Ranking ALL Assassin's Creed Protagonists

#12: Modern-Day Characters

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“Assassin’s Creed” franchise (2007-) Right at the bottom of our list we’ve got a catch-all entry for all the modern-day protagonists – yes, including Desmond. Desmond’s a decent everyman, but he’s disappointingly dull compared to all the other characters he interacts with, like Shaun, Rebecca, and Lucy. Still, Desmond’s at least a bit more popular than the others, like the faceless, voiceless Initiate from “Unity” and “Syndicate”, the Numbskull from “Rogue”, and of course, Layla Hassan. Fans never really warmed up to Layla, probably not helped by the fact she got crueler and less empathetic as her games went on, driven to retrieve Isu relics no matter the cost. Ubisoft just keeps missing the mark with the modern day.

“Assassin’s Creed Unity” (2014) He had so much promise at the beginning of the game – the orphan of an important Assassin, taken in and raised by a Templar Grandmaster, whose daughter Élise he can’t help but fall in love with. But Arno’s ‘character development’ in “Unity” seemed to make him LESS of a character as the game went on. He became duller, broodier, and angrier, not helped by the tragic ending to Ubisoft’s take on “Romeo & Juliet”. In “The Dead Kings” DLC, he at least learns to open his heart again, but players have all been wondering for years: why on Earth wasn’t Élise de la Serre the main character instead, since she was the more interesting and capable of the two?

“Assassin’s Creed Valhalla” (2020) Probably because of Ubisoft’s continued pursuit of RPG-ifying “Assassin’s Creed”, but Eivor just doesn’t stand out as their own character a lot of the time. Of course, a lot of this is down to the choices you might make as a player, but still, both versions of Eivor come across as a little too passive even when they’re making huge decisions for the good of Ravensthorpe AND England. It’s not surprising, then, that Basim has become a more crucial character, and was already more fun and interesting than Eivor by the end of the game. This bodes well for “Mirage”, but it does leave Eivor feeling a little un-memorable.

“Assassin’s Creed Rogue” (2014) Instead of making a whole game about Élise, this was the route Ubisoft decided to go down for their Templar-centric release. You play as Shay, brought into the Assassins by his childhood friend Liam, as he becomes disillusioned with the Assassins and their relentless hunt for precursor artifacts. Shay abandons the Brotherhood and signs up with the Templar Order, and all this COULD have been great – had the game been longer. Shay as a character really does suffer from “Rogue’s” short length and development, and more time to flesh out his character would have been welcome. He’s also not helped by the fact many people skipped “Rogue” and know nothing about him.

“Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation” (2012) Like “Rogue”, “Liberation” is a game people might skip, but that would be a mistake, because Aveline is a joy to play as. Though she doesn’t have the depth of some other main characters thanks to “Liberation’s” status as a handheld, she eventually becomes a fun, interesting addition to the line-up. This is especially clear when you compare her with Connor, who was the opposite type of character to Aveline. When you get down to it, Aveline is charming, skilled, and believes in the Assassin cause. More than that, she believes the Assassins shouldn’t JUST follow their Creed, but should help people beyond that, which is what leads her to disobey orders to journey to Chichen Itza.

“Assassin’s Creed III” (2012) He gets a bad rap, but Connor’s a far more nuanced character than you might think. He’s not a charismatic wise-cracker like Ezio was before him; instead, Connor’s thoughtful and intelligent. He starts out by regularly clashing with Achilles, who he believes isn’t doing enough to help, but grows over the course of the game to be empathetic and a skilled warrior. If you play all the Homestead Missions, this part of his character is on full display, as he helps to deliver a baby, plan a wedding, and stand up for the townspeople in the face of colonial armies. Though some lamented the fact his father, Haytham, wasn’t the main character for the whole game, they play off each other well, and Haytham adds a new dynamic to the Assassin-Templar conflict.

“Assassin’s Creed Origins” (2017) Often in “Assassin’s Creed”, we’re shown huge segments of the main character’s life, from childhood up through their training into the present. Not so with Bayek, who has just one, crucial, but tragic event you need to know about to understand who he is: the death of his son, Khemu. Bayek is a powerful warrior, but he also wants to help liberate the people of Egypt almost as much as he wants to avenge his son so that he can rest in peace. And “Origins’” other protagonist, Aya, is perhaps even more interesting than her husband, since she’s the one who gets them tangled up with Cleopatra, Caesar, and the ultimate downfall of the Pharaohs.

#5: The Frye Twins

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“Assassin’s Creed Syndicate” (2015) Though they’re each great characters in their own right, we’re combining Jacob and Evie Frye into one entry because really, you can’t have one without the other. Neither is as charming without the other to bounce off; Jacob’s reckless behavior would be annoying without Evie trying to reign him in, while Evie’s dedication to finding Pieces of Eden and love of rules would make her boring if Jacob wasn’t there to lighten the mood. It’s their relationship and eventual falling out that drives the entire plot of “Syndicate”, with Evie left cleaning up Jacob’s messes as they try to defeat Crawford Starrick in their own ways. But, of course, they have to work together to finally win.

“Assassin’s Creed” franchise (2007-) If you only played the first game, you might be surprised to see Altaïr rank so highly. He’s iconic, sure, but he’s not a great character; he’s belligerent and pompous, though he does grow a little throughout the game. It’s in the other games, however, that Altaïr becomes a character truly worthy of respect. We see the rest of his life play out in “Revelations”, but he also gets far more development in his two spin-offs, “Altaïr’s Chronicles” for the DS and “Bloodlines” for the PSP. He becomes a complex figure, balancing his family with ex-Templar Maria with his dedication to keeping the Assassins on track. It looks like Ubisoft took the criticism of him being an uninteresting main character seriously in subsequent entries.

“Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag” (2013) The lovable rogue started out as one kind of character, but eventually grew into someone much more impressive. At the beginning, Edward’s a classic pirate, motivated by greed and a desire to rebel against the King. He makes friends with history’s most notorious thieves but, as the story goes on, loses them one by one. Eventually, Edward sees the error in his ways and the worthiness of the Assassin cause, becoming a legendary, Master Assassin. He’s popular because he was fun and his character development felt genuine, not to mention how fascinating it was to see the man who raised Haytham.

“Assassin’s Creed Odyssey” (2018) From the moment she debuted in “Odyssey’s” early trailers, Kassandra was a hit. Not only did gamers around the world immediately fall in love with her, but she proved herself to be a great character in her own right, balancing the RPG dialogue options with having a consistent personality. Though she kills for coin, she’s always charming no matter the dialogue options you pick, and a perfect person to spend such a long game playing as. As for her counterpart, Alexios, he’s great as well, but we think he makes a much better Deimos, far more enjoyable when he’s antagonizing his long-lost sister.

“Assassin’s Creed” franchise (2007-) Hands down, even over a decade after we last saw him in a game, Ezio remains the most popular Assassin in the franchise. We got to see his entire life playout, including his birth at the beginning of “AC II”, as he then grew beyond his need for vengeance to embrace the tenets of the Brotherhood. He leads the Assassins in retaking Rome from the corrupt Borgias, and eventually leaves Italy to save Altaïr’s legacy from the Templars in Masyaf. It's rare that we get to see an entire character’s life in a video game series, with “Revelations” wrapping up Ezio’s story as he decides to finally settle down and start a family. He’s popular for a reason, after all.