Assassin’s Creed Timeline, Explained

It’s not uncommon for a long-running franchise to jump back and forth between timelines. So, the fact that Assassin’s Creed hasn’t always stuck to a chronological order makes sense. The first game was released in 2007. Since then, we’ve had 14 mainline titles and 17 spin-offs, culminating in a total of 31 Assassin’s Creed games. 

Across the series, the timeline has covered thousands of years, since the first humans were created to the modern age. Most games have been diligent enough to abide by actual historical events, as well as focus on a specific time period. This allows us to align the games from the earliest events in history to the latest. 

It won’t be easy, though. So, we’ve narrowed it down to the mainline titles. These are the games that matter the most to the storyline, adding to the lore and protagonists. With this in mind, buckle up as we explore the complete Assassin’s Creed timeline below. 

14. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (2018)

Technically, the story of Assassin’s Creed begins with the creation of humanity during the Isu era. This was over 75,000 years ago (75,000 BCE) and the one juncture in the franchise where the story takes a more fantastical turn.

Mostly shrouded in mystery, we do know that the Isu were god-like beings who created humanity to serve them as slaves. The Isu kept humans in check using the Apples of Eden, which are just one of the powerful artifacts the Isu used to dominate the world. However, Adam and Eve stole the Apple of Eden, triggering a decade-long war between the Isu and humans. And then came the solar flare that destroyed the Isu. Only a few humans survived the blast, thereafter taking over the world.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey picks up in the 431 to 422 time period. The Peloponnesian War between Sparta and Athens in Ancient Greece is in full swing. Mercenary Kassandra is searching for her long-lost brother, Alexios, who was kidnapped by the Cult of Kosmos. During her mission, Kassandra uncovers juicy cosmic secrets about their descendant. She also discovers that the Cult of Kosmos is using an Isu device to manipulate the war. You then set forth to thwart the Cult’s plans and destroy the Isu device, thus bringing an end to the war. 

13. Assassin’s Creed Origins (2017)

In the time period between 49 and 43 BC, we explore ancient Egypt in Assassin’s Creed Origins. It starts off with Bayek of Siwa and his wife, Aya, losing their son and embarking on a quest for revenge against the Order of the Ancients. However, they soon discover that the Order of the Ancients is a globe-spanning, shadowy organization in cahoots with the Cult of Kosmos. This is the organization that evolves to become the Templar Order, the main antagonists of the Assassin’s Creed franchise. 

By the 14th century, the Order of the Ancients, simply the Order, had grown so powerful, thanks to collaborations with powerful historical figures like Julius Caesar and Cleopatra, and by finding and using Isu’s powerful artifacts to enact control.

Their staggering power and influence led to Bayek and Aya forming the Hidden Ones. This is the initial name for the Assassin Brotherhood, who are a group of spies and assassins first operating in Egypt and Rome and dedicated to bringing down the Order and protecting humanity from injustice using stealth, combat, and assassinations of tyrannists. 

12. Assassin’s Creed Mirage (2023)

Assassin’s Creed Mirage then takes us to 850 AD, featuring Basim, a street thief recruited into The Hidden Ones. He’s tasked with investigating The Order of the Ancients, who he discovers are plotting a raid on an Isu temple beneath Alamut. But Basim will go on to play an even bigger role in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, after discovering that he’s a reincarnation of Isu Loki. 

11. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (2020)

Connecting Assassin’s Creed Mirage to Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is Basim’s travels with a Viking clan to England to track down more members of the Order of the Ancients. This entry takes place between 872 and 878 AD, featuring a more Norse mythological storyline.

It seamlessly integrates the conflict between the Hidden Ones and the Order of the Ancients with the Vikings’ clan move from a derelict Norway into more fertile lands in England. We also discover the clan’s leader and his sibling are reincarnations of Isu Odin and Tyr, which instigates further interpersonal drama.

10. Assassin’s Creed (2007)

Assassin’s Creed may have been the first game in the franchise. However, it takes place in 1191 AD during the Third Holy Crusade. The Hidden Ones have now evolved into the Assassin Brotherhood. The Order of Ancients, too, has evolved into the Knights Templar.

Despite the name change, the two organizations are still at war. The powerful artifacts of Eden also play a big role in the conflict, with the Templar using the Apple to enact control and the Assassin Brotherhood working to stop their plans. At center stage is Altair, spearheading the fight against the Templars and the thwarting of a deeper conspiracy within the Assassin Brotherhood.

9. Assassin’s Creed 2 (2009)

Following in the franchise’s M.O., the 1476 to 1499 AD time period in Assassin’s Creed 2 sees a fan-favorite protagonist, Ezio, joining the Assassin Brotherhood. He seeks revenge against the Templar Order for the loss of his father and brother. But his quest for vengeance leads him down a more convoluted path that ends with going up against the Pope himself.

8. Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood (2010)

Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood picks up where Assassin’s Creed 2 left off, taking place between 1499 and 1507 AD. Still in the Italian Renaissance era, Ezio regrets his decision to spare the Pope’s life. His show of mercy backfires when the Papal army retaliates, killing most of Ezio’s group of Assassins.

