With yet another installment of the Assassins Creed franchise set to hit pre-Christmas shelves this November, it is safe to credit developers Ubisoft Montréal with creating a successful series. Since the first game was released in 2007 the brand has been ever expanding, Revelations will become the fourth chapter in the main series. There have been four other games released into the handheld market, and even a promotional Facebook game, as well as several graphic novels depicting further adventures of the Creed. Ubisoft have managed to build this franchise within a short period of time, but the series certainly did not start off this well. The first title in the series, the aptly named; Assassins Creed, was met with generally positive reviews, but undoubtedly had its faults. To label the game as mediocre would be harsh, but it was uncertain at the time whether it would warrant a sequel. The large investments that modern games demand, mean that developing a game is a risky business. A relatively modern trend within the games industry has seen companies planning large muti-platform franchises from scratch. Based on the idea that sequels sell, game companies plan a series before creating the first title. Assassins Creed is a series designed to allow Ubisoft the option of creating an endless number of sequels. Initially the format for the Assassins Creed games appeared to be an odd choice of story telling. Developing a rich and immersive open world, the designers used the concept that the game-world is a projection through the memories of the protagonists modern day ancestor. This detached the player from the game world. It quickly became clear, with the games sequels, that this was a device that allowed the games story to take place at any point in history, while allowing the games narrative to continue unharmed. The modern day relative can simply access a different generation and continue adventures within a time period of their choice. This insures that Ubisoft can cash in on the Creeds success for years to come. The Dead Space series is an example of planning a franchise, but with this horror shooter, publishers EA expanded the series with the quick release of films and comics, used to flesh out the games story. The first-person shooter Killzone managed to be granted a sequel long after its 2004 release, proving that sequels sell, even if the first game was not great. There have also been several franchises that began poorly but have continued regardless of there initial lack of success. Kane and Lynch: Dead Men, received mixed reviews on its release, yet the third-person shooter was rewarded with a sequel; Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days, which is arguably worse that its predecessor. Proving that publishers Eidos Interactive had big plans for the series from the start, is the forthcoming screen adaptation of the struggling franchise. With heavy weights of Hollywood; Bruce Willis and Jamie Foxx onboard, the film Kane and Lynch is currently set for release in 2013. As the success of the games was perhaps over estimated, it remains to be seen whether Kane and Lynch will have enough momentum to make a name for themselves on the big screen. Whether the games are successful or not, the trend in planning franchises by large publishers shows no sign of ending. If this method of game development creates more quality games such as Assassin's Creed, then this is undoubtedly a positive effect on the game industry.
