odyssey'' is a 2018 action role-playing video game developed by Ubisoft Quebec and published by Ubisoft. It is the eleventh major installment in the ''Assassin's Creed'' series and the successor to 2017's '' Assassin's Cree ...
''. The pack is set within the same time period as the base game, namely the Peloponnesian War, an
ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...
war fought by the
Peloponnesian League The Peloponnesian League was an alliance of ancient Greek city-states, dominated by Sparta and centred on the Peloponnese, which lasted from c.550 to 366 BC. It is known mainly for being one of the two rivals in the Peloponnesian War (431–404 B ...
led by
Sparta Sparta (Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referred ...
against the
Delian League The Delian League, founded in 478 BC, was an association of Greek city-states, numbering between 150 and 330, under the leadership of Athens, whose purpose was to continue fighting the Persian Empire after the Greek victory in the Battle of Pl ...
led by
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh List ...
between 431–404 BC. The player assumes the role of a legendary Greek '' misthios''Antiquated term for "mercenary" during the period of
Classical Greece Classical Greece was a period of around 200 years (the 5th and 4th centuries BC) in Ancient Greece,The "Classical Age" is "the modern designation of the period from about 500 B.C. to the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C." (Thomas R. Martin ...
known as the Eagle Bearer. Depending on the player's choice from ''Odyssey'', the Eagle Bearer's identity is either Alexios or Kassandra; they are a pair of siblings descended from a fictionalised version of
King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the ...
Leonidas I Leonidas I (; grc-gre, Λεωνίδας; died 19 September 480 BC) was a king of the Greek city-state of Sparta, and the 17th of the Agiad line, a dynasty which claimed descent from the mythological demigod Heracles. Leonidas I was son of King ...
of Sparta and the inheritors of his special bloodline. ''Legacy of the First Blade'' was released in episodic format, and features a continuation of the role-playing gameplay elements from ''Odyssey''. The contents of the pack, starting with ''Hunted'', may be accessed by a player character who has reached level 29, and once Episode 7 of the main campaign at the island of
Naxos Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best ...
has been completed. Players will encounter
non-player character A non-player character (NPC), or non-playable character, is any character in a game that is not controlled by a player. The term originated in traditional tabletop role-playing games where it applies to characters controlled by the gamemaster ...
s who require assistance and offer objectives for players to clear as they explore the specific regions featured in ''Legacy of the First Blade''; these typically involve collecting or investigating items of interest, tracking down targets, and killing Order of the Ancients members or their subordinates. The game contains branching dialogue options, which determine how the player character respond to other characters during conversations and cutscenes. The pack grant players access to three new combat abilities in their character's skill tree. Over the course of the pack's narrative, the player character develops a domestic relationship with a non-player character, whose gender and name depend on the player's choice of character: Neema for Alexios, and Natakas for Kassandra. By the ending of the second episode, ''Shadow Heritage'', they will have a son together regardless of any dialogue options chosen by the player.