He’s then forced to rebuild the Assassin Brotherhood, which raises him up the ranks in the Italian Bureau. In the end, Ezio leads the Assassins against the Templars’ regime in Rome and reclaims the Apple of Eden, storing it safely away in an Isu vault beneath the Roman Colosseum. 

7. Assassin’s Creed Revelations (2011)

Wrapping up the Ezio trilogy is Assassin’s Creed Revelations. It takes place between 1511 and 1512 AD, when Ezio seeks to learn more information that will empower the Assassin Brotherhood.

At the Assassin Brotherhood headquarters, Ezio gains access to a library built by Altair, thus connecting the two Assassin’s Creed protagonists’ storylines. His findings lead him nowhere, though, as now long-dead Altair warns Ezio of an obsessive pursuit of knowledge. In the end, Ezio retires and passes away. 

6. Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2025)

At present, Assassin’s Creed: Shadows is the latest entry in the franchise. But certainly not the latest in the timeline. Taking place in 1579 AD during feudal Japan, we meet protagonists Fujibayashi Naoe, a Shinobi, and Yasuke, an African Samurai.

Naoe seeks revenge for the loss of her father, Nagato, while Yasuke survived a slave ship attack and now serves a powerful Lord Oda Nobunaga. Their paths intertwine, firstly as enemies and then uniting with a shared goal, while also becoming entangled in the conflict between Assassins and Templars.

5. Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag (2013)

As the name suggests, Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag branches off into the Golden Age of Piracy. Specifically, between 1715 and 1722 AD. Starring pirate lord Edward Kenway, he kills an Assassin and takes their place, where he learns the Templars’ possession of a powerful Isu machine.

Kenway then goes searching for the machine, keen to use it for his own personal gain. But his mission becomes more convoluted with betrayal and revenge. In the end, Kenway takes down the Templars and returns home to live with his daughter and son. 

4. Assassin’s Creed Rogue (2014)

In Assassin’s Creed Rogue, Edward Kenway’s son, Haytham Kenway, joins the Templars, his path intertwining with protagonist Shay Patrick Cormac in 1752 to 1776 AD. Shay’s own story is quite unique, having first been a member of the Assassin Brotherhood, before killing most of his sect and joining the Templars.

3. Assassin’s Creed 3 (2012)

Haytham Kenway’s son, Ratonhnhaké:ton, also known as Connor Kenway, then picks up the story in Assassin’s Creed 3. It’s 1754 to 1783 AD, during the American Revolution, and Connor joins the Assassin Brotherhood to seek revenge against his mother’s murder.

While Connor tries to find a workaround where the Templars and Assassins are at peace, his estranged father refuses, forcing Connor to kill his father. 

2. Assassin’s Creed Unity (2014)

Assassin’s Creed Unity takes place between 1776 and 1800 AD and stars Arno Dorian, son of Charles Dorian, who is one of Assassin’s Creed Rogue’s Shay’s victims. He was adopted as a child by François de la Serre, who was murdered, for which he was framed.

Arno joins the Assassin Brotherhood, seeking revenge for his adoptive father’s death, but winds up tied in the never-ending Assassin-Templar conflict.

1. Assassin’s Creed Syndicate (2015)

And finally, we have Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, taking place in 1868 AD. It stars recently orphaned twins, Assassins Jacob and Evie Fyre. They embark on a mission against the Templars, foiling their control in London while searching for another powerful Isu device, The Shroud.

Jacob becomes the leader of the London Assassin Brotherhood while Evie hunts down serial killer, Jack the Ripper. At other points in the story, we shift to World War I, featuring Lydia Fyre, Jacob’s granddaughter, on a mission investigating a German spy facility harbored by Templars.

Modern Storylines

Let’s not forget the modern-day storylines, taking place between 1914 and 2012 in the 20th and 21st centuries. Generally, the mainline titles follow the modern-day storylines linearly. They follow Desmond Miles, a descendant of prominent Assassins, and Layla Hassan. 

In the first five games, i.e., Assassin’s Creed 1, 2, Brotherhood, Revelations, and 3, the Templars form Abstergo Industries in 1937, a pharmaceutical company front that continues to exert control in the world. In the late 1970s, the Templars developed Animus, a powerful machine that can relive ancestors’ memories. The Templars want to use Animus to tap into the past to control the future. However, Desmond Miles wants to use it to stop the “2012 phenomenon” apocalyptic event. 

From Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag to Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, Abstergo Industries manages to record genetic memories using the Helix software. Both Templars and Assassins fight to use it to locate the powerful Isu devices.

Assassin’s Creed Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla follow a new protagonist, ex-Abstergo employee, Layla Hassan, who discovers the possibility of using DNA samples to relive memories. She then uses the mummified remains of legends like Bayek, Aya, Kassandra, Basim, etc., attempting to relive their memories and save humanity from yet another disaster.