Sure, Assassin’s Creed Mirage goes back to the roots of what made the series so great, trading out the oversized world of Valhalla for a slimmed-down, more authentic recreation of 9th-century Baghdad, but for me the best thing about the game is the cats. Small and fluffy, or skinny and sassy, there’s a feline for everyone in AC Mirage – but if you miss out on this unmarked side-quest, they’ll be one less little black cat to brighten your day.
Baghdad houses an awful lot of quests in Assassin’s Creed Mirage, but it turns out that some of the best ones actually aren’t marked out. It’s part of the vibrancy that we discussed in our Assassin’s Creed Mirage review, which makes the RPG game feel more alive than it’s seemingly endless predecessors.
One of these quests is activated during ‘Like Father, Like Son,’ where Basim is tasked with collecting flowers for a bereaved widow. While you’re out collecting the flowers, you can hear a slightly panicked meowing. Follow it, and you’ll find a tiny black cat, who lures Basim down the rabbit hole on a new adventure. If you’d rather find out what happens on your own, then I suggest looking away right now; there’s minor spoilers.
It transpires that the creature’s route is blocked by a series of angry snakes. Kill them, and you’ll lead the cat to a nearby farm where its owner greets you wordlessly. Sure, there’s no rewards on offer unlike the marked side-quests, but the flip side is you just saved a kitten. Job well done, I’d say.
It’s these tiny things that make Mirage’s world stand out from the series’ most recent entries. In Valhalla, side-quests felt like a chore given the sheer size and scope of the game. The vibrancy and life that defined the original games simply got lost amid the snow and rain, swallowed up by an open world that was just too big.
I’m really thankful Ubisoft has kicked that format with Mirage – Baghdad looks and feels like a real place, filled with fascinating stories just waiting to be told. That’s exactly what I want from an Assassin’s Creed game.
If you’re willing to put your life on the line to save a kitten, you’ll want the best Assassin’s Creed Mirage weapons in tow to ensure that you really give those snakes hell. It also helps to have the best Assassin’s Creed Mirage skills locked in, too – those vipers won’t know what hit ’em.