Plot

In ''Hunted'', the Eagle Bearer travels to the region of Macedonia and encounters the Persian rebel Darius. Macedonia has been overrun by the Order of the Ancients in their quest to kill Darius, his child, and the Eagle Bearer, whom they call the "Tainted Ones" because they are considered people with the power to destroy the world. The Eagle Bearer works with Darius and his child to find and defeat one of the Order's lieutenants, the Huntsman, who is committing atrocities to draw out the Tainted Ones. After mortally wounding him, the Huntsman reveals that Darius' real name is Artabanus and that he betrayed the Order. Darius then admits to the Eagle Bearer that he worked with the Order in the past to assassinate King
Xerxes I of Persia Xerxes I ( peo, 𐎧𐏁𐎹𐎠𐎼𐏁𐎠 ; grc-gre, Ξέρξης ; – August 465 BC), commonly known as Xerxes the Great, was the fourth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, ruling from 486 to 465 BC. He was the son and successor of ...
, before being betrayed by his brother-in-arms Amorges, who joined the Order and stopped him from killing Xerxes' successor,
Artaxerxes I Artaxerxes I (, peo, 𐎠𐎼𐎫𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎠 ; grc-gre, Ἀρταξέρξης) was the fifth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, from 465 to December 424 BC. He was the third son of Xerxes I. He may have been the "Artasyr ...
, who Darius feared would continue the same tyrannical policies as his father. Darius' actions saw him branded a traitor, and he fled Persia with his last surviving child while the rest of his family was killed. With the Huntsman dead, Darius and his child leave Macedonia after bidding farewell to the Eagle Bearer. In ''Shadow Heritage'', the Eagle Bearer heads to
Achaea Achaea () or Achaia (), sometimes transliterated from Greek as Akhaia (, ''Akhaïa'' ), is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Western Greece and is situated in the northwestern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. T ...
and meets Darius once again. The Order, led by the Tempest, has set up a naval blockade around the region, and is brutalizing Macedonian refugees in a bid to prevent Darius and his child from escaping the Greek world. The Eagle Bearer is able to weaken the Order's power in Achaea by sabotaging the development of a ship-mounted flamethrower and sinking the Tempest's fleet. They are helped in their endeavors by Kleia, the Tempest's mother, who reveals that the Order consider the Tempest a Tainted One and have been using her for their own ends. The Tempest is ultimately killed by the Eagle Bearer, who secures safe passage for the refugees. In the aftermath, Darius and his child decide to settle down with the Eagle Bearer in Achaea. Some time later, the Eagle Bearer has a son, Elpidios, with Darius' child.In ''Bloodline'', the Eagle Bearer retires from life as a mercenary to spend time with Darius, his child, and Elpidios in Achaea. Amorges and the Order attack their village, killing Darius' child and abducting Elpidios. The Eagle Bearer and Darius travel to
Messenia Messenia or Messinia ( ; el, Μεσσηνία ) is a regional unit (''perifereiaki enotita'') in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese region, in Greece. Until the implementation of the Kallikratis plan on 1 January 2011, Messenia was a ...
, the Order's stronghold in Greece. They lure Amorges out of hiding by sabotaging the Order's operations in the region, but he refuses to return Elpidios as he believes the Eagle Bearer's violent lifestyle will ultimately harm him. Amorges claims that the Order is not a group of people, but an idea, which can not be vanquished, meaning that the Eagle Bearer and Elpidios will always be targeted. However, Darius states that they can fight this with their own knowledge, and reconciles with Amorges, who reveals Elpidios's location before dying. Admitting that Elpidios will never be safe with them, the Eagle Bearer entrusts Darius to look after his grandson. Darius takes Elpidios to
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...
, where it is revealed that he would become the ancestor to Aya of Alexandria, the wife of
Bayek of Siwa Bayek is a fictional character in Ubisoft's ''Assassin's Creed'' video game franchise. He serves as the protagonist of the 2017 title ''Assassin's Creed Origins'', and first appeared in the tie-in novel ''Assassin's Creed: Desert Oath'', which ex ...
and co-founder of the Hidden Ones, a precursor organization to the Brotherhood of Assassins.


Development and release

''Assassin's Creed Odyssey – Legacy of the First Blade'' is the first piece of single-player DLC for ''Assassin's Creed Odyssey''. All three episodes were released digitally on PC via
Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporizat ...
and Uplay, PlayStation 4 via PlayStation Network, and Xbox One via Xbox Live between December 4, 2018 and March 5, 2019. The game's season pass allows players access to the individual episodes when they become available. In response to negative player feedback to the ending of the second episode, ''Shadow Heritage'', Ubisoft released a patch that introduces a modified version of a cutscene played at its ending, and allowed players the option to remind their partner that they agreed to settle down and have a child with them for the practical purpose of continuing their bloodline at the beginning of the third episode, ''Bloodline''. The changes introduced by the patch consisted of the alteration of two spoken lines, the removal of a kiss scene, and the renaming of an achievement/trophy.


