Assassin’s Creed Story Explained
What Is the Modern-Day Story in Assassin’s Creed?
Understand how the Animus and present-day framing connect Assassin’s Creed’s historical adventures, and why release order matters for that story.
The short answer
The modern-day story is the framing narrative that connects Assassin's Creed's historical memories. The Animus lets present-day characters explore memories from the past, while the wider conflict and discoveries continue outside those historical settings. That is why historical chronology and release order can tell two different stories: the past may move backward and forward in time while the modern-day narrative progresses through the series.[1][3]
Explains the structure of the modern-day narrative without summarizing major endings or late-game revelations.
Why does Assassin's Creed have a modern-day story?
The Animus is the bridge between the historical adventure and the present-day framing story. Ubisoft describes it as a device for exploring genetic memories and calls it central to Assassin's Creed's modern-day narrative.[1]
The historical protagonist is therefore only one layer of the experience. The person accessing those memories, the reason those memories matter, and what is learned from them can continue across games even when the historical century changes.
Why does release order matter more for the modern-day plot?
Ubisoft's own play-order guidance distinguishes historical chronology from the sequence in which the games were released and their framing stories were introduced. If the modern-day narrative is your priority, release order preserves those introductions more reliably than sorting only by the century of the historical memory.[3]
A game set earlier in history can still occur later in the modern-day framing narrative. This is the main reason an all-history chronological list should not be treated as the only correct Assassin's Creed order.
Where does the modern-day story live now?
Ubisoft's Animus Hub is now part of the franchise's approach to the modern-day layer. Ubisoft says the Hub uses a Dark Animus environment, contains Modern Day content, and is intended to keep developing the meta story alongside future Assassin's Creed games.[1][2]
That makes the framing narrative easier to think of as an ongoing layer across the franchise rather than a single historical protagonist's subplot.
Do you need to understand the modern-day story before playing a newer game?
Not always. A historical adventure can still be approachable on its own, but skipping earlier framing material means accepting that some present-day context may arrive without its original introduction. Decide whether the modern-day thread is part of what you want from the series.
See how the Assassin's Creed games connect
Choose an Assassin's Creed starting point
Compare historical placement with the full Assassin's Creed guide
Sources & verification
Fact-checked on 12 October 2026 against Ubisoft sources. The article intentionally avoids a spoiler-heavy recap of every modern-day plot event.
- Ubisoft: Welcome to the Animus Hub
Defines the Animus Hub, explains the Animus as a storytelling device, and confirms Modern Day content in the Hub and games.
Primary source · Checked - Ubisoft: The Future of Assassin's Creed
Explains Ubisoft's plan to house the franchise meta story in the hub alongside games.
Primary source · Checked - Ubisoft: How to Play the Assassin's Creed Games in Order
Supports the distinction between historical chronology, release sequence and modern-day connections.
Primary source · Checked