I'm not one to make a post dedicated to D-riding a videogame. But honestly, Origins is such a gem, and such an under appreciated game - both within the AC franchise, and among videogames as a whole - I have to lay out my case.

I truthfully believe that Origins belongs in a rare category of videogames that are TRUE passion projects; the same category as an RDR2, quite frankly.

The Map's Character

Perhaps it was the extra year in production, perhaps it was a 1 in a million passionate team with the perfect storm of good ideas... but it's clear to me that Origins achieved something no other AC has or likely will again. It's not just that the map is beautiful. It's the character it has; the meaningful role each region plays as a backdrop to Bayek's revenge journey, as we travel through the world and progress the story forward. The map isn't just a massively sized conglomeration of disjointed cities and landmarks, with a few key areas for story missions to take place. The open world is a direct reflection of the story.

Each new region Bayek discovers has its own unique characteristics that reflect its cultural identity, its local struggles, and the key personalities residing there. Each region's unique landscape, architecture and character perfectly reflect the story unfolding in that region, while setting the mood and vibe for the player in a way that is unbelievably meaningful and engaging. The maps feels alive, truly.

In Giza, you don't just see the great Pyramids, appreciate the view, take a few screenshots, explore a bit, then get back to the story. The Pyramids don't feel like a distant prop to admire in passing before traversing onwards to the unrelated storyline. No, the Pyramids are part of the story. You feel like you belong there; because you do - Bayek's first kill was inside that Pyramid. Bayek has important and emotional dialogue as you explore the region and its tombs... reminding you that it's part of Bayek's story, to be wherever you are on the map at any given time.

By simply following the natural progression of the story, the regions and locations you encounter become canon. The NPC dialogue around you is relevant to the story and culture in the region, which you can participate and interact with. The way you begin hearing rumblings shortly after leaving Siwa, of a city called Letopolis which offers a "fresh start"... only to later hear the rumblings mention you have to dig up your own home. Only through pursuing nearby side quests will a series of suspicious twists ultimately lead you to Letopolis, where you discover a city that is, in fact, half buried by the desert sands.

While you're free roaming there, you're not putting the story on hold... you truly get the sense that the world continues to exist with or without you, as each location is afflicted with its own struggles and challenges. You can learn more about the story by listening in to locals gossip - all with the backdrop of a loud announcer advertising the cities splendor to new arrivals. Like, the world is alive, and slowly reveals itself to be more alive and reactive to your actions than you realize at first.

It's perhaps the only game other than RDR2 wherein free roam exploration truly FEELS canon; a meaningful & necessary unfolding of the story. As if even the smallest moments - like slowly walking through a field of flowers, riding your camel through the desert at sunset, or taking in the view atop old temple ruins - are canon moments in Bayek's story that meaningfully conclude whichever quest you just completed, or seguay into whichever quest you choose next. Unlike Odyssey or Valhalla, wherein exploring the world makes you feel like you've put the story on hold and have all the major characters sitting somewhere waiting for you... Origins makes it feel like you're bringing the storyline with you everywhere you go. Like every second you spend exploring that beautifully crafted region, riding your camel through the desert, or watching the stars at night while reflecting on promises made to your lost son, is meaningful.

Sense of Boundless Scope

Now I want to talk about something that else Origins does better than any game in the franchise: the map, and its illusion of size. While the smallest map of the RPG series, it's still a massive map that is put together perfectly. I'd argue that it's the most well designed map in open world gaming history. Even if you're someone like me - who can't STOP themselves from meticulously analyzing the map (textures, architecture, borders, etc) under a microscope until I've irreversibly ruined the illusion for myself - AC Origins somehow manages to maintain that illusion of being massive and boundary-less for 100s of hours.

The boundaries simply don't feel restrictive. They never come into play; they're never on your mind while playing. They never block your path unexpectedly, like they do in Syndicate or Unity when you make a wrong turn and hit an invisible wall. It's part of why Origins feels so massive - they handled map borders perfectly. The North, East and West borders are all a long ways out into natural landscapes, that appear to go on endlessly. It makes the player decide on their own "I don't want to go any further this way, it's boring, there's nothing out here", while still maintaining the illusion that we COULD have.

I mean, the northern border is out at sea. It's far enough out that you can explore plenty of the sea before hitting the wall, and the ships (only source of activity/fun) thin out quickly. So you'll only hit that border if you're intent on trying to.

The Eastern border is established by the Nile River. What the player sees across the nile looks like endless, boring, barren land. And you'd have to cross a wide, bland-looking river to do so which is time consuming & boring. That alone is enough to discourage most players from going further. Yet even so, the developers STILL made the entire Nile explorable, along with approximately 20-100 meters of the barren land across it - just to uphold the illusion of boundless space in the off chance someone wants to cross it.

Then the Southern border is deep in the desert. What you see beyond the map limit is endless desert, and in order to get to the limit, you have to ride through endless desert. There is PLENTY of desert to explore without feeling compelled to continue riding in a straight line for the 10 minutes it takes to reach the map's limit.

I really appreciate the way Origins handled placing invisible walls around its map while making it look and feel as though there are no borders. They exist, and I know they do - but their limitations don't feel imposed; instead I feel like I'm simply choosing not to go any farther in that direction because there's no reason to and all the action's over here.

Misc Shit That makes Origins better than any other AC

To close, there are so many other elements that make the world of Origins feel alive, in ways the previous and subsequent games can't. It almost feels as if life goes on without me, and doesn't care that I'm there:

Enemy soldiers and bandits will engage in combat with rebels all over the map at all times - even if it means disrupting me mid-mission. Rebels could raid a bandit camp, and take out the captain before I even arrive. Wild animals can attack my allies at any time, completely unscripted while following an ally for a quest. Dust storms form in the desert and follow set paths, at set speeds - with incredible draw distances. Meaning massive dust storms actually happen out in the desert while I'm far from it and not even pointing the camera that direction - while functioning exactly the same as they would if I were there.

-Combat is fluid and responsive. No long animations that hijack my control over my character for seconds at a time; I press a button, I see Bayek throw a single strike on my TV screen. I can hold a specific "shield" button, during which time Bayek keeps his shield up and ready. While doing so, if I press RB, he will parry (or wack the enemy if close enough). Arrows shot at me while holding my shield up will be blocked. Releasing the shield button briefly will cause Bayek to yank the arrows off his shield and keep them. Overpower attacks are different for each weapon class, and super satisfying with sickle swords.

-Using a sword, I can lunge in with a strike, notice my opponent is striking, immediately cancel my strike before it lands, backstep just outside the range of his strike, then bounce back in and stab him. All with perfect responsiveness. The only "animations" that play out are finishers - but those are brief, to the point, and predictable.

-YOU CAN ENGAGE IN REALISTIC, comprehensive horse combat, with a surprisingly deep and strategic meta. While on a horse you can block with a shield, shoot bows, swing an axe/long range weapon - which, if using a charged attack and timed just right as an enemy passes you going the opposite direction, will knock your opponent off their horse. Meanwhile Mirage (2023) has zero - ZERO - horse combat. Or desert hallucinations. Or shields. Or dust storms. Or hunting.

Conclusion

I just... never get my immersion broken by anything I see on my screen playing Origins. I never feel limited by the boundaries. I never get upset by what I see when I "peek behind the curtain"; be it inspecting textures in photo mode, or the way the world reacts to my actions. The combat is the best in any game. The hunting and material crafting system is the most extensive, detailed, and well designed in any AC game.

Is Origins the GOAT of AC franchise? And am I right in saying it belongs in the same lofty category of games as RDR2? Let me know your thoughts.