Reception

All three episodes of ''Legacy of the First Blade'' received generally mixed or average reviews on PlayStation 4. Brandin Tyrrel from ''IGN'' noted that ''Hunted'' is brief, and its content isolated to a single region with only a handful of assassination targets. Nevertheless, he found it an enjoyable experience as it introduces an intriguing villain, some backstory for its new characters, and sets the stage for a more traditional struggle between the Assassins and the Templars which was mostly missing from the base game. Similarly, he found ''Shadow Heritage'', a naval-focused chapter with a new villain and new tools which "continue pulling at the threads of a larger story", to be familiar but engaging. Tyrrel praised ''Bloodline'' for delivering a "a heartfelt storm of emotional payoff, and a great punctuation mark on the three-part story". He praised the new combat skill, Fury of the Bloodline as a fun and useful addition. In summary, he said the conclusion of ''Bloodline'' is "a satisfying send off for the many characters introduced, and the Order of the Ancient itself", and provides necessary clarity for the base game's place in the overall franchise lore "more clearly than ever before". Robert Ramsey from ''Push Square'' said ''Hunted'' is a "solid starting point for what could turn out to be an interesting story" and recommends it for fans of the base game, summarizing that though the pack introduces no new gameplay variation, it provides a "well made slice of open world adventuring, complete with some thoughtful character moments". Ramsey assessed ''Shadow Heritage'' to be an improvement over ''Hunted'' due to its more engaging quests and superior character interactions, though he acknowledged that its "forced ending" is undeniably disappointing since the game has a tendency to promote player choice as a pivotal part of the experience. ''Bloodline'' on the other hand, provided a "convenient but still emotional conclusion" and enriches the base game as a "tale of love and loss" for Ramsey, who felt that the pack has done admirably in showcasing a hero "who, even after all of their adventures, is still just looking for a purpose". He concluded that ''Legacy of the First Blade'' "stands as a fine addition to an already great game". Colin Campbell from ''Polygon'', who played as Kassandra, praised ''Hunted'' for offering moral introspection over questions about the nature of free will and “goodness”, and that for "a short time, it threatens to say something vital about games, heroism and violence", which he interpreted as "a good sign for the future of this form of entertainment, and as a frustrating demonstration of its present limitations". However, he severely criticised the ending of ''Shadow Heritage'' as "one of the worst betrayals of a fictional character" that he could recall, as in his view the developers had diminished a character they spent much time and effort creating, effectively turning Kassandra "into a cutout for a hackneyed plot" since she settles down to the life of a housewife and mother. In his review of ''Bloodlines'', Campbell formed the view that it failed to renew his desire to spend any further time with ''Odyssey''; he expressed a deep disappointment that Kassandra's legacy is to provide "the matriarchal line to subsequent assassins", as her story is essentially lost to history as presented within the narrative of ''Odyssey''. Similarly, the pack's antagonists failed to resonate with him, as to him their noble cause and reasonably articulated motivations is "thinly veiled fascism, held up as an affront to Kassandra’s own quest for messy democratic ideals".


Controversy

A compulsory plot development where the player character settles down with Darius' child and starts a family by the ending of ''Shadow Heritage'' has attracted controversy. Some players, particularly individuals who identify as
LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is ...
, complained that they were given no say over the narrative decision to hard-wire the protagonist character into a heterosexual relationship which conceived a child, even though some players previously took their characters into same-sex romances. This was in contradiction to previous comments from creative director Jonathan Dumont where he explained that the choice-driven nature of ''Odyssey's'' story allows players to build the relationships they want without being forced into romantic situations which they may not be comfortable with. As a result, some commentators observed that the role-playing aspects which were emphasised by Ubisoft for ''Odyssey'' were invalidated, and that an individual player's roleplay style and control over their character's identity were not respected. Ubisoft later issued a statement in response to the controversy, and explained that they "strive to give players choice whenever possible in ''Odyssey'' and apologize to those surprised by the events in this episode". A patch which slightly modified the contents of the cutscene was released soon afterwards.


Notes


References

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